Admissions

E-mail: TCOMAdmissions@unthsc.edu
Phone: 817-735-2204 or 800-535-TCOM
Fax: 817-735-2225
Website: http://www.hsc.unt.edu/

Admission into the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (TCOM) is selective. Each year, TCOM admits approximately 230 new students from a pool of well-qualified applicants. The Office of Admissions and Outreach, located in Medical Education Training Building on the third floor, provides advising, tours, application processing, and other related assistance. TCOM encourages future applicants to use these services in order to assist them in making informed decisions about pursuing a career in osteopathic medicine.

Admission Requirements

To be considered for admission to the Doctor Osteopathy (DO) degree program at TCOM, an applicant must meet the minimum academic and entrance examination requirements.

A minimum of three years of college (90 semester hours or the equivalent number of quarter hours) from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university (or Canadian equivalent) is required. Strong preference will be given to applicants who earn a bachelor’s degree before matriculation. The following college-level prerequisite course work is required for admission:

• Biology: (at least 12 credits of course work and 2 credits of laboratory course work) Includes all Biology courses applied toward a baccalaureate degree in a traditional science field. This includes courses in General Biology, Zoology, Botany, Microbiology, Anatomy and Physiology, Entomology, Pathophysiology, Marine Biology, and Herpetology. Courses for non-science or health career majors (Nursing, Pharmacy or Allied Health) are not acceptable towards the prerequisite requirements. Courses in Human Physiology and Anatomy, Cellular and Molecular Biology, and Microbiology are highly recommended.
• Chemistry: (a minimum of 6 credit hours work and 2 credits of laboratory course work) These must be courses that are applied toward a baccalaureate degree in any traditional science field. These courses should provide familiarity with analytic and volumetric techniques. Inorganic courses include: General Chemistry, Physical Chemistry, and Quantitative Analysis. Courses for non-science or health career majors (Nursing, Pharmacy or Allied Health) are not acceptable towards the prerequisite requirements.
• Organic Chemistry: (a minimum of 6 credit hours work and 2 credits of laboratory course work) These must be courses that are applied toward a baccalaureate degree in any traditional science field. Organic courses must have “Organic” in the course title. Courses for non-science or health related career majors (Nursing, Pharmacy, or Allied Health) are not acceptable towards the prerequisite requirements.
• Physics: (a minimum of 6 credit hours of course work and 2 credits of laboratory course work) This includes all physics courses applied toward a baccalaureate degree in any traditional science field. Courses for non-science or health career majors (Nursing, Pharmacy or Allied Health) are not acceptable toward the prerequisite requirements.
• Statistics: (a minimum of 3 semester credit or 5 quarter credit course) Course may be taken in any academic discipline; course content should include descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, sampling techniques, measures of relationship, regression models and other tests for significance. Course must be completed prior to matriculation.
• English: (two 3-credit courses) Any course accredited (approved) by the English Department that fulfills the general education English requirement of a baccalaureate degree will meet this requirement. Remedial or developmental courses or “English as a Second Language” courses are not acceptable.
• Foreign Coursework: Applicants must complete at least 90 undergraduate credit hours at a regionally accredited U.S. college or university (or Canadian equivalent). Transfer credit from a school outside the U.S. or Canada may apply to this requirement only if the individual courses appear on the transcript of an accredited U.S. or Canada college or university - lump sum credit is not allowed. Transfer credit from a school outside the U.S. or Canada will not apply to the prescribed course requirement. State law requires that academic work taken at foreign colleges, universities or preparatory schools be excluded from the calculation of the grade point average for students seeking admission to graduate or post-baccalaureate professional school.

The Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT)

While any MCAT taken within the past five years will be considered, the Admissions Committee places greater weight on those taken within the past three years. The MCAT is administered nationwide throughout the year.

To register for the MCAT, visit:
https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/

Admission Procedures

TCOM requires both a primary and secondary application. Only completed applications are considered for admission. Applicants should carefully read all of the information about the process.

Primary Application

TCOM participates in the Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service (TMDSAS) located in Austin, Texas. TMDSAS accepts applications between May 1 and October 1 of the year prior to matriculation. Early applications are strongly encouraged. The primary application can be completed and submitted electronically through the TMDSAS web site at: http://www.tmdsas.com/ApplyTMDSAS. The processing of an application may be delayed if either the grades from prerequisite courses or the MCAT scores are not included at the time of application.

Official transcripts from all prior college-level course work and MCAT scores must also be submitted to the application service. In addition, TMDSAS requires that an applicant’s premedical/health professions advisory committee submit a written evaluation directly to the service. Letters from two (2) people who are familiar with an applicant may satisfy this requirement if no advisory committee is available. The letters should be from faculty members and/or an advisor who can assess the applicant’s suitability for medical school.

For more information, please contact:
Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service
P.O. Box 2175
Austin, TX 78768
Email: info@tmdsas.com
Phone: 512-499-4785
Fax: 512-499-4786

https://www.tmdsas.com/ApplyTMDSAS

Secondary Application

TCOM requires completion of its own web-based secondary application that is completed and submitted electronically through a link on the website at http://my.hsc.unt.edu. There is no additional fee for processing this application.

Letter of Evaluation from an Osteopathic Physician

Applicants are also strongly encouraged to submit a letter of evaluation from an osteopathic physician familiar with the applicant (please note - this is recommended but NOT required). The physician may submit this letter of evaluation directly to TCOM if it is not already included in the advisory committee evaluation.

Interviews

Only selected applicants will be invited to interview. Interviews are conducted at the UNT Health Science Center (UNTHSC) located in Fort Worth. Applicants will tour the school and have lunch with current medical students. Interviewees may also sit in on medical school classes held that day.

Applicant Selection

Each year, the Admissions Committee looks for students who demonstrate the greatest promise of becoming skilled osteopathic physicians. Applicants will be evaluated on their personal integrity, compassion, maturity, interpersonal and communication skills, creativity, motivation for and interest in a medical career, the ability to work cooperatively, and dedication to serving others. These qualities and attributes are evaluated by several means, including letters of evaluation, the scope and nature of extracurricular activities, the breadth of education, and personal interviews. All aspects of the academic record, including trends in scholastic performance, are examined. Personal experiences, job history (if applicable), and motivation to become an osteopathic physician are considered.

There is no prejudice for or against any applicant who reapplies for admission. If possible, such applicants are encouraged to identify any deficiencies and rectify them before reapplying. Applicants who are not accepted have the opportunity to review their application with an admissions officer in an effort to identify ways to become more competitive.

Admissions Committee Evaluation

Applicants who meet the qualifications for admission and who are selected for interview are forwarded to the Admissions Committee for evaluation. Committee scores are assigned to each application that is accepted or placed on an alternate list to be reviewed again at a later meeting. Because this score affects the ultimate status of the applicant, careful consideration is given to each applicant when assigning a score.

The score is derived by assessing both the cognitive and non-cognitive values of the applicant. Committee members will submit an individual score for each applicant at the meeting. The applicant’s score is the mean among those members who scored the application. Applicants accepted by the committee will be submitted to the Dean for final approval. Scores range from 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest (Cognitive values: 5, Non-cognitive values: 5). Decimal values may be given. The following variables, while not exhaustive, are assessed when an applicant is scored.

*contributes to the diversity of the class includes race, ethnicity, or any other unique personal life experience(s), including but not limited to experience abroad, foreign language skills, hardships and adversities overcome, community service, or previous career experience that will enrich the educational environment of TCOM.

Selection Process Time-line

TCOM processes applications based on procedures agreed upon by the participating medical schools in TMDSAS. Texas resident applicants, who are not applying through the Early Decision Program (EDP) or DO/PhD Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), will be notified of their admission through one of three periods:

Pre-Match Admissions

Selected applicants will be notified between November 15-December 31 on a rolling basis.

Match Admissions

Applicants who interviewed, but did not receive an offer of admission through Pre-Match Admissions, may be considered for the February 2 Medical School Admissions Match.

Rolling Admissions

Applicants who were not admitted on or before February 2 may be placed on the wait list and considered for admission as seats in the class become available.