Pre-Health Timelines

The application process for health professions schools can be lengthy and intensive. Applicants formally begin the process during the Fall semester one and a half years prior to when they plan to matriculate to health professional school. This means that an applicant hoping to matriculate to medical or dental school in the spring of 2027 will start by attending a workshop in the Fall semester of 2025.

For students who are planning on applying, the first step is to attend our “Am I Ready to Apply?” interactive workshop in October. We’ll help you do a self-assessment on your preparedness.

Below are images created to help students (and their supporters) better understand the timeline when applying for Pre-Medical, Pre-PA and Pre-Dental health professional programs.

Pre-Med Junior + Senior Year:

The “traditional” timeline sets students up to enter health professional school after four years of undergraduate education, with no break or “growth year.” This timeline requires that students take the MCAT no later than April of their junior year, apply to schools May/June between their junior and senior year, and stay engaged in the application process over the course of the next year. Matriculation to an applicant’s chosen program occurs in August following graduation from URI.

This is the least common timeline amongst applicants nationally. See below for a detailed outline:

Pre-Med Senior Year + Growth Year(s)

The growth year timeline sets students up to take purposeful time between the end of their undergraduate career and the start of health professional school. This is the more common timeline for the majority of medical matriculants nationally.

The amount of time one takes prior to matriculation to professional school is dependent on one’s own circumstances; this timeline sets prospective applicants up to at least take one, if not more, growth or gap years. An applicant who plans to take one year between the end of undergraduate education and the start of graduation education will apply the summer after their senior year of college.

Pre-PA Senior + Growth Year:

Pre-PA Growth Year(s)

Pre-Dental Junior + Senior Year

The “traditional” timeline sets students up to enter health professional school after four years of undergraduate education, with no break or “growth year.” This timeline requires that students take the DAT no later than May of their junior year, apply to schools June/July between their junior and senior year, and stay engaged in the application process over the course of the next year. Matriculation to an applicant’s chosen program occurs the summer following graduation from URI.