Admissions Requirements

Admission into the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine is selective.  Each year, TCOM admits students from a pool of well-qualified applicants.  The Office of Admissions and Outreach, located in the Student Service Center, 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.

The Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national origin, age or disabilities, and religion in its application and admissions processes.

To be considered for admission to the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program at the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine, an applicant must meet the minimum academic and entrance examination requirements.

Course Prerequisites
A minimum of 90 semester credit hours (or an equivalent number of quarter hours) towards a bachelor’s degree 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.  In addition, the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (TCOM) has established the following prerequisite course requirements for admission.

Courses completed through a pass/fail option will not count towards meeting a prerequisite requirement.

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 a 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.

Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) Examination
All applicants are required to take the MCAT, which is administered throughout the year. Information on the MCAT may be obtained online.

 

Admissions 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. Early applications are strongly encouraged. The primary application can be completed and submitted electronically through the TMDSAS web site at: http://www.tmdsas.com. The processing of an application may be delayed if either the grades from 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 three (3) 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. Applicants are encouraged to submit a letter of recommendation from an osteopathic physician familiar with the applicant; the physician may submit this recommendation directly to TCOM.

Secondary Application
TCOM requires completion of its own web-based secondary application that is completed and submitted.

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

 

Admissions Committee Evaluation
TCOM uses a holistic review to admit a diverse class with the academic credentials and humanistic qualifications to become skilled osteopathic physicians dedicated to patient care and service to their communities.

Applicants who are recommended for admission by the committee are assigned a score. The applicant’s score is the mean among those members who scored the application. 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 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 the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Applicants who are recommended for admission by the committee are forwarded to the Dean for approval.  The Dean may approve or may place an applicant on hold for future consideration.  Applicants who are held are placed on the wait list but are not offered admission until the hold is released.

 

This page was last modified on April 29, 2019