Introduction
Southern California is home to many places, including the Keck School of Medicine of USC. This unique medical school began with humble roots as a county hospital in 1885. Now one of the nation’s leading hospitals, Keck School of Medicine of USC focuses on preventative healthcare, promoting health and advancing research.
Keck Medicine is the oldest medical school in Southern California. With its roots comes experience and awards. In 1970, USC Medical School opened the first Department of Emergency Medicine in the United States. The school was also the first to introduce “real world patient care” to a medical school’s first-year program.
Today, Keck Medicine stands strongly among California medical schools. The school sees 1,200 students every year and is fully staffed with 1,500 professors and members of faculty. State-of-the-art curriculum with lab experience and early exposure to clinical settings make the USC Medical School an ideal university for many pre-med students.
Does USC Medical School intrigue you? If so, keep reading to learn all about:
- USC Medical programs
- GPA and Grade Requirements
- USC Medical School Acceptance Rate
- Primary and Secondary Applications
- Secondary Essays (with Samples!)
- Preparing for Your Interview
Medical school is a lot to prepare for. That’s why, here at International Medical Aid, we believe that knowledge is power. By providing high-quality information about medical schools across the country, we can help prepare you for the journey ahead. Whether USC Medical School is your reach school or your safety net, we’re here to help you submit the best application possible–both for your primary application and your USC secondary application.
Medical Programs at USC Medical School
USC Keck offers several medical school programs:
- Traditional MD Program
- Doctor of Medicine / Master of Public Health
- Doctor of Medicine / Master of Business Administration
- MD/PhD Program (Physician Scientist Training Program)
Traditional MD Program
Just about every medical school program in the United States offers the traditional Doctor of Medicine program. So, what sets USC Medical School apart? It’s the “Physician – Citizen – Scientist” approach that the school takes. Students should be “outstanding physicians, respected and respectful citizens” and “lifelong scholars.” USC’s vision is “to solve the most intractable health problems afflicting humanity.”
The MD curriculum is as follows:
- Introduction to Medical Sciences I & II
- Introduction to Clinical Medicine
- Longitudinal Learning Communities: Individualized Professional Development
- Health Justice and Systems of Care
- Cardio / Pulmonary / Renal
- GI / Liver / Reproduction
- Brain / Behavior / Movement
- Endocrine
- Integrated Cases
- Step 1 Exam
- Core Clinical Rotations
- Advanced Clinical Experiences & Selectives and Electives – Step 2 Flex
- Scholarly Project
You’ll take the following clerkships:
- Anesthesiology
- Family Medicine
- Internal Medicine
- Neurology
- Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Pediatrics
- Psychiatry
- Surgery
You’ll take the following post-clerkship courses:
- Biomedical Research
- Global Health
- Health Policy & Advocacy
- Medical Education
- Medical Humanities
- Primary Care and Community Engagement
- Health Technology & Innovation
- Clinical Medicine: Practice & Administration
For interested students, there is also a Health Justice certificate. This certification is optional. It is not required to earn your MD degree at USC Medical School. Should you choose to pursue this certificate, you’ll participate in learning sessions throughout the first 30 months of your MD training. You’ll learn the following:
- Implicit bias training
- Theories of justice and human rights
- Health justice ethics
- Cultural humanity
- Health care disparities
- Social determinants of health
- Structural competency
- Structural racism
- Access to care
- Healthcare for homeless populations
- Trauma-informed care
- Adverse childhood events
- Community assessment and mobilization
- Advocacy
Upon successful completion of these learning sessions, you’ll earn your Health Justice certificate.
Doctor of Medicine / Master of Public Health
This dual-degree program is designed for students who have a combined interest in medicine and public health. Students will complete the MD program described above, as well as the Master of Public Health curriculum listed below.
You’ll choose from the following concentrations:
- Community Health Promotion
- Global Health
- Biostatistics-Epidemiology
- Health Services & Policy
You’ll take these core courses:
- Foundations of Public Health
- Practice of Public Health
- Principles of Biostatistics
- Principles of Epidemiology
- Practicum in Public Health
- Capstone in Public Health
For the Community Health Concentration, you’ll take:
- Foundations of Health Education
- Program Design & Evaluation
- Organizing & Mobilizing Communities for Public Health
– and choose one of the following:
–Communications in Public Health
–Program Evaluation & Research
–Intervention Approaches for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
You’ll choose 8 units of electives from this list.
For the Global Health Concentration, you’ll take:
- Introduction to Global Health
- Global Health Research & Programs
– and choose two of the following:
–Overcoming Real World Challenges in Global Health
–Culture & Health: Global Perspectives
–Global Health, Law & Human Rights
You’ll choose 8 units of electives from this list.
For the Biostatistics-Epidemiology Concentration, you’ll take:
- Data Analysis: SAS
- Data Analysis: STATA
– and choose two of the following:
–Infectious Disease Epidemiology
–Environmental Health
–Program Evaluation & Research
–Chronic Disease Epidemiology
You’ll choose 8 units of electives from this list.
For the Health Services & Policy Concentration, you’ll take:
- Health Service Delivery in the U.S.
- Economics for Public Policy
– and choose two of the following:
–Quality in Health Care
–Public Health Services Research Methods
–Public Health Policy & Politics
–Methods for Policy Analysis
Doctor of Medicine / Master of Business Administration
This combined program is ideal for students who are interested in medicine and business. The program is designed to take five years to complete. You’ll complete the MD curriculum and the following MBA coursework:
- Management Communications for Leaders
- Accounting Concepts and Financial Reporting
- Microeconomics for Management
- Managerial Statistics
- Organizational Behavior and Leadership
- Management Accounting
- Contemporary Issues in Competitive Strategy
- Operations Management A
- Marketing Management A
- Corporate Finance A
- The Global Context of Business
- You’ll choose two of the following:
– Operations Management B
– Marketing Management B
– Corporate Finance B
You’ll also complete 24 units of graduate business electives.
MD/PhD Program (Medical Scientist Training Program)
There are a few different routes you can take to earn your MD/PhD degree. The first way is through the Programs in Biomedical and Biological Sciences (PIBBS). You can learn more about this option on USC Medical School’s website.
The Department of Population and Public Health Sciences is another option.
Finally, you can apply to the MD/PhD program. More information is available here.
Residency / Fellowship Programs
For pre-med students who want to become surgeons, the following residency and fellowship programs are available:
- Abdominal Organ Transplantation Program
- Aesthetic Fellowship
- Advanced GI MIS Fellowship Program
- Breast Fellowship Program
- Burn Fellowship Program
- Independent Cardiothoracic Residency Program
- Integrated Cardiothoracic Residency Program
- Colon and Rectal Surgery Residency Program
- Congenital Cardiac Fellowship Program
- Craniofacial Fellowship Program
- General Surgery Residency Program
- Microsurgery Fellowship Program
- Pediatric Fellowship Program
- Plastics Independent Residency Program
- Plastics Integrated Residency Program
- Surgical Critical Care and AAST Fellowship
- Trauma Surgery Fellowship
- Vascular Surgery Residency Program (both Integrated and Independent)
USC Medical School has wonderful programs for pre-med students. Ample information is provided on the USC Medical School website if you have further questions.
Now that we’ve looked at what Keck Medicine has to offer, let’s look at what it takes to get in. What GPA do you need? What about your grades? What is the USC Medical School acceptance rate? Let’s take a look.
Courses, GPA and Grade Requirements
USC Medical School does not have specific requirements for courses. If you’re looking for direction, they recommend visiting the official AMCAS website.
USC Medical School doesn’t require a certain GPA to be considered for admissions. But the average applicant has a GPA of 3.8/4.0. The median MCAT is 517. To put it into perspective, a 523 is the highest you can score on the MCAT. So, these numbers aren’t the highest possible, but they are certainly competitive.
USC Medical School Acceptance Rate
It’s very difficult to get into USC Medical School. Out of 8,181 applications submitted last year, only 186 students were accepted. That’s an average acceptance rate of 2.3%, which is on par with most Ivy League schools.
Primary and Secondary Applications
So, are you ready to apply to Keck Medicine? You’ll begin by filling out your primary application. This is done through the American Medical College Application Service. After you’ve completed your AMCAS, you’ll submit your secondary application. If you’re new to medical school jargon, don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. This article goes in-depth explaining the differences between primary and secondary applications.
Do you want to give your application some extra punch? Do you want a competitive edge that will give you an extra boost? Consider going on a pre-med internship with us. Our pre-med internships offer life-changing experiences to pre-med students who want real-world experience in the medical field.
Now, let’s look at the secondary essays.
Secondary Essays (with Samples!)
You’ll write your personal statement for your AMCAS. But thankfully, you aren’t limited to those 5,300 characters to tell your entire story. USC Medical School asks students to write essays in response to questions that are specific to Keck Medicine. In this section, we’ll go through each essay question, explain how to answer it and provide samples. If you need help along the way, IMA can help with your USC secondary application.
There are four short answer questions that USC Medical School asks. The expectation is for you to answer them in three to five sentences. This can be challenging because it limits how many details you can include. You can write sentences with dependent clauses, but you don’t want to have run-on sentences. You also don’t want sentences that are difficult to read because they’re too long.
Short answer question #1:
“What is the most fun you’ve had lately?”
We recommend sharing something unrelated to medicine. Share an experience where you genuinely had fun. It could be your best friend’s baby shower or a birthday party. Maybe you had a girl’s night or went sightseeing.
Here’s an example:
My mom came into town, and we spent the day together. We ate lunch, went shopping and got mani-pedis. My mom and I have always been close, but I don’t get to see her nearly as often as I used to because she lives three hours away. Spending that time with her was a lot of fun. We made new memories while reminiscing on old ones.
Short answer question #2:
“If you had to give yourself a nickname, what would it be?”
I would nickname myself Hannie. My first name is Hannah. I’ve always liked my name, but the only nickname I’ve ever had is Han. I feel like it’s too simple and not feminine enough. Hannie adds a fun flair to my name while not being too kiddish or silly.
Short answer question #3:
“If you had enormous wealth, how would you allocate your charitable donations?”
I would allocate my charitable donations to the causes that matter most to me and my family. After carefully researching organizations to see how donated funds are used, I would donate to the following causes: Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, autism, spina bifida and breast cancer.
Short answer question #4:
“Describe a situation in which you didn’t get something you felt you deserved.”
At my community college where I earned my associate’s degree, honors were given based on a student’s cumulative GPA. I graduated with a 3.77 GPA and received magna cum laude honors. I earned the same GPA when I went to the private university where I earned my bachelor’s degree. Unfortunately, honors were based on the top 10 percent of students who earned an honor’s GPA. I was not in the top 10 percent because my last name started with an H, which was very disappointing and hard for me to accept.
Then, in 150 words or less, USC Medical School asks:
“What do you see as the physician’s role in Public Health?”
Answering this question is especially important if want to earn an MD/MPH dual degree. But the question is also important for any applicant because public health affects everyone. We recommend focusing on the broad role that a doctor has.
Here’s an example:
I believe that a physician’s most important job is to care for their patients. What goes on in the community affects everyone, whether directly or indirectly. I believe a physician should be aware of the public health issues facing their community. A physician should advise their patients on how those issues could affect them personally.
I believe a physician should teach their patients how to use preventative means to protect themselves from public health risks, as well as how to mitigate risk in their community. Simple things like staying home when sick and practicing social distancing at large events can help public health.
I believe that explaining a patient’s role in public health will further motivate patients to care for themselves and look out for others. When people realize how their actions can impact others, what they do becomes more meaningful. I believe a doctor’s role can significantly impact how their patients view and respond to public health issues.
Finally, in 200 words or less, USC Medical School asks:
“Is there anything else you would like us to know?”
This question is technically optional. But we advise everyone to answer all the questions that are asked. You should use every opportunity you’re given to flesh out your application and show the admissions committee who you are.
You only have 200 words to answer this question, so pick something important to you and write about it concisely. Omit any details that aren’t necessary. If you need any help, reach out to us. IMA offers admissions consulting, which includes help writing your essays. We can help you brainstorm ideas, structure your essay and proofread what you’ve written. Sometimes a second pair of eyes is just what you need.
For this section, it’s appropriate to discuss anything that you want the admissions committee to know. You could explain a gap in your education, how COVID-19 affected you or anything that you haven’t had space for.
Preparing for Your Interview at USC Medical School
Scoring an interview at USC Medical School is a big deal. It means that your application impressed the admissions committee enough to get to know you better. They want to see if you’re a good fit for the school.
Interviews are conducted from August to March and are on a rolling basis until the class is filled. Approximately 186 students are accepted every year. Sending your application in as early as possible is ideal if you want a good shot at getting in.
USC Medical School utilizes the closed file interview format. Having a closed-file interview means that your interviewer doesn’t have access to your AMCAS or secondary application.
This forces the interviewer to get to know you blindly. They might ask basic questions about your education before diving into deeper topics. Were you interview open file, the interviewer would ask detailed questions about your application. The closed file format helps reduce/prevent bias and puts you on an equal footing with the interviewer.
Conclusion
USC Medical School is a fantastic university to attend. If you have more questions about applying to Keck School of Medicine, we recommend reaching out to their admissions department. They’ll be able to provide answers to any specific questions you might have. If you’re applying to a dual-degree program, be sure to check with the admissions department for both degree programs.
While Keck is a great medical school to attend, it should not be the only school to which you apply. The more schools you apply to, the better your chances of getting accepted. For this reason, we recommend applying to several schools. There are great options all over the country, some of which we’ve discussed here on our blog.
- UT Southwestern Medical School
- Long School of Medicine at UT Health San Antonio
- University of the Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine
- UT Austin’s Dell Medical School
- UTMB School of Medicine
- McGovern Medical School at UT Health
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
- McGovern Medical School at UT Health
- The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine
- UNT Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine
- University of Houston College of Medicine
- Texas A&M College of Medicine
- Johns Hopkins Medical School
- Baylor College of Medicine
- George Washington University School of Medicine
- Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
- St. George’s University School of Medicine
- Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (in Pennsylvania)
- Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University
- Wake Forest University School of Medicine
- Western University of Health Sciences (in California)
- Drexel University College of Medicine
- Stritch School of Medicine at Loyola University Chicago
- Georgetown University School of Medicine
- Yale School of Medicine
- Perelman School of Medicine
- UCLA Medical School
- NYU Medical School
- Washington University School of Medicine
- Brown Medical School
Good luck with your medical school applications! We believe in you. Should you need any help along the way, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. International Medical Aid is here to help you every step of the way. Whether it be our pre-med internships or admissions consulting, we’ve got your back.
