Preparation for Professional Study
Business
Health Professions
Law
Business
The College provides no specific course of preprofessional studies to prepare students for graduate study in business administration. It is advisable for students interested in such study to equip themselves with verbal and quantitative skills and to gain some knowledge of history and the contemporary social sciences. Writing and speaking skills can be developed in a broad range of course offerings; computational skills in courses in calculus, linear algebra, and statistics; and knowledge of the social sciences through courses in such disciplines as economics, political science, psychology, public policy, and sociology.
Most graduate business schools require the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT), which is administered several times a year on campus. Students planning to apply to business schools within one or two years of graduation should take this test in the summer preceding their final year in the College or in the Autumn Quarter of that year at the latest. Application materials for the GMAT are available in the Office of Career and Placement Services and in the Office of the Dean of Students of the Graduate School of Business. Increasingly, business schools also expect that college graduates will acquire significant work experience before beginning graduate studies in business.
Further information about preprofessional studies and career opportunities in business is available from the Office of the Dean of Students in the Graduate School of Business.
Health Professions
A broad liberal arts education provides an exceptional preparation for a career in the health professions. Meeting the general education requirements is an excellent beginning to such an education. Students are encouraged to then major in any discipline in which they have a strong interest, while making sure that they fulfill the common entry requirements for professional school. These include:
3 quarters of calculus (recommended)
3 quarters of physics with a laboratory
3 quarters of general chemistry with a laboratory
3 quarters of organic chemistry with a laboratory
3 quarters of biology with a laboratory
3 quarters of a general education humanities sequence (recommended)
The College offers alternative course sequences that fulfill each of these requirements. Some health professions schools have additional requirements and two additional upper level courses in the biological sciences are strongly recommended as part of a student's preparation.
Students preparing for a career in the health professions are strongly encouraged to engage in research and to participate in activities that explore their interests in human service. Both on and off campus, a vast array of hospitals, community organizations, and student groups welcome student involvement.
Students who believe they may be interested in a career in one of the health professions should consult first with their College adviser and then with the health professions adviser for their entering class. The health professions advisers offer group and individual counseling, as well as seminars and workshops, to assist each student in preparing for professional education and, at the appropriate time, in the application process itself. More information is available from the health professions office in BSLC 102, and at prehealth.uchicago.edu.
Law
The College does not offer a prelaw major, nor is there a single correct way to prepare for the study of law. More important than a specific major is the acquisition of certain skills necessary for the intelligent practice of law: the ability to communicate effectively in oral and written expression, a critical understanding of human institutions and values, and the ability to reason closely from given premises and propositions to tenable conclusions. Such skills can be developed in various majors and by taking courses in English language and literature, philosophy, American history, mathematics, and economics. Students interested in a career in law should consult with the prelaw adviser in the College. For details, visit pre-law.uchicago.edu.