In addition to declaring a major and a minor, students who plan careers in the professional fields below should also declare their pre-professional intent at the time of admission or early in their academic careers. They will be assigned an advisor familiar with the appropriate pre-professional program who will advise them concerning major, course selection, and other requirements for admission to the appropriate professional program.
Health Profession Fields
Students planning to enter graduate school in the health professions require advice and counsel from faculty members in the physical and life sciences. An advisory committee is in place to assist students in preparing schedules that meet the admission prerequisites, major requirements, and General Education requirements. It maintains a web site with a comprehensive pre-health sciences advisory manual. The committee will also prepare evaluation letters for those professional schools that require this format.
Students should select a major carefully. Non-science majors are acceptable, as long as the student has met the science requirements of the chosen field. A first year schedule for pre-dental, pre-medical, pre-optometry, pre-pharmacy, pre-physical therapy and pre-veterinary students follows:
Suggested First Year Schedule
Fall | Spring |
BIOL 111, 111L or CHEM 103, 105L | BIOL 112, 112L or CHEM 104, 106L |
ENGL 111 | ENGL 112 |
HIST 101 | HIST 102 |
MATH 101 or 103 | MATH 103 (if not taken in the fall) |
General Education Elective | General Education Elective |
Pre-medical, pre-dental, pre-optometry, and pre-pharmacy students must have completed the biology, chemistry, and physics requirements by the end of their third year to be prepared for the MCAT, DAT, OAT, and PCAT tests.
Pre-Dental
Contact faculty: Dr Jablonski, Dr. Freier, Dr. Schuppin
Pre-dental students normally complete an undergraduate degree and a program similar to pre-medical students before entering dental school. Students should be familiar with the individual requirements of the dental schools, but generally, the requirements are similar to medical schools. Students must have some experience in the field of dentistry through volunteer work or an internship. Students apply to dental school between junior and senior years through a centralized service. The Dental Admission Test is also required.
In addition to the general requirements, students desiring the Bachelor of Science degree should complete courses in vertebrate anatomy, microbiology, biochemistry, and cell and molecular biology.
Pre-Medical
Contact faculty: Dr. Jablonski, Dr. Freier, Dr. Schuppin
Pre-medical students must complete an undergraduate degree before entering medical school. Admission is extremely competitive, so students should use all learning resources necessary to ensure their QPA remains very high. Students must have significant volunteer, internship, or paid experience in the health field before applying. Students apply to allopathic and osteopathic medical school between junior and senior years through a centralized service. The Medical College Admission Test, given in April or August, is also required.
The GRE is required for physician’s assistant programs.
In addition to the general admission prerequisites listed below, biochemistry is strongly recommended. Other suggested upper-level science electives include cell biology and vertebrate anatomy and physiology. One year of biology, two years of chemistry, and one year of physics must be completed by the end of the third year.
Required Courses | Credit Hours |
BIOL 111, 112, 111L, 112L | 8 |
CHEM 103, 104, 105L, 106L | 8 |
CHEM 251, 252, 253L, 254L | 8 |
ENGL 111, 112 | 6 |
PHYS 161, 162 OR 141, 142 | 8 |
Pre-Optometry
Contact faculty: Dr. Jablonski, Dr. Freier, Dr. Schuppin
The requirements for admission to the schools and colleges of optometry vary. All optometry schools require at least three years of undergraduate coursework, that must include the courses listed above for medical school. The majority of students accepted to optometry schools have earned a bachelor’s degree. Students should investigate the program requirements of the schools to which they are interested in applying for additional admissions prerequisites. Additional courses required by some schools include psychology, social science, microbiology, anatomy, and statistics. The Optometry Admission Test is required.
Pre-Pharmacy
Contact faculty: Dr. Jablonski, Dr. Freier, Dr. Schuppin
The amount of undergraduate pre-professional study accepted as transfer credit by a school of pharmacy varies. Many programs are phasing out the bachelor’s degree in pharmacy in favor of a graduate-level program for which an undergraduate degree is required. Students should consult the pharmacy schools of choice in order to plan the undergraduate program. The minimum requirements are similar to medical school. Other requirements often include microbiology, statistics, and economics.
Pre-Physical Therapy, Pre-Occupational Therapy
Contact faculty: Dr. Aronson
A major in one of the sciences or health and movement science with appropriate chosen electives is normally chosen. The admission prerequisites for physical therapy schools vary, but generally include one year of biology, chemistry, and physics with additional math and science electives, including anatomy and physiology, other biology electives, college algebra, and statistics. Admission is extremely competitive, so students should strive for a high QPA.
Pre-Veterinary Medicine
Contact faculty: Dr. Jablonski, Dr. Freier, Dr. Schuppin
Due to the keen competitiveness for available positions, the variation in entrance requirements, and the limited choices of schools, careful and early planning must be a part of students’ preparation for and application to veterinary school. Veterinary schools require at least the number of courses as medical schools, but often include additional upper level biology electives and bio-chemistry.
Other Pre-Professional Fields
Pre-Art Therapy
Advisory Chair: Mr. Pumphrey
The requirements for admission to graduate programs in art therapy vary. Students enrolled in a preparatory B.A. degree program should pursue the studio art major and a psychology minor. As part of the art major, at least six hours must be taken in two-dimensional studio courses and six hours in three-dimensional studio courses. The psychology minor should include PSYC 241 Developmental Psychology and PSYC 308 Abnormal Psychology. An internship is strongly recommended.
Students contemplating graduate training in art therapy are advised to review the website of the National Art Therapy Association for information about this field and contact prospective graduate schools for information relative to their entry requirements. Portfolios of artwork demonstrating competency may be required.
Pre-Forestry and Wildlife
Advisor: Dr. Perault
Students planning careers in forestry, wildlife management, or conservation may take four years work at Lynchburg College in a program that will prepare them for graduate work in these fields. Required or recommended courses include biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and economics.
Pre-Law
Advisors: Dr. Akubue-Brice, Dr. Cylke, Dr. Dawson, Ms. Koring, Dr. Manian, Dean Normyle, Mr. Robert, Mr. Schnur, Dr. Shahady, Dr. Stump, Dr. Walton
For admission to law school, the Association of American Law Schools recommends substantial work in courses that require logical thought, rigorous analysis of texts, effective writing and speaking, and understanding of human institutions and values. Courses in communications, economics, English, history, philosophy, political science, and the sciences are suggested.
Students interested in attending law school upon graduation should declare pre-law as a pre-professional interest by the end of the sophomore year and be assigned an advisor by contacting the Academic Advising Center. For assistance with course selection and applications to law school, students should meet with their pre-law advisor prior to the senior year. Materials are available from the Office of Academic and Career Development Services. The pre-law advisors are readily available to help students learn more about law schools and the legal profession.
Pre-Library Science
Advisor: Mr. Millson-Martula
Students interested in pursuing a Master’s degree in library and information science should include a wide range of subjects in their undergraduate education.
Pre-Ministerial Church-Related Occupation Program
Advisors: Rev. Azdell and Dr. Price
Through its Advisory Committee on Pre-Ministerial Education (composed of the faculty of the religious studies program and the College chaplain), Lynchburg College exercises a cooperative role with related church officials in supervising the pre-seminary education of students preparing for a ministerial vocation.
The committee serves as an active advisor to Church-Related Occupation Program (CROP) students regarding their interest in the ministry, and students having such interests should make their intentions known as early as possible to the College chaplain or to Dr. Price. The committee seeks to assist each student in defining a special program of pre-seminary study.
The committee appoints qualified students in supervised field education ("Apprentices-in-Ministry" and interns in religious studies). This field experience may entail service with church congregations, church-related agencies, or other service agencies. Eligibility for appointments is determined by the following minimum guidelines:
"Apprentices-in-ministry" must:
- be in good standing with College discipline boards and officers;
- have at least a 2.25 cumulative quality point average; and
- have successfully completed at least six semester credit hours of introductory courses in religious studies or a related field of study, with approval of the committee, complete RELG 260 (for church settings) or RELG 261 (for non-congregational ministry settings).
Persons desiring to serve in churches or other agencies should seek to qualify and to apply for appointment as "Apprentices-in-ministry." They will be eligible to receive college credit in Religious Studies 260-263 Pre-Ministerial Practicum upon satisfactory completion of the duties required by their appointments.
An alternate form of supervised field experience in religious studies is the internship in religious studies, which is open to a limited number of students who meet all of the above requirements as well as academic internship requirements listed below. Internships in religious studies are arranged individually under the supervision of the Advisory Committee on Pre-Ministerial Education. Prerequisites for RELG 399Internship in Religious Studies are as follows:
- juniors and seniors with a minimum QPA of 2.25;
- approval of the Advisory Committee on Pre-Ministerial Education;
- completion of an Academic Internship Contract obtained from the Career Development Center. Refer to the section on "Internships" in this chapter for additional information about internship procedures; and
- complete RELG 260 (for church settings) or RELG 261 (for non-congregational ministry settings).
Because literary study is central to the work of the minister, persons interested in preparing for professional service in the clergy should elect a rich program of language study. Pre-seminarians are strongly advised to consult with members of the religious studies program about language requirements.
Pre-Museum Studies
Advisor: Ms. Rothermel
Students interested in attending graduate school and beginning a career in museums should declare a minor in museum studies by the beginning of the junior year. The requirements for admission to graduate programs in museum studies include a discipline-specific emphasis; majors in art, history, communication studies, business, education, and the sciences are encouraged. The career opportunities in the museum field are extensive, and the American Association of Museums has a primary goal of leading the efforts to maintain professional standards by improving the quality of museum programs and operations, and training of personnel.