Our goal is for every individual admitted to the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) program to successfully complete the academically rigorous, competency-based veterinary professional program. The prerequisites ensure that you have a strong foundational knowledge before building upon that knowledge in the DVM program.
- Applicants must complete the courses outlined below with a grade of C- or better at an accredited institution and achieve a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.8 (on a 4.0 scale).
- Applicants may receive no more than one grade of D and one grade of F in each required prerequisite course completed within the past six years.
- Online courses from accredited institutions will be accepted. If a lab component is required, the lab component is strongly encouraged to be completed in-person.
- Courses and laboratories completed during semesters impacted by COVID-19 may be graded as Pass/Fail. A course will fulfill the prerequisite requirement if a “Pass” grade was obtained only during these specific semesters, otherwise courses must be graded using a letter grade scale.
- College level examination program (CLEP) and AP courses will be accepted to meet eligible prerequisites if either listed on an official college transcript or verified by the A-State registrar’s office.
- Applicants must complete all required coursework by July 15th of the admission year and advanced sciences courses must be completed within 10 years of the admission year.
- A bachelor’s degree is not required before starting the A-State DVM program.
The required coursework are examples of A-State courses. Additional details on the courses is provided as a comparison for courses that fulfill the requirements. If you have taken courses outside of A-State, the A-State Transfer Course Equivalency Tool can assist you in determining if those courses will fulfill the requirements. If you would like to petition for a course substitution or would like to request review of a course not found in the A-State Transfer Course Equivalency Tool, please utilize our subtitution form. If you have any questions after reviewing the Admissions website and the A-State Transfer Course Equivalency Tool, please reach out to the Office of Student Programs and Admissions.
Required Prerequisite Coursework Summary
|
Subject Area |
Prerequisite Course |
Sem. Credits |
A-State Course Equivalent Example(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Biological Science |
General Biology/Zoology (for science majors)* |
6 |
BIO 1303 – Biology of Animals and higher |
|
Additional Details
Two, three-hour semester courses in general biology with an accompanying in-person, physical laboratory component. A higher level biology course with accompanying laboratory may be accepted for substitution of the introductory biology/zoology course (up to 3 credits) and laboratory (up to 1 credit). |
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|
Biological Science |
General Biology/Zoology Lab |
2 |
BIO 1301 – Biology of Animals Laboratory and higher |
|
Additional Details
A laboratory accompanying the introductory general biology/zoology courses will fulfil this prerequisite. A higher-level biology lab accompanied by the associated higher-level biology course may be accepted for substitution of the introductory biology/zoology lab requirement. |
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|
Chemistry |
General Chemistry (for science majors) |
6 |
CHEM 1013 – General Chemistry I |
|
Additional Details
General chemistry courses must be for biological science majors or chemistry majors. Non-science major chemistry courses will not be accepted. No course substitutions allowed. |
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|
Chemistry |
General Chemistry Lab |
2 |
CHEM 1011 – General Chemistry I Laboratory |
|
Additional Details
General chemistry laboratories must be for biological science majors or chemistry majors. Non-science major chemistry laboratories will not be accepted. No course substitutions are allowed. |
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|
Chemistry |
Organic Chemistry |
3 |
CHEM 3103 – Organic Chemistry I |
|
Additional Details
Organic Chemistry I and/or Organic Chemistry II may be used to fulfill this requirement. A one semester overview of organic chemistry will not fulfil this requirement. No course substitutions are allowed. |
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|
Biomedical Science |
Biochemistry (must require Organic as a prerequisite) |
3 |
CHEM 4243 – Biochemistry |
|
Additional Details
A course focused on chemistry and metabolism of carbohydrates, fats, proteins, and nucleic acids. Must require organic chemistry as a prerequisite. A nutritional biochemistry and metabolism course may be accepted for substitution. |
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|
Math |
Statistics or College Algebra or higher |
3 |
MATH 1023 – College Algebra STAT 2003 – Introduction to Statistics |
|
Additional Details
Any college algebra course or higher OR introductory statistics or statistics for health professionals or higher may be used to fulfill this course requirement. |
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|
English |
Composition/Writing Intensive |
6 |
ENG 1003 – Composition I |
|
Additional Details
Courses on the fundamentals of written communication. Business writing courses can help fulfil this requirement. Advanced composition courses that are writing intensive or other writing intensive courses such as practical or technical writing may also fulfil this requirement. |
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|
TOTAL |
- |
31 |
|
Required Elective Coursework Summary
| Subject Area | Elective Course | Sem. Credits | A-State Course Equivalent Example(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sciences/Advanced Sciences | Upper division science courses (300 level or above) and up to 6 credit hours of general physics (200 level or above) | 14 |
ANSC – Veterinary Anatomy and Physiology |
|
Additional Details
Up to six semester credit hours may be fulfilled by general physics courses, but physics is not required. The full fourteen semester credit hours may be fulfilled by upper division science courses (300/3000 level or higher). Recommended course topics include anatomy and/or physiology, cell biology, genetics, bacteriology, immunology, pathology/pathophysiology, nutrition, histology, parasitology, toxicology, and other relevant veterinary topics. |
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| Applicant selected subject area | Courses which reflect the candidate’s interests and career objectives and provide a broad general education. Additional sciences courses accepted. | 17 | Various |
| TOTAL | - | 31 | - |
AP Exams Accepted for Prerequisite Requirements
|
AP Exam |
Prerequisite Subject Area/A-State Course Credit |
Semester Credits |
|---|---|---|
|
AP20: Biology |
Biological Science, credit for BIOL 1003 and BIOL 1001 |
4 |
|
AP66 Calculus AB |
Math, credit for MATH 2204 |
4 |
|
AP68 Calculus BC |
Math, credit for MATH 2214 |
4 |
|
AP25: Chemistry |
Chemistry, credit for CHEM 1013 and CHEM 1011 |
4 |
|
AP34: Economics: Microeconomics |
Social Sciences, credit for ECON 2323 |
9 |
|
AP35: Economics: Macroeconomics |
Social Sciences, credit for ECON 2313 |
3 |
|
AP36: English Language Comp |
English, credit for ENG 1003 |
3 |
|
AP37: English Literature Comp |
English, credit for ENG 1003 |
3 |
|
AP57: Government & Politics: US |
Social Sciences, credit for POSC 2103 |
3 |
|
AP13: History of Art |
Fine arts, credit for ART 2503 |
3 |
|
AP75: Music Theory |
Fine arts, credit for MUS 2503 |
3 |
|
AP78: Physics B |
Physics, credit for PHYS 2054 and PHYS 2064 |
8 |
|
AP82: Physics C (Electricity, Magnetism) |
Physics, credit for PHYS 2044 |
4 |
|
AP80: Physics C (Mechanics) |
Physics, credit for PHYS 2034 |
4 |
|
AP83: Physics I |
Physics, credit for PHYS 2054 |
4 |
|
AP84: Physics II |
Physics, credit for PHYS 2064 |
4 |
|
AP85: Psychology |
Social Sciences, credit for PSY 2013 |
3 |
|
AP90: Statistics |
Math, credit for STAT 2003 |
3 |
|
AP07: United States History |
Social Sciences, credit for HIST 2763 and/or HIST 2773, depending upon score |
3 or 6 |
CLEP Exams Accepted for Prerequisite Requirements
|
CLEP Exam |
Prerequisite Subject Area/A-State Course Credit |
Semester Credits |
|---|---|---|
|
College Algebra |
Math, credit for MATH 1023 |
3 |
|
College Composition |
English, credit for ENG 1003 and ENG 1013 depending on CLEP Exam scores |
3 or 6 |
|
History of U.S. I |
Social Sciences, credit for HIST 2763 |
3 |
|
History of U.S. II |
Social Sciences, credit for HIST 2773 |
3 |
|
Humanities |
Fine Art, credit for ART 2504; Humanities, credit for ENG 2003 and ENG 2013 |
9 |
|
Intro. To Psychology |
Social Sciences, credit for PSY 2013 |
3 |
|
Intro. To Sociology |
Social sciences, credit for PSY 2013 |
3 |
|
Prin. of Macroeconomics |
Social Sciences, credit for ECON 2313 |
3 |
|
Prin. of Microeconomics |
Social Sciences, credit for ECON 2323 |
3 |
|
United States Government |
Social Sciences, credit for POSC 2103 |
3 |
