Canisius College

Sophomores What You Need To Do

1. GET GOOD GRADES (3.2 and above to be competitive)

• Getting GOOD grades involves:
• Time Management IS KEY for course work and activities.
• Study
• Get to know your professors.  Know their office hours.
• If you are struggling in your course work, talk to your professor, know where the tutoring center is, get help.  Talk with student instructors (SI). Never hesitate to ask for assistance.
• Visit and Read the Pre-Med website
• Read-newspapers, magazines and novels.  Improve your reading comprehension and verbal skills (some health professional exams have whole sections based on comprehension and verbal skills)

2. GET INVOLVED

• Volunteer:
• Spring or summer of your freshmen year is a good  time to volunteer in a health-related area. 
• Tip: Use a journal to describe experience and  keep track of hours.  This will help you when you are filling out your application.
• Volunteer Opportunities:
• Canisius for Buffalo
• /camp_minist/interns.asp
• Campus Ministries-Service Immersion Trips
• /camp_minist/service_trips.asp
• /studentlife/stulife_altspringbreak.asp
• /camp_minist/service_trips.asp#international
• Community involvement. Any type of involvement is fine. (long or short term commitments).
• Involvement with people in a patient contact situation; ie hospital, nursing home, hospice etc.
  
• Seek Leadership opportunities:  Any time you can organize or coordinate events. Club officers etc. You are in a leadership roll.
• Get involved:  (while maintaining a competitive GPA).
• Joining a club(s) is a great way to start.  Any club that you are interested in is fine.

Students who share your interesting in the health professions tend to join one of the  following:

• Clubs:
• Society of Pre-Health Professionals- SPHP ¡VStudents interested in health professions, medical, dental, veterinary, etc.
• Tri Beta-National Biological Society
• ACS- American Chemical Society

3. SHADOW HEALTH PROFESSIONALS:

• Family health professional, friends of the family, other students, the PreMed office. These are all resources available to you.

4. RESEARCH:

• Start talking to faculty and ask about their research projects.  If you are interested in what they are doing ask if you can work with them.  If you are interested in a different area; ask if they know who you may be able to contact.

5. COURSE SCHEDULING:

• Students, think about your Junior year.  Most students will take standardized exams for their particular health professional field in  the Spring of their Junior year.
  
• It is always encouraged that students take prep courses.
• Check on cost
• When you should take the exam for your field
• Which exam you should take:
• Medical: MCAT
• Dental: DAT
• Veterinary: GRE; also a few want the MCAT check with the schools you are applying to.
• Pharmacy: Some want the PCAT check with the schools you are applying to.