Application Process
We are grateful for your interest in applying to the UC Riverside School of Medicine. Each year, our admissions team reviews thousands of applications to find the best mission-fit students who have the ideal mixture of academic qualifications and personal and volunteer experiences that will allow them to become great physicians who can improve the health of people in our underserved region.
Contacting Our Admissions Team
Our admissions team looks forward to working with you throughout the application and interview process. All communication will be through e-mail and you can contact us at medadmissions@ucr.edu.
To ensure that our emails are not intercepted by spam filters, please add the UCR School of Medicine domain (ucr.edu) to your "safe senders" list. Also, please regularly check your junk mail as the second application is time-sensitive.
Important Dates and Deadlines
Download the SOM Admissions Brochure
MCAT:
Please review the MCAT section on our Program Prerequisite page
AMCAS application:
Nov. 1, 2024
Letters of recommendation:
Nov. 15, 2024
Transcripts:
Nov. 15, 2024
Interviews:
Sept. 2024 through March 2025
Application Information
Who Should Apply
- The School of Medicine seeks students whose experiences and goals align with our mission to increase the number of physicians in our underserved region.
- All applicants must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident and have obtained a bachelor’s degree from a regionally-accredited US undergraduate program.
- Undocumented/DACA students: Applicants of all ethnicities and nationalities are considered for admission. More information on undocumented applicants can be found here.
- Out-of-state students: As a medical school with a mission to increase the number of physicians in our region, our students are generally either from California or have very strong ties to the community. Applicants from outside the state will be assessed on their contributions to the California community through your undergraduate program, community service, clinical experiences and/or leadership, etc.
- International students: we do not accept international students.
- Transfer students: we do not accept transfer students. All applicants must apply to enter as a first-year medical student.
Application Dates and Deadlines
Submission Information
- Applicants to the UCR School of Medicine must submit their application through the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS) beginning May 28, 2024 and ending Nov. 1, 2024.
- A complete set of official transcripts must be forwarded to AMCAS by the registrars of all the higher education institutions you have attended.
- Three individual letters of recommendation, or a committee letter, are required. UCR participates in the AMCAS Letters Service. Letters must be original, signed documents on institutional letterhead, and be submitted by Nov. 15, 2024. Applicants may submit a maximum of five letters. These letters may be written by a premedical advisor, undergraduate faculty, mentors or any individual of your choice.
Review of Applications
- The School of Medicine Admissions Office will begin reviewing primary applications in mid-July.
- Applications are not necessarily reviewed in the order in which they are received. It may take several weeks for some applicants to receive an update from the admissions team.
Secondary Applications
- All verified applicants meeting eligibility will be notified by e-mail to complete a secondary application. As part of our holistic review process, we do not place a cut-off on the number of secondary applications. Applicants will be able to access the secondary applications through the link on the status-check page on the AMCAS website.
- Applicants who wish to provide updates to the admissions committee must upload a PDF document to their secondary application file on the AMCAS website. No updates sent via email will be accepted.
- Applicants with classes in progress can upload unofficial transcript/grades once their classes are completed. Submission of official transcripts is not required unless you accept an offer of admission and plan to matriculate into the program.
Interviews
- Following the secondary application, some students will be invited to participate in a Mini Medical Interview (MMI). Interviews will be held between September 2024 to March 2025. Learn more about the MMI process.
- Only those candidates who are invited to participate in an MMI will be considered for admission.
Application Review Process
The UCR School of Medicine Admissions Committee holistically reviews both the academic records and non-academic credentials of each applicant.
The committee considers each applicant's complete portfolio to identify students who are both academically qualified and have the breadth of volunteer/community and personal experiences that will help them become physicians who are prepared to care for the diverse population in our communities.
The committee also considers the "distance traveled" by each applicant to arrive at this stage of their career, acknowledging that applicants do not necessarily have equal access to resources, mentorship, and strong high school preparation prior to college.
Admission Guidelines
- Admission decisions are made on a rolling basis.
- Acceptances will continue until the class is full.
- Admission is provisional until cleared by the criminal background check process.
- Admission decisions are final and thus are not subject to appeal. A student not admitted as a result of the first application may reapply the following year.
- Application attempts are limited to three total, per applicant.
- Deferrals, for up to one year, may be requested by writing to the Admissions Office. The decision to grant the deferral is made on a case-by-case basis.