Southern Illinois University, School of Medicine Admission
Southern Illinois University, School of Medicine Undergraduate Program
Southern Illinois University, School of Medicine Application

The Facts

Southern Illinois University is a rather large, public institution located in the town of Springfield, Illinois, and has a combined graduate and undergraduate population of over 34,000 students. The university's School of Medicine, however, is significantly smaller, and is home to about 300 graduate medical students. The average age of enrollment is around 24, and it is fairly rare for any of the students to enter the school directly from their undergraduate education. The school is perhaps best known for its emphasis on small-group learning, as well as case-based, patient contact. Aside from the basic MD degree, the school offers a joint degree in the JD/MD.

Admission to Southern Illinois University's School of Medicine is extremely competitive among the many students who apply; last year, over 1,040 students applied for admission to the school, and approximately 150 of those students were accepted. Eventually however, only about 72 of the admitted students actually enrolled for the coming semester. The admitted students had average MCAT scores of about 9.0 in Biology, 8.1 in Physics, and 9.0 in Verbal, as well as an average undergraduate GPA of about a 3.5. Students are notified of their admissions status on a rolling basis, and there is currently no early application program in place.

The School of Medicine has about 320 faculty members, all of whom come from very diverse academic and medical backgrounds. The school also boasts a very manageable student to faculty ratio of about 1:1, and the small classes allow for plenty of discussion and interaction between students and their professors.

Graduates of the School of Medicine often go on to be accepted to some of the most prestigious residency programs in the nation, and most frequently specialize in the areas of internal medicine, pediatrics, as well as emergency medicine.

The School of Medicine has about 320 faculty members, all of whom come from very diverse medical and academic backgrounds. The school also boasts a very manageable student to faculty ratio of about 1:1, and the small classes allow for plenty of discussion and interaction between students and their professors.

Clinical Programs

Students are required to complete very extensive clinical training including rotations of internal medicine, surgery, family and community medicine, psychiatry, obstetrics, gynecology, pediatrics, various electives, emergency medicine, radiology, anesthesiology, as well as neurology. Students complete their clerkships at affiliated venues including the Memorial Medical Center, as well as St. John's Hospital and Pavilion.

What's Good

"The school has a very hands-on attitude, which I definitely appreciate."

"The faculty are very passionate about teaching, and they love to share their knowledge."

"Students here tend to be very supportive of one another."

What's Bad

"Sometimes I wish we were offered more in terms of courses. Options seem fairly limited."

"There are some professors who give you way too much work; you basically have no life."

"There are some students who always feel the need to prove themselves."

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