December 21, 2022
Enrolling at Shawnee State University in the Autumn 2022 semester, Eric Patton (Hometown: Waverly, Ohio) became the university’s first student accepted into its Early Assurance Program (EAP). As part of the university’s Pre-Med program, the EAP creates a pathway for students to complete a four-year undergraduate degree in Biomedical Sciences before having guaranteed acceptance into Ohio University’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine.
“I knew I wanted to go into medicine,” Patton said. “I learned about the Early Assurance Program at Pre-Med Day.”
Held each fall for high school students interested in pursuing a degree in Pre-Med, SSU’s open house event allows visitors to gain a greater understanding of the experiences available in the Pre-Med program as well as requirements and the application process for medical schools. Patton found himself in love with the university’s ability to offer him a personalized educational experience.
“With how much smaller class sizes are here, I can actually ask questions about the material,” he said.
SSU’s Pre-Med program is designed to prepare students to enter medical school with a strong foundation in biology, a development of scientific research skills, and with superior hands-on experience like the advanced human anatomy course where students can participate in a human cadaver dissection lab.
Incoming SSU Pre-Med (Biomedical Sciences) students can apply for the EAP if they meet the requirements of being an Ohio resident, are a graduate from an Ohio high school, score at least a 28 on the ACT or at least 1300 on the SAT, have a minimum high school accumulative GPA of 3.5 on an unweighted 4.0 scale and have completed or are in the process of completing four units of English, math, and science – including chemistry and biology. The deadline to apply for EAP is Jan. 15, 2023. To learn more about the program, visit shawnee.edu/early-assurance.
To learn more about Shawnee State University’s Pre-Med program, visit shawnee.edu/pre-med.