A “gap year” (sometimes referred to as “Post-Bacc” or a “growth year”) is the period between the end of a student’s undergraduate education and the start of health professional school and often exists because a student needs more time after graduation to strengthen their metrics (GPA, admission test score) or experiences (volunteerism, shadowing, leadership, research, etc.) to become a more competitive applicant. A gap year might be a year or more, depending on each person’s particular circumstances.
Resources for Planning a Gap Year:
Academic Enhancement Options for a Gap Year:
- Academic Enhancement Handout & Decision-Making Selection Chart – UCF PHPL
- Consider a Post-Baccalaureate Program – AAMC
- Post-Baccalaureate Programs Database – AAMC
- Post-Baccalaureate Program Articles – AAMC
UCF Graduate Programs that Pre-Health students have used for Academic Enhancement:
Each of these programs has a lot of science coursework in the curriculum. Additional, strong academic performance in sciences is often the goal of Pre-Health students seeking post-baccalaureate academic enhancement.
- Biomedical Sciences M.S. –varying track options
- Kinesiology M.S.
- Nanotechnology M.S.
- Anatomical Sciences Graduate Certificate
Extracurricular Enhancement Options for a Gap Year:
The following are examples of positions or programs to consider for a gap year. We highly recommend speaking with the PHPL team to help you decide which experiential area of your portfolio could be in need of enhancement before selecting a position or program.