An education at Pacific Union College prepares students well, especially for a variety of pre-professional programs. PUC offers a large variety of pre-professional programs that allow students to either obtain a four year degree or fulfill the necessary prerequisites to transfer to a bachelor’s program at another healthcare-specific institution. 

For years, PUC has maintained a medical and dental school acceptance rate well above the national average. Students have had uniquely high acceptance rates to top-notch medical and dental schools like Loma Linda University, well above the national average. Many PUC alumni have also continued on to graduate from some of the nation’s most prestigious graduate schools, including Harvard, Yale, and Georgetown. 

Programs offered:

• Pre-Art Therapy
• Pre-Dental Hygiene, B.S., for Admission to Loma Linda University
• Pre-Dentistry, D.D.S., for Admission to Loma Linda University
• Pre-Professional Curriculum: Law
• Pre-Medicine for Admission to Loma Linda University
• Pre-Professional Curriculum: Optometry
• Pre-Pharmacy for Admission to Loma Linda University
• Pre-Public Health for Admission to Loma Linda University
• Pre-Veterinary Medicine for Admission to UC Davis

A Faculty’s Perspective

“PUC has a strong reputation for its pre-medicine and pre-dentistry programs because of the very high acceptance rates our students have. Our students are consistently accepted to dental and medical programs, with medical school acceptance rates in the top 10 percent of the nation. Students are well prepared through science courses in the pre-med and pre-dent programs, and they generally perform well on the MCAT and DAT.” – Dr. Marie Pak, faculty

Fast Facts 

1. The active student-led Pre-Professional Club offers networking, help on professional school applications, mock admissions interviews, tips on the best classes to pair for a successful degree, and more. Club officers arrange for speakers, workshops, and other regular events to help students learn more about pursuing careers in the healthcare field. Read “Life is About Balance: PUC’s Pre-Professional Club Provides Meaningful Connections” to learn more. 
2. PUC also offers an A.S. in health sciences that is a great fit for students going on to pursue programs like dental hygiene, clinical lab science, and speech pathology at other institutions. 
3. For years, PUC has maintained a medical and dental school acceptance rate well above the national average. The five-year average dental school acceptance rate at PUC is 65 percent, and for medical school, this goes up to 68 percent. The national average is around 33 percent.
4. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of healthcare occupations is projected to grow 18 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations, adding about 2.4 million new jobs. Healthcare occupations are projected to add more jobs than any of the other occupational groups.

What You Can Do

For students interested in the healthcare field, there are a host of possibilities available to them. From art therapy to medicine to optometry, students can find the career that best suits their goals and aspirations.

• Art therapy
• Dental hygiene
• Dentistry
• Law
• Medicine 
• Optometry
• Pharmacy 
• Public health
• Veterinary medicine

Learn more about PUC’s pre-professional programs at puc.edu/academics. Our team of admissions counselors can answer any questions you have. Call (800) 862-7080, option 2 or email admissions@puc.edu to get connected with a counselor now and start learning about all the options available to you!