Post-Baccalaureate Health Professions Program Career Changer

Our Career Changer track is designed for students who have completed little to no pre-health science requirements. These students generally hold a degree outside of the sciences and have not completed the required prerequisite science coursework needed for various health-related professions.

Highlights:

Complete a customizable program in person by taking the required lower-division science prerequisites, with upper-division science electives available online.
Take evening and weekend courses.
Enroll in courses during our fall, spring and summer terms.
Receive individualized academic advising.
Take advantage of discounted test prep through Kaplan.
Complete the Health Careers Seminar courses to be prepared to competitively apply to health-related professions schools.

In order to earn the optional Award of Completion, the following must be completed within three years of registering:

Take all four Health Careers Seminar courses for a total of 1.9 CEU credits.
Complete at least 24 semester units for a letter grade, earn a grade of C or better in each course and maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
- You can take a maximum of 12 semester units in the online format.
- All 24 semester units must be earned from the approved course list.

Note: Transfer credit from other institutions is not accepted toward meeting the requirements for the Award of Completion.

“As someone who previously worked in education, I appreciated that someone was willing to sit down with me and outline the process and steps I needed to take in order to succeed. It was also reassuring to talk with other people on the same path as most of us were career changers who had been out of school for a while. All of us were successful in getting accepted into our programs of choice, and I'm still in touch with some of them.”

—Associate veterinarian Anne Chiruvolu, graduate of University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine

“I'm a non-traditional medical student with a social science degree. I decided to become a doctor because I wanted to give every individual the opportunity to spend life's most precious moments in the company of their loved ones. UC Berkeley Extension has a fantastic reputation as an educational institution that prepares its students for success, so choosing this program for my post-baccalaureate was very easy.”

—Alvarho Guzman, M.D. candidate at Albany Medical School

“Volunteer early on if you think you want to enter medicine. Graduate programs want applicants to have clinical experience because the day-to-day reality of medicine is very social. If you decide it's for you, the post-bacc program is an excellent investment. It can be tough to enter medicine as a non-traditional applicant, but your point of view is more important than you think.”

—Psychiatry resident Jayinee Basu, graduate of Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine

Sample Coursework Schedules

Sample Schedule: Medical or Osteopathic Medical School

Note: Coursework is completed in conjunction with accumulating hours in clinical/health care setting.

You can also take upper-division electives such as genetics, microbiology, immunology or human physiology

Sample Schedule: Physician Assistant School

Note: Coursework is completed in conjunction with accumulating hours in patient-care experience.

You can also take upper-division electives such as genetics, microbiology or immunology

These courses may vary based on specific programs. Please research schools of interest to determine if they have any unique requirements.

Sample Schedule: Dental School

Note: Coursework is completed in conjunction with accumulating hours in dental experience.

You can also take upper-division electives such as anatomy, human physiology, genetics or microbiology

Sample Schedule: Nursing School

You can also take upper-division electives such as anatomy, physiology, genetics or microbiology

*These courses may vary based on specific programs. Please research schools of interest to determine if they have any unique requirements.

Related: Paths to Becoming a Nurse

Sample Schedule: Doctor of Physical Therapy School