University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine Requirements, Tuition, and More

We’re covering everything you need to know as you consider applying to the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. You’ll learn about acceptance rates, application deadlines, average MCAT scores, tuition, curriculum, and more.

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The University of Chicago matriculated its first class of medical students in 1927. Since then, Pritzker School of Medicine, which received its name in 1968, continues to distinguish itself as one of the nation’s highest-ranked and most selective medical schools. In 2018, Leapfrog Group recognized the institution as a Top Teaching Hospital for the third consecutive year.
Pritzker has 362 full-time students (52.5 percent female / 47.5 percent male), 907 full-time faculty members on staff, and a faculty-student ratio of 2.5:1. Classes do not exceed 90 students and are made up of a population that is diverse in race, socioeconomic status, age, and geographic origin.
Thanks to the institution’s location, not to mention its association with three major hospitals and a number of integrated healthcare delivery systems throughout Chicago, Pritzker students continue to practice medicine in a number of state-of-the-art facilities.
The college operates five free clinics including the Community Health Clinic, the largest of its kind in the States, giving students the chance to work with underserved and uninsured populations throughout Chicago. More than 90 percent of Pritzker students take advantage of the opportunity to help their local community and are often responsible for improving services and procedures at the clinic. Recently, student-volunteers implemented a new electronic medical record system, found ways to decrease patient wait times, and began reviewing patient lab work.
Students looking to create a broad network of support with faculty, staff, and other students will be pleased to know that Pritzker offers a choice of more than 80 student organizations, a student government, and an identity and inclusion committee. The Office of Multicultural Affairs provides support to underrepresented minorities through a variety of programs and services. These include the Bowman Society Lecture Series, an NIH-sponsored summer research program for first-year medical students, and a variety of high school and undergraduate pipeline programs.
The institution’s Scholarship and Discovery Curriculum gives students a choice of five scholarly tracks including Scientific Investigation, Community Health, Global Health, Medical Education, and Healthcare Delivery Sciences. To enhance their classroom experience, students also work with simulated and standardized patients at the Clinical Performance Center. The center is equipped with nine exam rooms, a cardiac patient simulator that emulates 27 possible disease scenarios, portable heart and lung sound replication devices, video filming equipment, and much more.

The Pritzker curriculum is designed around seven core competencies: patient care, knowledge for practices, practice-based learning and improvement, interpersonal and communication skills, professionalism, systems-based practices, and personal and professional development.
Students have a choice of five scholarly tracks as they pursue their MD degrees:
Scientific Investigation – this is a research-heavy pathway that gives students the opportunity to investigate core scientific concepts and pathways. Students in this track pair with a faculty mentor as they develop a major research project.
Medical Education – this track emphasizes curriculum development and evaluation, learner assessment, instructional methodology, and pedagogy. As a result, this pathway is best suited for those interested in medical education and research.
Healthcare Delivery Sciences – this pathway focuses on quality improvement in healthcare. It emphasizes the discovery of new technology and medication and aims to improve the American healthcare system.
Global Health – this curriculum is suited for students who wish to practice medicine internationally. As a result, this pathway focuses on global health systems, cultural competency, how to work effectively with limited resources, and more.
Community Health – this track connects students with a variety of community outreach programs including the Urban Health Initiative and the Institute for Translational Medicine. This curriculum equips students with the skills they need to fundraise, organize communities, and increase civic engagement.
In addition to the MD track, the school offers the following dual-degree programs:

• MD/PhD – Growth, Development, and Disabilities Training (GDDTP) – is available to students who decide to pursue an advanced PhD after they have already started medical school
• MD/PhD – Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) – is best suited for students interested in biomedical research
• MD/PhD – Medicine, the Social Sciences and Humanities (MeSH) – is the only program of its kind in the country, according to the school. It is unique in that it allows students to pursue PhDs in a wide range of fields including anthropology, economics, public policy, philosophy, and more.
• MD/MBA – combines the studies of medicine and business and is ideal for those interested in managing hospitals and corporate practices.
• MD/AM – this dual degree prepares physicians for health policy and administration roles

The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine physicians and scientists have been behind numerous medical discoveries and breakthroughs:

• Discovered method of preserving blood and established the first military and civilian blood banks
• Explained the principles behind erythropoietin, a hormone that stimulates the production of red blood results. This has proven useful in treating anemia and other diseases
• Explored the effects of nitrogen mustard as a treatment of lymphoma and leukemia. This is widely accepted as the beginning form of chemotherapy
• Developed hormonal treatment that is still used to treat breast and gynecological cancers
• Found that the presence of Clostridia, a class of bacteria living in the gastrointestinal tract, can prevent the development of peanut allergies

• #7 for Oncology
• #8 for Emergency Medicine

In the 2018-2019 application cycle, 5203 candidates applied to the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. 674 received an interview (13% interview rate), 252 were accepted, and 90 ultimately enrolled. 

The acceptance rate is 4.8%.

The cost of tuition is $55,440. The college offers scholarships and financial aid packages to its students.

Here is the application cycle:

• Early June: AMCAS Application opens
• November 15: AMCAS deadline
• December 2: Secondary Application and letters of recommendation deadline
• August-February: Admission interviews

There is also an early decision admissions timeline available to those students who only apply to the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. In order to apply early, prospective students must gain approval by the Office of Admissions by sending a resume, transcript, and MCAT score to the institution.
The University of Pritzker School of Medicine recruits on a rolling basis. The application fee is $85.

Accepted applicants in 2019 had a median undergraduate GPA of 3.9 and median MCAT scores as follows:

• Total MCAT Score: 521
• Chemical & Physical: 130
• CARS: 129
• Biological & Biochemical: 130
• Psychological, Social, & Biological: 130

The most popular residency programs that students in the graduating class of 2019 matched with were in the following specialties:

• Internal Medicine: 14  
• Emergency Medicine: 8
• Psychiatry: 8
• Family Medicine: 7
• Obstetrics – Gynecology: 6