Admission Requirements
Program Prerequisites (to be completed prior to matriculation)
- Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution
- Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
- Required coursework taken in the last seven years with a C or better from an accredited school:
- Biology with labs-6 semester hours (Anatomy and Physiology I and II with labs strongly recommended)
- General Chemistry with labs-6 semester hours
- Organic Chemistry with labs-6 semester hours (one class can be Biochemistry with lab)
- Physics with lab-3 semester hours
- Communication/Language Skills-6 semester hours
- Psychology-3 semester hours
- Social Sciences or Humanities Electives-15 semester hours
- Recommended coursework: Microbiology with lab, Biochemistry with lab, Botany with lab, Genetics with lab, Statistics, Developmental Psychology, Medical Terminology
- Interview required
- Background check required for deposited students
Required Materials
- Application
- Application fee (non-refundable)
- Official transcripts from every school attended
- Three recommendation letters including one from a healthcare provider
- Personal statement:
- In 500-750 words, detail why you are seeking this degree, how your background and experience has prepared you for medical school and a career as a Naturopathic Physician, your future goals, and why you seek to pursue your degree through the University of Bridgeport.
Required Skills and Abilities*
Applicants to UBCNM must possess the intellectual, physical, and emotional means required to independently undertake the full curriculum, meet the levels of competency established by the faculty, and embark on a successful career in naturopathic medicine. Candidates who require reasonable accommodations must nevertheless be able to demonstrate and perform the essential skills and capabilities listed below independently. Use of a trained intermediary would require that the candidate’s judgment and knowledge be mediated by someone else’s power of selection and observation and may compromise present and future patient safety; accordingly such intermediary’s are ordinarily not permitted. Admitted students with a disability have access to the Coordinator of Disability Services, who collaborates with administrative staff and faculty to arrange reasonable accommodations for courses and examinations.
- Observation: The candidate must be able to visually observe demonstrations and experiments in the biomedical sciences, and to observe a patient accurately at a distance and close at hand. Observation necessitates the functional use of the sense of vision and somatic sensation, enhanced by sense of smell and hearing.
- Communication: A candidate must be able to speak, to hear, and to observe patients in order to elicit information, describe changes in mood, activity, and posture, and perceive nonverbal communications. A candidate must be able to demonstrate effective and sensitive communication with patients, as well as effective and efficient oral and written English with all members of the health care team.
- Motor: Candidates must have sufficient motor function to elicit information from patients by palpation, auscultation, percussion, and other diagnostic techniques. A candidate should be able to perform basic laboratory tests, re-position a patient, and conduct diagnostic and therapeutic procedures required for providing general patient care.
- Intellectual-Conceptual, Integrative, and Quantitative Abilities: A candidate must demonstrate critical thinking, sound judgment, analysis, reasoning, and synthesis, essential to the problem-solving skills demanded of physicians. In addition, the candidate should be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand the spatial relationships of structures.
- Behavioral and Social Attributes: A candidate must possess the emotional maturity and stability required for full utilization of her/his intellectual abilities, in addition to demonstrating the exercise of good judgment, the prompt completion of all responsibilities attendant to the diagnosis and care of patients, and the development of mature, sensitive, and effective relationships with patients, instructors, and peers. A candidate must be able to adapt to changing environments, to display flexibility, and to learn to function in the face of uncertainties inherent in the clinical problems of many patients. Compassion, integrity, concern for others, interpersonal skills, interest, and motivation are all personal qualities that are assessed during the admissions and educational processes.
* Adapted from the American Association of Medical Colleges guidelines.
Computer Literacy
A candidate for admission to UBCNM is expected to have access to a reliable computer and be proficient with computer use. While computers are available for student use in the Student Lounge and Wahlstrom Library, students will find it most helpful to have their own laptop computer.
English as a Second Language
- A candidate whose native language is not English will be required to demonstrate proficiency in reading, comprehension, oral, and written English. The ability to communicate in English in a medical setting, using appropriate medical terminology and, specifically, the ability to understand the nuances in the language and to speak effectively are essential to fully participating and succeeding in the classroom and clinic. Satisfying at least one of the requirements below ensures the student’s ability to take full advantage of the program and serve the outside community as practitioners. Students whose first language is not English may also be required to take additional elective credits and/or training to improve their language skills.
- Official TOEFL exam results of 213 on the computer-based test or 550 on the paper-based test or 79 on the Internet-based test (iBT) score. www.ets.org/toefl
- TSE score of 50 or greater. (Only students with paper-based or computer-based TOEFL exam scores will be required to complete this test). www.ets.org/tse
- Official IELTS exam results of 6.5 or higher. www.ielts.org
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited US college or university.
Deadlines
Completed application and all supporting documents must be received by:
- July 1 hard deadline for August start
- Rolling admissions, starting in September for the following August
- Interviews begin in January for the following August
Please send supplemental admissions materials to:
University of Bridgeport
Office of Graduate Admissions
126 Park Avenue
Bridgeport, CT 06604
For questions contact:
Ariana Balayan
Graduate Health Sciences Admissions Counselor
Phone: (203) 576-4108
Fax: (203) 576-4941
abalayan@bridgeport.edu