What We Do

“Pre-Health 101” is a great place to begin learning about all things pre-health. It is the most common way that CPHA “meets” with first year students. This online orientation (available to you as a Canvas course) introduces you to exploring healthcare careers, pre-health coursework, building experience outside the classroom, and possible timelines to health professional school exams and applications.

We designed the pre-health orientation with first year students in mind, but we encourage anyone with interest in a health profession to enroll at any point in your preparation. It is a great resource for everyone. Look for it in your Canvas course library after you sign up, which you can do here. 

The Center for Pre-Health Advising sends a bimonthly newsletter to pre-health students. Get information about pre-health events, opportunities, resources, and recommended reading. Look for it the second and fourth Thursday every month during fall and spring semesters and once a month during winter and summer breaks.

We are committed to first year students! And Mike Hill is our first year student specialist. He writes and runs the online pre-health student orientation (“Pre-Health 101”), offers virtual drop-in advising for first year students every Friday during fall and spring semesters, participates in the UW Major Discovery Week, and runs Four Year (and More!) Planning workshops for first year students.

Please use all the resources we offer first year students:

• Pre-Health 101. This online orientation is a great introduction to all things pre-health. Sign up today!
• First Year Fridays are drop-in hours for first year students only. They take place every Friday of fall and spring semester from 9 am to 12 pm.
• Four Year (and More!) Planning Workshops are offered fall and spring semesters as well. This is a time for you to begin planning your pre-health coursework and co-curricular experiences with the direct support of Mike and other pre-health advisors. Learn more.
• Quick question? Please email us at questions@prehealth.wisc.edu!

If you want to talk with us about your application to health professional programs, please read all the information below.

First, if you are planning to apply to a health professional program in the coming year, please sign up for a CPHA Application Course. These are Canvas courses that serve as resource libraries. Each one introduces you to the ins-and-outs of applying to programs.

Common Applicant Advising Conversations:

• We will help you plan the timing of your application and reflect on what experiences you need to build before you apply.
• Application Statements
  • We will meet with applicants two times to talk about your personal statement, two times to talk about work/activity statements, and two times to talk about secondaries. Please do not schedule more than two appointments with us about any one of these kinds of statements. We need to distribute our time to advisees as equally as we can. See below for opportunities to work with other writing specialists on your application statements.
  • Please send us the statement(s) you want to work on at least 24 hours before your appointment.
  • If you want to talk about work/activity/experience statements or school-specific secondaries/supplemental essays, please choose three to five that you want to work on and send us only those essays at least 24 hours before your appointment.
• Mock Interviews
  • We offer applicants two mock interviews — one for you to practice the traditional interview format and a second for you to practice the multi-mini interview format.
  • Please only make mock interview appointments after you have been invited to interview at a health professional program. When you make a mock interview appointment, please specify in your appointment note the school(s) for which you want to practice.
  • If you are applying to medical school and want to practice the new VITA interview, AAMC gives you unlimited opportunities to practice. Please learn more. We are also happy to talk with you about preparing for the VITA.
  • Need a mock interview and can’t find a time on Starfish? Email us at questions@preheatlh.wisc.edu!

Other application statement writing specialists: the UW-Madison Writing Center

• In lieu of an in-person workshop, the Writing Center has made their Personal Statements for Graduate Health Professions Programs workshop (with attendant materials) available online.
• The Writing Center also offers peer feedback groups for current students and alumni. Please sign up here.
• In addition, the Writing Center offers 45-minute appointments for current UW-Madison students for you to work on your personal statement with them. This may be done via email or video chat. Please learn more and sign up here.
• The Writing Center also offers a list of proofreaders and editors who are all graduate students or recent PhDs. They charge very low rates for their service. Check them out.
• And for alumni, Madison Writing Assistance offers individual remote appointments for you to work on your personal statement with a writing specialist.

First year student? Please see the First Year Advising tab for advising options.

If you are a second year, third year, fourth year, fifth year and or transfer student, please make an appointment to talk with us about your pre-health interests and plans using Starfish. And please monitor your email as you wait for your appointment to begin. All appointments are 45 minutes.

Applying to health professional programs soon? Please also see our Applicant Advising information.

If you are an alum, please email us at questions@prehealth.wisc.edu, and we will help you arrange an appointment. We look forward to meeting with you remotely (Zoom, MS Teams, phone, etc.). Please also continue to remember that there is no time limit in our services to you. We will be here to support you for as long as you want to work with us.

As a UW-Madison alum, you have access to all the advising services that The Center for Pre-Health Advising offers for as long as you want to use them. We are eager to work with you as you continue to take steps toward a health profession. Please get in touch with us!

• To make an appointment, please email us at questions@prehealth.wisc.edu, and we will help you arrange an appointment. We look forward to meeting with you remotely (e.g. phone, Microsoft Teams, Google Hangouts, or Zoom).
• Enroll in a free, self-paced “Applying to Programs” Canvas course.
• Sign up for Pre-Health 101, our free online orientation, if health care is a new interest!

The Health Professions Shadowing Program (HPSP) is a two-week residential program for students from groups who are underrepresented in health care. Students accepted into the program spend over thirty hours shadowing providers at UW Health and affiliated area clinics, visiting healthcare facilities and learning about current trends in health care from providers in the community. The program supports students who are first generation, ethnic and racial minorities, from rural areas or socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds. HPSP takes place each year in the first two weeks of August.

The Center for Pre-Health Advising offers Canvas courses that give guidance and support as you learn about and apply to health professional programs. Each one is an incredible resource library for you as you apply. Dr. Dija Selimi writes and runs them and is available for questions through the courses. Please sign up here for guidance applying to:

• Dental programs
• Medical programs
• Occupational Therapy programs
• Optometry programs
• Physical Therapy programs
• Physician Assistant programs
• Public Health programs
• Veterinary Medicine programs