Yes, organic chemistry is required for almost every medical school in the United States. The standard expectation is two semesters (one full year) of organic chemistry with a lab component, though a growing number of schools now accept one semester of organic chemistry paired with one semester of biochemistry instead. Regardless of which path you take, you will need at least some organic chemistry to be a competitive applicant.
What Most MD Schools Require
The majority of allopathic (MD) medical schools require two semesters of organic chemistry with labs. According to AAMC prerequisite data, schools like Columbia, Emory, Howard University, and the University of Hawaii all specify one full year of organic chemistry with a lab component. At the University of Tennessee, for example, eight of your sixteen required chemistry semester hours must be in organic chemistry, and each course must include a full laboratory component.
A smaller but notable group of schools has reduced the organic chemistry requirement to one semester, typically replacing the second semester with a biochemistry requirement. UCSF requires just one semester of organic chemistry with lab. The University of Pittsburgh requires half a year of organic chemistry plus half a year of biochemistry. The University of Arkansas requires one semester of organic chemistry and one semester of biochemistry, with no lab required for either. This shift reflects a broader trend toward emphasizing biochemistry, which connects more directly to the medical school curriculum.
If you want to keep the widest range of schools open to you, plan on completing two semesters of organic chemistry with labs plus a semester of biochemistry. That combination satisfies requirements at virtually every MD program.
DO School Requirements Are Similar
Osteopathic (DO) medical schools have comparable organic chemistry expectations. A 2020 prerequisites chart covering dozens of DO programs shows that most require around 12 quarter units of organic chemistry with labs. Schools like Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, Western University, Liberty University, Campbell University, and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine all follow this pattern. A few programs, such as Des Moines University, require fewer units and only recommend (rather than require) labs, but they are the exception. Michigan State University’s osteopathic program is on the higher end, requiring 24 units of combined chemistry coursework including biochemistry.
Grades Matter More Than You Think
Completing organic chemistry is only half the battle. Most medical schools require a minimum grade of C in prerequisite courses, and if you earn below that, you’ll likely need to retake both semesters, not just the one you struggled with. Princeton’s Health Professions Advising office notes this explicitly: a grade below C in organic chemistry I means retaking both Orgo I and Orgo II.
In practice, a C meets the minimum bar but won’t help your application. Organic chemistry grades are part of your science GPA, which admissions committees scrutinize separately from your overall GPA. Strong performance in organic chemistry signals that you can handle the volume and complexity of medical school coursework.
Online Courses and Lab Requirements
If you’re considering taking organic chemistry online, be careful with the lab component. Many medical schools do not accept online labs. Oregon State University, which offers a well-known online organic chemistry sequence, explicitly warns pre-health students that its required organic chemistry lab course is only available in person at its Corvallis or Bend campuses. The lecture portions of organic chemistry may be accepted in an online format by some schools, but the lab almost always needs to be completed in person. Before enrolling in any online science course, check directly with the medical schools you plan to apply to.
Why Medical Schools Care About Organic Chemistry
Organic chemistry sometimes gets a reputation as a pointless “weed-out” course, but it has real relevance to what you’ll study in medical school. Most of the molecules in your body are organic compounds: proteins, DNA, RNA, lipids, and the thousands of small molecules involved in metabolism. Understanding how these molecules behave, how their shapes determine their function, and how they react with one another is foundational to pharmacology and biochemistry courses you’ll take in your first and second years of medical school.
Drug design and drug metabolism rely heavily on organic chemistry principles. When you learn why one version of a molecule is an effective medication while its mirror image is inactive or even toxic, that’s stereochemistry from your organic chemistry course in action. The skill of looking at a molecular structure and predicting how it will behave in the body is something pharmacology professors expect you to arrive with, not something they plan to teach from scratch.
Organic chemistry also builds a specific kind of problem-solving ability. Unlike general chemistry, which often involves plugging numbers into equations, organic chemistry requires you to recognize patterns, predict outcomes of multi-step processes, and think spatially about three-dimensional structures. Medical schools view strong performance in the course as evidence that a student can handle complex reasoning under pressure.
How to Plan Your Coursework
Most students take organic chemistry in their sophomore year of college, after completing general chemistry freshman year. This timing leaves room to take biochemistry junior year and still have your prerequisites finished before applying. If you’re a career changer or postbac student, many programs offer accelerated sequences that cover both semesters of organic chemistry in a single calendar year.
For the broadest flexibility in where you can apply, your safest path is two semesters of organic chemistry with in-person labs, plus a semester of biochemistry. If you already know you’re only applying to schools that accept one semester of organic chemistry paired with biochemistry, you can plan accordingly, but verify those requirements directly with each school’s admissions office. Prerequisites can change from year to year, and what a school accepted last cycle isn’t guaranteed for the next one.