COMPETITIVENESS
The 15 Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students (defined below) have been endorsed by the AAMC Group on Student Affairs (GSA) Committee on Admissions (COA). The competencies fall into four categories: Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Thinking and Reasoning and Science.
Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students
Interpersonal Competencies
Service Orientation
Demonstrates a desire to help others and sensitivity to others’ needs and feelings; demonstrates a desire to alleviate others’ distress; recognizes and acts on his/her responsibilities to society locally, nationally and globally.
Social Skills
Demonstrates an awareness of others’ needs, goals, feelings and the ways that social and behavioral cues affect peoples’ interactions and behaviors; adjusts behaviors appropriately in response to these cues; treats others with respect.
Cultural Competence
Demonstrates knowledge of socio-cultural factors that affect interactions and behaviors; shows an appreciation and respect for multiple dimensions of diversity; recognizes and acts on the obligation to inform one’s own judgment; engages diverse and competing perspectives as a resource for learning, citizenship and work; recognizes and appropriately addresses bias in themselves and others; interacts effectively with people from diverse backgrounds.
Teamwork
Works collaboratively with others to achieve shared goals; shares information and knowledge with others and provides feedback; puts team goals ahead of individual goals.
Oral Communication
Effectively conveys information to others using spoken words and sentences; listens effectively; recognizes potential communication barriers and adjusts approach or clarifies information as needed.
Intrapersonal Competencies
Ethical Responsibility to Self and Others
Behaves in an honest and ethical manner; cultivates personal and academic integrity; adheres to ethical principles and follows rules and procedures; resists peer pressure to engage in unethical behavior and encourages others to behave in honest and ethical ways; develops and demonstrates ethical and moral reasoning.
Reliability and Dependability
Consistently fulfills obligations in a timely and satisfactory manner; takes responsibility for personal actions and performance.
Resilience and Adaptability
Demonstrates tolerance of stressful or changing environments or situations and adapts effectively to them; is persistent, even under difficult situations; recovers from setbacks.
Capacity for Improvement
Sets goals for continuous improvement and for learning new concepts and skills; engages in reflective practice for improvement; solicits and responds appropriately to feedback.
Thinking and Reasoning Competencies
Critical Thinking
Uses logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Quantitative Reasoning
Applies quantitative reasoning and appropriate mathematics to describe or explain phenomena in the natural world.
Scientific Inquiry
Applies knowledge of the scientific process to integrate and synthesize information, solve problems and formulate research questions and hypotheses; is facile in the language of the sciences and uses it to participate in the discourse of science and explain how scientific knowledge is discovered and validated.
Written Communication
Effectively conveys information to others using written words and sentences.
Science Competencies
Living Systems
Applies knowledge and skill in the natural sciences to solve problems related to molecular and macro systems, including biomolecules, molecules, cells and organs.
Human Behavior
Applies knowledge of the self, others and social systems to solve problems related to the psychological, socio-cultural and biological factors that influence health and well-being.
Contact Us
CAS Office of Academic Assistance
Our office provides pre-medical advisement for third-year, senior and post-baccalaureate students.
First-year and second-year students seeking pre-medical advisement receive support from the University Advisement Center.
Pre-Medical Advisement
Office Hours:
Monday - Friday
8:30 a.m. - 5:15 p.m.
Pre-Medical Advisors
- All Post-Bacc Students: Lisa Shepard - [email protected]
- Last Names A-M: Donald "Beau" Harper - [email protected]
- Last Names N-Z: Natalie Everett - [email protected]
- Program Manager: Linda King - [email protected]
Our Office Address
25 Park Place, Suite 300
Atlanta, GA 30303
University Advisement Center
First-year through second-year students seeking pre-medical advisement receive support from the University Advisement Center.
25 Park Place, Suite 400
Atlanta, GA 30303