How to Get Into the Wake Forest School of Medicine: Requirements and Strategies
/Learn the Wake Forest Medical School ranking and acceptance rate, plus admissions strategies and Wake Forest secondary essay samples
wake forest medical school IS RANKED #48 BY US NEWS AND WORLD REPORT FOR RESEARCH
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Part 1: Introduction
If you’re looking for a well-established medical school with a strong reputation for patient care, community service, and clinical research, you might consider applying to the Wake Forest School of Medicine. Located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina—a growing leader in the nanotech and biotech fields—Wake Forest Medical School offers students a chance to study medicine while surrounded by vibrant Southern culture.
The Wake Forest Medical School ranking*—Tier 2 in Research and Tier 3 in Primary Care in 2024 (#48 in Research and #80 in Primary Care in 2023) by U.S. News and World Report—places it among other renowned medical programs. It also lands in the top third of medical schools regarding its level of funding from the National Institutes of Health.
The unique “Wake Ready” curriculum offered at the Wake Forest School of Medicine offers students a personalized approach to their medical training. Medical students begin their clinical rotations at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center after 18 months of foundational classroom training. After completing their core clerkships, students explore specialty areas during their final clinical rotations—including dermatology, infectious diseases, and neuroradiology, to name a few. This curriculum positions graduates to successfully match into competitive residency programs. In 2025, 99.3% of Wake Forest Match Day participants successfully matched.
If you’re hoping to join a prestigious group of physicians and medical experts who are devoted to pushing the boundaries of medicine and healthcare, Wake Forest might be the place for you. Continue reading to explore the Wake Forest Medical School requirements, secondary essays, and interview format so you can increase your odds of getting in.
*Note: Wake Forest declined to participate in U.S News rankings in 2025. It is currently unranked.
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Part 2: Wake Forest School of Medicine MD programs
The Wake Forest School of Medicine offers several paths for students to earn an MD:
Wake Forest Medical School also offers an Early Assurance Program specifically for Wake Forest University undergraduates. Students can apply as sophomores if they meet a minimum GPA of 3.5. If accepted, they must still take the MCAT and earn a score of 509 or above to matriculate into the Wake Forest School of Medicine immediately after the completion of their senior year.
Wake Forest School of Medicine scholarships and tuition
The 2025–2026 base tuition at the Wake Forest School of Medicine is $66,895 The total cost of attendance, including room, board, supplies, transportation, and other indirect expenses, comes to $110,448.
While this cost is high, Wake Forest Medical School offers approximately 250 institutional scholarships to its medical students each year, based on financial need and merit. Wake Forest also offers endowed scholarships. most of which were created in honor of an alumnus or alumna. About 79 percent of students receive either federal or institutional aid.
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Part 3: How hard is it to get into the Wake Forest Medical School?
Wake Forest Medical School admissions statistics
While we don’t have an exact acceptance rate, Wake Forest Medical School’s interview rate during the most recent admissions cycle was 4.1 percent and their matriculation rate was only 1.2 percent . Let’s take a closer look at the admissions statistics for the class of 2028:
Applicants: 12,139
Interviews: 498
Matriculants: 145 (32% in-state)
Average GPA: 3.83
Average MCAT score: 511
(Suggested reading: Average GPA and MCAT Score for Every Medical School)
Wake Forest Medical School admissions requirements
While Wake Forest doesn’t require specific coursework in order to be admitted to its medical school, they do strongly recommend that applicants complete the following prerequisites:
Biology: Introductory biology, molecular/cell biology, genetics, anatomy, physiology, neuroscience
Chemistry: Biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry
Physics: Introductory physics
Mathematics: Algebra, Statistics
Psychology: Introductory psychology, behavioral psychology, abnormal psychology
Sociology: Introductory sociology, coursework with a special emphasis on health disparities
Humanities: Foreign language (especially Spanish), philosophy (especially medical ethics), literature
Wake Forest Medical School sets minimum requirements in order for applications to be reviewed. Students must have a minimum 3.2 science GPA and a minimum 502 MCAT score to reach the admissions committee. Applications that do not meet these minimum requirements will be reviewed by the Dean of Admissions. The MCAT must have been taken within three years of application. If you are applying for Fall 2026 entrance (during the 2025-2026 application cycle), this means no earlier than January 2022.
In addition, all applicants are required to take the online Casper test and submit their scores to Wake Forest Medical School.
Wake Forest does not accept applications from international students. Only U.S. citizens and permanent residents are eligible to apply. Wake Forest also does not accept applicants for transfer or for admission with advanced standing.
(Suggested reading: Medical School Requirements: The Definitive Guide)
Wake Forest Medical School application timeline
AMCAS applications must be submitted according to the following dates and deadlines:
May 1, 2025: AMCAS application opens
May 27, 2025: AMCAS application can be submitted
June 27, 2025: AMCAS applications transmitted to Wake Forest
Mid-July 2025: Wake Forest secondary application opens
July 13, 2025: Latest MCAT considered for Early Decision applicants
July 31, 2025: Latest CASPer test considered for Early Decision applicants
August 1, 2025: Application deadline for Early Decision
August 2025–February 2026: Interviews conducted
September 14, 2025: Latest MCAT considered
October 1, 2025: Early Decision applicants notified
October 15, 2025: AMCAS application deadline
October 16, 2025–March 15, 2026: Regular Decision applicants notified
November 14, 2025: Latest CASPer test considered
November 30, 2025: Wake Forest secondary application deadline
November 30, 2025: Letters of evaluation due
April 15, 2026: Accepted students must narrow options to three medical schools
21 days prior to orientation (date TBD): “Commit to Enroll” deadline
While you can apply to Wake Forest into October, submitting the AMCAS application and the supplemental materials as early as possible will improve your chances of getting accepted under rolling admissions. For the best possible odds, submit your AMCAS application in June and your secondary essays before the end of July. That way, you will be among the first round of applications reviewed by the admissions committee in August. This means you are competing against the fewest number of applicants for the greatest number of spots.
(Suggested reading: The Ideal Medical School Application Timeline)
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Part 4: Wake Forest secondary application essays
While meeting the academic requirements for Wake Forest Medical School will ensure your application is reviewed, having traits and experiences that match Wake Forest’s mission will set you apart as a candidate.
The Wake Forest School of Medicine prioritizes students who demonstrate compassion, service, integrity, diversity, collegiality, and innovation through their extracurricular activities and secondary essays. The admissions committee wants to see that you possess the potential to become a physician who leads the way in socially responsible healthcare.
With over 10,000 students applying to the Wake Forest School of Medicine every year, demonstrating impressive academic ability and a commitment to medicine is necessary to stand out as an applicant. Your GPA and MCAT score can prove you’re a competitive academic candidate. But the greatest way to show you possess a strong passion for patient care is to write a compelling personal statement and secondary essays representing your experiences and extracurricular activities.
Below you’ll find the current secondary essay prompts for the Wake Forest School of Medicine, as well as strategies to approach them and sample essays.
Question 1: The mission of our academic health system is to improve health for all. Consider your abilities, insights, and previous experiences and then tell us about your potential to help improve health for all. (200 words)
Question 2: Describe a non-academic challenge you have faced and explain how you overcame it. (200 words)
Not every challenge in your premed life is academic, and Wake Forest is well-aware that the ways in which you approach those challenges will spill over into your medical career. This prompt is asking you to demonstrate your problem-solving skills while also revealing personal growth. The key here is to choose a challenge that allows you to highlight this while also connecting them to qualities Wake Forest values, such as adaptability and the ability to learn from setbacks.
Some applicants will bristle at the prospect of portraying themselves as fallible in a med school secondary essay, but witha prompt like this, it’s important to be honest. Adcoms appreciate vulnerability and authenticity, especially when followed by genuine reflection and positive change.
Here’s an example:
When I returned from Japan, I decided to continue to improve my Japanese language skills and earn extra money by working at a Japanese restaurant near campus. I also took a particularly rigorous course load that semester. Early in my time at the restaurant, my coworker quit, and my manager asked me to take on extra shifts. At that point in my life, my motto was to say yes to everything, and I felt confident that I could handle the four extra nights at the restaurant along with my courses and extracurricular activities.
Once I began taking on extra shifts, however, I realized how exhausting restaurant work can be. Although I tried to maintain my schedule and study habits, I found myself “burning the candle at both ends” and even fell asleep once during an exam. Rather than punish me for this, my professor asked me what was going on. When I explained my predicament, he said that he understood what it was like to take on too many responsibilities and advised me to be more realistic about my commitments. I cut back to two shifts a week at the restaurant and made sure to prioritize self-care and rest.
What’s successful about this essay?
This response effectively demonstrates the key qualities Wake Forest seeks while staying focused and authentic within the tight word limit.
This is a relatable scenario. It’s a challenge that feels authentic and the writer admits overconfidence in their ability to handle the extra responsibilities, acknowledging that their approach wasn’t working.
The essay illustrates growth by the applicant learning they should be more realistic about their commitments, which is something directly applicable to life as a medical school student as well as a physician.
Question 3: From your list of “most meaningful experiences” on the AMCAS application, choose one that has been the most formative in terms of your desire for a career in medicine. Why did that experience have such meaning for you in your decision-making process? (200 words)
Question 4: Please share an experience that demonstrates how you have collaborated with others. (200 words or less)
Question 5: Describe your future goal(s). Reflect on your past experiences and describe how these experiences will shape your goal(s). (200 words or less)
Question 6: Tell us about any specific reason(s) (personal, educational, etc.) why you see yourself here at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine. (150 words or less)
Question 7: Please tell us an interesting fact about yourself that a casual acquaintance may find surprising or interesting. (50 words or less)
Gain instant access to med school secondary essay examples for every single prompt required by every medical school in the United States and Canada. Subscribe today to lock in the current investments, which will be increasing in the future for new subscribers.
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Part 5: Wake Forest School of Medicine interview
If you impress the Wake Forest School of Medicine admissions committee with your academic stats, extracurriculars, personal statement, and impressive secondary essays, you have a chance to be among the approximately 4 percent of applicants who receive an interview invitation. Interviews are conducted between September and March.
In the 2025–2026 application cycle, all interviews will be held virtually. Remember, you should always be ready to discuss anything included in your application, whether it be an extracurricular activity or a personal story you used in your essays. Show the same level of enthusiasm for patient care and research that you weaved throughout your application.
In addition to the virtual interview, all invited applicants will also participate in a virtual session where they will have the chance to speak with faculty, students, and staff and ask questions about the program.
Remember, less than half of the students who interview won’t be accepted to the Wake Forest School of Medicine. But if you demonstrate your integrity, compassion, and commitment to medicine throughout the interview process, you’ll have a strong chance of impressing the admissions committee and earning an offer of acceptance.
Invited to a med school interview? Congrats! There's no need to land in waitlist purgatory or the rejection pile. Learn how to craft memorable, acceptance-worthy responses using the resource below.
Gain instant access to the most common traditional and MMI interview questions, plus sample responses for each, to help you craft responses that lead to acceptances. Subscribe today to lock in the current investments, which will be increasing in the future for new subscribers.
After your Wake Forest School of Medicine interview
Once you’ve closed the window on your virtual interview, you’ll breathe a sigh of relief that could very quickly be followed by anxiety. “What now?” you may wonder. “Is waiting all that’s left to do?”
After all of your hard work and forward thinking, it can make you feel a bit uneasy to just sit around and hope for the best. There are some unique challenges at this phase of the application process, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do.
Effective post-interview communication is an art, and one that requires candidates to pay close attention to a school’s policies regarding updates. At Wake Forest, they will accept application updates through the applicant portal, but they explicitly state they "cannot guarantee that it will be reviewed by the Committee on Admissions."
This might seem a bit disheartening, but let’s take the glass half full approach. There’s still a good chance that your updates will be reviewed, especially if the updates are meaningful.
How should I send updates to Wake Forest School of Medicine?
Wake Forest’s approach to updates is one of openness, limited by operational reality. They get a lot of applications each year, which means a lot of interviews and a lot of updates. However, if you send updates that are worth their time, you stand a better chance of making a difference for your application.
Wake Forest plainly notes that they don't accept grade or coursework updates after AMCAS submission. So, make sure you’re not writing them to let them know you’ve passed a biochemistry course with flying colors. That said, there are other updates you can share in a letter of interest or letter of intent post-interview.
Should I send a letter of interest or a letter of intent to Wake Forest School of Medicine?
The main difference between a letter of interest and a letter of intent for Wake Forest is how you feel about matriculation. If you're 100% sure that you would matriculate into Wake Forest School of Medicine if accepted, send a letter of intent. If Wake Forest is one of your top schools and you’d be quite happy to attend there, but you’re holding out for another school, send a letter of interest.
Whichever type of letter you choose, you want to frame your interest or intent as one of conviction and connect that desire to aspects of Wake Forest that excite you. Which aspects of the Wake Forest curriculum resonate with you? Do your career goals connect to Wake Forest’s strengths with the local community and mission for health equity? It should be clear from your writing that your preference for Wake Forest stems from an alignment with their mission and your interest in fitting within it.
What kinds of updates should I share with Wake Forest?
Since Wake Forest makes it clear that your letters may not be reviewed, this becomes even more about quality over quantity than at other schools. For instance, you may have a lot of updates to share, but before you add them to your letter, consider whether they’ll stand out and are worthy of the admissions committee’s time.
For instance, minor updates about continued work in a clinical setting should be avoided. However, if you’ve been granted a leadership position where you work, this would be something worthy of mentioning. Likewise, if you’ve completed a research project, given a presentation, or had some work published, these would all be great things to put in a letter.
Suggested reading: (How to Write a Great Medical School Letter of Intent or Letter of Interest (Example Included))
Gain instant access to real-world examples of letters of interest and letters of intent that will help you get you out of admissions purgatory and into med school. Subscribe today to lock in the current investments, which will increase in the future for new subscribers.
Final thoughts
The Wake Forest School of Medicine attracts thousands of competitive, driven applicants every year. The most promising applicants show an impressive history of community service and commitment to patient care, as well as the capacity to succeed in an academically rigorous environment. By demonstrating how your qualities and experiences match the values of Wake Forest throughout your application—and particularly in your secondary essays—you can stand out as an ideal candidate who deserves a seat in Wake Forest Medical School’s next incoming class.
About the Author
Dr. Shirag Shemmassian is the Founder of Shemmassian Academic Consulting and one of the world's foremost experts on medical school admissions. For nearly 20 years, he and his team have helped thousands of students get into medical school using his exclusive approach.