Office of
Health Professions Advising

In the medical school application process, non-US Citizens holding permanent residency in the US are generally treated the same as citizens. They are usually able to claim a state of residence and are afforded the same state residency preference. Opportunities for medical training in the US are not as open for international applicants, i.e., non-citizens, non-permanent residents. While a number of medical schools (primarily private medical schools) admit international students, the number of international students admitted is quite small.

In the years 1994-1998, the number of foreign applicants to US medical schools ranged from 1,109 to 1,215. During that same period, the number accepted to at least one US medical school ranged from 170-194. Thus the acceptance rates for international applicants ranged from 14.0 to 16.4%. In 1999, there were 1,129 foreign applicants to US medical schools and 192 were accepted (17%). It has been our experience that international students with strong credentials have been accepted to medical schools in the US, but primarily to private schools.

Many American medical students finance their medical education, at least in part, through government loans and these loans are not available to international students. Therefore, international applicants must be prepared to provide detailed evidence of how they will finance their medical education and, in some cases, may be required to place a portion of the funds in an escrow account prior to enrollment.

In response to the recent emphasis on internationalization at Duke and recruitment of international students, the HPA office has put together a list of U.S. medical schools detailing their policy towards international students.

You may access the list here: International Applicants.