Kentucky (UK)

University of Kentucky College of Medicine Lexington, KY · Public · MD

Average MCAT: 508
Average GPA: 3.84
Class size: 208 (5,765 applicants)
Tuition: $78,046 (per year, nonresident)
Out-of-state applicants: Limited

Deadlines

AMCAS deadline: Nov. 1, 2026
Early Decision Program: Aug. 3, 2026
Secondary deadline: Nov. 30, 2026

Essays

Why UK

Why have you chosen to apply to the University of Kentucky College of Medicine?

Mission and learning environment

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine's (UKCOM) mission statement promotes an environment that encourages excellence in education, access to high-quality health care, and transformative research to improve the health and wellness of Kentuckians and beyond. Please describe how your past experiences or future plans contribute to enriching and enhancing the learning environment at UKCOM.

Kentucky ties (nonresidents)

If you are a non Kentucky resident, you are required to elaborate on your Kentucky ties if applicable (personal, familial e.g.)

One experience

Your combination of life experiences make you uniquely you. Talk about one such experience and how it has helped you prepare to be a physician.

Gratitude

Describe an experience or situation which made you feel grateful?

Unique or challenging facts

Please share unique, personally important, and/or challenging facts in your life and/or work experiences. Please discuss how such factors have influenced your goals and preparation for a career in medicine.

Not in the majority

Describe a situation where you were not in the majority.

First-choice campus

Please elaborate on why this is your preferred campus.

Alternate campus

Please elaborate on your selection of alternate campus (if applicable).

Editor's notes

Your campus choice is a real decision, not a preference box. You interview at your first-choice campus, the offer is for that campus, and you sign an agreement binding you to it. Visit or attend an open house before you pick, and make the campus essay specific.
The funnel is steep after the secondary. In 2025, 3,963 applicants were offered the supplemental and only 582 were interviewed. Getting the secondary isn't a signal. Your answers, and letters that meet UK's detailed rules, decide what happens next.
Read the letter rules closely. Without a committee letter, UK wants a faculty letter from your major and one from a different science or math course, both from 3-credit classroom courses and not from TAs. A letter that doesn't fit these rules can stall a file that is otherwise complete.
UK counts rural Appalachian counties and low-income patients among the populations it wants to serve, and 56 of its 156 Kentucky-resident students in 2025 came from rural Kentucky. If that's your background or your plan, the Morehead program and the mission essay are where to show it.