UAB Heersink

University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine Birmingham, AL · Public · MD

Average MCAT: 509
Average GPA: 3.88
Class size: 194 (3,835 applicants)
Tuition: $69,146 (per year, nonresident)
Out-of-state applicants: Limited

Deadlines

AMCAS deadline: Nov. 1, 2026
Secondary deadline: Nov. 15, 2026

Essays

Ties to Alabama (non-residents)

If you are not a resident of Alabama, please describe any ties or meaningful experiences you have had related to the state of Alabama or UAB Medical Center.

Residence history

If the area you spent most of your life before college differs from where you currently consider your permanent address, please explain.

Essay 1 (750 characters)

Where do you see yourself in your medical career fifteen to twenty years from now?

Essay 2 (750 characters)

Describe a patient interaction with the healthcare system. This could be a direct patient observation (in person or virtual) during a shadowing/clinical experience or a personal experience within the healthcare system. What did you learn from this experience?

Essay 3 (750 characters)

Describe a fulfilling or challenging community service experience and how you grew personally from the experience. Examples of community service include, but are not limited to, face-to-face activities volunteering in a healthcare setting, nursing home, school, crisis center, food bank, or shelter.

Essay 4 (750 characters)

Describe a situation where you had to adjust your behavior or response based on new information or changing conditions.

Optional

Please share any information you want us to know about you that is not included in your AMCAS application or in this secondary application (e.g., provide an explanation of any gaps in education or work or poor academic performance, a meaningful leadership or community service experience tied to healthcare).

Editor's notes

If you're not from Alabama, look hard at the numbers first. Out-of-state applicants need a 3.3 science GPA just to get a secondary, and 25 of 194 students in the 2026 class came from outside the state. Apply if you have real Alabama ties or a clear match to one of UAB's four mission areas. Otherwise it's a long shot.
PREview is required, and the test window closes in October. If you haven't taken it, book it now. A missing score can stall a file that's otherwise ready by the Nov. 15 secondary deadline.
Prepare for two interview styles on one day: a one-on-one with a committee member and a nine-station MMI, all on Kira. The interviewers have your essays but not your numbers, so know your AMCAS entries and secondary answers cold.
The four secondary essays run 750 characters each. That's roughly four sentences. Write long, then cut to one example per answer; trimming a 300-word draft into a list of nouns is worse than starting small.