Admission Requirements โ Four-Year M.D. Program
Applications for the Four-Year M.D. Program for the 2026-2027 Academic Year Are Now Closed
Admission Requirements โ 2026-2027 Academic Year
๐ Reserve Duty Admissions Framework for the 2026-2027 Academic Year
Academic Eligibility Requirements
Academic Eligibility Requirements
Bachelor's Degree
Applicants must meet all of the following requirements:
- Hold a bachelor's degree from a higher education institution recognized in Israel or abroad that awards degrees equivalent to those conferred by Bar-Ilan University, with a minimum weighted GPA of 80.
- Applicants holding a double-major degree must achieve a GPA of 80 or higher in each major. GPAs from different majors will not be averaged.
- A GPA below 80 in a bachelor's degree cannot be compensated for by a higher GPA earned in a master's degree.
- The official GPA appearing on the institution's academic transcript is the determining grade for admissions purposes.
- GPAs will not be rounded up.
Prerequisite Courses
Applicants must successfully complete the prerequisite courses listed below at the required scope, as part of a bachelor's degree at a recognized academic institution in one of the following fields:
- B.Sc. in Life Sciences or Natural Sciences
- Medicine
- Exact Sciences (Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Computer Science, or Geophysics)
- B.Eng. in Engineering
Courses completed as part of a degree other than a B.Sc. (for example, B.A. or B.Ed.) will not be recognized for exemption from the prerequisite course requirements.
Graduates of health professions (including Nursing, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, Emergency Medical Services, Practical Engineering, and related fields) are required to complete the prerequisite courses, even if they hold a B.Sc. degree.
Required Prerequisite Courses
| Subject | Credits |
|---|---|
| Biochemistry | 4 |
| Cell Biology | 4 |
| Molecular Biology | 4 |
| Genetics* | 3 |
| Microbiology | 4 |
| Physiology | 4 |
| Statistics* | 3 |
* Lecture hours only; tutorial or recitation hours are not included.
Notes
- The University reserves the right to determine whether courses completed during a bachelor's degree satisfy the prerequisite course requirements, based on their academic content and scope.
- In certain cases, the total number of required course hours may exceed the minimum credit requirements listed above.
- Statistics courses completed within bachelor's degree programs in the social sciences or health professions may be accepted toward the Statistics prerequisite requirement.
Additional Admission Requirements
- Limitation on the Number of Applications
Beginning with admissions for the 2028-2029 academic year, applicants who have applied to the program three times since the 2025-2026 academic year and were not admitted will not be eligible to apply again.
Clarifications:
- An applicant who applied and participated in the admissions process for the 2025-2026, 2026-2027, and 2027-2028 academic years and was not admitted will not be eligible to apply again.
- The count of application attempts begins with admissions for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- The three applications are counted as the total number of applications submitted to the program, whether or not they were made in consecutive years.
- The number of applications is based solely on the number of times an application was submitted, regardless of whether the applicant advanced to any of the later stages of the admissions process.
- Applicants may apply up to three times to each program (the Four-Year M.D. Program or the Six-Year M.D. Program), independently of one another.
- Prerequisite Courses: Grades, Content, and Validity
- A minimum grade of 75 is required in all courses used to satisfy prerequisite course requirements.
- For example, if two separate 2-credit courses are used to fulfill a 4-credit prerequisite requirement, a grade of 75 or higher must be earned in each course individually.
- Grades from multiple courses used to complete a single prerequisite requirement cannot be averaged.
- Courses in Plant Physiology or Plant Sciences will not be recognized as fulfilling prerequisite course requirements.
- Only full courses that adequately cover the relevant prerequisite subject matter will be recognized.
- Partial content completed as part of a modular course will not be accepted.
- Courses completed as part of a Master's or Ph.D. degree are not recognized for prerequisite course exemptions, including Statistics courses.
- Post-baccalaureate GPA calculations are not accepted.
- Beginning with admissions for the 2021-2022 academic year, all credits used to fulfill a specific prerequisite subject must be completed at the same institution.
- Beginning with admissions for the 2022-2023 academic year, prerequisite courses are valid for 10 years only.
- Courses completed 10 years or more before the academic year for which the applicant is applying will not be accepted.
- Validity is determined by the academic year in which the course was completed, as recorded on the official transcript, and the academic year for which admission is sought.
- Course expiration is not based on the examination date, grade publication date, or application submission date.
- Course validity is reassessed each year.
- Beginning with admissions for the 2023-2024 academic year, the Life Sciences Genetics course taught at Ben-Gurion University will no longer be accepted without additional coursework.
- Applicants who completed this course must also complete Human Genetics and Genomics.
- In cases where information reported by an applicant conflicts with the official transcript, the official transcript will be considered the sole authoritative source.
- To request a preliminary review of prerequisite coursework, applicants may send the Prerequisite Course Form or a list of completed courses and grades to: biu.medicine@biu.ac.il
- A minimum grade of 75 is required in all courses used to satisfy prerequisite course requirements.
- Preliminary Review of Admission Eligibility
Applicants Educated at Israeli Institutions
- Applicants who studied at a recognized academic institution in Israel are not required to obtain advance confirmation of eligibility before applying.
- Their compliance with the admission requirements will be reviewed only if they successfully complete the admissions process and are offered admission.
Applicants Educated Abroad
- Applicants who completed their studies at an academic institution outside Israel must obtain written confirmation in advance from Bar-Ilan University confirming that they meet the admission requirements.
- Approvals issued by other institutions will not be recognized.
Important Information
- Applicants are solely responsible for ensuring that they meet all prerequisite course requirements.
- Degree eligibility, academic transcripts, and prerequisite coursework will be reviewed only after admission to the program.
- The Faculty of Medicine is the sole authority authorized to determine prerequisite course exemptions.
- Bar-Ilan University does not undertake to recognize prerequisite-course approvals issued by other institutions.
- All requests for course evaluations and approvals must be submitted by email.
- Applicants should retain all correspondence for future reference.
- Verbal approvals will not be recognized.
Previous Studies in Medicine or Dentistry
Applicants whose studies in medicine or dentistry were discontinued for disciplinary reasons are not eligible to apply to the Four-Year M.D. Program.
Applicants are required to submit an official letter from the institution at which they studied, specifying the reasons for the discontinuation of their studies.
- Updates Regarding Admission Requirements
Pass/Fail Grades
Due to the "Swords of Iron" War, some academic institutions have allowed students to choose a binary Pass/Fail grading option for certain courses.
Please note:
- A numerical grade of at least 75 is required in all prerequisite courses.
- The Pass/Fail grading option may not be used for prerequisite courses.
Microbiology Courses โ Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The following courses:
- 71056
- 71057
(General Microbiology, Faculty of Agriculture, Hebrew University of Jerusalem)
include only two hours of frontal instruction and therefore do not satisfy the Microbiology prerequisite requirement for admission to the Four-Year M.D. Program.
Students who completed these courses must complete an additional course worth at least 2 academic credits (equivalent to two hours of frontal instruction), subject to all other regulations governing the completion of prerequisite requirements through multiple courses.
This policy also applies to applicants who previously received individual approval from the Faculty.
Human Heredity Course โ Pharmacy Program
The course Human Heredity (64648), taught within the Pharmacy Program, is not recognized as a prerequisite course for admission to the Four-Year M.D. Program.
This remains the case even after revisions introduced during the 2021-2022 academic year, as the course does not meet the minimum required number of instructional hours.
- Important Notes
- The University reserves the right to revise admission requirements at any time.
- Applicants bear sole responsibility for ensuring compliance with all admission requirements.
- The University assumes no responsibility for applications submitted by candidates who do not meet the admission requirements.
- Recognition of degrees and academic credentials from institutions outside Israel, as well as grade conversions to the Israeli grading scale, is subject to the sole discretion of Bar-Ilan University.
- Applicants are responsible for monitoring all updates and announcements published on the University's website up to the close of the application period. If admission requirements are updated, the most recent published version shall prevail.
