How to Apply to Life Sciences and Pre-Health Study at Bates College: Majors in Biology, Neuroscience and Biochemistry, No Nursing Degree, No Application Fee, Testing Optional Since 1984, and the Path for Domestic, International (Including Chinese) and Transfer Applicants

Bates College is an undergraduate liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Its life-science degrees are the Biology major, the Neuroscience major and the Biochemistry major (the last administered by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry). There is no pre-med major in the United States; pre-health advising sits with the Center for Purposeful Work. This guide summarises Bates’ published information for fall 2027 entry for U.S. applicants, international applicants and applicants from China, followed by transfer students. Note: Bates’ course catalog is on catalog.bates.edu, whose scan returned a 202 response with web-protection headers; I did not request it, so the full course lists for the Biology and Neuroscience majors are not covered here. Only what the department sites state is reported; check the catalog on Bates’ website for details. Most dates on Bates’ pages carry no year; check that they refer to the cycle for fall 2027 entry.

1. Relevant undergraduate programs

• Biology major: offered by the Department of Biology; the site says majors become familiar with all levels of biological organization from molecules to ecosystems and gain laboratory and field experience, and that Biology is frequently a gateway to a health care profession or veterinary school.
• Neuroscience major: an interdisciplinary program across the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities, from molecular and cellular levels to computation and culture; courses carry the NRSC code, learning is lab- and research-based, and the major ends with a senior capstone or thesis.
• Biochemistry major: administered by Chemistry and Biochemistry with courses from Chemistry and Biology; thirteen or fourteen courses including a one- or two-semester thesis. The site says students may not double major in biochemistry and biology, chemistry or neuroscience, nor earn a chemistry minor.
• Chemistry major: the department offers an American Chemical Society-certified major; not covered further here.
• Others: the Neuroscience page contains a link to a public health concentration in the catalog, which I did not read. The pages I read show no undergraduate nursing, nutrition, kinesiology or biomedical engineering major; whether any exists is not published there, so ask admissions.
• Whether the Biology, Neuroscience and Biochemistry majors are STEM-designated: the pages I read do not list them one by one. The Center for Global Education’s STEM OPT page says the STEM OPT extension is a 24-month extension of post-completion OPT for graduates with a degree in an eligible STEM field, and that you check by looking at the CIP code (in the form 12.3456) under “major 1” or “major 2” in the “Program of Study” box of your most recent Form I-20 against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security STEM list. So whether a given major counts is determined by the CIP code on the I-20 after admission; confirm with the Center for Global Education (globaleducation@bates.edu).
• Combined bachelor’s/medical programs: not mentioned on the pre-health pages or elsewhere on the pages I read; not published there.

2. Admission: apply to the college, declare a major later

• Applying: the application checklist I read does not ask you to select a major and does not say how an intended major is used; this is not published there, so ask admission@bates.edu. The admissions FAQ says Bates does not offer “direct admission” (a school proactively offering admission before an application) or rolling admission.
• Declaring: the Biology page says you may declare any time you feel ready, but you must declare by the winter semester of your sophomore year; you make an appointment with the department chair, who completes the paperwork and assigns a biology faculty advisor.
• Entry conditions for Biology: no GPA threshold or cap is stated on the pages I read.
• Biology planning (department site): it is essential to take CHEM 107 and CHEM 108 in the first year; the department strongly encourages finishing the core courses before the end of sophomore year and requires them before senior year; it suggests completing general and organic chemistry and the four-course biology core sequence in the first two years for maximum flexibility for electives and study abroad; electives should be chosen with faculty for breadth from molecules and cells to organisms and ecosystems. Up to two courses from study abroad can count as electives if pre-approved by the chair.
• Biology core: the course list shows BIO 195 (Lab-Based Biological Inquiry, with a different topic each term) as the starting course, and BIO 202 Cellular Basis of Life requires BIO 195 and CHEM 108. The full number of courses and elective structure are in the catalog, which is not covered here.
• Neuroscience: the program page encourages starting with foundational courses such as BIO 195 and CHEM 107/108, whether you take Introduction to Neuroscience (NRSC 160) in the first or second year; the major ends with a senior capstone. The full course list is in the catalog, not covered here.
• Biochemistry major requirements: BIO 195, BIO 202, BIO 204; CHEM 107A, 108A, 217, 218, 321 and 322; one of CHEM 302 or CHEM 310; one of Developmental Biology, Microbiology, Genomics/Epigenetics/Gene Regulation, Genetics, Molecular Biology, Immunology and similar; one elective (biostatistics, a 300-level biology course with BIO 202 and 204 as prerequisites, or a chemistry course); and a senior thesis (BIOC 457, 458), laboratory or library. Some courses have math or physics prerequisites; the 200-level core should be done by the end of junior year; pass/fail is not allowed for major courses.
• Switching in: because you are not admitted to a major, there is no internal-transfer step; other conditions are not stated.

3. Pre-med: what the pre-health pages say

• The Purposeful Work page “STEM and Pre-Health Support & Resources” says Bates offers resources for academic, co-curricular and professional exploration for health care and STEM careers. For course selection and AP credit, go to your academic advisor; for health care careers the page names a faculty member (Bruno Salazar-Perea) as the key contact, and a Purposeful Work staff member handles STEM exploration appointments.
• The Dean of the Faculty’s “Recommended Entry Courses” page lists entry courses by department. Biology: all three of BIO 195 (fall or winter of the first year), CHEM 107A (fall of the first year) and CHEM 108A (winter of the first year), the last two described as crucial for being ready for sophomore-level biology. Biochemistry: CHEM 107 (fall of the first year), CHEM 108 (winter), BIO 195 (fall or winter), MATH 105 Calculus I (or high school equivalent, to be completed by the end of the first year) and MATH 106 Calculus II (or high school equivalent). Neuroscience: any of BIO 195, CHEM 107 or NRSC 160 (the same course as PSYC 160); students intending to major should aim to take NRSC 160 before the end of the second semester of sophomore year, and taking Medical Psychology (PSYC 215) prevents later enrollment in NRSC/PSYC 160, so those considering the major should choose NRSC/PSYC 160. On the physics page, PHYS 107 (Introductory Physics of Living Systems) is aimed at life-science students, and first-year students with pre-health interests are told to take CHEM 107/108 first, so it is usually taken in the second year.
• The Biology site says an average of about 40 Bates students or alumni enter health professions schools each year and about 10 more enter science graduate schools; of math and science alumni responding to a survey, about 76% earned advanced degrees. These are the college’s own figures; see the page for how they are counted.
• Pre-health coursework (Dean of the Faculty page “Pre-Health Support & Resources”): the page says these are general recommendations, that each professional school differs, and that no major is preferred. Recommended: General Chemistry, two semesters with labs (CHEM 107/108); Organic Chemistry, two semesters with labs (CHEM 217/218); General Physics, two semesters with labs (PHYS 107/108); Calculus, one semester (MATH 105 or 106); Statistics, one semester (any department); Biology (BIO 195, 202 and 204); English, two courses (First-Year Seminars may not count); Biochemistry (BIO 321, or CHEM 321 and 322), required by many programs and tested on the MCAT; Psychology and Sociology, basic content tested on the MCAT. Also: first-year students should take CHEM 107/108 and BIO 195; all prerequisites must be taken for a grade, not Pass/Fail, and grades below C do not meet the prerequisites; non-science majors should complete a total of 11 science courses.
• AP credit: the same page says AP credit will not meet the admission requirements for many health-related graduate or professional programs; for example, a student whose AP credit allows skipping CHEM 107 would need another, higher-level chemistry course with a lab in addition to CHEM 108, 217 and 218. It also says most, if not all, health profession programs require prerequisites to be taken in the U.S., so study abroad should be discussed with an advisor.
• Timing: the page says students who want to enter medical or podiatry school directly after graduation should finish all prerequisites by the end of spring of junior year, take the MCAT by early May of junior year and submit a primary application in early June; alternatively a gap year or two of work before applying; it cites that nationally 68.5% of medical school matriculants from the 2021 AMCAS pool had taken at least one gap year. Nursing, physician assistant, physical therapy and similar programs have varied deadlines and some require the GRE. It also says documented clinical hours are required by most PA, NP and PT programs.
• Committee letter (Purposeful Work page on the Bates Medical Studies Committee letter): for medical, dental and podiatry school the Medical Studies Committee writes a composite committee letter (other programs do not require one); candidates are ranked Not Recommended, Recommended, Highly Recommended or Exceptional, and applicants are not told their ranking. The page says applicants for 2028 matriculation prepare through summer and fall 2026 and complete the process in winter/spring 2027. Timeline: mock interview October to January; registration form and photo 15 January; self-assessment and CV 1 February; polished personal statement and official transcripts 15 February; letters of recommendation 1 March; committee interview early March to mid-April; AMCAS, AACOMAS and ADEA AADSAS in May/June. Medical and dental applications need at least three references, two of them academic and at least one from a science faculty member. An MCAT or DAT score must be in hand by the committee interview, so the MCAT should preferably be taken by February. The page is addressed to Bates students and alumni and does not distinguish applicants by citizenship.
• Whether pre-health advising has separate guidance for international students, and any limits on applying to U.S. medical schools: I read the Dean of the Faculty’s pre-health page and Purposeful Work’s committee-letter page, and neither mentions international students; not published there, so ask the listed pre-health advisors (Bruno Salazar-Perea, M.D., Lecturer in Biology and Faculty Fellow for Medical Studies; James Smith, Assistant Director for Program Design & Support at Purposeful Work).
• Combined bachelor’s/MD programs: not mentioned on the pre-health, recommended-entry-courses or committee-letter pages; not published there.

4. High school preparation

• The admissions pages I read do not list required high school courses (biology, chemistry, math, physics); not published there, so ask admissions. The checklist says Bates accepts a wide range of transcripts that give a full and accurate picture of what an applicant has learned.
• AP / IB / A-Level: the Biology department says such credit cannot substitute for any biology course and does not reduce the number of courses required for the major; an AP Biology 4 or 5 may count as one of the 32 credits needed for graduation, but not toward the major.
• Sequence after enrolling: CHEM 107 and 108 are described as essential in the first year; BIO 195 is the starting biology course; BIO 202 requires BIO 195 and CHEM 108. The Biochemistry major notes some courses have math (for example Math 106) or physics prerequisites. Math placement details are not published on the pages I read. The recommended-entry-courses page says the MATH 105 and 106 recommended for Biochemistry may be a “high school equivalent”, with MATH 105 completed by the end of the first year; PHYS 107 is aimed at life-science students.

5. Rounds, deadlines and materials

• Early Decision I (binding): 15 November; notification by 20 December; reply by 8 January.
• Early Decision II (binding): 10 January; notification by 15 February; reply by 19 February.
• Regular Decision: 10 January; notification by 1 April; reply by 1 May. Bates has no mid-year or rolling admission.
• QuestBridge: 1 October. The checklist page lists 15 January as the arts-supplement upload date for ED II and Regular Decision, which differs from the application deadline of 10 January on the rounds page; treat it as the arts-upload date and check the latest.
• Platforms: Common Application or Coalition Application powered by Scoir; QuestBridge is also accepted. There is no application fee and no supplemental essay.
• Materials: an official transcript, the School Report or Profile, one counselor recommendation and one teacher recommendation (up to two allowed); one additional non-academic recommendation may be sent. Senior-year grades: first-quarter grades by 1 December for ED I, a mid-year report by 1 February for ED II and 15 February for Regular Decision.
• Testing: the SAT/ACT has been optional since 1984; scores may be self-reported with official scores required on enrolling; Bates superscores both tests. For the Class of 2029, the middle 50% of those who submitted scores: SAT reading and writing 710–760, SAT math 720–750, ACT composite 32–34.

6. U.S. applicants

• Cost: Bates is private, and its cost page lists one rate with no in-state tuition. 2026-27 single fee $94,560, of which $73,760 is tuition and $20,800 food and housing; a one-time first-year fee of $475 (students with need-based aid receive extra grant to cover it); health insurance plan $2,352 for the full year; off-campus study fee $3,310 per semester; books about $900, personal about $1,000, transportation $250–$1,150. No extra fee for biology or health-related study appears on the pages I read.
• Aid: Bates says it meets the full demonstrated need of admitted students; the pages I read do not give U.S. aid figures; see Student Financial Services.
• Testing and in-state preference: testing is optional; any preference for Maine residents is not stated on the pages I read.
• Research and placements: the Biology site says all students take part in scaffolded, hands-on research woven through the curriculum in the lab and the field, including course-based research courses (the BIO 195 series, BIO 204), with summer research and internship applications announced on the department page, and a senior capstone or thesis. Neuroscience students do research at several points, ending in an independent capstone. Clinical placements and numbers are not published on the pages I read.

7. International applicants

• Who counts: a non-U.S. citizen whose immigration status requires a visa. A U.S. citizen living abroad is reviewed by the International Admission Committee according to the school attended but is domestic for aid.
• English: if English is neither your native language nor the main language of your secondary instruction, you must submit official TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo results; Bates does not accept self-reported English scores, and it accepts the best score.
• Interview: a recorded InitialView or Vericant interview is encouraged though not required, and Bates says applicants who submit one tend to be more competitive; the interview inside the Duolingo test does not replace it.
• Aid: Bates meets 100% of demonstrated need regardless of citizenship but is need-aware for international students, so financial need may affect admission. Non-U.S. citizens must indicate on the admission application that they will apply for need-based aid; requests after admission are not considered. Use the Bates International Student Application for Financial Aid (BISAFA); the CSS Profile is not needed. Aid lasts up to eight semesters, as a grant plus on-campus work (up to 20 hours a week), and contains no loans for non-U.S. citizens. Aid is exclusively need-based; there are no merit scholarships. International students not applying for aid must submit the International Student Financial Certification Document and a bank letter, required to enroll.
• Insurance: international students are automatically enrolled in the Bates health insurance plan, $2,352 for 2026-27.
• Work rules for international students (Center for Global Education pages, for F-1 status): on-campus work is allowed up to 20 hours a week in session and up to 40 hours in vacations, and requires a Social Security number; graduated F-1 students may not work on campus without OPT authorization. Off-campus employment must be authorized in advance or it violates F-1 status. Volunteering is limited to non-profit, charitable or humanitarian work that does not displace paid staff, and unpaid internships generally do not count as volunteering and require special work authorization. Post-completion OPT is granted initially for 12 months, the work must directly relate to the major and may be paid or unpaid; degrees in STEM fields can apply for a further 24-month STEM extension, which requires an E-Verify employer, a Form I-983 training plan and at least 20 hours a week.
• Any limits on international students in lab or clinical placements: the Global Education pages give the work-authorization rules above but no statement specific to laboratory research or clinical placements; the pre-health and committee-letter pages do not address it either; not published there. For a particular lab or clinical position, ask the Center for Global Education’s designated school official (DSO).

8. Applicants from China

• The Bates pages I read have no separate section for applicants from China and do not say whether Gaokao scores are considered; this is not published there, so contact admissions (admission@bates.edu, +1-207-786-6000).
• The international rules above apply: official English scores, stating the aid request on the application, optional InitialView or Vericant interview.
• Bates gives no separate math and science expectations for the Chinese curriculum; follow section 4 and confirm with admissions.

9. Transfer

• Eligibility: you must have completed at least one semester at an accredited college or university by the application deadline, including international students enrolled overseas. There is no minimum GPA, but the page says transfer students generally have a college GPA of 3.3 or higher out of 4.0 in a challenging liberal arts and sciences curriculum.
• Timeline: winter transfer, 1 November deadline, materials by 5 November, notification in late November; fall transfer, 1 March deadline, materials by 5 March, notification by 2 May. The reply date is inconsistent: the rounds page says 21 May, the transfer page says 23 May, and the $300 enrollment deposit is due by 20 May.
• Materials: this cycle only the Common Application for Transfer Students (not the Coalition Application); a transfer personal essay, official transcripts from every college, course descriptions, two recommendations (a college professor, and a college academic advisor or high school counselor), the College Report, the Mid-term Report and the high school transcript; testing optional; English proficiency scores if needed.
• Credit: most liberal arts and sciences courses similar in content, rigor and length transfer, and a grade of at least C is required; see the Transfer Credit Policy. Transfer students are eligible for need-based aid and guaranteed housing.
• Course requirements for transferring into Biology or Neuroscience (chemistry, biology, calculus sequence): no specific entry threshold for these majors is published. The Dean of the Faculty’s “Transfer Student Advising” page says transfer students can choose any major, subject to the year of entry and the program’s requirements, to be discussed with an advisor; until a major is declared, transfer students are advised by an Associate Dean of the Faculty. It also says credit must come from a regionally accredited non-profit institution with a grade of C or better; online courses must be pre-approved by the department; a course must be worth at least three semester hours (or five quarter hours, or 45 class meeting hours); at most two summer-school courses may transfer; Short Term courses cannot transfer; transfer students must be enrolled at Bates for the final semester of senior year; and all credit must be transferred by the beginning of that semester. For the Biology first-year sequence (CHEM 107/108, BIO 195) see section 2. The Biology department’s transfer-credit policy (for courses begun after 1 August 2024) says a biology course must count toward a biological sciences major at the other institution; the lecture must meet at least 36 hours, with 30 further hours for a lab, which generally must be in person; summer or online courses must run at least 5 weeks and asynchronous online courses are not accepted; the department generally gives no transfer credit for courses outside the biological sciences; and the materials go to the department chair and then the Registrar.

Checklist

U.S. applicants:

• ED I 15 November; ED II or Regular Decision 10 January; no application fee and no supplemental essay; testing optional
• One teacher recommendation; first-year CHEM 107/108 and BIO 195 after enrolling; declare a Biology major by the winter semester of sophomore year

International applicants (including China):

• Official TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo results; state your aid request on the application and submit BISAFA
• Optional InitialView or Vericant interview; confirm how the Gaokao is used with admissions

Transfer students:

• 1 November (winter) or 1 March (fall); at least one semester completed; college GPA generally 3.3 or higher; C or better transfers

Sources: Bates College, Biology overview; Biology: prospective majors; Biology: planning for the major; Biology: declaring the major; Biology: AP credit policy; Biology: transfer credit policy; Biology: courses; Neuroscience overview; Neuroscience: academic program; Neuroscience: courses; Chemistry and Biochemistry; Biochemistry major; Purposeful Work: STEM and pre-health; Dean of the Faculty: pre-health support; Dean of the Faculty: recommended entry courses; Purposeful Work: Medical Studies Committee letter; Global Education: STEM OPT extension; Global Education: post-completion OPT; Global Education: on-campus employment; Global Education: volunteering; Dean of the Faculty: transfer student advising; Admission: application checklist; Admission: rounds and timeline; Admission: international applicants; Admission: transfer; Admission: testing policy; Admission: FAQ; Student Financial Services: costs. Information is for fall 2027 entry (costs are 2026-27 figures); check Bates’ website for the latest.