Podiatry schools offer the Doctor of Podiatric Medicine degree. There are certain tips for preparing for podiatry schools that will increase the chance of getting accepted into these competitive programs.
There are only a few accredited podiatry schools, so it should be easy to contact all of them to get specific guidance on enrollment requirements. While there will obviously be some differences, the general path to getting accepted to a podiatry school is going to be that of someone who is planning to go to medical school. Many podiatrists had intended to go to medical school but eventually decided on podiatry school.
When taking your undergraduate courses, you want to focus on science and math. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, you should earn at least 8 semester hours of pre-med classes in organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, biology, and physics. You should also earn the same in English, although those would obviously not be pre-med courses.
Naturally, you are going to have to beat out many other applicants as far as GPA averages. But the most important element for getting into a podiatrist school is probably the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). This is a difficult test, and there are many MCAT preparation resources you should use to get ready for the exam. For example, Kaplan has a popular test-prep product for the MCAT. You should also refer to the Association of American Medical Colleges MCAT page for more preparation tips and resources.
To contact individual schools and get their admissions requirements and application procedures, you may refer to the list of accredited podiatry schools on the American Podiatric Medical Association website. The Council on Podiatric Medical Education is the actual accrediting body that is approved by the U.S. Department of Education to accredit podiatrist schools. For the sake of convenience, there is a list of phone numbers below for each school accredited as of September 2011.
Arizona School of Podiatric Medicine at Midwestern University
623-572-3450
Barry University School of Podiatric Medicine
305-899-3249
California School of Podiatric Medicine at Samuel Merritt University
510-869-8727
Des Moines University College of Podiatric Medicine and Surgery
515-271-1464
New York College of Podiatric Medicine
212-410-8000
Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine
216-231-3300
Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine at the Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science
847-578-8400
Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine
215-625-5400
Resources:
American Podiatric Medical Association: List of Accredited Podiatry Schools
Bureau of Labor Statistics Career Information for Podiatrists
Kaplan MCAT Test Prep
Association of American Medical Colleges: MCAT Information