The 2009 AAMC/HHMI report on the Scientific Foundation for Future Physicians (SFFP) has been foundational both for the work of the MR5 (fifth comprehensive review of the MCAT) committee and in medical school admissions generally. The SFFP committee advocated for the preparation of entering medical students to be based on the attainment of science competencies rather than the completion of a set of pre-requisite courses. The SFFP committee described and recommended a set of scientific competencies for entering medical students. The MR5 committee used these competencies as an organizing framework for testing the natural sciences on the next version of the MCAT exam (scheduled for release in 2015). Within medical school admissions, there is now a move to consider dropping historic pre-requisites and going to a competency basis for evaluating entering medical students.

Effect of the SFFP report on the MCAT exam and medical school admissions

244th National Meeting (2012)

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