Getting into Creighton University School of Medicine

What is Creighton’s mission — and what does it signal?

“In Creighton’s Jesuit, Catholic tradition, the mission of the School of Medicine is to improve the human condition with a diverse body of students, faculty and staff who provide excellence in educating learners, health care professionals, and the public; advancing knowledge; and, providing comprehensive patient care.”Creighton University School of Medicine catalog⁶

The phrase to notice is the Jesuit, Catholic tradition. Creighton’s FAQ says Ignatian values guide student formation and names cura personalis, care for the entire patient.⁴ It also says what it looks for: “direct non-medical service to others, especially underserved populations, to ensure you fit the culture of a Jesuit institution.”⁴ The signal is that sustained, direct service outside clinical settings is read as central, not as a bonus. The same answer says the committee wants to read your story and journey to medicine.⁴

What makes Creighton’s curriculum and programs distinctive?

Creighton describes its M.D. as four components, one for each year, with a Clinical Education & Simulation Center.⁷ The distinctive structure is the two-campus model:

• One application, two campuses: Creighton has one application for its campuses in Omaha and Phoenix, and on the secondary you indicate a preference for a campus, or either.²⁴
• A full regional campus in Phoenix: since fall 2021 Phoenix has been a full four-year regional campus.⁴
• The same curriculum: Creighton says LCME accreditation requires the curriculum and other aspects of the educational experience to be essentially the same across campuses.⁴
• Formal mentoring: a mentoring program involving both students and faculty.⁴

How does Creighton review applicants?

Creighton says it has no defined prerequisite course requirements. It recommends recent coursework (within the past three years) with a strong background in biology, including courses such as physiology, immunology and genetics, and in chemistry, including biochemistry, plus English, humanities and statistics, for 40–45 hours across biology, chemistry, physics and math.³ The committee requires a foundation in non-medical service to others, diverse clinical experience including physician shadowing, and patient contact; research is valued but not required.³

Creighton states a minimum MCAT of 500 for a secondary invitation, looks at your most recent MCAT and has no subsection cutoffs, and says it does not pre-screen for secondary invitations.³²⁴ For Fall 2027 entry the oldest MCAT accepted is January 2024 and the newest is September 2026.³ For re-applicants, Creighton says it closely examines how the application has improved.⁴ It requires a bachelor’s degree, U.S. citizenship or permanent residency, and required courses completed at an accredited four-year institution in the United States or Canada.³⁴

What is the Creighton interview like?

All interviews are conducted virtually and run from September through March. Creighton hosts “open” interviews, which means evaluators can review each applicant’s total file: AMCAS, the secondary application, letters of recommendation and more.² The application-process page also carries a current medical student’s answer saying one of the two thirty-minute interviews is with a Creighton medical student.² Admitted applicants are later invited to in-person Admitted Student Days.² The pages we reviewed carry no year label and do not name the interview style, so we do not label it. Because the evaluator can read your file, expect conversation that follows what you wrote.

What are Creighton’s secondaries like?

Secondary invitations begin in July and include the form, letters, a $100 non-refundable application fee and a recent digital photograph.² Creighton honors the AAMC Fee Assistance Program waiver and says not to submit AMCAS until you have been approved for FAP if you want the secondary fee waived.²⁴ A committee letter is preferred but not required; Creighton suggests two science faculty letters and one non-science faculty letter, and asks for at least three letters but not more than six through the AMCAS Letter Service by Jan. 15.² The secondary prompts are not published on the pages we reviewed.

What does Creighton cost — and how does the timeline work?

Creighton lists 2026–2027 first-year tuition of $70,094 for a 10-month year, with a $1,676 University Fee, a $646 University Tech Fee and a $1,910 Mobile Device Fee listed separately.⁵ Its FAQ says there is no difference in tuition cost for in-state versus out-of-state students.⁴ The timeline is AMCAS by Nov. 1, transcripts to AMCAS by Nov. 15, the secondary application and all credentials by Jan. 15, interviews beginning Sept. 1, first notifications of admission decisions on Oct. 15, and April 30 as the deadline to withdraw an acceptance and receive a deposit refund.²

Who Creighton tends to fit

Creighton tends to fit applicants whose strongest thread is direct, non-medical service to others, since the FAQ calls it of critical importance and ties it to the Jesuit culture.⁴ It suits someone whose preparation does not follow a fixed prerequisite list, because Creighton defines none, while still bringing the recommended science depth.³ Because it says it places no preference on place of residence, it is a reasonable fit for out-of-state applicants who can explain a real reason for being there.⁴ It also suits an applicant undecided between Omaha and Phoenix, since the secondary lets you state a preference or choose either, and someone who is comfortable in an interview where the evaluator has read the whole file.²⁴ It fits less naturally an applicant who wants separate statistics for each campus, or published secondary prompts, before applying.¹²