By Glyn Caddell, BSME · Author of Digital SAT Math Secrets · Tutoring since 2008 — Updated October 9, 2026
Thirteen Michigan colleges with pre-med programs, what they cost, and the SAT scores of the students they admit.
Six Michigan universities run their own medical school. Five of those six admit more than 80% of applicants, which makes Michigan unlike anywhere else we cover.
Scores are given by section rather than as a single total, because a student at 680 Reading & Writing and 590 Math is in a different position from a student at 590 and 680.
Table of Contents
- Michigan Pre-Med Colleges by SAT Score
- Six Michigan Universities Run Their Own Medical School
- Does Michigan Have a Scholarship Tied to Test Scores?
- What If Your Scores Are Below the Range You Want?
Michigan Pre-Med Colleges by SAT Score
| College | Reading & Writing | Math | Cost of attendance | Undergraduates | Admit rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Michigan, Ann Arbor | 680 to 750 | 680 to 780 | $34,654 | 34,177 | 16% |
| Michigan State University | 590 to 680 | 590 to 680 | $32,198 | 40,922 | 85% |
| Michigan Technological University | 570 to 680 | 560 to 670 | $34,152 | 5,955 | 92% |
| Hope College | 550 to 670 | 550 to 670 | $55,646 | 3,288 | 79% |
| Calvin University | 550 to 660 | 533 to 670 | $54,222 | 3,193 | 71% |
| Wayne State University | 540 to 640 | 520 to 630 | $27,350 | 15,587 | 81% |
| Oakland University | 540 to 640 | 490 to 590 | $25,182 | 12,351 | 88% |
| University of Detroit Mercy | 520 to 630 | 510 to 630 | $42,211 | 2,438 | 75% |
| University of Michigan, Dearborn | 500 to 625 | 490 to 630 | $24,040 | 5,952 | 56% |
| University of Michigan, Flint | 500 to 633 | 470 to 610 | $20,915 | 4,411 | 70% |
| Central Michigan University | 490 to 610 | 470 to 590 | $30,681 | 10,035 | 90% |
| Grand Valley State University | 480 to 600 | 460 to 590 | $28,367 | 18,854 | 83% |
| Western Michigan University | Does not report | Does not report | $29,237 | 12,568 | 85% |
Each range covers the middle 50% of admitted students who submitted scores. A quarter scored below the lower number, and the top quarter scored at or above the upper one. Being under the lower number does not rule a student out, and being just above it is not as safe as it looks.
Three things in that table deserve attention.
The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor is the only school here that admits under half its applicants. It takes 16%. The next most selective is its own Dearborn campus at 56%, and after that everything on this page admits at least 70%.
Cost runs from the University of Michigan at Flint at $20,915 to Hope College at $55,646. Ten of these thirteen colleges cost under $35,000, which is a cheaper state than most.
Michigan Tech reports ranges of 570 to 680 and 560 to 670 while admitting 92% of applicants. A specialist technology university draws applicants who already know they want it, so it admits nearly everyone who applies and still enrolls a strong class. The same effect appears at Wheaton College in Illinois and Rose-Hulman in Indiana.
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University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor has 34,177 undergraduates and runs the University of Michigan Medical School on the same campus.
Reading & Writing 680 to 750, Math 680 to 780. The top quarter of admitted students scored at or above 750 and 780. Cost of attendance $34,654, with tuition and fees at $17,736 in-state and $60,946 out-of-state. 34,177 undergraduates, 16% admitted.
The in-state and out-of-state tuition gap here is approximately $43,200, the widest in this series by a considerable margin.
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is in East Lansing with 40,922 undergraduates, the largest school on this page, and it runs two medical schools: the College of Human Medicine and the College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Reading & Writing 590 to 680, Math 590 to 680. The top quarter scored at or above 680 in both sections. Cost of attendance $32,198, with tuition and fees at $16,458 in-state and $43,842 out-of-state. 40,922 undergraduates, 85% admitted.
It is the only university in this series running both an MD and a DO programme.
Michigan Technological University
Michigan Technological University is in Houghton with 5,955 undergraduates and an engineering and applied science focus.
Reading & Writing 570 to 680, Math 560 to 670. The top quarter scored at or above 680 and 670. Cost of attendance $34,152, with tuition and fees at $19,123 in-state and $42,988 out-of-state. 5,955 undergraduates, 92% admitted.
Hope College
Hope College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Holland with 3,288 undergraduates, and it has a long record of sending graduates into health professions.
Reading & Writing 550 to 670, Math 550 to 670. The top quarter scored at or above 670 in both sections. Cost of attendance $55,646, with tuition and fees at $41,970. 3,288 undergraduates, 79% admitted.
This is the most expensive school on the page.
Calvin University
Calvin University is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids with 3,193 undergraduates.
Reading & Writing 550 to 660, Math 533 to 670. The top quarter scored at or above 660 and 670. Cost of attendance $54,222, with tuition and fees at $39,350. 3,193 undergraduates, 71% admitted.
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is in Detroit with 15,587 undergraduates, and it runs the largest medical school in the state.
Reading & Writing 540 to 640, Math 520 to 630. The top quarter scored at or above 640 and 630. Cost of attendance $27,350, with tuition and fees at $15,190 in-state and $32,037 out-of-state. 15,587 undergraduates, 81% admitted.
Of every school on this page, this is the one with the shortest walk to a major teaching hospital. Detroit Receiving, its affiliated hospital, is described as Michigan’s first Level I trauma centre.
Oakland University
Oakland University is in Rochester with 12,351 undergraduates, and it runs the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine.
Reading & Writing 540 to 640, Math 490 to 590. The top quarter scored at or above 640 and 590. Cost of attendance $25,182, with tuition and fees at $15,262 in-state and $23,188 out-of-state. 12,351 undergraduates, 88% admitted.
Its out-of-state tuition of $23,188 is lower than several Michigan universities charge their own residents, though Central Michigan, Western Michigan and Grand Valley all charge out-of-state students less.
University of Detroit Mercy
The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Catholic university with 2,438 undergraduates, the smallest school on this page.
Reading & Writing 520 to 630, Math 510 to 630. The top quarter scored at or above 630 in both sections. Cost of attendance $42,211, with tuition and fees at $32,946. 2,438 undergraduates, 75% admitted.
University of Michigan, Dearborn
The University of Michigan at Dearborn has 5,952 undergraduates and is the second most selective school on this page at 56%.
Reading & Writing 500 to 625, Math 490 to 630. The top quarter scored at or above 625 and 630. Cost of attendance $24,040, with tuition and fees at $15,640 in-state and $32,896 out-of-state. 5,952 undergraduates, 56% admitted.
University of Michigan, Flint
The University of Michigan at Flint has 4,411 undergraduates and the lowest cost of attendance on this page.
Reading & Writing 500 to 633, Math 470 to 610. The top quarter scored at or above 633 and 610. Cost of attendance $20,915, with tuition and fees at $14,704 in-state and $28,320 out-of-state. 4,411 undergraduates, 70% admitted.
Central Michigan University
Central Michigan University is in Mount Pleasant with 10,035 undergraduates, and it runs the Central Michigan University College of Medicine.
Reading & Writing 490 to 610, Math 470 to 590. The top quarter scored at or above 610 and 590. Cost of attendance $30,681, with tuition and fees at $14,760, the same for in-state and out-of-state students. 10,035 undergraduates, 90% admitted.
That flat tuition is unusual. Most public universities on this page charge out-of-state students considerably more.
Grand Valley State University
Grand Valley State University is in Allendale with 18,854 undergraduates and a substantial health professions presence in Grand Rapids.
Reading & Writing 480 to 600, Math 460 to 590. The top quarter scored at or above 600 and 590. Cost of attendance $28,367, with tuition and fees at $15,140 in-state and $21,548 out-of-state. 18,854 undergraduates, 83% admitted.
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is in Kalamazoo with 12,568 undergraduates, and it runs the Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine.
The university does not report SAT score data. Cost of attendance $29,237, with tuition and fees at $15,252 in-state and $19,034 out-of-state. 12,568 undergraduates, 85% admitted.
It is on this page despite the missing data because leaving it out would break the section below.
Six Michigan Universities Run Their Own Medical School
Michigan has seven medical schools across six universities, and every one of those universities also admits undergraduates.
- University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor
- Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
- Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit
- Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, Rochester
- Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Mount Pleasant and Saginaw
- Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Kalamazoo
Counts vary between six and seven depending on whether Michigan State’s two programmes are listed separately. Seven programmes at six universities is the version that matches what is actually there.
Five of the Six Admit More Than 80% of Applicants
This is the part worth sitting with.
| University | Undergraduate admit rate |
|---|---|
| Central Michigan University | 90% |
| Oakland University | 88% |
| Michigan State University | 85% |
| Western Michigan University | 85% |
| Wayne State University | 81% |
| University of Michigan, Ann Arbor | 16% |
In most states, studying as an undergraduate on a campus with a medical school means getting into a selective university first. In Michigan, for five of the six, it means applying.
Indiana spreads one medical school across nine towns, which we described on that page as the clearest case of medical school proximity mattering to an undergraduate. Michigan is the same argument with six separate institutions behind it, and with the host universities far easier to get into.
What That Actually Gets You
Proximity makes things easier to arrange. Shadowing a physician, finding a research assistantship, volunteering in a hospital that teaches medical students: all of those are simpler when the faculty and the teaching hospitals are on the campus where you already are, rather than a drive away.
It does not improve your odds of admission. Medical school applications are national, and a student at Grand Valley State is not disadvantaged against a student at Wayne State when both apply. Public medical schools normally favour in-state applicants, which helps any Michigan resident regardless of where he studied.
So the advantage is practical and it happens during the degree, not after it. That is worth knowing both ways round: it is real, and it is not a shortcut.
Confirm current programmes and campus locations with the universities before relying on any of this.
Does Michigan Have a Scholarship Tied to Test Scores?
No, as far as we can establish, and that is worth saying because some states do.
The Michigan Achievement Scholarship is based on financial need and the institution attended rather than on a test score. There is no Michigan equivalent of Florida’s Bright Futures or Georgia’s Zell Miller, where a specific SAT number unlocks a specific amount of state money.
Where scores do work in Michigan is institutional merit aid. Individual colleges set their own thresholds and they vary widely, so that is a question for each college on your list rather than one with a statewide answer.
Verify current criteria with the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential, since state aid rules change.
What If Your Scores Are Below the Range You Want?
Being below a school’s published range doesn’t disqualify anyone. A quarter of the students admitted to every school on this list that reports a range scored below its lower number.
Michigan is the most forgiving state in this series for a pre-med student whose score is not where he wants it.
Five universities with medical schools on campus admit more than 80% of applicants. Three of those five cost under $31,000. The University of Michigan at Flint, at $20,915, is the cheapest option on the page and admits 70%.
So a score here decides whether Ann Arbor is realistic. It does not decide whether you can study alongside a medical school, and in most states it would.
The number worth aiming for is the upper end of a school’s range, the one the top quarter cleared, rather than the middle. The reasoning behind that is on what SAT score you need for college.
The gap is measurable and so is the work to close it. A 70 to 130 point improvement takes approximately 40 hours of effective studying, based on the students we’ve worked with since 2008, and a 130 to 250 point improvement takes approximately 80.
How to improve your SAT score covers the method, including how to work out which topics are actually costing you points. If you don’t have a recent score to compare against this list, a free diagnostic SAT gives you one, broken down by section and by topic.
How to Read These Score Ranges
Every range on this page covers the middle 50% of admitted students who submitted scores. The lower number is the 25th percentile and the upper number is the 75th, which means a quarter of admitted students scored at or above it.
Michigan Tech is the entry worth a second look, reporting solid ranges while admitting 92%. The explanation is the applicant pool rather than the standard, and the Illinois page works through it in full using Wheaton College.
Because most colleges are now test-optional, these ranges describe only the students who chose to submit. Students with strong scores submit and students with weak ones don’t, so a published range sits higher than the range for everyone who was actually admitted. More on test-optional colleges.
Pre-Med Programs in Nearby States
Michigan borders Ohio, Indiana and Wisconsin, and Michigan students apply across those lines in numbers.
See pre-med colleges in Indiana, pre-med colleges in Illinois, and pre-med colleges in Ohio.
Pre-Med Colleges in Other States
We publish the same breakdown for pre-med programs in every state.
See pre-med colleges by state for the full list.
Glyn Caddell
Glyn Caddell holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from NJIT and has been tutoring New York City students since 2008. He founded Caddell Prep in 2012 and is the author of Digital SAT Math Secrets: Lessons & Tricks to Quickly Improve to a Perfect 800 on the Math Test, which contains over 900 practice problems and is used in Caddell Prep’s SAT math classes. He is founding president of the Staten Island Technical High School alumni association and teaches every lesson on this site personally.
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