undergradly.
Major · Health Professions

Pre-professional health prep for the niche graduate tracks

An umbrella for pre-professional health programs that don’t fit the named pre-med, pre-dental, or pre-pharmacy codes — think pre-physician-assistant, pre-podiatry, pre-optometry, or pre-chiropractic. The bachelor’s isn’t the credential; admission to the graduate or professional school is.

Schools offering
130
Annual completions
2,909
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$61k

About this major

Health/Medical Preparatory Programs, Other (CIP 51.1199) is a catch-all code that the federal classification uses for pre-professional health tracks not covered by the named pre-med, pre-dentistry, pre-pharmacy, pre-physical-therapy, pre-occupational-therapy, pre-nursing, or pre-physician-assistant codes. In practice, the 130 colleges that report under this code use it for things like pre-podiatry, pre-optometry, pre-chiropractic, pre-naturopathic medicine, and locally branded pre-PA tracks. The CIP definition is explicit: “any instructional program in health and medical professional preparation not listed above.”

It fits one specific person — a student who has already identified a niche health profession, knows the graduate or professional credential it requires (OD, DPM, DC, MS-PA, ND), and wants a structured undergraduate path through the prerequisites. It is not a clinical major. The bachelor’s itself is rarely the working credential; admission to the next degree is.

One grounded number sets expectations. Across all reporting colleges, median earnings 5 years after graduation are $60,507 — roughly what a generic biology bachelor’s earns, and well below what licensed health professionals make once they finish their doctoral or master’s program. That gap is the point: the major’s value is realized after the graduate admission, not at graduation.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

No federal crosswalk data available for this major yet.

Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$61k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$54k

Bachelor's

$64k

Who this major is for

This major works best for a student who can name the target profession on day one — physician assistant, optometrist, podiatrist, chiropractor — and who is committed to applying to that graduate or professional program. Two signals from the data back this up: total reported completions sit at 2,909 across 130 schools (small, advised cohorts rather than large lecture sections), and almost half of completions concentrate at a handful of campuses with strong professional-school pipelines (Arizona State Digital Immersion, Baylor, Essex County College, Oregon State).

This is a harder fit if you’re still exploring whether health is your direction, or if your target profession has its own named CIP code. Pre-Nursing Studies (51.1105) reports 2,197 completions on its own; Pre-Medicine (51.1102) reports 1,018. If your goal lands cleanly in one of those, the named major has more advising structure and a clearer signal to admissions committees. The same caution applies if your GPA or test-score trajectory is uncertain — many advisors recommend majoring in biology or biochemistry instead, since those degrees cover the same prerequisites and leave a stronger fallback if professional-school admission doesn’t happen on the first cycle.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Health/Medical Preparatory Programs, Other

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Arizona State University Digital Immersion Scottsdale, AZ 0 268 268
Baylor University Waco, TX 0 216 216
Essex County College Newark, NJ 181 0 181
Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ 0 164 164
Oregon State University Corvallis, OR 0 147 147
Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania Bloomsburg, PA 0 131 131
Atlantic Cape Community College Mays Landing, NJ 125 0 125
College of the Desert Palm Desert, CA 125 0 125
Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL 0 112 112
Marshall University Huntington, WV 0 108 108
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Pre-Nursing Studies

2,197 completions/yr

Pre-Medicine/Pre-Medical Studies

1,018 completions/yr

Pre-Physical Therapy Studies

255 completions/yr

Pre-Pharmacy Studies

176 completions/yr

Pre-Physician Assistant

121 completions/yr

Pre-Occupational Therapy Studies

93 completions/yr

Pre-Dentistry Studies

44 completions/yr

Pre-Art Therapy

9 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What does “Health/Medical Preparatory Programs, Other” actually cover?
It’s a CIP catch-all (51.1199) for pre-professional health tracks that don’t have their own named code — most often pre-physician-assistant, pre-podiatry, pre-optometry, pre-chiropractic, or pre-naturopathic. The exact courses, prerequisites, and advising structure vary widely between the 130 colleges that report under this code, so the title on the diploma tells admissions committees less than the transcript does.
Do I need a graduate or professional degree to use this major?
Yes — that’s the whole point. The bachelor’s is a launching pad for admission to a doctoral or master’s program in the target profession (DPT, OD, DPM, DC, MS-PA, etc.). Without that next step, the standalone bachelor’s rarely maps to a specific health-occupation license, which is why the median 5-year earnings of $60,507 sit close to a generic life-science bachelor’s rather than a clinical role.
Is this a better choice than majoring in biology or biochemistry?
For most students, no. Professional-school admissions weight GPA and standardized test scores heavily and care less about the major label. Biology, biochemistry, or cell/molecular biology majors cover the same prerequisites, give you a stronger Plan B if admission falls through, and often have more research and lab opportunities. Many advisors recommend a substantive science major plus a “pre-professional” advising track instead of a pre-prep degree.
What earnings should I expect right out of the bachelor’s?
Median earnings 5 years after graduation are about $60,507, with bachelor’s-holders at roughly $64,284 and associate’s-holders at $54,032. Those numbers reflect graduates who took healthcare-adjacent jobs (medical assistant, scribe, technician, lab work) while applying — not the higher salaries that come after a doctoral or master’s health credential.
Why are there both associate’s and bachelor’s versions?
Community colleges (Essex County, College of the Desert, Atlantic Cape) use the associate’s version as a structured pre-health transfer pathway — students complete prerequisites, then move to a four-year college or apply to a clinical program. Four-year schools like Arizona State Digital Immersion, Baylor, and Oregon State use the bachelor’s as the full pre-professional advising track.
What if I don’t get into my target professional school?
This is the question worth asking before you enroll. Because the major is built around graduate admission, a denial leaves you with a bachelor’s that may not directly match a job code. Strong Plan Bs include reapplying after a gap year of patient-care hours, pivoting to a clinical-master’s program (MS in nursing, public health, health administration), or moving into healthcare adjacent roles. Choose a school with research opportunities and a real advisor, not just a pre-X label.