How important is the lab requirement for MD/PhD applicants?

[SciClin]

If I have 4+ years of experience in the lab (let's say ChemE), is organic lab really necessary? I will have also had 3 semesters of Bioengineering lab coursework too.

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[jesie]

Unfortunately, most med schools (as far as I'm aware) explicitly require it, which would put it in the "high" category of importance to me.

It can be helpful for the MCAT also

 

[eteshoe]

Chemical engineering labs are very different from chemistry ones, so I don't see how the lab experience could be substituted. You have to fulfill the pre-reqs that the med school has set forth.