July 16, 2025
Written By
Michael Minh Le
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Every year, thousands of hopeful premeds search “UT Southwestern acceptance rate” hoping it’s not as bad as it sounds. If you’re here, you did the same. But you’re looking for more than the number. You want to know if your academic stats and clinical experiences are enough. You want to know how to get in.
That’s why this article goes beyond just the UT Southwestern Medical School acceptance rate. It covers the average MCAT and GPA, admission requirements, tuition and scholarships, and what makes UTSW one of the top programs in the country. You’ll also get a strategy for your application that’s specific to UT Southwestern.
And if you want to see real applications that made it into top schools like UCLA and UCSF, then we’ve got you covered. At Premed Catalyst, we created the resource we wish we had when we were premeds and then made it free. You’ll get insider access to 8 full AMCAS that earned students real acceptances. Use what already worked to craft your own acceptance-worthy application.
Get your free resource here.
Not to scare you, but UT Southwestern is among the most selective medical schools in the U.S. In the latest cycle (2024–25), they received 5,604 TMDSAS applications and admitted just 222 students.
If you do the math, that means the UT Southwestern Medical School acceptance rate is 3.96%.
Of those 222 matriculants, 82% were Texas residents. That means if you’re out of state, making it into this public Texas institution is going to be even harder.
Here’s what successful applicants typically bring to the table (and what you’ll need to bring too):
For context, the national average is a 3.84 GPA and a 513 MCAT. That means students who apply to UT Southwestern have above-average stats. While the school doesn’t enforce hard cutoffs, if you’re anywhere below these numbers, you may want to start looking elsewhere.
UT Southwestern requires a strong foundational coursework and primary application through TMDSAS. Key prerequisites include :
Applicants must complete these prior to matriculation, though you can apply with courses in progress.
But courses alone aren’t enough. Like most top-tier medical schools, UT Southwestern looks for more than just grades. In addition to the academic requirements, here are a few more boxes every applicant needs to check:
When it comes to cost, UT Southwestern offers something rare among top-ranked medical schools: affordability. For Texas residents, tuition is approximately $22,596 per year. Out-of-state students pay around $35,696 annually, which is still lower than many private med schools charge in-state students.
That relatively low tuition is a big part of what makes UT Southwestern such a high-value option. But even more than that, 80% of UT Southwestern medical students receive some form of financial aid, including need-based grants, merit scholarships, and subsidized loans.
One standout offering is the Southwestern Medical Foundation Scholarship, which provides generous multi-year awards based on academic excellence and leadership. There are also scholarships tied to service, primary care interests, and diversity initiatives.
UT Southwestern isn’t just a great deal. It’s a powerhouse. From its nationally ranked hospital system to its relentless focus on research and clinical excellence, here's what truly sets this Dallas-based medical school apart:
UT Southwestern ranks among the top NIH-funded institutions in the U.S., and its faculty includes six Nobel Prize recipients. Medical students aren’t sidelined from this research. They’re embedded in it. Whether you're interested in bench science, clinical trials, or public health innovation, you’ll find active mentors and ongoing projects in virtually every field.
Students train at Parkland Memorial Hospital, one of the busiest and most diverse public hospitals in the country. You’ll also rotate through UT Southwestern University Hospitals, the VA North Texas Healthcare System, and Children’s Medical Center Dallas.
Translation? By the time you graduate, you won’t just have checked the boxes. You’ll have real experience with high-volume trauma, complex pathology, and underserved populations.
UT Southwestern emphasizes health equity and community service across its curriculum. Programs like the Office of Student Diversity & Inclusion and initiatives in underserved primary care, migrant health, and LGBTQ+ outreach aren’t side projects. They’re built into the student experience.
From day one, you’ll get exposure to patient care—no waiting for third year to put on a white coat. The curriculum is integrated, systems-based, and constantly updated to reflect advances in medicine. You’ll also have opportunities to earn dual degrees (like MD/MPH or MD/PhD) and explore electives early on.
UT Southwestern consistently ranks in the top 25 for both research and primary care by U.S. News. It also sends graduates into some of the most competitive residencies in the country. That’s because when you train here, people know you’ve been through one of the most rigorous programs in the nation.
With UT Southwestern Medical School’s acceptance rate being sub 4%, standing out isn’t optional. It’s essential. This is one of the most competitive programs in the country, and for good reason. UT Southwestern looks for more than strong GPAs and MCAT scores. They want future physicians who are intellectually sharp, emotionally grounded, and deeply committed to serving diverse patient populations.
But getting in is still possible, especially if you understand what they’re looking for and how to craft a compelling narrative.
UT Southwestern doesn’t participate in AMCAS.
It participates in the Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service (TMDSAS), which operates on a rolling admissions basis. That means the earlier you apply, the better your chances because interview spots and acceptances are offered continuously throughout the cycle.
Below is a breakdown of the application timeline with the key dates and deadlines you’ll need to know:
Your personal statement is your narrative. This is where you show the admissions committee who you are, what you care about, and what kind of doctor you’re becoming.
But bold claims alone won’t cut it. If you say you’re committed to underserved communities, there should be evidence in your application that backs it up. If you say you thrive under pressure or love teaching others, AdComs need to see that in your clinical work, your volunteerism, or your leadership.
Think of your personal statement as the thesis. Your experiences are the proof. They don’t all have to be dramatic or life-changing, but they should form a cohesive picture. The reader should walk away thinking, “Of course this person is applying to med school, and of course UT Southwestern is the right fit.”
UT Southwestern’s secondary essays are your chance to demonstrate mission alignment.
Each prompt is an opportunity to show how your experiences reflect their commitment to collaboration, ethics, equity, and service. Here are the prompts from the last cycle (2500-character max each), paired with targeted advice on how to approach them:
Advice:
Choose an extracurricular or community-focused project, not just a classroom assignment. Highlight your role: did you lead, unite, or innovate? Show self-awareness: describe a conflict, how you addressed it, and what you learned. Focus on collaborative leadership—a key value at UTSW.
Advice:
This prompt tests integrity and accountability. Pick an experience where ethical courage was required, possibly in a lab, clinic, or volunteer setting. Explain your thought process, the challenges you faced in stepping up, and how you’d handle things today. It’s essential to show both action and growth.
Advice:
Show cultural humility and open-mindedness. Use a patient interaction or community engagement story where you learned from a different worldview. Describe how it shaped your idea of equity, cultural competence, or improved communication style. Tie it back to how you’ll bring empathy and inclusivity to UTSW’s patient population.
Advice:
Only complete if genuine: think Peace Corps, Teach for America, long-term health initiatives. Focus on tangible outcomes: what did your service achieve, and how did it shape your values? Even if modest in scale, show sustained commitment and how it informs your future medical mission.
Advice:
Be concise and factual. Briefly explain what happened, without blaming others. Most importantly, describe the proactive steps you took, such as tutoring, time management, or mentorship, that corrected the issue. Concrete improvement is more compelling than the initial setback.
Your letters of recommendation aren’t just academic endorsements. They’re your character witnesses. They give the AdCom insight into how you perform in teams, handle feedback, and show up when no one’s watching.
UT Southwestern requires that all letters be submitted through TMDSAS, and they follow the centralized TMDSAS letter guidelines:
You have three options:
You can also submit one additional letter beyond the required three, but only if it adds distinct value, like a letter from a community service supervisor, research mentor, or physician you’ve shadowed.
UT Southwestern uses a Multiple Mini-Interview (MMI) format, typically with 8–10 stations, each lasting around 6–8 minutes. Expect a mix of:
Some cycles include an informal “Meet & Greet” session the evening prior, where you’ll interact with faculty, current students, and alumni. This is your chance to demonstrate interpersonal skills, but also to learn about the program's culture and values.
UT Southwestern isn’t for everyone.
This school is known for producing clinically strong, research-minded, and socially conscious physicians. It thrives on academic intensity, cutting-edge biomedical research, and serving high-need patient populations across Dallas and North Texas.
If you’re drawn to real-world clinical exposure, public hospital systems like Parkland, and opportunities to work alongside Nobel-caliber mentors, UT Southwestern might be exactly where you belong.
You’ll likely thrive here if you:
That said, it’s probably not the right school for you if:
UT Southwestern is one of the most prestigious medical schools in Texas, but it’s far from the only one. Whether you're comparing missions, curriculum structures, in-state tuition benefits, or acceptance rates, exploring your options across the state is key to building a smart school list.
Check out our in-depth guides below to learn how to stand out at other top medical schools in Texas.
Let’s be honest: knowing the acceptance rate doesn’t actually help you get accepted.
What you really want to know is: What does a successful application to a school like UT Southwestern actually look like? What kind of stats? What kinds of experiences? How did those applicants tell their story? And most importantly—how do you do the same?
That’s exactly why we built a free resource that shows you the real thing. Inside, you’ll get access to 8 full AMCAS applications that earned students spots at top-tier medical schools like UCLA and UCSF. You’ll see the exact personal statements, activity sections, and secondaries that worked so you can reverse engineer what success looks like.
Get your free resource here.
