Fiscal Year 2027 Enlisted to Medical Degree Preparatory Program (EMDP2) Announcement

1. This MARADMIN solicits applications and provides
guidance for the FY27 Enlisted to Medical Degree Preparatory Program
(EMDP2).
2.  The EMDP2 is a partnership between the Uniformed Services
University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) and the Uniformed Services
to provide qualified enlisted members the opportunity to achieve
admission to medical school.  Admission is based on the needs of the
services.  The EMDP2 is open to all qualified enlisted members of
the uniformed services.
3.  Per reference (a), the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) has
authorized Marine participation for FY27.
4.  The EMDP2 is a two-year resident training program that includes
post-baccalaureate pre-medical coursework, Medical College Admission
Test (MCAT) preparation, clinical experience/physician shadowing,
mentoring by physicians and medical students, and pre-health 
advising. USUHS will pay the following expenses: civilian 
institution tuition and fees; required textbooks; MCAT prep course;
MCAT exam; and initial medical school application service fee (s)
(AMCAS, AACOMAS, TMDSAS) for the entire length of the course. 
Students are responsible for the following expenses: repeat MCAT
exams; civilian medical school application fees including secondary
application fees; travel expenses related to medical school
application cycle (interviews, open houses, second looks, etc.); 
civilian institution parking fees; medical school matriculant fees;
and any additional academic tutoring or resources not provided by
the program.
5.  EMDP2 selectees are assigned to the USUHS in Bethesda, MD will
attend classes at a civilian sponsoring institution within 50 miles
of USUHS. Selectees maintain their active-duty status for the 
duration of the program, and will receive the pay, allowances,
benefits and privileges of their current paygrade.  Members must
meet their respective service's promotion, training, and readiness
requirements. 
5.a.  Selectees must obligate 58 months to complete the EMDP2 to
allow for reassignment and service in their primary military
occupational specialty if acceptance to medical school is not 
obtained, or if disenrolled from the program. EMDP2 attendees who
meet specific enrollment requirements during their first year in the
program are required to apply for USUHS. Members will also be 
required to apply to at least ten (10) accredited US medical schools
(allopathic and/or osteopathic) after completing the first year of
the EMDP2.  Selectees must be financially prepared to pay at minimum
$3,000 for civilian medical school application expenses as described
in paragraph 4. Members who apply to civilian medical schools must
concurrently apply for the Health Professions Scholarship Program 
(HPSP).
5.b.  Graduates of the EMDP2 are commissioned to O-1E when
transitioning to medical school.  Selectees must be financially 
prepared to procure the officer uniform ($2,500) prior to 
commissioning as an officer but upon commission will be reimbursed 
up to the initial clothing allowance as prescribed by the Financial
Management Regulation (DoD 7000.14.R, Vol. 7A, Ch. 29).  Members
will request discharge from the enlisted service and will 
subsequently be appointed as commissioned officers to attend medical
school (USUHS or HPSP).  Members who attend USUHS will commission as 
active-duty officers.  Those attending civilian medical schools 
using the HPSP will be commissioned into the Individual Ready 
Reserve (IRR).  EMDP2 graduates who attend USUHS will have an
additional seven-year active duty service obligation to be served
consecutively with the EMDP2 Service Remaining Requirement (SRR).
EMDP2 graduates attending civilian medical schools using the HPSP
will have an additional four-year service obligation to be served
consecutively.
5.c.  Members who do not complete EMDP2, or who complete the program
but fail to gain admission to medical school, will serve their EMDP2
SRR in their enlisted status.
6.  Eligibility requirements:
6.a.  Applicants must be serving on active duty in the U.S. Marine 
Corps.
6.b.  Enlisted service members, regardless of occupational
specialty, must be eligible for reenlistment or extension, and be
qualified for worldwide assignment.
6.c.  Applicants with a completed bachelor's degree in any 
discipline at the time of application from an accredited academic 
institution in the U.S. Degree requirements must be completed no
later than 30 September of the application year.  No waivers are
considered for this education requirement.
6.c.1.  The degree or supplemental classes to meet eligibility
criteria must include one year of college English and one semester 
(3 credits) of college Algebra or higher-level math.
6.c.2.  Acceptable classes to meet the English requirement include
but are not limited to English composition, writing-intensive 
Humanities, Social Science, or Psychology.  Any combination of two 
semesters or three quarters worth of classes is acceptable for this
requirement.  Advanced Placement (AP) and International Bachelor
(IB) courses for which the applicant's undergraduate institution has
given credit are acceptable for any of the courses listed above.
6.c.3.  College Level Examination Program/Defense Activity for Non 
Traditional Education Support, AP and IB courses are acceptable 
credits for college Algebra (or higher-level math) if the
undergraduate institution has awarded college credit.  Statistics
courses are also acceptable substitutes for the math requirement.
6.c.4.  Applicants who received credit for coursework through the AP
or IB systems are strongly recommended to take upper level 
coursework in the sciences and humanities to demonstrate their
ability to thrive in rigorous, advanced-level college courses.
6.c.5.  Online degrees are acceptable contingent upon being
conferred from a nationally or regionally accredited college/
university within the continental U.S. or U.S. territories.
International bachelor's degrees are not accepted.  All candidates
must have a bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. institution,
regardless of whether they have an advanced degree.
6.d.  Minimum cumulative undergraduate Grade Point Average (GPA) of
3.20 on a 4.00 scale (from all colleges and universities attended).
All undergraduate courses taken will be used in the GPA 
calculations.  GPA computation is completed using the traditional
cumulative GPA and includes failing grades and repeat courses with
passing grades.  Applicants who do not meet the minimum GPA
requirement may submit a waiver request.
6.e.  Achieve a competitive score on either the Scholastic 
Assessment Test (SAT) or American College Testing (ACT), with the
exam taken within the last 5 years (2020 or later).  Target SAT
score must be at least 1200 with a minimum score of 600 in each of 
the two categories (math, evidenced-based reading, and writing).   
The essay portion of the SAT is not required.  The target ACT score
is 26. The ACT score is the average of the four subject area tests
of English, Math, Reading, and Science.  The writing portion of the
ACT is not required.  ACT scores must be sent directly to the EMDP
Office from the ACT using code 1825.  Applicants who do not achieve
the target scores may submit packets for consideration with a waiver
request.
6.f.  Have a secret security clearance, or at a minimum a favorable
adjudication of a Tier 3 investigation (National Agency Check with 
law and credit). Service members without favorable adjudication of a
Tier 3 investigation are not eligible to apply.
6.g.  Eligible for appointment as a commissioned officer.  No 
waivers are considered for this requirement.  Must be a U. S. 
citizen; if dual citizen, applicant will be obligated to renounce
their dual citizenship if accepted into USUHS; of good moral 
character, meet physical qualifications, and eligible for a security
clearance.  Members with court-martial convictions or those with a
history of punishment under the provisions of Article 15 of the UCMJ
are ineligible to apply.
6.g.1.  Medically qualified for appointment as a commissioned
officer in accordance with DoDI 6130.03(V1).  Applicants on
temporary or permanent limited duty profiles are not eligible to
apply.  Applicants who are selected to interview will be scheduled
for a commissioning physical examination which will be processed  by
the Department of Defense Medical Evaluation Review Board (DoDMERB).
Applicants medically disqualified by DoDMERB will be  processed for
waivers through the respective Service Medical Waiver Review 
Authority (SMWRA) at USUHS.  Waiver decisions by the USUHS SMWRAs 
are final.
6.h.  Completed at least 3 and no more than 10 years of
military service as of 30 September 2026, and achieve the grade of
E-4 or higher at time of application.  Waivers are considered for 
time in service.  No waivers are considered for grade.
6.i.  Less than 34 years old on matriculation to EMDP2
(1 July 2027).  Waivers are considered for age.
7.  Ineligibility Criteria:
7.a.  Service members that are currently scheduled for or attending
specialty training resulting from an approved reclassification or
reenlistment contract.  Service members in initial entry training
are ineligible to apply.
7.b.  Service members that do not possess a bachelor's degree, or
possess an unaccredited or foreign-conferred bachelor's degree.
7.c.  Service members that do not possess a favorable adjudication
of a Tier 3 investigation.
7.d.  Service members that are not U.S. citizens or that are dual
citizens and unwilling to revoke foreign citizenship.
7.e.  Service members with court-martial convictions or those with a
history of punishment under the provisions of Article 15 of the 
UCMJ.
7.f.  Service members on temporary or permanent limited duty 
profiles.
7.g.  Service members between the grades of E1-E3.
8. Deadline for submission of applications for FY27 enrollment is no
later than 30 September 2026.  Application packages must be received
on or before the deadline date.  No additional documents or packages
will be accepted after this date.  Application requirements are
specified on the EMDP2 website, located at 
https://medschool.usuhs.edu/academics/emdp2. The USUHS selection
board will convene in Jan 2027 and selectees will be notified 4-6
weeks following the selection board via MARADMIN. Application 
packages must be submitted electronically via the Total Force 
Retention System (TFRS) "SDA with Reenlistment/Miscellaneous 
Duty" Reenlistment Extension Lateral Move (RELM) request via the
normal RELM routing chain. Applicants are not eligible to submit an
application to USUHS until MMEA recommendations have been made.  No
additional documents can be added after this date. The enclosures to
the RELM will contain the following:
8.a.  Commanding officer endorsement with following verifications:
8.a.1.  Local records check has been completed, and applicant is
administratively qualified for appointment as a commissioned
officer.
8.a.2.  Applicant does not have any pending or current adverse
actions.
8.a.3.  Applicant is not currently in receipt of permanent change of
station orders or pending reassignment.
8.a.4.  Applicant meets Service's Body Composition Standards.
8.b.  Conditional Letter of Release (or other release document)
from the applicant's service or career management branch.
8.c.  Basic Individual Record from MCTFS.
8.d.  SAT or ACT scoresheet.  If an application is submitted without
a scoresheet, include a document with the scheduled date of the 
exam. Exam scores must be received by 15 October 2026.
8.e.  Master Brief Sheet from Official Military Personnel File
(OMPF) and fitness reports or record of JEPES marks for the last
five years.
8.f.  PFT/CFT scores from MCTFS for the last 4 years.
8.g.  Completed NAVPERS 1306/92.  Blocks 10 through 13 are not
required.
8.h.  NAVMC 118(11) entries.
8.i.  Security Clearance Letter from unit security manager with the 
following verifications:
8.i.1.  Applicant's name and EDIPI.
8.i.2.  Level of clearance, and date granted.
8.i.3.  Type of investigation, and date investigation completed.
8.i.4.  Agency that conducted the investigation.
8.i.5.  Name and telephone number of the security officer.
8.j.  Any active professional medical certifications with
certificates (BLS, ACLS, etc.).
8.k.  One Letter of Recommendation (LOR) is required from
the applicant's commander at the level O-4 or higher.  This is
separate from the commanding officer's endorsement from paragraph
8.a.
8.k.1.  A clinical LOR is highly recommended but not required.
The following individuals may submit clinical LORs:  clinical
supervisor, physician, or other allied health professional where
applicant engaged in healthcare related activities and/or shadowing.
8.l.  The commander's LOR is included in the total of no more than 
three LORs. LORs may be submitted with the applicant's packet, or 
separately by email to EMDP2-Application@usuhs.edu using the last 
name of the applicant and last name of the recommender as the file 
name.  For example, LOR from Green for applicant Ruiz should be 
submitted as:  Ruiz LOR Green.  Deadline for LORs is 30 September
2026.
8.m. A memorandum signed by the members current Sergeant Major 
stating they are financially prepared for entry to the EMDP2. 
This memorandum must be included in the application package.
8.n.  Bachelor's Degree diploma and transcripts.  Official 
transcripts for all undergraduate and graduate
courses taken.  The preferred method for receiving transcripts is by 
electronic transmission directly from the institution or transcript
agency to EMDP2-Application@usuhs.edu.  Electronic transcripts are
not accepted from overseas institutions.
8.n.1.  Transcripts submitted in hard copy must be in the original
sealed envelope sent from the institution.  If transcripts are 
submitted under other names, ensure name changes are noted via
appropriate documentation of the former (memorandum, marriage
certificate, court order, etc.).  Transcripts in languages other
than English must be translated prior to submission.  If the
cumulative GPA is not listed on the transcript, an official document
from the college/university stating the cumulative GPA is required.  
Deadline for receipt of transcripts is 30 September 2026.
8.o.  Requests for waiver of administrative requirements must be 
submitted in memorandum format and addressed to the EMDP2 Board 
Officer.  USUHS will process waiver requests, if needed, before
making final admission decisions.
9.  Application form, checklist, application guide, registration for
"Application Tutorials" training sessions, and additional resources 
can be found at 
https:(slash)(slash)medschool.usuhs.edu/academics/emdp2.
General questions on the EMDP2 should be sent to EMDP2@usuhs.edu.
10.  See POCs above for questions in regards to this program.
11.  This program is not applicable to the Marine Corps Reserve.
12.  Release authorized by MajGen Fridrik Fridriksson, Director,
Manpower Management Division.