BCPM GPA Explained: Which Courses Count for Medical School?

Your overall GPA is not the only academic number medical schools may review. For applicants using AMCAS, one of the most important additional calculations is the BCPM GPA, which reflects your performance in Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics courses.

It is often called your science GPA, although that description can be misleading because not every science-related course belongs in the AMCAS BCPM category.

Understanding which courses count, and which do not, can help you evaluate your academic profile before applying to medical school.

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What Is a BCPM GPA?

BCPM stands for:

• Biology
• Chemistry
• Physics
• Mathematics

AMCAS calculates a separate GPA using coursework classified within these four areas. Courses outside BCPM contribute to your AO, or All Other, GPA instead.

Your cumulative undergraduate GPA incorporates both categories.

The BCPM GPA gives medical schools another way to assess how you have performed in subjects closely related to the scientific foundations of medical education.

Which Courses Count Toward Your BCPM GPA?

For the 2027 AMCAS application, courses are classified according to their primary content, not simply the department offering them.

Common BCPM courses include:

1. Biology

Anatomy, Biology, Biophysics, Biotechnology, Botany, Cell biology, Ecology, Genetics, Histology, Immunology, Microbiology, Molecular biology, Neuroscience, Physiology, Zoology

2. Chemistry

Biochemistry, General chemistry, Organic chemistry, Physical chemistry, Thermodynamics, Toxicology

3. Physics

Astronomy, Physics

4. Mathematics

Algebra, Applied mathematics, Biostatistics, Calculus, Geometry, Mathematics, Statistics

These classifications come directly from the current AMCAS Course Classification Guide.

Which Courses Usually Do Not Count?

One of the biggest mistakes applicants make is assuming that every health, medical or technical course counts toward the BCPM GPA.

Under current AMCAS classifications, courses such as these generally fall outside BCPM:

• Psychology
• Sociology
• Public health
• Nursing
• Nutrition
• Kinesiology
• Pharmacology and pharmacy
• Physician assistant courses
• Physical therapy
• Biomedical engineering
• Computer science
• Environmental science and policy
• Health education

For example, psychology is classified as Behavioral and Social Sciences, while nursing and public health are classified under Health Sciences. Biomedical engineering is classified as Engineering.

That means a course can clearly relate to healthcare or science without necessarily being included in your AMCAS BCPM GPA.

What About Interdisciplinary Courses?

Course titles alone do not always determine classification.

AMCAS instructs applicants to classify coursework according to its primary content. If a course combines multiple subjects, applicants should review the course description or syllabus and determine which classification best reflects what was actually taught.

For example, a course offered through an engineering department could potentially be classified as biology if its primary academic content is genuinely biological.

Likewise, a class with the word “health” in its title does not automatically qualify as BCPM.

If you are uncertain, check:

• Your course description
• The syllabus
• The AMCAS classification guide
• Your pre-health advisor

AMCAS can also change a classification during verification if it determines that the classification you selected does not accurately reflect the course.

How to Calculate Your BCPM GPA

The basic calculation is:

BCPM GPA = Total grade points earned in BCPM courses ÷ Total graded BCPM credit hours

Suppose you completed:

Multiply each course's credit hours by its grade value:

• Biology: 4 × 4.0 = 16.0
• Organic Chemistry: 3 × 3.0 = 9.0
• Calculus: 4 × 3.3 = 13.2
• Physics: 4 × 3.7 = 14.8

That gives:

• Total grade points = 53
• Total credits = 15
• BCPM GPA = 53 ÷ 15 = 3.53

AMCAS ultimately standardises transcript grades during application verification, so your own calculation should be treated as an estimate rather than the final official AMCAS GPA.

Do Repeated Courses Count?

Yes. AMCAS requires applicants to report coursework from U.S., U.S. territorial and Canadian post-secondary institutions even when a course was repeated, failed, withdrawn from or later excluded under an institution's academic-forgiveness policy.

This means retaking a science course does not simply erase the first attempt from your AMCAS academic record.

A stronger grade on a repeat can still be valuable because it demonstrates improvement, but both attempts remain part of the academic history submitted through AMCAS.

What Is a Competitive BCPM GPA?

There is no universal BCPM GPA that guarantees admission.

Medical schools evaluate GPA alongside MCAT performance, course rigor, academic trends, clinical experience, service, research, personal qualities and many other factors.

The most useful benchmark is the academic profile of recent applicants and matriculants, particularly at schools you plan to target.

The AAMC's latest FACTS dataset provides GPA and MCAT information for applicants and matriculants to U.S. MD-granting medical schools, including dedicated tables on academic metrics.

For osteopathic medicine, the numbers differ. AACOM reports that students entering DO schools in 2025 had a mean science GPA of 3.53 and an overall GPA of 3.62.

Rather than asking whether your science GPA is simply “good” or “bad,” compare it with:

• Your target schools
• Your overall GPA
• Your MCAT score
• The trend in your grades
• The rigor of recent science coursework
• The rest of your application

A rising academic trend can provide useful context even when your cumulative science GPA is lower than you would like.

BCPM GPA Is Not Calculated the Same Way Everywhere

The term BCPM is most closely associated with AMCAS, the application service used by most U.S. MD-granting medical schools.

Applicants should not assume that AACOMAS, TMDSAS or other professional-school application systems classify courses in exactly the same way.

For example, AACOM reports a science GPA, but its classification system is not identical to AMCAS BCPM.

Always use the rules of the application service through which you are actually applying.

How Can You Strengthen a Low Science GPA?

If your BCPM GPA is weaker than the academic profile of your target schools, focus on showing that you can succeed in demanding science coursework.

Options may include:

1. Build an upward trend. 

Strong performance in later science courses can demonstrate academic growth.

2. Take appropriate upper-level sciences. 

Courses such as physiology, genetics, microbiology, immunology and cell biology may provide additional evidence of your scientific preparation when appropriate for your degree plan.

3. Address the reason for earlier performance.

Improving your approach to studying, workload management or prerequisite knowledge matters more than simply adding more courses.

4. Balance academics with the rest of your preparation. 

Medical schools also evaluate experiences, attributes and competencies beyond grades.

Meaningful pre-health and pre-med clinical experience can help students develop their understanding of patient care and the healthcare profession while building the broader experiences required for a well-rounded medical school application.

Clinical experience does not compensate for serious academic weaknesses on its own. Instead, it complements evidence that you are academically prepared for medical school.

Why Your BCPM GPA Matters

Your science coursework provides medical schools with evidence of how you have handled subjects that underpin much of medical education.

But your BCPM GPA should never be viewed in isolation.

Admissions committees can consider the difficulty of your courses, improvement over time, MCAT performance and broader application alongside your numerical GPA.

If your BCPM GPA is below the average for your target programs, that does not automatically mean you cannot get into medical school. It means you should understand the weakness, build a realistic school list and strengthen the areas of your application that remain within your control.

Frequently Asked Questions

#1. What does BCPM stand for?

BCPM stands for Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics. AMCAS uses grades from courses classified in these areas to calculate your BCPM GPA.

#2. Is BCPM the same as science GPA?

The terms are often used interchangeably when discussing AMCAS, but BCPM is more precise. Not every course that could reasonably be described as science is classified within AMCAS Biology, Chemistry, Physics or Mathematics categories.

#3. Does psychology count toward BCPM GPA?

Generally, no. AMCAS classifies psychology under Behavioral and Social Sciences, which contributes to the AO rather than BCPM GPA.

#4. Does biochemistry count toward BCPM GPA?

Yes. The current AMCAS classification guide includes biochemistry under Chemistry, so it contributes to the BCPM GPA.

#5. Does statistics count toward BCPM GPA?

Yes, for AMCAS. Statistics is included under the Mathematics classification and therefore contributes to the AMCAS BCPM GPA.

#6. Does neuroscience count toward BCPM GPA?

Yes. Neuroscience appears within the Biology classification in the current AMCAS guide.

#7. Does public health count toward BCPM GPA?

Generally, no. AMCAS classifies public health within Health Sciences rather than Biology, Chemistry, Physics or Mathematics.

Article Details

Categories

Recent Articles , MCAT/MSAR/USMLE, Pre-health,

Author: Tatina Himes

Date Published: Sep 8, 2026