The Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB recognizes the importance of inclusion and diversity in achieving excellence in the training of competent physicians. To meet these goals of excellence, the Early Opportunity Program in Medicine (EOPIM) serves to identify and recruit qualified applicants at an early stage in their undergraduate development. 

EOPIM is a pre-admission program that, if completed successfully, leads to entry into the MD program at the Jacobs School. Students accepted into the EOPIM have the opportunity for professional interaction and career training at the Jacobs School before graduating from college.

The EOPIM is designed to expand the pool of economically and educationally disadvantaged students in medical school. Additionally, there is a preference for candidates who have a commitment to improving health disparities in underserved communities and have demonstrated this through service activities. 

• Application to EOPIM occurs in the SOPHOMORE year for students currently enrolled in an EOPIM partner institution (this includes UB). 
• Applicants must have an overall and science GPA of 3.500 at the time of application.
• UB’s medical school does not accept international applicants.
• Students cannot apply directly to the EOPIM, but must first be nominated by the partner institution where they are enrolled. 
• Eligible UB students can apply to be nominated by UB’s Prehealth Nomination Committee as outlined below. 
  
• For more information, current UB students should contact Amanda at alp25@buffalo.edu. 

Beginning Nov. 9, 2026, those wishing to apply for an EOPIM nomination can email Amanda Sauter at alp25@buffalo.edu to request the nomination application. The nomination application closely mirrors the EOPIM application for the medical school and will need to be submitted by Dec. 11, 2026, at noon. You will be asked about your:

• Motivations for medical school and EOPIM.
• Commitment to improving health disparities in underserved populations.
• Academic record.
• Clinical experiences.
• Community service.
• Non-clinical employment.
• Research.
• Extracurricular activities.
• Awards and honors.
• Plans for letters of recommendation.
• Honor statement/academic integrity.

Should you receive a nomination, you will then be provided with the EOPIM application materials, which Prehealth will walk you through. We will reach out to schedule a mock interview with one of the Prehealth Advisors so we can get to know you better and write a detailed nomination letter on your behalf. 

You will also need to secure letters of recommendation to be submitted to Prehealth. You will have only a few weeks between receiving a nomination (mid-January) and when letters are due to Prehealth (February 12); we strongly recommend discussing this in advance with potential evaluators so they are prepared for the timeline.

Finally, you will be asked for transcripts from all colleges where you have earned credits and, if you have taken them, SAT and/or ACT scores.

After receiving an EOPIM nomination, we will email you the link to the UB PrivateFolio account. Make sure you follow all directions below.

• Follow the link to the UB PrivateFolio account.
• Enter your information, choose your password, and press Submit to create your account.
• You will receive a confirmation email. Click on the confirmation link in this email and then log in to your account using your email address and password.
• !!! IMPORTANT !!! You will be asked to choose your account term. Choose the option for one free year. If you pay PrivateFolio directly, we cannot refund you.  

• In your PrivateFolio dashboard, click on Request New Letter.
• You will provide a Letter Title. Please title it with the recommender’s name and the year you are requesting it. For example, Dr. Jane Doe 2026 or John Doe 2026.
• You will be asked to put in a due date. Please choose a reasonable date you have already discussed with your letter writer.
• Fill in the name, email address, job title, institution/organization, and phone number for your letter writer. These are all required fields.
• Please answer the additional Yes/No questions about your recommender. 
• You may modify the text of the request that will go to your letter writer. We recommend personalizing it. This is also a good place to remind recommenders that letters should be signed, dated, and either on letterhead or include all contact information. You can also add a link to our web page with information for letter writers.
• Check off the box indicating that you are waiving your right to access the confidential letter. Professional schools strongly prefer confidential letters.
• When everything is ready, click Submit, and your letter writer will receive the request in their email.

• Once your recommender successfully uploads their letter to PrivateFolio, you will receive a confirmation email.
• However, consider your letter to be in “quarantine” for a week so we can screen it to make sure it meets all guidelines.
• If the letter is missing anything, we will contact you so that you can ask your letter writer to resubmit it.
• If you don’t hear from us after a week, you can assume your letter was acceptable. Please understand that we are unable to send confirmation for every letter. 

• ONLY DO THIS STEP AFTER ALL OF YOUR LETTERS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED AND YOU ARE CERTAIN OF WHICH LETTERS YOU WANT INCLUDED IN YOUR LETTER PACKET.
• After you submit all your letters, confirm the recommendations you want included in your letter packet by sending us your final list.
• Please include each recommender’s full name and the year the letter was submitted.
• Email your list to phref@buffalo.edu. 
• This is the final version we will include in your packet, so please make sure it’s exactly what you want.

• You do not need to use any other functionalities in PrivateFolio (deliveries, portfolio, referrals, etc).
• We will handle letter packet deliveries to the medical school.
• Do not request delivery through PrivateFolio or they will charge you. We are unable to refund any money paid directly to PrivateFolio.
• Once you have uploaded your final letter list, your last step will be to fill out our release form for EOPIM.  
  

• Shannon Brown, MS, EdM, Neuroscience Coordinator; Coordinator, Jacobs School Curriculum & Assessment, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences  
  
• Kayla Goodman, MS, Senior Academic Advisor, Exploratory and Pre-Professional Advising Center
• Connie Hanel, MSEd, Senior Academic Advisor, Exploratory and Pre-Professional Advising Center
• David Hoekstra, PhD, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
• Danielle Johnson, PhD, Director, CPMC Social Justice Initiatives; Director, Acker Scholars Program
• Amanda Sauter, MSW, MS, Coordinator, Pre-Professional Health Advising, Exploratory and Pre-Professional Advising Center 
  
• Troy Wood, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry