Morehouse School of Medicine Officially welcomes the class of 2017

ATLANTA, Sept. 19, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) will induct 70 new MD students, 83% from Georgia, on Friday, September 20. MSM's Annual Convocation and White Coat Ceremony formally mark the start of medical education for a total of 129 students, including 59 in other advanced medical degree programs. The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. in the auditorium of the National Center for Primary Care on the school's campus.

As MSM's largest MD class, students were carefully selected from a group of 4,767 applications - a record number for the medical school. They began orientation on Monday, July 1 and started classes Wednesday, July 3; 61 percent are women, while 39 percent are men.

Other programs began through out the fall with the following number of participants:

·      19 in Masters of Public Health
·      6 Masters in Science in Clinical Research
·      6 Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences
·      12 Masters of Science in Biomedical Research
·      16 Masters of Science in Medical Sciences

MSM President John E. Maupin Jr., DDS, will address the students, their friends and family members about the importance of this day and the days ahead.  During the ceremony, students will take their first oath of professional medical ethics, concluding with the words, "I commit myself to a lifelong journey of learning how to cure, relieve and comfort with humility and compassion."

On that day, MSM will also honor the memory of the late Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania for his unyielding support of Morehouse School of Medicine, with a tree planting that will begin at 9 a.m. In the Jewish faith, planting a tree is a time-honored tradition and heartfelt way to memorialize a person's life. Senator Specter was a tireless advocate for healthcare equality and during his time in the United States Senate played a key role in the providing Federal funding for Morehouse School of Medicine's National Center for Primary Care. He died last October of complications from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 82.To learn more about these events and the great things happening at MSM, please visit us at www.msm.edu.

About Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM)

Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) was founded in 1975 in Atlanta, Georgia, as a two-year medical education program at Morehouse College, with clinical training affiliations with several established medical schools for awarding the M.D. degree. In 1981, MSM became an independently chartered institution and the first medical school established at a Historically Black College and University in the 20th century. MSM is among the nation's leading educators of primary care physicians and was recently recognized as the top institution among U.S. medical schools for our social mission. Our faculty and alumni are noted for excellence in teaching, research and public policy, as well as exceptional patient care.
Morehouse School of Medicine is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award doctor rate and master degrees.