Alpert Medical School

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The Warren Alpert Medical School (formerly known as Brown Medical School) is a graduate school of Brown University. It has an enrollment of 360 students.[1] The school is overseen by the current Brown University Dean of Biological and Medical Sciences, Dr. Eli Adashi. Edward J. Wing, M.D., currently chair of the Department of Medicine at Brown and the Joukowsky Family Professor of Medicine, will take over as the new dean of medicine and biological sciences at Brown on July 1, 2008. It is currently ranked 23rd among U.S. medical schools for primary care, and 31st for research (up from 27th and 34th respectively in the 2008 rankings), according to US News and WorldReport.[1]

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[edit] History

The University's medical program started in 1811, but the school was suspended by President Wayland in 1827. In 1975, the first M.D. degrees of the modern era were awarded to a graduating class of 58 students. In 1984, Brown endorsed an eight-year medical program called the Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME).

[edit] PLME

The majority of students at the Alpert School enter through a program called the Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME). Prospective students apply to this eight-year program, considered one of the most selective programs of any university in the nation, before they begin their undergraduate education. Each year, approximately 60 students matriculate out of an applicant pool of about 1,700. The mission of PLME is to enable students to break free from the constraints of conventional premed education and pursue a challenging liberal arts education steeped in the humanitarian ideals of medicine. Students earn a Bachelor's degree in their concentration of choice after their fourth year, often completing majors in the humanities or social sciences, and automatically enter the medical school to pursue their M.D. degree. Every year a few students decide to leave PLME after their undergraduate years in order to attend another medical school or to pursue another career (e.g. public service, law, teaching, research, etc).

53 students matriculated into the PLME undergraduate class of 2009 and medical school class of 2013.

[edit] Other programs

In addition, Brown offered a joint program with Dartmouth Medical School called the Brown-Dartmouth Medical Program. Approximately 15 students at Dartmouth Medical School enrolled in the program annually, spending the first two basic medical science years at Dartmouth and the next two years in clinical education at Brown, where they received their M.D. degree. The Brown-Dartmouth program accepted its final class in the fall of 2006, their respective deans stating that the institutions desired to move in their own directions.

Several other admission pathways exist. The Early Identification Program (EIP) encourages Rhode Island residents to pursue careers in medicine by recruiting sophomores from Providence College, Rhode Island College, the University of Rhode Island, and Tougaloo College to BMS. In 2004, for the first time in almost twenty years, the school once again began to accept applications via the "standard route", from pre-medical students at other colleges and universities. Thirty three students were accepted via this route for the Class of 2011, from an applicant pool of 2,600.

Combined degree programs leading to the M.D./Ph.D. or M.D./M.P.H. degrees are also offered.

In January 2007, self-made entrepreneur Warren Alpert, having made previous contributions to Harvard Medical School and the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, donated the sum of $100 million to Brown Medical School on behalf of the Warren Alpert Foundation, tying Sidney Frank for the largest single monetary contribution ever made to the University. In recognition of the gift, the faculty of Brown University approved changing the name of the Brown Medical School to The Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University. The funds are expected to contribute to the construction of a new medical school building, medical student scholarships (through the Warren Alpert Scholars Program), support for biomedical research and faculty recruitment, and new endowed professorships.[2]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Alpert Medical School MD Student Body Profile
  2. ^ Brown University Names Medical School To Honor Warren Alpert. Brown University Media Relations. Retrieved on 2007-01-29.

[edit] External links


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