DALLAS — Sept. 27, 2007 — UT Southwestern Medical Center has been ranked as the nation’s top medical school for Hispanics by Hispanic Business magazine.

The September issue of the magazine provides top-10 lists in the fields of law, business, engineering and medicine. The magazine’s rankings take into account academic excellence, enrollment, faculty, student services and retention rates.

Southwestern Medical School topped the list at No. 1 for medical schools, followed by Stanford University School of Medicine. Last year, UT Southwestern was ranked sixth on the list.

As one of the premier academic medical centers in the nation, UT Southwestern has a total medical school enrollment of about 920 students. Of those, about 120 students are Hispanic. Each year, UT Southwestern confers approximately 200 medical degrees and about 10 percent of those are earned by Hispanics.

“Nearly a decade ago, UT Southwestern Medical School increased its efforts to train students who desire to provide future medical service to medically underserved patients,” said Dr. Byron Cryer, associate professor of internal medicine and associate dean for minority student affairs.

“Our recognition as the top U.S. medical school for Hispanics is external validation that we are successfully accomplishing our mission of caring for medically underserved patient populations.”

Dr. Alfred Gilman, provost, executive vice president for academic affairs and dean of UT Southwestern Medical School, added: “I am delighted that the medical school has been recognized by Hispanic Business as a leader in educating and meeting the needs of our Hispanic students. This accolade underscores our continued outreach to all of our students, but especially to those who will provide needed care to the underserved in our community. It is a great honor.”

Other Texas medical schools included the UT Medical Branch at Galveston (No. 4), the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio (No. 5), and the UT Health Science Center at Houston (No. 7).

UT Southwestern medical students are taught the basic sciences and fundamental mechanisms of disease during their first two years of study, along with basic clinical skills. The next two years are spent pursuing clinical courses in various medical specialties, which allows students to integrate their basic knowledge with practical patient care at UT Southwestern’s affiliated teaching hospitals and clinics.

Many students also participate in organizations such as the National Network of Latin American Students and the National Hispanic Medical Association.

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Media Contact: Connie Piloto
214-648-3404
connie.piloto@utsouthwestern.edu

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