George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences
The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences is the medical school of the George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. It was the eleventh medical school to open in the United States.
Academics
The School of Medicine and Health Sciences contains a variety of programs such as the M.D. Program, the Physician Assistant program, and the Physical Therapy program. Multiple Nobel laureates have been affiliated with SMHS, including Ferid Murad, Vincent du Vigneaud, and Julius Axelrod.The Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library is the academic library for GW SMHS.
International Medicine Program
The International MD Program was developed by the Office of International Medicine Programs at GW in response to demand for U.S.-educated physicians abroad. The International MD Program is designed to facilitate international students who wish to practice medicine, and to further GW's mission to improve the health and well-being of communities beyond its locale by promoting the exchange of knowledge across cultures.Residency training for graduates of non-U.S. medical schools and colleges is also provided by GW SMHS.
Other programs
Other programs include clinical laboratory sciences and administration training. In addition to numerous bachelor, certificate, and masters programs, the school also offers advanced training through a nurse practitioner/doctor of nursing practice program, a physician assistant program, doctor of physical therapy program, and a PhD in translational sciences program. The school offers many Early Selection options through participating universities, as well as a seven-year accelerated program.Admissions
Four out of every ten MD students holds an undergraduate degrees in the arts, humanities, or social sciences. The Practice of Medicine course spans the entire length of a medical student's education. GW was one of the first in the country to place students in clinical settings from the start of their medical school experience.The student body of each new admitted class expanded significantly from about 182 students to 210 in Fall 2024, with 30 students in the Class of 2028 admitted specifically to do their clinical rotations at the school's new regional medical campus at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore. 3rd-year GW medical students transferring from the Washington, DC area to do all of their core clinical rotations at Sinai Hospital first began in Fall 2023.
Research
GW SMHS is home to many research centers and institutes. Among them are the Dr. Cyrus and Myrtle Katzen Cancer Research Center, the GW Cancer Center, the Rodham Institute, the Institute for Biomedical Sciences, and the GW Institute for Neuroscience.Affiliations
Children's National Medical Center
The Department of Pediatrics within SMHS is housed at Children's National Medical Center. In addition, the SMHS and Children's National partner on a variety of projects and initiatives.Medical Faculty Associates
The school has a partnership with the George Washington University Medical Faculty Associates who have over 800 physicians on staff that provide teaching and professional services to the community. The staff of GW MFA are also academic clinical faculty of the SMHS.Controversy
In 2008, the LCME or Liaison Committee on Medical Education put the George Washington University Medical School on accreditation probation, citing a number of issues. While declining to publish the entire list, among the problems acknowledged by GW were its outdated system of managing its curriculum, the curriculum itself, high levels of student debt, student mistreatment, and inadequate study and lounge space for its students. Significantly, in 2008, GWU was the only medical school to be placed on probation and the first in fifteen years.GW implemented a plan to rectify these problems. Its probationary status was lifted in February 2010. Subsequently, the two top GWU medical school administrators were forced to resign over the alleged conflicts of interest.