Medical Students Become Nation’s Newest Physicians
FAU’s College of Medicine celebrated a long-anticipated day as it conferred the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degrees to 61 members of the class of 2016, making them the nation’s newest physicians.
The Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University celebrated a long-anticipated day as it conferred the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degrees to 61 members of the class of 2016 today, making them the nation’s newest physicians. Family, friends, faculty and dignitaries filled the Carole and Barry Kaye Performing Arts Auditorium for the commencement ceremony.
“This is a momentous occasion for our newly minted doctors who are eager to begin their careers after four very long and arduous years in medical school,” said Arthur J. Ross, III, M.D., M.B.A., interim dean and professor in FAU’s College of Medicine. “The class of 2016 will leave an everlasting imprint on Florida Atlantic University and our community. Our new graduates will continue to serve as proud ambassadors of the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine for decades to come.”
In a moving new tradition for FAU’s medical school, eight of the graduating students were “hooded” by their parents who were also physicians. This important “rite of passage” during graduation ceremonies formally acknowledges the achievements of the class members.
The graduation ceremony also included a commissioning and pinning ceremony for medical students Cara Reitz, captain, and Jeffrey Ling, captain, which commemorated their official appointments to serve as physicians in the United States Army.
Edward M. Hundert, M.D., dean for medical education, the Daniel D. Federman, M.D., professor in Residence of Global Health and Social Medicine and Medical Education at Harvard Medical School (HMS), and associate director of the Center for Bioethics at HMS, delivered the keynote address.
“The Hippocratic Oath is as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago as it is recognized as the moral compass for physicians,” said Stuart L. Markowitz, M.D., senior associate dean for student affairs and admissions in FAU’s College of Medicine. “We concluded our commencement ceremony with our graduating class reciting the Hippocratic Oath in unison to instill the importance of maintaining the highest standards of performance, behavior, and compassion as they officially become physicians. This important ritual further impresses upon them the magnitude of the responsibility they are undertaking as they begin their life-long journey in medicine.”
Following graduation, FAU’s medical school graduates will spend between three to seven years of their medical careers for the next phase of their training — the specialized program known as residency.
The 61 medical students achieved a 100 percent match for residencies and vied for very competitive specialties including anesthesiology, otolaryngology, neurosurgery, pediatrics, surgery, ophthalmology as well as other specialties. They placed in top institutions such as Massachusetts General Hospital (Harvard University), Emory University Hospital (Emory University), Northwestern Memorial Hospital (Northwestern University), New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai, Children’s National Medical Center (George Washington University) and the William Beaumont Army Medical Center, among others.
FAU’s College of Medicine is one of 145 accredited medical schools in the U.S., and admitted its inaugural class of 64 students in 2011. In July 2014, FAU welcomed its charter class of 36 residents in its first residency program in internal medicine.
-FAU-