National ranking again puts UMMS in top 10 for primary care

U.S. News & World Report ranks UMMS 9th in country for primary care, 46 in research

UMass Medical School was ranked ninth in primary care education among 126 medical schools and 23 schools of osteopathic medicine surveyed by weekly news magazine U.S. News & World Report in its 2014 edition of the “Best Graduate Schools” issue, released Tuesday, March 12. UMMS has been listed near the top of the category since 1994 when the magazine began publishing the much-anticipated rankings. Of note, UMMS is the only school in the top 50 that accepts only in-state students into its medical degree program. U.S. News also ranked UMMS 46 among top research schools and 46 in the biological sciences.

“UMass Medical School’s consistently high ranking is a reflection of our dedication to our mission and the faculty’s unwavering commitment to providing an outstanding education to our students,” said Chancellor Michael F. Collins. “As we enter a period of unprecedented change in health care, the part our medical school, faculty and students play in shaping this future has never been more essential.”

“A national leader in primary care education and in biomedical research, UMass Medical School continues to garner national and worldwide recognition for its quality program in these and other areas,” said University of Massachusetts President Robert L. Caret, PhD. “The accomplishments of the students, faculty and alumni at UMass Medical School are a testament to the vision that created our system of public higher education 150 years ago, and that is a vision of service to individuals, to communities, to our nation and the world.”

The School of Medicine, which had accepted just 100 students per year since the 1970s, recently expanded the class size to 125 to help increase the pool of physicians, particularly primary care providers, trained to meet the needs of the commonwealth and the nation. Traditionally, more than 50 percent of each year’s graduates enter a primary care residency program. In addition, more than half of each class stays in the state for residency, totaling 260 new residents in the last five years alone. Graduates of UMMS are poised to excel in their medical careers, and at noon on Friday, March 15—Match Day across the nation—all fourth-year medical students will discover where they will begin their medical careers.

“The medical school’s standings are a point of pride for our faculty, administration and students, many of whom are matching into primary care residencies this week,” said Terence R. Flotte, MD, executive deputy chancellor, provost, and dean of the School of Medicine. “The importance of our mission has never been clearer and these accolades are validation of the rich education our students take with them as they embark on their medical careers.”

Beyond its core mission of distinction in medical education, UMMS has become an internationally recognized and respected research institute. UMMS also ranks near the top among public medical schools in the Northeast in the amount of funding awarded by the National Institutes of Health. Federal and private research grants and contracts at UMMS rose from about $2 million in 1977 to more than $250 million annually, making UMMS one of the fastest-growing research institutions in the United States.