When the University of Michigan founded its medical school in 1850, it immediately assumed a leadership role in American academic medicine.
We were the first medical school in the United States to recognize the importance of, and to build, a university hospital for physician instruction. We were also a pioneer in the introduction of the modern science-based curriculum, and were among the first schools to change the role of the student from passive observer to active participant in the learning process through high-caliber laboratory instruction and clerkships.
We also enjoy a unique place in the annals of education as one of the very first major medical schools to admit female students and minorities. In the more than 165 years of service to students, these firsts, and many more, have galvanized our reputation as one of the nation’s premier public research-oriented medical schools.
The Medical School was the University's first professional school, and since graduating its first class of six students in 1851 — a group that paid a mere $5 for two years of medical education — we have become a leader in preparing the physicians and scientists of the future.