The Perelman School of Medicine has a history of graduating students with exceptional skills and bright futures, and the class of 2014 does not disappoint.
One hundred and seventy one students—along with their friends, families and faculty—gathered at the Kimmel Center last week for commencement to say goodbye to years of hard work and hello to the next phase in their lives. For many, it’s residency. This year, 161 envelopes were handed out on Match Day to students who will spend the next four to five years at top-notch institutions. Many are staying right here at Penn, like Liza Sonnenberg who is going into general surgery, while others are headed elsewhere, like Jacob Lazurus, who is going into internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. (Check out the info graphic below to see more details, and if you missed the Match Day video,click here).
“The sheer excitement was amazing and humbling at the same time,” said Karthik Muthuswamy, who is headed across the river to Cooper University for emergency medicine in Camden. “[It’s] what we've worked very hard for over the last four years.”
And worked hard, they did. More than half of the students obtained dual degrees or certificates in addition to their MDs this year—which is well above and beyond their peers around the country. Almost 55 percent of the class of 2014 pursued these types of combined training programs. The national average at medical schools? Just eight percent.
Every year, more and more students take this avenue— completing a PhD, a master’s degree in subjects ranging from bioethics to business, or earning a certificate in women’s health research or clinical neuroscience on top of an MD, says
Gail Morrison, MD, Senior Vice Dean of Education. “With medicine constantly evolving and changes to the health care system underway, many students today are inspired to diversify their skills and experiences to make their most of their careers,” she said.
But before they headed out into that next phase, degrees in hand, the class took the Hippocratic Oath for the first time, along with J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, dean of the PSOM, as well as commencement speaker Elizabeth G. Nabel, MD, President of Brigham and Women's Health Care, and Arlene Bennett, MD, a member of the Class of 1964, and the first female African American graduate of PSOM.
“I do solemnly swear by that which I hold most sacred…” they all said in unison, starting off the famous creed.
Good luck on your next adventures, graduates! Check out the photos below to get a glimpse of the day.