A Path to Med School
Partner Program Yields Desperately Needed Doctors
The first four students to graduate from medical school through Florida Gulf Coast University’s pre-health professional program partnership with Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) are completing residencies in Florida. Soon, these doctors will be helping alleviate the critical shortage of healthcare professionals in Florida and beyond.
Besides playing a role in increasing the number of physicians needed to serve the state’s burgeoning population, FGCU’s Early Admissions Program ensures a seamless transition from undergraduate classes to medical school. Organized and supported by the College of Arts & Sciences and the Department of Biological Sciences, the program offers students guaranteed admission to LECOM provided they complete their bachelor’s degree at FGCU and meet specific academic and professional standards. Based in Erie, Pennsylvania, LECOM has a branch campus in Bradenton.
The quartet of inaugural graduates features one in resident in radiology, one in internal medicine and two in psychiatry. All four are completing post-graduate training at high-level medical facilities.
Having graduates succeed in medical school and go on to the residency portion of their professional journeys represents a major milestone for FGCU’s partnership with LECOM. It illustrates how the university has a part to play in addressing the dearth of healthcare professionals even without having its own medical school.