OSU Med Climbs in National Rankings
Oklahoma State University fared well in the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings, with its medical school and Occupational Education Studies program ranked among the nation’s best.
OSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine in Tulsa climbed in national rankings for the fifth straight year as one of the nation’s top medical schools for rural medicine, family medicine and primary care.
The magazine also ranked OSU’s Occupational Education Studies program at the Stillwater campus in tenth place, nationally. This program has been in the U.S. News rankings since 1996.
The U.S. News “2006 Best Graduate Schools Guide,” an annual report card that analyzes schools in selected fields such as health care and medicine, shows the OSU medical school in 11th place in rural medicine, 16th in family medicine and 54th in primary care.
“Dr. John Fernandes has done an exceptional job of leading the College of Osteopathic Medicine to greater heights,” OSU System CEO David Schmidly said.
“The quality of our faculty, students and graduates has never been better. We’re honored to be Oklahoma’s only medical school ranked by U.S. News & World Report and proud to serve the state of Oklahoma with medical school graduates who stay in-state and serve the medical needs of our rural residents.
“We also commend the faculty and students in the Occupational Education Studies program. They have built an international reputation for this university.”
Fernandes, president of the OSU Center for Health Sciences and dean of the medical school, said U.S. News compares the nation’s 144 medical schools based on opinions and data collected from college academic deans, program directors and senior faculty throughout the United States.
“Our consecutive top rankings reflect our longstanding commitment to the people of Oklahoma and to the Legislature to educate and train excellent physicians for our state,” said Fernandes. “We are honored to be recognized for meeting our mission of preparing the majority of the state’s rural and family doctors.”
OSU’s medical school was created in 1972 to prepare primary care physicians for Oklahoma. The school has graduated nearly 2,000 doctors.
Sixty percent of graduates remain in state to practice medicine, many in rural and underserved communities. The economic impact from each OSU physician is estimated to be $1 million per year per community.
Dr. Reynaldo Martinez, associate professor and coordinator of the Occupational Education Studies program in the OSU College of Education, said OSU is the only doctoral granting institution in the state for Occupational Education studies. The program has been, and continues to be, a prominent member of the University Council for Workforce and Human Resource Education, which represents the top doctoral granting universities in the nation for vocational/technical education.
The Occupational Education Studies Program at OSU also has been a consistent leader in non-traditional delivery of graduate coursework.
Updated 04-26-2005
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