UCF's First Med Students Greeted with Ceremony, Surprise (Video)

By UCF Staff Aug. 3, 2009

Photo: Jacque Brund

Scholarship donor Joe Conte presented Jonathan Gullett, one of 41 charter class members, with his white coat.

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The University of Central Florida welcomed its charter class of College of Medicine students today with a community event that featured a surprise announcement, record-breaking achievements and promises for the future.

UCF and its community partners celebrated the milestone by watching the first students participate in a special “White Coat Ceremony,” a tradition that welcomes students into the medical profession. Each student received a first-of-its-kind full scholarship — funded entirely from community donations — that covers all costs for four years of medical school.

At the event, med school Dean Deborah German, M.D., surprised the more than 900 attendees by announcing that the community’s generosity had allowed the College of Medicine to add a student to the charter class, bringing the first-year total to 41 students.

In addition to making history, the charter class boasts the highest average MCAT score (32.2) and GPA (3.8) of any incoming class of medical students in the state.

“Today we begin a long tradition of excellence, and we will set the bar high,” German said. “We were looking for students with that enterprising, pioneering spirit who wanted to building something as they went through medical school.”

The American Association of Medical Colleges says UCF is the first U.S. medical school to provide four-year full scholarships to an entire class. The scholarships, worth $160,000 each, were made possible thanks to generous donors from throughout Central Florida. 

“It’s an awesome gift and responsibility,” said Aura Fuentes, one of the charter class members who relocated to Orlando from South Florida. “I’m humbled and plan to give back to the community.”

With more than 4,300 applications, UCF broke the state university record for most applications, and for this year is the most selective medical school in the country.

During the ceremony, white medical coats were presented to all of the students as a symbol of their promises to be good doctors and a reminder of the community’s commitment to bring them here and help them succeed. Student received their coats from the donors who made their scholarships possible.

“The effort to bring medical education to Central Florida was truly region wide,” UCF President John C. Hitt said. “This effort brought Central Floridians together as few other initiatives have done before, and the community’s united voice was heard from Miami to Tallahassee."

Students will spend their first year working in classrooms near campus in the Central Florida Research Park. Next summer, the students will move to UCF’s facilities at Lake Nona.

“This may sound trite, but honestly, our goal as physicians is to improve the lifestyle and health of our friends and neighbors,” said Virgil Secasanu, who hails from Atlanta. “The opportunity to influence the future of UCF and the Orlando community is unparalleled. That was really exciting for me.”

UCF Stands For Opportunity: The University of Central Florida is a metropolitan research university that ranks as the 5th largest in the nation with more than 50,000 students. UCF's first classes were offered in 1968. The university offers impressive academic and research environments that power the region's economic development. UCF's culture of opportunity is driven by our diversity, Orlando environment, history of entrepreneurship and our youth, relevance and energy. For more information visit http://news.ucf.edu.

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