Medical watchdog Do No Harm’s Center for Accountability in Medicine released its second index on medical schools, ranking schools by excellence and merit instead of identity politics.
Director of the Center for Accountability in Medicine (CAM) Ian Kingsbury told The Center Square: “We created the Medical School Excellence Index so that patients and aspiring medical school students have clear information about which schools are doing the best job of recruiting and training physicians.”
“Since launching the Index last year, we’ve seen several schools change their mission statements and applicant essay prompts in ways that eschew DEI-aligned activism,” Kingsbury said.
“Unfortunately, we’ve also seen some backsliding by schools that infuse DEI into admissions and student grading policies,” Kingsbury said.
“As we continue to make progress to restore excellence to medical education, this tool will be invaluable to the public and students who want medical schools to focus on training the next generation of highly qualified medical professionals,” Kingsbury said.
According to the Medical School Excellence Index, the top schools are as follows, starting with what it says are the best: USF Health Morsani College of Medicine; Albert Einstein College of Medicine; Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania; Dell Medical School – University of Texas at Austin; and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
The worst schools, according to Do No Harm, are Michigan State University College of Human Medicine; Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science College of Medicine; California University of Science and Medicine – School of Medicine; University of California, Riverside School of Medicine; and Roseman University College of Medicine.
None of these 10 schools provided comment to The Center Square by publishing time.
Do No Harm’s medical school ranking system differs from other traditional rankings that favor diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
Instead, Do No Harm looks at “academic excellence, transparency, and the rejection of DEI” to rank schools.
According to Do No Harm, Michigan State University College of Human Medicine received its ranking as the worst U.S. medical school after GPA scores declined and another DEI office was added.
California University of Science and Medicine also fell into the bottom five after it lowered MCAT and GPA scores and added a DEI office, while Riverside School of Medicine and Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science College of Medicine both added DEI offices, contributing to their index placement, according to Do No Harm.
Roseman University College of Medicine is a newer medical school that has a strong commitment to DEI, Do No Harm said.
In last year’s Medical School Excellence Index, 18% of schools received a grade of F, The Center Square reported.
Both USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania were in last year’s top five schools.
