The Boston University School of Medicine (formally the Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine) is the medical school of Boston University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1848. Originally known as the New England Female Medical College, it was renamed Boston University School of Medicine in 1873, then Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine in 2022. In 1864, it became the first medical school in the United States to award an MD degree to an African-American woman. The school is the only medical school located in the South End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. Boston Medical Center, its primary teaching hospital, operates the largest 24-hour Level I trauma center in New England, and the largest network of regional community health centers. The school is the home of the Framingham Heart Study, from which all knowledge of cardiovascular disease risk factors were originally discovered.

History

The New England Female Medical College was the first institution to medically train women, founded in 1848. The institution was reformed and renamed in 1873 when Boston University merged with the New England Female Medical College and began to admit men as well as women. Following a $100 million donation in 2022 by philanthropist and clarinetist Edward Avedisian, the school name was formally changed once again to "Boston University Aram V. Chobanian & Edward Avedisian School of Medicine", honoring Avedisian and his friend, former dean of the medical school Aram V. Chobanian.

Recent class profile

In the autumn of 2019, Boston University School of Medicine's first-year medical students were 48% female, and 14% were of an ethnicity that is under-represented in medicine. Out of matriculated students, 124 are in the traditional 4-year Doctor of Medicine (MD) program. Average GPA was 3.69. Six students were enrolled in the MD-PhD program, and the rest were in some other type of non-traditional MD track. The school also offers joint degrees with other Boston University graduate schools, allowing the medical students to earn an MD degree with a Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Public Health (MPH), or PhD. Students matriculating came from 29 states and 19 countries. Average MCAT was 517. Students' ages ranged from 18 to 35.

Graduate medical sciences

The school offers MA, MS, and PhD degrees through Graduate Medical Sciences. The MA degree is in Mental Health Counseling and Behavioral Medicine. An MS degree is available in Anatomy and Neurobiology - Vesalius Program, Bioimaging, Biomedical Forensics, Biomedical Research Technologies, Clinical Research, Forensic Anthropology, Genetic Counseling. Health Professions Education, Healthcare Emergency Management, Medical Anthropology & Cross Cultural Practice, Medical Sciences, Nutrition and Metabolism, Oral Health Sciences, Pathology Laboratory Sciences, Physician Assistant, and Physiology and Biophysics. PhD and MD-PhD degrees are also granted in the following areas:

People

Notable faculty

There are 1,159 faculty members at BU's School of Medicine: 946 full-time and 213 part-time. Notable faculty include:

Notable alumni

Clinical affiliates

In popular culture

Boston University School of Medicine and the Boston Medical Center serve as the setting for Robin Cook's bestselling novel Coma as well as the film of the same name directed by Michael Crichton.