University of New Mexico, School of Medicine Admission
University of New Mexico, School of Medicine Undergraduate Program
University of New Mexico, School of Medicine Application

The Facts

The University of New Mexico is a rather large, public institution located in the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and has a combined graduate and undergraduate population of over 35,000 students. The university's School of Medicine, however, is significantly smaller, and is home to about 300 graduate medical students. The average age of enrollment is around 25, and it is fairly rare for any of the students to enter the school directly from their undergraduate education. The school is perhaps best known for its fantastic research programs and facilities, as well as for its emphasis on early patient contact and the doctor-patient relationship. Aside from the basic MD degree, the school offers a joint degree in the MD/PhD in various areas of the medical and biomedical sciences.

Admission to the University of New Mexico's School of Medicine is extremely competitive among the relatively few students who apply; last year, over 830 students applied for admission to the school, and approximately 92 of those students were accepted. Eventually however, only about 75 of the admitted students actually enrolled for the coming semester. The admitted students had average MCAT scores of about 9.5 in Biology, 8.8 in Physics, and 8.8 in Verbal, as well as an average undergraduate GPA of about a 3.5. Students are notified of their admissions status on a rolling basis, and are able to take advantage of the school's early application program if they so choose.

The university's School of Medicine has about 715 faculty members, all of whom come from relatively diverse medical and academic backgrounds. The school also boasts a very manageable student to faculty ratio of about 2:1, and the small classes allow for plenty of discussion and interaction between students and their professors.

Graduates of the School of Medicine often go on to be accepted to some of the nation's most prestigious and competitive residency programs, and most frequently specialize in the areas of primary care, family medicine, pediatrics, orthopedic surgery, psychiatry, neurology, as well as pathology.

Clinical Programs

Students are required to complete extensive clinical training including 8 weeks of internal medicine, 8 weeks of surgery, 8 weeks of neurology, 8 weeks of psychiatry, 8 weeks of ambulatory family medicine, 8 weeks of inpatient pediatrics ambulatory medicine, as well as 8 weeks of inpatient ob/gyn ambulatory medicine. Students complete their clinical clerkships at affiliated facilities including the University Hospital, Regional Federal Medical Center, UNM Cancer Center, UNM Mental Health Center, UNM Children's Psychiatric Hospital, as well as the Carrie Tingley Hospital for Children.

What's Good

"The school has so many special centers where you can develop very specific medical skills."

"The faculty here are extremely passionate about what they do, and make you equally passionate."

"The administration is wonderful, and very attentive to the needs of individual students."

What's Bad

"If you are an out of state student, tuition is extremely high."

"There is no on campus graduate housing."

"Sometimes students get very cutthroat, and feel the need to compete with one another."

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