The Herald-Dispatch

Dr. Joseph I. Shapiro, dean of the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine

Apr. 30, 2014 @ 12:00 AM

HUNTINGTON -- Marshall University and its medical school are offering up to 10 qualified West Virginia students annually a chance to complete requirements for becoming a doctor in a shorter time frame and potentially save tens of thousands of dollars in tuition.

The accelerated program announced Tuesday by Dr. Joseph Shapiro, dean of the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, means a student could complete a bachelor's degree and a doctor of medicine degree in seven years instead of the traditional eight.

In addition, a student who completes the undergraduate requirements of the program also would receive a waiver of tuition for all four years of medical school, officials said. At the school's current tuition rate, that would be a savings of more than $80,000 for a student.

The program, which will begin in the fall 2015 semester, is part of Marshall's efforts to develop a physician workforce for the region and increase in-state recruitment, Shapiro said in a news release.

"One of the ways we can facilitate that goal is to create programs that attract our state's best and brightest," he said. "This accelerated program allows us to place those highly performing students on a fast track to medical education."

Only 10 students annually will be accepted into the accelerated program, said Jennifer T. Plymale, associate dean for admissions at the school of medicine. She said the medical school will accept 75 students into the entire medical school class, and the accelerated program students will account for 10 of those spots.

Students who successfully complete the undergraduate requirements of the program will receive the tuition waiver for all four years of medical school, as well as a waiver from taking the MCAT, the entrance exam for medical school.

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Med school launches accelerated program