Quinnipiac University will begin the process of opening a medical school, President John L. Lahey announced Thursday morning.
The medical school, which will be located on the North Haven Campus, is planned to open in 2013 or 2014. The first class will enroll about 50 students, while the school will eventually have 500, according to the Associated Press.
The plan, approved by the school’s board of trustees, is expected to cost $75 million.
A year of internal study and a six-month study conducted by outside experts deemed the medical school feasible for the University.
“Two major challenges that must be successfully met are securing a major hospital/health system clinical partner and meeting the very high and demanding accreditation standards of the Liaison Committee on Medical Education,” Lahey said in a press release. “Quinnipiac will turn its immediate attention to these two requirements and goals.”
Quinnipiac’s medical school will focus on primary care and global health.
“A medical school is the next logical extension for Quinnipiac since we now prepare so many other essential members of the health care team,” Quinnipiac’s Dean of the School of Health Sciences Edward O’Connor said.
The school will begin searching for a hospital or health care partner and accreditation through the Liaison Committee on Medical Education. The LCME, according to its Web site, accredits schools that grant a doctor of medicine degree. The Association of American Medical Colleges, which accredits 131 medical schools nationwide, sponsors LCME.
The North Haven campus, where the medical school will be located, was purchased from WellPoint, Inc. in Sept. 2007. Currently, the School of Health Sciences occupies one building on the North Haven campus.
Through the agreement, the University leases back three buildings to the Blue Cross and Blue Shield association, of which WellPoint is an independent licensee.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield will phase out use of the North Haven campus over the next 10 years, at which point Quinnipiac will assume control of the buildings. The University’s plan is to renovate the buildings once they have control over them to turn them into classrooms, study rooms and labs.
The University of Connecticut School of Medicine and the Yale School of Medicine are currently the only two universities in the state to operate a medical school. Currently, there are 89 universities in the United States that have both law and medical schools.
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^ non QU student • Apr 28, 2010 at 11:57 pm
Please take your insults somewhere else douche bag.
qtard • Apr 28, 2010 at 7:18 pm
but, like, i really am like concerned with the sport image and wat has medicine going to ofer a bobcat? and i see it as, like, a waste, as we could, can you imagine how many uggs and north face fleeces i could bi with 75million. 🙂
Appropriate Investment • Jan 28, 2010 at 2:32 pm
A medical school will increase Quinnipiac’s standing as a nationally recognized University…I believe this will concurrently increase the value of your diploma.
Mike • Jan 28, 2010 at 2:53 pm
I agree. I think this is great news.
Griff • Jan 28, 2010 at 3:38 pm
This will absolutely increase the value of everyone’s diplomas. This is a logical move for the University and will attract many top students both from Connecticut and around the country. It is consistent with the school’s brand (strength in health sciences) and fills a need, and to be one of only three medical schools in the state will be great.
$75 million over the next 5 years or so is quite an investment but it will pay for itself many times over. We have to take the time to stop thinking in the short term and talk about the long term benefits of this exciting expansion.
haha • Jan 28, 2010 at 12:06 pm
So this is where our 5 cents per page printing fee has been going.
I wonder if the medical school will get a half a million dollar Bobcat too.
Upset QU Student • Jan 28, 2010 at 9:25 am
So…where are we getting the funds to do this from? Because apparently we don’t have enough considering that three athletic teams were cut [and yes, teams were getting cut prior to the whole Title IX thing] and school-recognized organizations continue to struggle for money.