School of Medicine and Health Sciences recognizes outgoing health sciences and graduate students

GRAND FORKS, N.D.—In addition to the 67 new medical doctors graduating from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) on Sunday, May 13, the School will see more than 200 students from its graduate and professional health sciences programs walk across the Alerus Center stage at the UND Commencement on Saturday, May 12.

Representing the School at UND’s Spring Commencement Saturday will be students from not only the SMHS graduate program in the Biomedical Sciences, but those from its professional and undergraduate programs in Medical Laboratory Science (89), Occupational Therapy (57), Physical Therapy (52), Physician Assistant Studies (29), Master of Public Health (10), and Athletic Training (6).

“We want to extend congratulations to all of the graduates of the Health Sciences,” noted Thomas Mohr, PhD, associate dean for Health Sciences at the SMHS. “Most of all we want to recognize the impact that health science graduates will have on the thousands of patients they will work with throughout their careers.”

Now that the School’s Healthcare Workforce Initiative (HWI) is fully implemented, 16 additional medical students, 30 health sciences students, and a variety of post-MD degree trainees are being educated through the UND SMHS each year, relative to 2011. In addition to expanding SMHS class sizes, the HWI utilizes a number of strategies to help increase North Dakota’s healthcare workforce, including prioritizing accepting students from rural areas of North Dakota, promoting tuition forgiveness for students who commit to practicing in a rural community in the state, and increasing its focus on geriatrics, population health, and public health.

Over the past 50 years, the UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences has graduated nearly 10,000 professionals working in the health sciences in North Dakota and around the country.

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Brian James Schill
Assistant Director, Office of Alumni & Community Relations
University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences
701.777.2733 direct | 701.777.4305 office
brian.schill@med.und.edu  |  www.med.und.edu