The Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine is the medical school at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. It is one of three medical schools in the state.
The school was founded in 1977 with funding from the federal government, which also provided for a medical school at East Tennessee State University at the same time in order to address the severe shortage of physicians in central and southern Appalachia. The school is named for the late Joan C. Edwards the largest private contributor to the university in modern history.
The school describes itself as "non-traditional" in that it is not associated with a major research and referral hospital, and students do not take classes in a segregated single building separate from the university. Rather, its aims to educate students using the existing resources of the community and the university to the greatest extent possible. First year students mainly attend classes on-campus in the Robert C. Byrd Biotechnology Science Center (Marshall University) and the VA medical center, which is 20 minutes away from the city of Huntington, WV. The location of the VA, combined with the lack of alternate roads, inadequate parking and studying space contribute to an environment that is not ideal for first year students who are building a foundation for their medical education. Second year classes are held at the Erma Ora Byrd Clinical Center (opened in 2007) on the site of the former Fairfield Stadium near Cabell Huntington Hospital where the nationally recognized Forensic Science Program is also located. First year students take anatomy classes and use library resources at the Robert W. Coon Medical Education Building, located seven miles from campus at the Department of Veterans Affairs (V.A.) Medical Center. Third and fourth year rotations are conducted mainly at the V.A. Medical Center, Cabell Huntington Hospital, and St. Mary's Medical Center. The primary focus of the school is educating a physician workforce for Appalachia, although students are placed in premier residency programs across the United States in primary care and subspecialties.
The school also offers a Master's and Doctorate in Biomedical Sciences (and offers a joint M.D./Ph.D. program) and has recently started a joint M.D./M.P.H. program. The school currently offers residencies in 12 specialties.
Admission is based on scholarship, the Medical College Admissions Test, and personal qualifications as judged by interviews and recommendations. As a state-assisted medical school, Marshall gives preference to West Virginia residents. However, some positions will be available to well-qualified nonresidents from states adjoining West Virginia, nonresidents who have strong ties to West Virginia or to students who are introduced to our school through our out-of-state recruitment pipeline and outreach programs. Regardless of their state of residency, applicants are considered only if they are U.S. citizens or have permanent resident visas..
External links
- Official Site
