The CUNY School of Medicine at CCNY receives full accreditation

The City University of New York announced that the CUNY School of Medicine (CUNY Med) at The City College of New York has been granted full accreditation. Dean Carmen Renée Green, MD received the news and proudly shared this achievement with the entire CUNY Med community saying, “I would like to congratulate everyone involved in the accreditation process, as this is truly a team effort. I thank every individual who provided guidance to our team during each stage of the accreditation process and express my gratitude to the dedicated faculty, staff, students, clinical partners, donors, and alumni for their support.”

“The CUNY School of Medicine is a key contributor to the University's equity-driven mission, and we are pleased that it has successfully completed the rigorous accreditation process from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “This achievement is critical to the school’s continued success in fulfilling its mission to recruit talented and diverse students whose racial, ethnic and social backgrounds are often underrepresented in the field. As one of only two public medical schools in New York City, the CUNY School of Medicine trains doctors who go on to serve these communities, with 75% of its graduates remaining in the city and working to eradicate longstanding systemic inequities in health care.”

The majority of the CUNY Med’s student body includes more than 650 undergraduate, MD, and PA students are underrepresented in medicine – 83% who are bilingual/multilingual. It’s iconic, seven-year BS/MD model includes an accelerated undergraduate Pre-Med curriculum culminating in a three-year BS degree and a four-year MD program.  

“CUNY School of Medicine is changing the landscape, future, and face of medicine by training the next generation of diverse Healers, Leaders and Scholars who are making a tremendous impact in the city, NY state region, and throughout the U.S.”  said Carmen Renée Green, MD, Dean, CUNY School of Medicine “In New York State, CUNY School of Medicine is ranked #1 in recruitment of African American students, #1 in female student enrollment, and #2 in recruitment of Latinx students.  Nationally, we are a leader in producing health professionals who are underrepresented in medicine and are number four in the country in producing African American physicians (approximately 10% of each entering class are Black men). 

The CUNY School of Medicine is NYC’s only public medical school located in Manhattan on the historic campus of The City College of New York in Harlem, NY. 

“Full accreditation is a meaningful milestone for both CUNY Med and The City College of New York.  Many people on this campus have worked for years to build and establish this school to be a place dedicated to diversifying the medical profession, particularly to provide primary health care to underserved communities, said City College of New York President Vince Boudreau.  CUNY School of Medicine carries forward CCNY’s 175-year mission of preparing its students to make a positive impact on society and the world.”

The CUNY School of Medicine achieved preliminary accreditation in 2015 and welcomed its charter class in the Fall of 2016. Dean Green was appointed as the medical school’s dean in October of 2021.  This year the CUNY Medical School graduated 60 of doctors and the Class of 2023 (who started medical school during the COVID 19 pandemic) achieved a 100% match to residency programs.  

“On behalf of more than 2,500 doctors and 1,000 PAs who proudly call themselves CUNY Med alumni, I congratulate Dean Green and CUNY Med on this accomplishment,” said Dr. Marina Frimer, president of the Sophie Davis/CUNY School of Medicine Alumni Association. “As alumni we will continue to commit our time and resources to support our fellow graduates and current students at the CUNY School of Medicine.”

Dean Green noted that the CUNY School of Medicine new status of full LCME accreditation for the next five years (the maximum number for a new medical school) will be reflected on the LCME’s website in early July.  
 

About CUNY School of Medicine

From our inception as the Sophie Davis Center for Biomedical Education in 1973 to transitioning to the CUNY School of Medicine in 2016, our commitment is to serve the community and to create a diversified health professional work force. CUNY Med’s continuing mission is to address healthcare inequities in New York City and beyond, and to increasing diversity and representation in medicine. Approximately 75% of our graduates continue to live and work in New York City’s five boroughs. Our alumni partners include more than 2,500 doctors and 1,000 Physician Assistants. October 2023 - October 2024 will mark CUNY’s School of Medicine’s 50th anniversary.  

About the City College of New York                                                                                                        

Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. Education research organization Degree Choices ranks CCNY #1 nationally among universities for economic return on investment. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.8% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Emsi puts at $1.9 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers and society. At City College, more than 15,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity and scholarship. This year, CCNY launched its most expansive fundraising campaign, ever. The campaign, titled "Doing Remarkable Things Together" seeks to bring the College’s Foundation to more than $1 billion in total assets in support of the College mission. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.

About the City University of New York

The City University of New York is the nation’s largest urban public university, a transformative engine of social mobility that is a critical component of the lifeblood of New York City. Founded in 1847 as the nation’s first free public institution of higher education, CUNY today has 25 colleges spread across New York City’s five boroughs, serving 243,000 degree-seeking students of all ages and awarding 55,000 degrees each year. More than 80 percent of the University’s graduates stay in New York, contributing to all aspects of the city’s economic, civic and cultural life and diversifying the city’s workforce in every sector. The University’s historic mission continues to this day: provide a public first-rate education to all students, regardless of means or background.

About the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) 

The LCME is the accrediting body for schools of medicine in the U.S. and Canada and oversees the three-step accreditation process.  In June of 2023, CUNY School of Medicine gained full accreditation, which means that CUNY School of Medicine has been found to meet or exceed national standards for structure, function, and performance.  The LCME typically conducts three separate site visits to a medical school during its first four years to review all aspects of its operations. During LCME site visits, reviewers inspect more than a thousand pages of narrative and data. Throughout the accreditation process, LCME reviewers analyzed more than 90 different elements of the school, including facilities, faculty, curriculum, finances and student support and advancement.  The LCME is jointly sponsored by the Association of American Medical Colleges and the Council on Medical Education of the American Medical Association.