Under a sunny blue sky, nearly 100 doctors-to-be, clad in their recently procured white coats, waited in line to receive the ultimate symbol of their future profession: a stethoscope.
During a Friday afternoon ceremony, Lloyd Minor, MD, dean of the medical school, was among those who formally welcomed the new students to Stanford Medicine.
As described in an article on the new class and our admissions process, the students are an interesting and accomplished bunch. Nineteen were born outside of the U.S., 17 have master's or doctoral degrees, 51 have studied abroad. Several have won prestigious awards like the Rhodes Scholarship, and one of the students -- Bongeka Zuma -- was the valedictorian of the inaugural class of Oprah Winfrey’s Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa.
"I’m honored that you’re bringing your intellectual rigor, generosity, and unbridled creativity to this campus and to our community, and that you chose Stanford as the place to begin your journey in medicine and in life," Minor told the group.
Before saying that their path to medicine won't always be easy, Minor provided a quick preview about what life would be like here. Friends and families will begin "to constantly ask you what their rash, cough, or other ailment might mean;" the things that "shock and gross you" will diminish significantly over coming weeks and months; your definitions of "busy" and "hard work" and will change forever; and you should expect to adopt creative sleep habits, Minor told the students.
The new medical students will also "be surprised at just how much you’re capable of doing, learning, and becoming," Minor said. He later added, "I can’t wait to see the wonderful things you're going to do while you're here and the wonderful things you're going to do in your lives."
Previously: Stethoscope ceremony will welcome new medical students
Photo by Steve Fisch
