San Antonio, the most visited city in Texas, is famous for its Hispanic history and puffy tacos. However, it also has a variety of universities that attract students from all around the country.
San Antonio combines the perfect small-town feel and high-quality big-city medical education. From the Long School of Medicine to the University of the Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine, it has Texas’s best medical schools.
San Antonio is a whole package with low taxes and a booming economy. But are the medical schools in San Antonio really worth it?
Long School of Medicine at UT Health San Antonio
The Long School of Medicine (LSOM) is a public medical school that has been training physicians for over 50 years. According to the U.S. News & World Report rankings, LSOM is ranked No. 36 in Best Medical Schools: Primary Care and No. 47 in Best Medical Schools: Research.
The institution educates over 900 students and trains 800 residents each year. It has about 1,000 full-time faculty members, with a faculty-student ratio of 1.2-to-1.
LSOM has developed a diverse environment through its inclusion and diversity policies, which ensure that each student is succeeding. It offers academic excellence through highly skilled faculty and six patient care and research facilities for clinical training.
The teaching standards of LSOM are evident through its 98% pass rate on USMLE Step 1, 99% on Step 2, and 99.5% match rate in 2020.
Moreover, it has various wellness programs to help medical students with the rigorous curriculum of medicine. Students can interact with the unique LSOM community through a variety of events, such as the welcome week and the student clinician ceremony.
It has an acceptance rate of 7.1% and an in-state interview rate of 22%. Only 200 students are accepted each year out of the thousands that apply to LSOM.
Programs Offered:
- Doctor of Medicine (MD)
- Dual degree programs – MD/MPH, MD/PhD, and MD/OMS certificate
- Distinction programs in research, medical education, and medical humanities
For the students to become compassionate and knowledgeable future doctors, the four-year MD program strongly emphasizes developing altruism, knowledge, and skills. The pre-clinical stage lasts for 20 months and includes lessons that provide conceptual knowledge.
On the other hand, the clinical curriculum has 48 weeks of clerkships, eight weeks of selectives, 20 weeks of electives, and four weeks of didactics to train students for working in a clinical setting. It contains a program called the Standardized Patient that enables students to interact with someone portraying a patient with a medical condition.
Students can get assistance from LSOM throughout the year through resources like tutoring, workshops on study skills, and one-on-one discussions with student affairs.
Admission Requirements:
- Undergraduate degree with credit hours in science prerequisites
- Average GPA – 3.87
- Average MCAT score – 517.6
- Complete the Computer-Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics (CASPer) test
- Letters of recommendation and personal statement (LSOM doesn’t have a secondary application)
The application deadline for applying to the Long School of Medicine is October 1.
Tuition Cost:
- In-state tuition – $24,862
- Out-of-state tuition – $42,044
University of the Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine
Founded in 2015, the University of the Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine (UIWSOM) is the fourth largest private university in Texas. Texas is experiencing a primary care physician shortage, so the 140-year-old University of the Incarnate Word welcomed its first class of 162 students in July 2017 to help and graduate highly competent physicians.
It has a total medical school enrollment of 648, as well as skilled faculty members in the field of research and medicine.
The campus has a total of four buildings based on 16 acres. Each building consists of various facilities for education and administration, including an anatomy lab, library learning resources, study rooms, and much more.
Moreover, the university awards all first-year students an emergency medical technician (EMT) certification. In case of an emergency, it allows them to offer basic medical care to San Antonio’s underprivileged and homeless population.
It is necessary for DO students to pass the COMLEX-USA to obtain a license to practice (Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination of the United States). As a result of the dedication of the staff and students, UIWSOM class of 2022 had a COMLEX level 1 pass rate of 86.84%. It also had a 99% resident placement rate.
Programs Offered:
- Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO)
The four-year program is split into two phases. Students study the basic concepts and practices of osteopathic medicine throughout Phase 1. It prepares them for the board exam and requires students to complete a capstone in Spirituality, Mental Health and Wellness.
Eight weeks of core rotations in Phase 2 are used to develop clinical experience. Students receive feedback every two rotations after a period of 12 weeks. At this point, students are required to take the COMLEX-USA level 2 exam.
Students can receive experience in a clinical setting every week for a half day starting in the first week of medical school. Therefore, you will be actively using the clinical knowledge you earn each week of medical school.
Admission Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree
- Average GPA – 3.61
- Average Science GPA – 3.53
- Average MCAT score – 502
- Personal statement and letters of recommendation
The University of the Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine has an application deadline of March 15. It has a supplemental application fee of $50.
Tuition Cost:
- Tuition – $58,000
- Fees – $2,200
Does San Antonio Have Texas’s Top Medical Schools?
Yes, the Long School of Medicine at UT Health San Antonio is among the top three medical schools in Texas. It is the largest training facility in South Texas and is known for providing quality medical education in the state.
The health sector is very important in San Antonio. The Baptist Medical Center in San Antonio was ranked No. 13 among the 367 hospitals in Texas. Therefore, it has excellent medical education, residency, and fellowship opportunities for medical students.
Cost of Living in San Antonio
PayScale reports that the cost of living in San Antonio is 8% lower than the national average. Rent and utilities can be costly for students. Given the cost of medical school, it is best to pick an affordable location.
The house expenses in San Antonio are 18% lower than the national average. Compared to Austin and Texas, San Antonio is a much more affordable city to live in.
Why Should You Consider Attending Medical School in San Antonio?
Besides having renowned medical schools, San Antonio also has the cheapest medical schools for the residents of Texas. It provides high-quality education at a reasonable price, with various opportunities to grow in the medical profession.
The government is attempting to make medical education accessible and reasonable for people who are interested, as several places in San Antonio have been experiencing a shortage of medical examiners. San Antonia—and Texas—will more likely experience improvement in their health care and education systems.
If you’re looking for a competent medical school with plenty of space for growth, San Antonio medical schools might be the right choice for you.
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Kanza Javed is a content writer with a background in healthcare and technology. Her articles on websites all over the world have received high rankings and positive reactions. She is determined to join the health sector and is passionate about writing. When she is not writing, you will find her reading books, petting cats, spending time in nature, and taking long walks.