Hello Fellow Tar Heels and Future MDs!

To the newest members of our community, welcome to your new home for the next four years. UNC School of Medicine is a special place and one that will educate and train you in its tradition of excellence, driven by a passion to provide the best possible care to our neighbors and strangers alike. Medical school comes with its challenges but know that you have a supportive community standing at your side. Everyone at UNC is eager to help you face them, whether personal, academic, or otherwise.

What an exciting time to be at UNC! As North Carolina continues to grow, the School of Medicine is rising to the challenge and meeting the demand for more physicians by growing our class size from 190 to 230 students. With such growth comes the need for an excellent space to accommodate our diverse student body. Roper Hall welcomed us as its inaugural First Year Class only a few years ago. While we fondly recall Roper as the home of our preclinical curriculum, it continues to serve as a venue for extracurricular activities, after-hours studying, and a place to connect with classmates even in our 4th year of medical school.

Although all of our students begin their medical education journey in Chapel Hill, the third year of medical school offers students the option to experience a new part of the state and partake in clinical rotations in Asheville, Charlotte, Greensboro, Raleigh, Wilmington, or to stay in Chapel Hill. By placing students in communities across North Carolina, the school ensures that its commitment to serving all North Carolinians is more than just a mission statement. This isn’t just philosophy; it’s something you can witness across our state in every clinic, hospital, and patient interaction along the way.

We also have had the privilege of working with amazing faculty and administrators through our roles as Foundation Phase Co-Presidents, Application Phase Co-Presidents, and now in our new role as Student Body Presidents. Time and again, we are impressed by the dedication and effort of course directors, small group leaders, clinical instructors, administrators, and simulation center staff. They truly care about our experience, are open to our feedback, and want to make Carolina the best place to become a doctor.

This commitment to excellence has followed us into the hospital as we have worked with amazing nurses, residents, fellows, staff, and attending physicians. During our clinical rotations, we’ve frequently heard patients and their families say how happy they are to be receiving care at UNC. This patient satisfaction is a direct product of our culture of excellence and is something our entire community values and continually strives to maintain. That culture is built on two things: a deep commitment to the state of North Carolina and a dedication to training providers who know how to care for real communities. This shows up every day in the way our attendings teach, the way our teams show up for patients, and the standard to which we hold ourselves.

We are so grateful to serve in this role. Here’s to a great year!

Go Heels,
Luke Passannante and Tyler Soy