NYU Long Island School of Medicine celebrates first graduating class of primary care physicians

Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc.May 17 2022

NYU Long Island School of Medicine today celebrates its first graduating class of physicians, marking three years since the medical school opened its doors, launching the nation's first accelerated MD program devoted exclusively to training primary care physicians. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, the United States is expected to be short of primary care physicians by upward of 21,000 within a decade. The school's graduates are expected to contribute to alleviating that deficit. More than half of the physician graduates will remain in the greater New York and Long Island regions.

NYU Long Island School of Medicine is one of the first medical schools in the nation to offer full-tuition scholarships—and the first on Long Island—following the tuition-free model of NYU Grossman School of Medicine in Manhattan, both under the auspices of NYU Langone Health.

NYU Long Island School of Medicine's inaugural Class of 2022 is the realization of a bold vision to make medical school financially attainable and attract exceptional students into the field of primary care. We hope that many of the graduating physicians will choose to practice on Long Island, keeping our communities healthy and helping NYU Langone Health expand upon our network of quality physicians across Long Island."

Robert I. Grossman, MD, chief executive officer of NYU Langone Health and dean of NYU Grossman School of Medicine

The physician graduates, totaling 20 in the Class of 2022, will practice in 4 primary care areas: family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, and obstetrics and gynecology, along with general surgery. They will first fulfill their medical residencies, including those attending residency programs at NYU Langone Hospital—Long Island, The Johns Hopkins Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, and other prestigious institutions to which they were accepted. By graduating from an accelerated three-year program, NYU Long Island School of Medicine graduates begin residency a year earlier than those who attend a traditional four-year medical school, where students typically focus their final year on other specialties.

Founding dean Steven P. Shelov, MD, gave the keynote at the ceremonies, commending the graduates: "All of you are empathic, patient, powerful listeners, and caring, kind, and humble, eager to bring out the best in yourselves. We in the leadership of NYU Long Island School of Medicine and NYU Langone Health are committed to you, our charter class, as you become exemplary physicians."

Also addressing the graduates at this year's inaugural commencement were Gladys M. Ayala, MD, vice dean of NYU Long Island School of Medicine; Steven E. Carsons, MD, senior associate dean of research at NYU Long Island School of Medicine; and Joseph J. Greco, MD, senior vice president and chief of hospital operations at NYU Langone Hospital—Long Island.

NYU Long Island School of Medicine, which is located in Mineola on the campus of NYU Langone Hospital—Long Island, celebrated its Class of 2022 graduation at nearby Molloy College in Rockville Centre. The graduates continued from there to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, to join a collective graduation ceremony honoring all NYU 2022 graduates.

To sustain its full-tuition scholarship initiative, NYU Long Island School of Medicine is supported by philanthropy as well as receiving support from NYU Langone Health.