UC Merced to open a medical education program

With a huge demand for doctors in the San Joaquin Valley (central California), UC Merced just announced that it will offer a B.S.-to-M.D. joint-degree program with UCSF-Fresno starting in 2023. What does that mean? The UCs will now have a medical school in central California, and this one is an eight-year program. Students start at UC Merced and then end at UCSF Fresno with a medical degree.

UC Merced students majoring or minoring in Psychology or Public Health will be ideal candidates for UC Merced’s Medical Education program, and will serve as a pipeline for physicians and health care providers. Students will do clinical training at regional centers with a rural focus that provides training with marginalized, rural, and underserved populations.