The <a href="https://<a href="https://lumeamara.online/?p=6341" title="MATERNAL <a href="https://lumeamara.online/?p=6337" title="G.A. Carmichael Family Health Center opens in Yazoo City”>HEALTH IS THE KEY”>health.usf.edu/medicine/” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank”>USF Health Morsani College of Medicine has been ranked the No. 1 medical school in the country for the second consecutive
year in the 2026 Medical School Excellence Index, released today by the Center for
Accountability in Medicine.
USF was the only university to receive a perfect score of 100, a designation the college
also earned last year.
The Morsani College of Medicine received top marks for the outstanding GPAs and MCAT
scores of its admitted students, as well as the college’s overall approach to medical
admissions. This year, the college welcomed the strongest incoming class of medical students in its history, setting new college records with a median MCAT score of 521 — equal to the top 2%
nationally — and a median GPA of 3.98.
“I am so pleased to see the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine place first again
on the Medical Excellence Index,” said Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM, executive vice
president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. “This high ranking
is a testament to our hard-working faculty and our amazing students. They share a
deep commitment to excellence and a dedication to working to achieve that level of
excellence. Our students understand that our rigorous curriculum is designed to prepare
them to provide the absolute best care for our patients. They will go on to be the
future physician leaders who save lives and improve health for the people of Florida
and our nation.”
The Medical School Excellence Index ranks allopathic and osteopathic medical schools
according to “measurable standards of academic excellence, institutional resistance
to politicized ideology and transparency about student performance.”
The rankings report states that the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine “has established itself as
a model of what medical education can look like when academic standards remain paramount
and ideological capture is resisted.” The Center for Accountability in Medicine is
a project of Do No Harm, a national medical policy group
In addition to the competitiveness of its incoming students, the college was recognized
for its rigorous approach to medical education, including its use of tiered grading,
a system designed to prioritize academic excellence, transparency and accountability.
USF received further credit for maintaining a chapter of Alpha Omega Alpha, a national
medical honor society with membership determined by academic achievement. The Morsani
College of Medicine has held an AOA chapter since 1976.
The Center for Accountability in Medicine also awarded higher scores to programs without
offices of diversity, equity and inclusion or statements supporting DEI in their mission.
USF does not have a DEI office and has not permitted race or gender preferences in
admissions since 1999, following an executive order signed by then Florida Gov. Jeb
Bush.
Four medical schools tied for second place in the rankings: Albert Einstein College
of Medicine, the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Dell
Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin and Vanderbilt University School
of Medicine
USF’s No. 1 ranking adds to the Morsani College of Medicine’s continued national recognition
for medical excellence. Earlier this year, the college earned the highest possible Tier 1 rating for research from U.S. News & World Report, making it one of just 16 medical schools
to receive this top ranking. USF became the first medical school in Florida to achieve
Tier 1 status in 2025 and is the only in the state to have held the honor consecutively.
