Medical schools have traditionally commanded a great deal of respect and appreciation. Few accomplishments garner attention more than being accepted to, and graduating from, a prestigious College of Medicine. The reputation for academic excellence and the accolades awarded to outstanding faculty mold the public image of these staid institutions. They become facilities that will admit qualified students and train them to be competent diagnosticians and clinicians.
The image a medical school enjoys is largely determined by physicians themselves. It takes knowing what one must know to determine if the education one receives is of high quality. Another measure of a medical school is the degree of academic success of applicants who are chosen to attend that school, compared to the achievements of other school’s applicants, as well as the sheer number of applicants and acceptance rates of the institution.
My favorite source of ideas for DrGOpines.com articles, Medscape, recently published the results of a survey in which physicians ranked medical schools in order of academic reputation, prestige, and desirability. These are the medical colleges physicians would go to if they were to go again, and if they had the academic credentials to be accepted. The results are not surprising, really, because those named are on just about every list ever compiled of best U.S. medical schools. The list is made up of 15 schools, but for brevity I will give details on only the top 10. I will also comment on schools 11-15 plus my alma mater, Indiana University School of Medicine.
Medscape lists the top 15 U.S. Medical schools. Eleven to fifteen are 11. Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 12. the Mayo Clinic’s three medical campuses, 13. the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. 14. Weill Cornell Medicine, in NY and 15. the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. Any of these five are highly respected institutions and graduate at least 96 to 171 students annually.
What follows next is the top ten list. Each of these schools is a well-established, long-standing, prestigious institution with an excellent reputation for academic excellent and “cutting-edge” medical research. After sharing general information, I will offer a brief opinion. Listed 1 through 10 they are:
- Harvard University: Perennially the best medical school in America, and the world. Founded in 1782, it is 243 years old, the 3rd oldest med school in the U.S. Its 15 clinical affiliates and research institutes include 9 major hospitals. There were 6856 applicants for 165 slots for a 2.4% acceptance rate. Tuition in 2025-2026 was $73,874 with total annual costs of $118,618. The average student debt after graduation is $119K. An MD degree from Harvard will get you a job anywhere in the world.
Dr. G: I have no desire to attend Harvard.
2. Johns Hopkins University: Established in 1893, it has been a center for biomedical research and medical education for decades. Its facilities include 5 hospitals. For 6352 applicants, 287 were accepted, and 118 actually started classes. The acceptance rate is 4.5%, but only 1.9% of applicants actually became students. Average student debt was $60K.
Dr. G: John’s Hopkins’ reputation is impeccable, but I have no desire to live in Baltimore, MD.
3. Stanford University: Founded in 1858, Stanford is known as “the Harvard of the west coast.” Its acceptance rate is 1.4% with 8837 applicants for 89 class slots. I don’t have data on average student debt, but with tuition of $92,884 and annual costs of almost $139K, you know it’s a lot. Stanford is on a par with Harvard and John’s Hopkins reputation-wise. West of St. Louis, it is the higher rated school of the two in the top 15.
Dr. G: I would love to go to Stanford, but would never be accepted. Training only 89 students is an embarrassingly low class size. California is well-populated with physicians, and Stanford appears not committed to increasing that population much. The cost of living in California is as high as anywhere so living there would be challenging with the incredibly low reimbursement from Medicare.
4. Perelman School of Medicine University of Pennsylvania: Established in 1765, Penn is the oldest medical school in the U.S. There were 6288 applicants for 157 slots for students for a 2.4% acceptance rate. There are 2900 faculty and $1 billion in available awards for faculty and students.
Dr. G: A very prestigious and sought-after institution. I have never known a colleague from Penn. Philadelphia would also not be a place I’d choose to live.
5. Duke University: A private North Carolina university that boasts a 3-year MD program and excellent sub specialty training programs. It costs $110K a year to attend so an average debt is $140K is not unusual. 5457 students applied for 119 slots. Another small class size for a very prestigious medical school.
Dr. G: Prestigious medical school with excellent specialty training residencies and fellowships. I would definitely go there if I could be accepted.
6. NYU Grossman School of Medicine: Another 3-year program. 8721 applicants for 208 slots—2.5% acceptance rate. Student debt averages $68K. Established in 1841, it has a sister med school on Long Island.
Dr. G: I have no interest in this school or living in New York.
7. University of California at San Francisco: Highly regarded medical school founded as a private med school in 1864, but joined the University of California system in 1873. It boasts 9555 applicants for 174 slots, or a 2.6% acceptance rate.
Dr. G: I have no desire to live in San Francisco, and would never practice in California.
8. Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University: Another New York City medical school. Has 140 students per class. 7291 applicants for a 1.9% acceptance rate. Faculty has 2636 members. In 2017, the Vagelos family, philanthropists, donated $250 Million to Columbia. The school facilities were greatly improved.
Dr. G: Another Manhattan medical school in which I have no interest.
9. Yale University: New Haven, Connecticut school founded in 1810. Again, a small class size of only 104 students. 5495 applicants for 104 slots is a 1.9% acceptance rate. Faculty totals 2636. Yale’s reputation equals that of Harvard.
Dr. G: No negative comments. However, I really don’t understand why Yale can’t educate more than 104 students a year.
10. Washington University School Of Medicine: St. Louis, Missouri with a reputation that rivals Harvard, Yale, and Johns Hopkins. Founded in 1891, Washington U Barnes Jewish Hospital has top-rated residency programs. There were 5702 applicants for 124 class slots for a 2.2% acceptance rate with “a preference for students in the Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and Alaska areas.”
Dr. G: Small class size again—only 124. Wash U at St. Louis is the Harvard of the Midwest.
Two medical schools that missed the top 15 are Indiana University and the University of Colorado School of Medicine. I have first hand experience with both— Indiana is my Alma matter, and Colorado was the site of my residency training.
Indiana University School of Medicine is the largest med school in the U.S. with 9 regional campuses statewide, 1448 students (approx. 362/class), 1438 residents and fellows, and an acceptance rate of 5.74%. When I was in medical school, faculty was limited, but they were excellent teachers. My medical education was as good as I would have received anywhere else. Today, IU is far better with a massive faculty, student, and facility network.
University of Colorado School of Medicine I did a 2-year family medicine residency in Denver from 1972-1974. Colorado had one of the earlier university-based family medicine residency programs. Impressive faculty, some world renown, who interacted with residents almost daily. My residency experience was as good as I could have experienced anywhere. Multiple hospital and clinical facilities give students a varied patient care experience. The med school moved to Aurora, CO where a larger campus improved their facilities. There were 10,896 applicants for 184 students per class for an acceptance rate of 1.7%. That’s a tough place to get admitted.
There you have information on the top 15 US medical schools that doctors admire and two that are just as popular, just as prestigious, and academically, as good as any other.
Reference: Nelson J. 15 Med Schools Docs Respect. Medscape 2025 August 8.
google.com for information on several medical colleges.
