Doctor of Medicine (M.D.)

At the University of Kansas School of Medicine, the physicians of tomorrow are welcomed into a culture of community, forming bonds with peers and mentors by learning together. Through this support system, students reach common goals of serving their community and excelling in the knowledge of medicine and delivery of health care.

In the fall of 2017, the KU School of Medicine launched its innovative new curriculum: Active -> Competency-Based -> Excellence-Driven (ACE). The ACE curriculum’s block structure systematically introduces topics with progressive complexity of foundational and clinical content through the four years. The curriculum focuses on active learning, in which students develop skills in assessing their own learning needs and developing strategies to meet those needs.

Top rankings

Providing students with an outstanding medical education remains at the heart of the School of Medicine's mission.

  • U.S. News & World Report ranks the School of Medicine among the top programs for training primary care physicians.

Three diverse academic environments

The School of Medicine has campuses at three locations in Kansas and has gained a national reputation, particularly for educating family, primary care and rural physicians.

  • At the Kansas City campus, students train at a large academic medical center, which has attracted innovative and accomplished educators and researchers from around the world. In the summer of 2017, a new $75 million, 171,000-square-foot Health Education Building opened. The new building enables the School of Medicine to train students in the technologically advanced environment required by a modern health care curriculum.

  • The Wichita campus provides a community-based medical education environment, in which students learn through direct patient care inside three partner hospitals as well as in physician offices across the state. Students may also elect to train in community-based and rural settings.  The instructional space on this campus was expanded and updated in 2010 to facilitate small group learning and team based experiences in anticipation of the new teaching method integral to the ACE curriculum.

  • The Salina campus is designed for students with a strong interest in rural medicine and those wishing to work with a smaller group of peers on a rural regional campus with opportunities for early clinical experiences. Students are trained in a new state-of-the-art medical education building.  Inter-professional activities and education occur in advanced simulated settings.

School of Medicine students in Kansas City and Wichita are also able to volunteer at the JayDoc Free Clinics, which are student-run clinics providing non-emergency urgent and preventive care to the uninsured and underinsured populations of Kansas City and Wichita.  Salina students have the opportunity to assist with the medical care at Ashby House, a facility for a vulnerable population. 

On the left you will find links for more information about the KU School of Medicine including administration, programs offered, campuses, and the course catalog for the School of Medicine.