Welcome to the Medicine Class of 2018

The members of the Tulane University School of Medicine Class of 2018 received their first doctor"s white jackets on Sunday (Aug. 3) at the school"s annual White Coat Ceremony at McAlister Auditorium on the uptown campus.

“White Coat Day is when medical students begin their medical career, and we welcome them to what is really a wonderful profession,” says Dr. Marc Kahn, senior associate dean of admissions and student affairs.

“The white coat represents many things about physicians, such as the trust that society and your patients have in you.” -- Dr. Lee Hamm, senior vice president and dean

Kahn urged the 186 new students to summarize in one word what brought them to study medicine at Tulane. “Sacrifices,” “Passion,” Caring,” “Family,” “Community,” “Discovery,” “Determination,” and “Heart” were among the many words offered.

Students each received a white coat and a stethoscope, a gift from the Tulane Medical Alumni Association, as well as a pin from the Arnold P. Gold Foundation for Humanism in Medicine and a Tulane University coat badge.

Thirty-one U.S. states and four other countries — Canada, Vietnam, China and Burma — are represented in this class.

California sends 37 students to Tulane and Louisiana contributes 21, while 14 are from Florida and 11 from New York.

Members of this class attended 80 different schools and colleges. Twenty-six of the students received undergraduate degrees from Tulane, and three come from Louisiana State University.

Nine students graduated from the University of California–Berkeley, eight are from the University of California–Los Angeles, eight are from the University of Virginia, and five each hail from Boston College and Duke University.

Top career choices for the incoming students are pediatrics, family medicine, surgery, orthopedics, emergency medicine, primary care and neurology.

Classes for the new students began promptly on Monday morning (Aug. 4).