Houston is a richly populated and well-developed city in the U.S. region with a population of about 2.5 million. Its name comes from the former American General Sam Houston. Houston is considered a trading center and a pillar of the Texas economy. The city is a leader in energy, aeronautics, health, research, and transportation. About 8 million tourists are attracted to Houston yearly because of attractions like museums, parks, galleries, and art centers.
Moreover, Houston’s education quality is very high, with more than twenty educational and research institutions. It also has some very famous and distinguished law and healthcare institutes, including the University of Houston, Texas Southern University, and St. Thomas University. Its most accredited medical institutes are the Texas University Health Science Center, Baylor Medical School, MD Anderson Cancer for Center, and pharmacy schools of Texas Southern University and the University of Houston. More than 210,000 students are enrolled in Houston’s educational and research institutes.
You can choose from many medical schools in Houston, but we will highlight the top five in this article. So, make sure to read carefully.
Top Medical Schools in Houston
1. Baylor College of Medicine
Baylor College of Medicine is a private institute for world-class medical education and research. One thing that makes BCM stand out is its location in the middle of Texas Medical Center. However, despite being a private medical college, its tuition fee is considerably low. It has academic and research affiliations with hospitals like Texas Children’s Hospital, MD Anderson Medical Center, Haris Health System, Menninger Clinic, and San Antonio’s Hospital for Children.
Its many medical programs are considered top-level in the USA. Another distinction of this medical school in Houston is that it offers a very exclusive medical scientist training program. The current courses being offered include the doctor of medicine or MD program, graduate programs in nurse anesthesia, orthotics, and prosthetics, and Ph.D. programs in fields of biochemistry, molecular biology, immunology, human genetics, physiology, virology, microbiology, neurology, pharmacology, developmental and computational biology, clinical scientist training, and many more.
BCM currently has about 1,900 students enrolled and a full-time research-oriented faculty of 2,200 medical, administrative, and academic members. Most notable alumni and staff include Arthur L. Beaudet (molecular & human genetics professor), Hugo J. Bellen (famous biologist), Selma Calmes (co-founder of the Anesthesia History Association), and Michael J. Reardon (an internationally known heart surgeon).
Check Also: 7 Cheap Medical Schools in the USA
2. University of Texas Health Science Center
University of Texas Health Science Center, or UTHealth, is a public medical institute that is also present in the vicinity of Texas Medical Center. It comprises six schools that offer programs in medicine, nursing, dentistry, public health, biomedical sciences, and informatics.
Its leading academic hospitals include the Hospital of Memorial Hermann, Memorial Hermann Hospital for Children, and the Hospital of Harris Lyndon B. Johnson. UTHealth’s dentistry school offers unique programs in prosthodontics, endodontics, oral surgery, maxillofacial surgery, orthodontics, periodontics, and pediatric dentistry.
UTHealth’s nursing school offers programs leading to BS, MS, and Ph. D. in nursing, nursing practice, and nurse anesthesia programs. These courses are programmed so the students can avail themselves of good clinical and research practice alongside their academic studies. Many national and international students now compete to get into UTHealth.
Currently, over 5,000 students are enrolled at this medical school in Houston, and about 1,000 are medical students. UTHealth has a faculty of more than seven thousand, 30% of which is academic, and the rest is administrative. The most notable members of its faculty include Lex Frieden (disability rights activist), Ferid Murad (Nobel Prize in Physiology), James Duke (trauma surgeon), and Palmer Beasley.
3. University of Texas Medical Branch
The University of Texas Medical Branch is one of Houston’s oldest and most prominent medical institutes. It consists of four schools and three advanced study institutes. It also has four nearby hospitals and associations with many other hospitals and clinics in Houston. It primarily emphasizes three areas of medicine: medical research, health sciences education, and public health care.
Its Department of Emergency’s trauma center is ranked first in southeast Texas. It is also widely famous for handling sensitive scenarios such as transplants and burns. The hospitals and clinics associated with this medical school in Houston include Jennie Sealy Hospital, John Sealy Hospital, UTMB Health Clinic, UTMB Pediatrics & Children’s Hospital, Rebecca Sealy Hospital, and Shrines Burns Children’s Hospital. This large number of hospitals and clinics offers students an opportunity to pursue a medical career.
UTMB offers a 4-year MD (doctor of medicine) program in the discipline of students’ choosing in aerospace medicine, geriatrics, rural health care, and global and translational research. UTMB’s health professions school also provides many courses, including physical therapy, clinical laboratory sciences, nutrition and metabolism, and rehabilitation sciences.
The current student population of UTMB is around 4,000, and it has a total faculty of 12,000, including administrative and academic staff. The most distinguished of the alumni and faculty include:
- Ernst Bertner (first president of Texas Medical Center)
- Ronny Jackson (physician to the president)
- Robin Armstrong (former vice-chairman of the Republican Party of Texas)
- Christopher W. Lentz (brigadier general, US Air-Force)
- Willian E. Thornton and Bernard A. Harris Jr. (astronauts)
- Henry T. Lynch (cancer researcher)
- Maurice Ewing (geophysicist)
- Michael Obeng (plastic surgeon)
- Hector P. Gracia (civil rights advocate)
Houston is undoubtedly one of the forefront regarding medical programs and healthcare provision in the United States. The city stands out among American cities because it is home to several prominent educational institutions, including Baylor College of Medicine, the University of Texas Health Science Center, and the University of Texas Medical Branch. So, if you want to pursue a medical degree in this city, you can choose from the institutions above to get a quality education!
We hope that this article on the best medical schools in Houston was helpful. To learn more about studying in the United States, feel free to visit our Study in the USA Page and check out the Available Programs for International Students in the USA!
