SAN ANTONIO – While the Medical School at University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio has oftentimes ranked in the top 10 or top 5 for Hispanics this year it finally reached the top spot according to Hispanic Business magazine.
The magazine's annual Diversity Report: Best Schools for Diversity Practices: Best Medical Schools was the result of a survey that ranked the schools according to number of Hispanics enrolled, retention rate, financial aid recipients, medical degrees awarded, as well as Hispanic faculty and mentoring programs.
Students like Jordan Graham, a first-year med student from Dallas can see why the school is ranked at the top this year.
"San Antonio has such a big Hispanic community so it's really welcoming and we treat a lot of patients. I'm from that background," he said.
In fact, UTHSCSA works hard to gain a reputation for recruitment and retention of not only Hispanic students, but faculty as well.
In regard to students, in the 2012-13 school year, the 900-student population boasted 176 Hispanics and awarded degrees to 48 Hispanic doctors.
Dr. Edward Medina said it's an important part of the culture at the med school.
"That attempt to recruit Hispanic faculty is going to nurture that interaction between the Latino students and faculty too," he said.
The school's dean agreed. Dr. Francisco Gonzalez-Scarano said they've seen the national numbers and "We are way, way above the rest of the country, both in the number of Hispanic students as well as faculty."