Giving Opportunities

Scholarship

As the cost of medical school rises steadily across the country, the University of Pittsburgh remains committed to reducing student debt and to offering students financial access to the School of Medicine.

Pitt's innovative curriculum attracts 5,000 applicants annually, many of them with top MCAT scores. Scholarship support is a critical factor in an applicant's choice of medical schools. To give Pitt the advantage in student recruitment, we must increase scholarship support to a level that is competitive with that offered by our peer institutions.

The cost of attending the School of Medicine is now 20 times more than it was 30 years ago. Pennsylvania is among the lowest-ranked states with respect to support for medical education, and each year financial aid offerings from peer institutions far exceed our offerings. The average Pitt medical student graduates with more than $125,000 worth of debt. Scholarship support has become a critical factor in an applicant’s decision to attend Pitt.

Learn more about the many meaningful opportunities to support students at the School of Medicine. Read the full case statement for scholarships.

Please consider making a gift now.

Research

Research is the lifeblood of any medical school—driving its purpose, sustaining its vitality, and defining its reputation. The School of Medicine has been a leader in biomedical research since Jonas Salk discovered the polio vaccine in our own laboratories.

To ensure that the tradition continues, we must recruit leading research faculty and talented students and provide them with the tools and support to pursue ambitious research projects during an era of pivotal medical discoveries.

Pitt ranks seventh in National Institutes of Health funding in fiscal year 2003, out of approximately 2,800 institutions nationwide. This ranking is the only nationally competitive, peer-reviewed benchmark by which health science schools can be objectively assessed. But the NIH won’t support the more innovative and cutting-edge research projects—the types of ventures that keep Pitt at the forefront of medical discovery. Gifts to research subsidize these critical medical endeavors, equip laboratories with state-of-the-art instruments and technology, and sponsor the faculty who drive research.

Please consider making a gift now.

Learn more about research at the School of Medicine.