University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine Ranked #2 in Nation by U.S. News & World Report

Penn Also Stands among the Top Five Nationally for Pediatrics, Women's Health, Internal Medicine and Drug/Alcohol Abuse

PHILADELPHIA, April 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --  The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine has been ranked #2 among the nation's research-oriented medical schools, according to the annual survey by U.S. News & World Report, rising from #3 in last year's survey. The prestigious survey of the nation's 126 fully-accredited medical schools ranked Harvard University in first place and John Hopkins University third.

Penn also was placed among the nation's top five medical schools in four areas of specialty training, including Pediatrics (#2), Women's Health (#3), Internal Medicine (#4), and Drug/Alcohol Abuse (#4).  Penn's Ph.D. specialty program in immunology and infectious disease was ranked 7th in the nation.

And in its ranking of best medical schools for primary care, Penn was ranked #7 in the nation – up from #12 last year.

The complete survey is available online, as a newsstand book, Best Graduate Schools, on April 20, 2010, and in the magazine's May issue available on April 27th.

"Penn's outstanding ranking in the survey reflects the exemplary efforts of our faculty and staff, and their tireless commitment to provide an exceptional educational experience for the next generation of physician/scientists," said Arthur H. Rubenstein, MBBCh, Dean of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Executive Vice President of the University of Pennsylvania for the Health System.

The criteria to determine the top medical schools for research and primary care included quality assessment by peer institutions, research activity, faculty resources and student selectivity.

Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $3.6 billion enterprise. 

Penn's School of Medicine is currently ranked #2 in U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools, and is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $367.2 million awarded in the 2008 fiscal year. 

SOURCE Penn Medicine