Two Orlando Colleges collaborate to create a formal pathway for pre-med students
ORLANDO, Fla., February 26, 2024 — Rollins College and the soon-to-open Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine announce a partnership that will keep more physicians in our Community.
OCOM is located in the Horizon West neighborhood at 7011 Kiran Patel Drive in Winter Garden. The first class of 90 students is expected to matriculate in August 2024.
Rollins College, founded in 1885, offers ‘Pre-Health Pathways.’ Students in the Pre-Health program can major in any discipline as long as the core sciences are completed. This track creates multiple avenues for students to a rewarding career in healthcare.
Through this new relationship, Rollins College students and alumni in the pre-health program will be guaranteed interviews for admission into the Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine.
"Rollins College is very excited for this new partnership with Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine. Having a new medical school that is so interested in collaborating with us to support the next generation of physicians will greatly benefit our students," stated Dr. Marisa Fuse, Health Professions Advisor & Department of Chemistry Faculty at Rollins College.
At full enrollment, OCOM plans to have 180 students, providing a viable workforce pipeline for the national and local physician labor shortage.
“OCOM is going to change healthcare for the region for generations to come,” stated Dr. Robert Hasty, founding dean and chief academic officer of OCOM. “With an innovative medical school curriculum meticulously crafted by our esteemed faculty, our institution stands at the forefront of modern medical education. The educational journey that awaits our future medical students promises to be transformative. They will enter from esteemed schools like Rollins College and emerge as highly proficient and caring physicians, expected to contribute to the physician shortage within the Central Florida community.”
Students can apply to OCOM here.
About Rollins College
Founded in 1885 by New England Congregationalists who sought to bring their style of liberal arts education to the Florida frontier, Rollins is a four-year, coeducational institution and the first recognized college in Florida.
About Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine
The Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine (OCOM) is a freestanding, privately funded, separately licensed, and independently operated entity located in Winter Garden, FL. OCOM is a unit of the Orlando Health Science University (OHSU), provisionally licensed by the Florida Commission on Independent Education.
