Elizabeth Saunders, MD
Class of 2007

The years I have spent at the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine provided a strong academic and clinical foundation that helped prepare me for a career as a Medicine-Pediatrics physician. The faculty and staff at Marshall are committed to providing excellence in medical education, research, and patient care. Despite the class size expansion to 75 students, the atmosphere at Marshall continues to be a family-like experience that nurtures personal growth and development. Marshall continues to be well known for training primary care physicians, but we also place medical students in competitive residency fields around the country each year.

With the opening of the Byrd Biotechnology Science Center and the Erma Byrd Clinical Center to the expansion of Cabell Huntington Hospital, St. Mary’s Hospital, and the Veteran’s Hospital, our students get unique first hand opportunities for clinical education and patient care at both the basic and critical care level. During their initial training, our medical students receive hands on learning with live simulated patients and computer based models in state of the art clinical skills laboratories. I believe the skills learned from such simulated sessions and the diverse patient encounters help to better prepare our students for clinical practice.

Thanks to the excellent training and supportive atmosphere at Marshall, the faculty and staff provide a strong core foundation promoting an excellent, long-lasting and fulfilling career in the field of medicine. I am proud to be a graduate from the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine.

Caring. Supportive. Encouraging. These are just some of the words that describe the Marshall University School of Medicine. From the moment I entered the halls of medical school, I realized that this was a unique place to receive my medical training. Medical school will be one of the most challenging parts of your life, and it is important to choose a place that will cater to your specific needs. Marshall did that for me - it allowed me to work hard and learn on my own but also light the path for a successful career in medicine. All you have to be willing to provide is the hard work necessary to complete that career, and Marshall will provide the foundation to succeed in whichever field of medicine you choose.

My choice to attend medical school at Marshall was originally based on being close to family and friends. However, during my four years here, I discovered so much more and I believe it was one of the best decisions of my life. Marshall became nationally recognized for its superb training of primary care physicians, so as an aspiring pediatrician I felt privileged to be receiving my medical education here. Plus, when so many of my classmates went on to achieve competitive, specialty residency positions, I came to understand the faculty's dedication to helping every student achieve their aspirations. I truly believe that the one on one attention that is accessible to every student is the key to Marshall's success. It enables each individual to form rewarding relationships with people who truly care about the realization of their future career plans. If I had to do it all over again, I would choose Marshall without hesitation. As I stated before, I initially made my choice to be close to friends and family, but I ended up finding a new professional family that has shown me the loyalty and commitment necessary to help me make my career dreams come true.

As I look back, choosing MUSOM was one of the best choices I could have made. From the White Coat Ceremony to graduation I was treated like family. The faculty and staff made it a point to be as supportive as possible, whether it was coming in after hours for anatomy review or organizing study sessions for the end of rotation exams. Coming from MUSOM, I was also able to secure a competitive residency in NYC and eventually become chief resident. MUSOM provides a well-rounded education, ensuring not only that its students excel academically, but also that they become caring doctors.