College of Medicine – Phoenix welcomes the Class of 2029

Thursday
A medical student wearing a hijab is assisted in putting on a medical white coat by a professor in a medical white coat.

Lisa Grimaldi, MD, associate dean of foundational curriculum at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix, puts a white coat on Maleka Abdi, a new medical student, during the college’s annual white coat ceremony.

Photo by Noelle Haro-Gomez, U of A Health Sciences Office of Communications

The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix welcomed the Class of 2029 during its annual white coat ceremony on July 18. With 130 students selected from nearly 6,000 applicants, the Class of 2029 is the 19th class since the college opened in 2007. Donning their white coats for the first time is a symbol of each student’s commitment and lifelong dedication to advocacy, professionalism and patient-centered care.

As the students’ friends and families gathered at Phoenix Symphony Hall to mark this important milestone, Dean Fred E. Wondisford, MD, MS, MBA, opened the ceremony by noting that the road ahead will be challenging for the students, but he also encouraged them to never lose sight of what brought them to this significant moment.

“You have all arrived here with unique stories about what drove you to pursue a career in medicine,” he said. “Never forget that inspiration. Because as you transform from a talented physician-in-training to a skilled and compassionate physician, those inspirations will continue to drive and guide you forward.”

A version of this story was originally published on the U of A College of Medicine – Phoenix website.

About a dozen students wearing medical white coats stand on the stairs in a lobby, smiling and cheering.
Four University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix students stand in a line with medical white coats draped over their arms.
Fred E. Wondisford, MD, MS, MBA, speaks at a lectern while wearing a medical white coat.
A professor in a medical white coat helps a new medical student put on her white coat during a ceremony.
A medical student puts on his white coat with the help of a professor who is behind him.
A medical student puts on her white coat with the help of a professor who is behind her.
Fred E. Wondisford, MD, MS, MBA, shakes hands with a new medical student onstage. Both are smiling and wearing medical white coats.
A medical student puts on his white coat with the help of a professor who is standing behind him.
A medical student puts on his white coat with the help of a professor who is standing behind him.
A medical student puts on his white coat with the help of a professor who is standing behind him.
A large family stands around two medical student wearing a white coats in a crowded lobby.