Free UCF med school = many applicants

Well, whaddaya know? UCF's history-making offer to promise its inaugural class of 40 students a free ride is generating interest from lots of students -- 778, to be exact.

That's how many students have applied to UCF's fledgling medical school in the few weeks since the application process began for the fall 2009 semester. Students from every major Florida university applied, plus out-of-state students from universities including Yale, Harvard, Duke, Cornell, Columbia, Johns Hopkins, Ohio State, and Wake Forest, according to UCF officials.

"Our goal is to build this century's best medical school," said dean Dr. Deborah German. "Recruiting the
best and brightest students for our first class is an important part of that process."

Each of UCF's first 40 medical students will get a full four-year scholarship worth $160,000, to be covered with private donations the university has already collected. The scholarships include $20,000 for tuition and $20,000 for other fees and living expenses.

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, UCF is the first medical school in the country to provide full scholarships for an entire class.