The White Coat Conundrum

Olivia Roy, now a fourth-year College of Medicine student, recently reflected in the publication in-Training on the significance of donning a physician’s white coat. On the eve of the annual White Coat ceremony at NEOMED and at universities across the country this fall, here’s a reprint of the article.

Letters of recommendation? Check. Personal statement? Check. Immunization verification? Oh, man. As a third-year medical student, residency is just around the corner. In a year, I will be standing on a podium with my peers in front of hundreds of people awaiting that coveted piece of fabric known as the long white coat. Through the acceptance of this seemingly insignificant outerwear, we will be thrust into an elite club that represents less than fifteen percent of the world’s population. Forget the stethoscope! To the average individual, the white coat is [the] signature of a physician. To the current generation of student doctors, that coveted coat represents a stepping stone, but its true meaning reaches far deeper. Read the full article.