More Medical Schools Announce Withdrawal from U.S. News Rankings

A week after Harvard Medical School announced its plan to withdraw from the U.S. News Best Medical Schools Ranking, other prestigious programs followed including Columbia’s College of Physicians and Surgeons, Stanford Medical School, Penn’s School of Medicine, and the Icahn School of Medicine. 

In announcing their decisions to withdraw from the rankings, the schools—in line with Harvard—all noted that the U.S. News’ ranking methodology is no longer in line with their values. The Deans at Columbia, Penn, and Icahn also specifically called out the methodology’s negative effect on building a diverse and inclusive medical class. Dr. Katrina Armstrong, MD and Dean of Columbia’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, wrote, “The USNWR medical school rankings perpetuate a narrow and elitist perspective on medical education. Their emphasis is on self-reinforcing criteria such as reputation and institutional wealth, rather than measuring a school’s success in educating a diverse and well-trained cohort of doctors able to change medicine for the better and meet society’s needs.”

Each of the schools noted the value that comes from data transparency and they committed to making data available for prospective applicants. 

Employers’ Need for Junior Employees Spurs Highly Competitive Summer Intern Market

The Wall Street Journal describes the current recruiting environment as one with unprecedented student leverage. Firms are scrambling to onboard junior employees. According to corporate recruiters, the offers are so plentiful, and many so generous, that they are seeing an increase in students reneging on previously accepted internship offers. Some employers say that they are boosting intern salaries to remain competitive. Others are increasing communications with students who have accepted offers to maintain the relationships. 

Private equity firms are expected to increase intern salaries again this summer. In 2021 the median monthly salary for private equity interns from Columbia, Harvard, and Stanford topped $11,000. This was a particularly notable spike for Columbia students who reported a 2019 median monthly salary of $9,000, and a solid uptick for Harvard and Stanford students who averaged just above $10,000 in 2019. The increases were likely due to pressure from investment banking and consulting firms, where interns made monthly median salaries in 2021 of $12,500 and $13,500, respectively. 

In addition to increasing compensation, private equity recruiters are updating their tactics in response to the competitive market. Ann Anastastia, Vice President of HR for the Americas and Greater China at Advent International, tells the Wall Street Journal, “I have been in private equity for over 15 years and in HR for over 25, and I have never seen anything like this recruiting climate.” She will start the MBA recruiting process much earlier this year, kicking off in the fall as opposed to January. Additionally, the WSJ article notes that private equity firms are promoting themselves more on campus, and engaging directly with students on topics including compensation, work-life balance, diversity, and career development. “In the past, private-equity firms haven’t needed to do that,” said Deirdre O’Donnell, Director of M.B.A. Career Services and Advising at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business.