The Weill Cornell Graduate School is a vibrant community of scholars from around the globe. Our goal is to create a welcoming environment and help our students find their community. Diversity is something that we cherish and work to infuse in our institution’s fabric and practice. It is something we celebrate all year round from our Coffee Hours to Diversity Week. Our commitment to diversity has been recognized nationally through the Health Professions Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award by INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine five years in a row. The NIH has awarded the Graduate School a $2.4 million Initiative for Maximizing Student Development grant to support the education and recruitment of well-trained biomedical scientists from underrepresented backgrounds. Find out more about how our institution supports diversity here.
The Office of Student Diversity
The Office of Student Diversity services over 1,200 graduate and medical students. Meet the members of the office:
Our Commitment to Social Justice and Anti-Racism
We at the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences take great pride in our efforts to advance racial justice and equity. A diverse community of students, faculty, and staff is vital to the success of our institution and the future of science and medicine. Work done by the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, as well as conversations with the community as a whole, has led us to establish a series of short-term and long-term goals to dismantle systemic racism, advance racial equity, and champion social justice. These include unconscious bias training for all faculty, students, and staff, enhancing our outreach and pipeline program efforts to attract diverse and underserved student populations, and increasing the faculty of the graduate school from underrepresented groups. We encourage you to explore our vibrant community during the application process and welcome you to join our cadre of diverse scholars. Please visit the Social Justice and Anti-Racism (SJAR) Task Force website for more information.
Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD) Program
The Weill Cornell Graduate School is proud to be the recipient of a research training and career development (R25) grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Institute of General Medical Sciences, amounting to $2.4 million over five years that will help to increase the number and enhance the success of PhD students from underrepresented backgrounds. The Weill Cornell IMSD program, the first at a biomedical science graduate school in New York City, supports four incoming doctoral students each year for the first two years of their training. In addition, WCGS has committed matching funds towards the support of IMSD and non-IMSD students in the third and fourth years of their training. Learn more: here.
Esprit de Corps
The Esprit de Corps Program is a 1st-year curriculum for students from diverse backgrounds (racial and ethnic, 1st generation, LGBTQ+, disadvantaged, and/or disabled) that is meant to ease the transition into graduate school. Monthly seminars help students develop some of the “soft skills” needed to navigate through graduate school. The program also provides a strong community among peers and program leadership. A key to the success of the Esprit de Corps Program is the near-pear mentor, or coaching system. The coach is a veteran graduate student who is passionate about mentoring and has also participated in the program themselves! Learn more about Esprit de Corps: https://gradschool.weill.cornell.edu/student-experience/diversity-and-inclusion/esprit-de-corps
Summer Research Programs
Weill Cornell Graduate School offers a variety of summer programs intended for high school and undergraduate students. The goal of our programs is to expose underrepresented minority, disadvantaged, first-generation students, and students with disabilities to scientific research; and to enhance scientific research in so doing. Students accepted to these programs work with mentors in a laboratory to conduct biomedical research and present their projects. They also attend journal clubs, professional development workshops, and seminars throughout the summer. To learn more click on your program of interest below.
Diversity and Outreach Student Groups
Tri-Institutional Minority Society
The Tri-Institutional Minority Society (TIMS) is a community of underrepresented minorities in science from Rockefeller University, Memorial Sloan Kettering and Weill Cornell Medicine. The three main pillars of our organization are Community, Mentorship and Outreach.
Learn more: https://gradschool.weill.cornell.edu/tri-institutional-minority-society
Tri-I Outreach Committee (TORC)
The Weill Cornell Graduate School (WCGS) promotes public awareness and understanding of science through science outreach initiatives. By contributing to science education and mentorship in the broader community, the WCGS students, faculty and staff help to spread enthusiasm for the STEM fields among youth in the New York City area. Over 100 student and postdoctoral volunteers are coordinated through the Tri-Institutional Outreach Committee (TOrC) to conduct science outreach in the Tri-Institutional community and beyond.
Learn more: https://gradschool.weill.cornell.edu/tri-i-outreach-committee-torc
Path to Science Initiative: A URM's Journey (PSI:URM)
PSI:URM exposes students from historically underrepresented backgrounds in WCM to the research and career journey of historically underrepresented faculty and industry professionals through hour-long seminars. These sessions are held the last Monday every month from 1-2PM. Additionally, PSI-URM is actively working on a mentorship program targeted towards recruiting interested/curious students at the undergraduate and high school levels into laboratories within Weill Cornell and Memorial Sloan Kettering graduate school spaces. The program will nurture students’ holistic training through engagement in career building-focused workshops, monthly seminars to broaden understanding of scientific discipline, and journal club discussions.
Organization contact info: pathtoscienceurm@gmail.com
The following medical student organizations permit graduate student participation.
Asian Pacific American Medical Students Association (APAMSA)
Asian Pacific American Medical Students Association was formed to address the needs of the Asian American community at WCM and beyond through community service, cultural and social events, and issues affecting the Asian American community. We are implementing a one-on-one physician mentorship program to provide medical students with additional support in their virtual learning environments. In addition to opportunities for mentorship, learning, and community building, members will have the opportunity to attend APAMSA’s national meetings which are held in the fall and spring of each year.
Learn more: https://www.apamsa.org/
Association of Native American Medical Students (ANAMS)
Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native physicians and medical students are largely underrepresented in today’s workforce and suffer from major health and healthcare disparities. In addition, many physicians know little about Native culture and beliefs which can heavily impact care. The Association of Native American Medical Students hopes to build a supportive community on campus, work closely with WCM diversity initiatives to help recruit more Native medical students, raise awareness about the many health issues tribes face, as well as expose students to Native culture, traditions, and history.
Learn more: https://www.anamstudents.org/
Black and Latino Men in Medicine (BLMiM)
Black and Latino Men in Medicine (BLMiM)was founded at the NYP-WCM Center as a network of administrators, physicians, scientists, trainees, and students to raise awareness of the myriad of issues involved in the precipitous decline of Black and Latino men in healthcare, medicine, and science. Through networking, program development, and community engagement, BLMiM seeks to support and provide mentorship for Black and Latino men interested in medicine/science, while advocating for effective and sustainable solutions to combat this national crisis.
Learn more: https://blmim.weebly.com/
Jewish Students Organization of Cornell (JSOC)
The Jewish Students Organization of Cornell (JSOC) is dedicated to celebrating Jewish culture and strengthening the Jewish community at Weill Cornell. JSOC hosts communal Shabbat dinners (both catered and potluck!), as well as celebrations for Chanukah, Purim, Lag Ba’Omer, and other Jewish festivities. Additionally, JSOC connects Weill Cornell students to opportunities and resources throughout New York’s Jewish Community.
Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA)
The Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) is for all Latinx students at WCM to share in a tightknit community of peers and mentors across all levels of academia. Our mission is to unite and empower medical students through service, mentorship, and education to advocate for the health of the Latino community. We also provide collaborations with the Medical Spanish program, hangouts/cultural events, opportunities for regional and national conference travel, academic scholarships, policy writing workshops, and research awards.
Learn More: http://national.lmsa.net
Middle Eastern and North African Student Association (MENASA)
The Middle Eastern and North African Student Association hopes to provide a community for Middle Eastern and North African students at WCM. By holding events to celebrate MENA culture, we hope to both provide an avenue for MENA students to meet one another and expose the WCM community to MENA culture and traditions.
Muslim Students Association of Weill (MSAW)
The Muslim Students Association of Weill is a group for Muslim and non-Muslim students, who wish to explore Islam, learn more about it, and interact with other health professional students who may share similar drives and challenges. The climate of the world today is a scary one and now, more so than ever, communities like this are paramount to shedding light on who Muslims really are. Our activities will range from casual get-togethers to holiday celebrations to in-depth discussions about Islam as a faith, and in the context of healthcare and of the world at large.
Q! Queer Health Alliance
Q! is a group for lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender/queer (LGBTQ+) identifying individuals and allies to bring up issues within the medical school community, facilitate contact with LGBTQ+ faculty, provide social and professional networking opportunities in the NY region, and advocate for open dialogue with the administration about LGBTQ+ issues in the curriculum. Previous activities have included an LGBTQ medical professional panel, welcome mixers, citywide medical school, and graduate school socials, lectures about LGBTQ-related topics, social activism, and support for conference participation.
South Asian Medical Student Association (SAMoSA)
The South Asian Medical Student Association at Weill Cornell (SAMoSA) seeks to increase awareness about issues relevant to members of the South Asian community and to celebrate South Asian people and culture. We connect students with faculty and residents in the NYP-Weill Cornell network and take part in cultural events throughout New York City.
Learn more: https://samsa.org.in/
Student National Medical Association (SNMA)
The Student National Medical Association (SNMA) addresses the issue of disparities in healthcare. Our goal is to create an atmosphere of fraternity and academic excellence on campus; to promote the dissemination of information relative to social issues in medicine; to increase recruitment, admissions, and retention of a diverse medical student body; to promote programs for disadvantaged youths to encourage their entrance into the health professions (e.g., HPREP, SMEP, and WCYSP); and to provide service to those most in need.
Learn more: https://snma.org
Students for Equal Opportunity in Medicine (SEOM)
Students for Equal Opportunity in Medicine (SEOM) is the umbrella organization for the underrepresented minority student groups at Weill Cornell, which include the Association of Native American Medical Students, the Latino Medical Student Association, the Student National Medical Association, as well as the Asian Pacific American Medical Students Association, the South Asian Medical Student Association, and Q! Queer Health Alliance. We are dedicated to eliminating disparities in health care and increasing the representation of minorities in medicine here at WCM and the broader NYC area.
Watering My Garden (WMG)
Watering My Garden is a support group/sister circle for self-identified women of color. We host events with speakers that facilitate discussions about a wide variety of topics that intersect with medicine including but not limited to, relationships, leadership, and identity. Our goal is to provide a safe space to be in community with one another as we navigate our paths in medicine.
WCM Christians in Medicine
WCM Christians in Medicine is a group of students at WCM committed to learning and growing together, both in our careers and in our Christian lives. Led by a ministry fellow from Columbia University, we aim to have a warm and welcoming group where we can discuss how our faith impacts and shapes our lives in very real ways. Anybody from WCM is welcome: med, grad, PA, nursing, or other. The more the merrier and the richer the discussion! Please join us whether you grew up in the church, are new to the faith, or are just curious to learn more.
White Coats for Black Lives (WC4BL)
White Coats for Black Lives serves to dismantle racism in medicine and promote the health, well-being, and self-determination of Black and Indigenous people, and other people of color. WC4BL was founded in 2014 when medical students throughout the country organized a national response to the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner and other victims of racial violence. We aim to achieve racial justice in our communities, in our hospitals, and in medical education.
Learn more: https://whitecoats4blacklives.org/
Women in Medicine (WIM)
Women in Medicine (WIM) seeks to bring female students and faculty members together at WCM and provide a platform for our members to communicate and address the unique challenges women face in the field of medicine. We aim to inspire, encourage, and enable female students to realize their professional and personal goals through programmings such as forums, discussion groups, regional conferences, and community outreach. In addition, as a chapter of the National American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA), we support their goals to promote the advancement of women in medicine and improve women's health.