School Overview

With a tradition dating back to 1885, the Keck School of Medicine of USC is the oldest school of medicine in Southern California. Here, you’ll discover a long tradition of innovation and community service.

Notable Achievements

• First academic Department of Emergency Medicine in the United States in 1970
• First to provide real-world experience in patient care in the first year of medical school
• Led movement toward the use of the “standardized patient” for medical training
• Developed HTE@USC, a cross-disciplinary program for medical and engineering students to find solutions to real-world health care problems

Today’s Keck School of Medicine

At the Keck School of Medicine of USC, we are dedicated to improving the quality of life for individuals and society by promoting health, preventing and curing disease, advancing biomedical research and educating tomorrow’s physicians and scientists.

• Established in 1885 making Keck the oldest medical school in Southern California
• More than 1,500 full-time faculty, 2,400 voluntary faculty physicians, 1,800 staff and 1,200 students
• More than 900 resident physicians being trained in more than 50 specialty or subspecialty programs
• Home to 26 research-oriented basic and clinical academic programs
• Generates more than $230 million in annual sponsored research
• More than 7,000 alumni
• More than 5,000 physician graduates who practice in Southern California