The University of California, Merced is a branch campus of the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine. Students in the San Joaquin Valley Program in Medical Education Plus (SJV PRME+) pathway will begin medical school at UC Merced in 2027. Students in the SJV PRIME+ pathway will complete their training at the following campuses as indicated below:
UC Merced: As undergraduates, SJV PRIME+ students will pursue their BS degree at UC Merced and will participate in health-related experiences. Once students matriculate to medical school, UC Merced will deliver the first 1.5 years of the UCSF medical school curriculum, Foundations 1 in Merced.
UCSF Fresno: SJV PRIME+ students will rotate at UCSF Fresno for 2.5 years for in-depth patient care experiences in Foundations 2 (clinical clerkships) and Career Launch (acting internships, electives, and Deep Explore). Many of the patient care, teaching, and research activities of the UCSF Fresno Medical Education Program have orientation toward rural health problems and health service needs.
UCSF School of Medicine: UCSF is accredited by the Licensing Committee on Medical Education (LCME) as the degree-granting institution, so students who graduate from SJV PRIME+ will follow the UCSF curriculum and receive their degree from UCSF. UCSF will collaborate with UC Merced and UCSF Fresno to develop all aspects of the BS/MD program.
To meet the health care needs of the patient population of the San Joaquin Valley, it is UC Merced’s long-term goal to develop an independent medical school. However, launching a medical school and obtaining accreditation from the Licensing Committee on Medical Education (LCME) requires a substantial investment of time, financial support, faculty development, and a strong foundation of clinical partnerships to support student rotations. Starting off as a branch campus of UCSF School of Medicine allows UC Merced to immediately start training the future physicians that the San Joaquin Valley needs. In the meantime, as branch campus of UCSF SOM, UC Merced will gain expertise in medical education, begin hiring expert medical education faculty, build clinical partnerships, and start laying the foundation to someday increase class size and become and independent medical school.
The 4-year baccalaureate program in the SJV PRIME+ program is designed to give enrolled students a broad introduction to understanding health, illness, health care, and prevention for patients, families, and communities; the relationship between individuals and health care systems; and the impact that physicians can have advocating for communities, addressing complex problems, advancing research, and making a difference in promoting health equity. Specific experiences for all students include:
You can only apply to the BS to MD Pathway as an entering first year student (ie, during the fall of your senior year of high school). Click here to learn more!
Absolutely! The three-campus collaboration across UC Merced, UCSF-Fresno, and UCSF makes UC Merced an ideal place to start a career in health care. We offer experienced, personalized advising, health care research opportunities, community health engagement experiences and more! There are so many health care careers – medical doctor, dentistry, optometry, doctor of osteopathy, public health researcher, scientist, physical therapist, nurse practitioner, veterinarian, psychologist, acupuncturist, audiologist, herbalist, EMT and far more. Click here to see how UC Merced can help you launch into a health care career.
