Ponce Health Sciences University welcomed its first class of medical students to its new School of Medicine in the British Virgin Islands Wednesday, hosting a White Coat Ceremony at the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College auditorium on Tortola ahead of the Fall semester, the university announced in a press release.
The class of 40 students — from the British Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and the mainland United States — received their white coats and took the Hippocratic Oath, marking the official start of their medical education, according to the press release.
“This White Coat Ceremony not only welcomes our inaugural MD class in Tortola but also underscores the quality and rigor of our four-year Doctor of Medicine curriculum, which has earned preliminary accreditation from the Accreditation Commission on Colleges of Medicine,” said Dr. Gino Natalicchio, president of Ponce Health Sciences University. “It also highlights PHSU’s commitment to uphold the high standards of the program while expanding access to excellence in medical education.”
Government officials and university leaders were in attendance, including Premier Natalio D. Wheatley, Minister of Health Vincent O. Wheatley, Minister of Education Sharie B. de Castro, and several PHSU administrators. Parents, relatives, and other guests also participated in the event, the press release stated.
“Inaugurating this school of medicine is very significant because it is a long-desired opportunity to have graduate medical education in the British Virgin Islands,” said Wheatley. “Students will have the opportunity to learn in our beautiful territory and gain valuable skills that they can use in their own communities. We are very excited to welcome the PHSU BVI School of Medicine’s first class of students, and we have no doubt they will enjoy their time in the BVI.”
E. Anne Peterson, dean of the BVI School of Medicine, said the new campus reflects the university’s broader mission to support regional health care access, the release stated.
“The PHSU BVI School of Medicine reaffirms our commitment to supporting local communities by creating pathways for aspiring physicians to serve and uplift the region,” Peterson said. “Through high-quality medical education, we help address health care needs and improve access to care across the islands.”
The BVI School of Medicine is the university’s first international site and will offer graduate degrees in medicine. PHSU’s main campus in Ponce, Puerto Rico, also grants degrees in clinical psychology, dental medicine, biomedical sciences, medical sciences, public health, and nursing, the release stated.
Currently, the university serves 2,140 students and employs 625 faculty members. Its research output includes 735 published studies, with about 50 peer-reviewed articles released each year. Students have achieved a 93 percent pass rate on medical board exams and a 96 percent residency match rate for the March cohort, it said.
The BVI School of Medicine has received provisional accreditation from the Accreditation Commission on Colleges of Medicine. It also secured accreditation in 2025 from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. The Higher Education Licensing Board under the Ministry of Education granted both a provisional license and a trade license to operate in the territory, it said.
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