Touro University California is a private non-profit health professions graduate school located on Mare Island in Vallejo, a city in the northern San Francisco Bay Area, in the U.S. state of California. The university was founded in 1997 and was originally established in San Francisco as an independent, Jewish-sponsored institution, but relocated to Vallejo. Today, the university confers degrees in graduate studies of various disciplines including education, osteopathic medicine, pharmacy, physician assistant studies, nursing, and public health. The school's campus consists of 44 acres (18Â ha) and 23 buildings of the former Mare Island naval base located east of the San Pablo Bay.
Although sponsored by a Jewish organization, the school has a diverse student body of about 1400 students as well as 100 faculty members. Touro University California is a member of the Touro College and University System, which includes Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, New York Medical College, Touro University California, and Touro University Nevada. The university is jointly administered with its sister campus Touro University Nevada. In 2014, the U.S. News & World Report ranked Touro University California sixteenth among all United States medical schools for producing primary care residents.
History
Established in 1997, Touro University California was originally located in San Francisco with its inaugural class composed of 67 students. In 1999, officials decided to relocate to the southern area of Mare Island due to its large capacity and restored two naval quarters buildings originally built in the 1930s and had the lease option to renovate ten other buildings intended to become diagnostic and research laboratories. Touro University California's main buildings are Farragut Inn, named in honor of Commander David G. Farragut, Wilderman Hall in honor of Commander Alvin Wilderman, and Lander Hall named in honor of Dr. Bernard Lander, the founder of the Touro College system. After Western University of Health Sciences' College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific received accreditation in 1982, Touro University California's College of Osteopathic Medicine became the second osteopathic medical school program to open in the state of California.
Academic programs
The colleges of Touro University California include the College of Osteopathic Medicine which offers the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) degree, the College of Pharmacy which offers the degree of Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.), the College of Education and Health Studies which offers three types of degrees, including a Master of Arts in Education, a Physician Assistant degree currently offered as a dual degree (MSPAS/MPH), and a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree. Additionally, students may pursue dual degrees such as D.O./M.P.H. or Pharm.D./M.P.H. Since 2010, Touro University California has offered the Master of Science in Medical Health Science degree (MSMHS) which provides specific training towards the preparation for the College of Osteopathic Medicine. In contrast, the Master of Science in Medical Health Sciences degree with emphasis in research in pharmaceutical sciences is now offered with the aim of preparing students for the College of Pharmacy. Tuition for full-time students in 2012 was $43,090.
Touro University California's College of Osteopathic Medicine is a competitive osteopathic medical school, with the Class of 2019 having an average MCAT score of 30.8 and a grade point average (GPA) of 3.50. The majority of matriculants to the Class of 2019 graduated from the University of California system and were California residents. The Class of 2020 had an average MCAT score of 30.9/510.5 and a GPA of 3.57. The majority of matriculants of the Class of 2020 were from the University of California system and UC Berkeley was the top feeder school. The College of Pharmacy's Class of 2019 matriculants had an average GPA of 3.20, were mostly California residents, and the majority graduated from the University of California system. The majority of matriculants to the physician assistant's Class of 2017 in the College of Education and Health Sciences, with a class size of 40, had an average GPA of 3.22 and were mostly California residents.
Touro University California's pharmacy program had a 92.5% pass rate on the California Practice Standards and Jurisprudence Examination for Pharmacists (CPJE) and a 99.0% pass rate on the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) examination. Graduates of the MSPAS/MPH program passed the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) with a 100% first time taker pass rate in 2013.
Research
Faculty members of Touro University California's Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine and Pharmacy specialize in a wide range of basic and applied research in fields including: aging, anatomy and clinical imaging, cognitive aging, diabetes, immunology, infectious diseases, ion channels, longevity, neuroscience, metabolism/nutrition, and vaccine research. Touro University California has established research partnerships with University of California, San Francisco, University of California, Davis, University of California, Berkeley, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Showa University, and University of Sao Paulo. Research at Touro University California is funded by the American Diabetes Association, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health.
Accreditation
Student life
Touro University California also sponsors the Touro Student-Run Free Clinic, an interprofessional free clinic organized and staffed by student volunteers. The student-run free clinic was designed to improve access to healthcare for low-income Vallejo residents and to further improve the clinical skills of Touro University California students. A licensed clinician provides direct, on-site supervision. Touro University California students also volunteer at The Suitcase Clinic in Berkeley, California, a clinic that offers free health and social services to the underserved of the area. The College of Osteopathic Medicine hosts an active chapter of Sigma Sigma Phi, a national Osteopathic Medicine Honors Fraternity that emphasizes community service and scholastic achievement.
Each year, Touro University California hosts the Teen Life Conference to educate Vallejo high school students on matters of health with lectures, health screenings, informational booths, and interactive physical fitness activities to foster student participation.
Touro University Rainbow Health Coalition
Touro University Rainbow Health Coalition is a group of students, faculty, and staff who promote health equity for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people at Touro University California. The group was formally recognized by the Student Government of Touro in September 2002 as the Touro University Gay-Straight Alliance (TUGSA) and has been a University sanctioned club since that time, with the exception of 4 days in September of 2006.
Notable faculty
- Walter Hartwig
- Jean-Marc Schwarz
See also
- Medical schools in California
References
External links
- Official website