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A bright smile gleamed from Arike Coker on July 24 as she stepped onto a stage, surrounded by leaders in medicine, to accept a pristine white coat bearing the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine emblem. The coat is more than an article of clothing; it represents years of hard work that led Coker to become one of 188 students accepted into the medical school’s Class of 2030.
Cheers and applause echoed from the CU Anschutz campus as, one by one, each incoming first-year student accepted their white coat during the school’s Matriculation Ceremony, an annual gathering that marks the official start of medical school training.
Arike Coker accepts her white coat at the Matriculation Ceremony on July 24, 2026. Image by Melissa Santorelli.
Education leaders, faculty, alumni, and fellow trainees from across campus gathered to welcome the students, offering them a white coat, stethoscope, gratitude journal, and words of encouragement as they embark on a challenging yet rewarding journey. The students, in turn, pledged to become the best physicians possible by prioritizing, empowering, and advocating for patients.
“Together, I know we can make you excellent physicians,” said Dean John H. Sampson, MD, PhD, MHSc, MBA. “Your progress is really a measure of our success.”
As a world-class medical destination and top-tier research institution, more than 10,440 people applied to the CU Anschutz School of Medicine this year. Collectively, the selected 188 students represent 30 states, including 91 Colorado residents, and 19 different countries.
Their reasons for wanting to become a physician vary, with some inspired by their own medical experiences or the experiences of family members, whereas others were motivated by witnessing the life-changing capabilities of research and medical interventions. Despite differences in backgrounds and life experiences, the students share a common mission of serving and helping others.
“It is an extensive process to pick the very best class,” Sampson told the crowd of students and their loved ones. “You have earned being here.”
Dean John H. Sampson, MD, PhD, MHSc, MBA, kneels and smiles with members of the Class of 2030 during their Matriculation Ceremony on July 24, 2026. Image by Jesica Whittaker.
A ‘life-changing endeavor’
The Matriculation Ceremony is “a rite of passage” for medical students, Sampson explained, expressing how excited the clinicians, researchers, and educators are to welcome the newest class to CU Anschutz.
“We have created a curriculum here that I'm very proud of that encourages compassion through excellence,” Sampson said. “We will give you the knowledge that you need, but you need to bring your heart.”
By the time the students complete the school’s unique Trek Curriculum, which launched in 2021, students will be the “total package,” he explained, as they will have trained at multiple medical institutions, helping care for veterans, children, adults, and vulnerable community members.
Four students in the CU Anschutz School of Medicine Class of 2030 celebrate receiving their white coats and stethoscopes at the Matriculation Ceremony on July 24, 2026.
Students will learn from top researchers who perform pivotal work, whether it’s developing immunotherapies to cure patients of lethal cancers, conducting genetic research to create targeted therapies that cause less side effects, or investigating the use of artificial intelligence in medicine.
“I don’t believe that there’s been a better time to enter the profession than now,” said Jeffrey SooHoo, MD, MBA, associate dean of admissions and student affairs and a professor of ophthalmology. “More importantly, as our society has become increasingly polarized and less personal, physicians have the opportunity to increase the power of understanding and convey empathy.”
“To the Class of 2030, you have the unique and privileged opportunity to reduce suffering and bridge divides,” he added. “This may sound daunting, but it will be worth the effort, and we're grateful that you've committed to joining us in this life-changing endeavor.”
A first-year medical student gives high-fives to a row of other students in the CU Anschutz School of Medicine Class of 2030. Image by Melissa Santorelli.
The value of a stethoscope
Michael Carius, MD, the president of the CU Anschutz Medical Alumni Association and a member of the CU Anschutz School of Medicine Class of 1973, presented the Class of 2030 with stethoscopes provided by alumni and friends of the school.
The gift, an annual tradition, symbolizes the students’ “inclusion into the timeless fraternity of physicians,” he said, adding that it also represents a tool to connect with, and listen to, patients.
“In the over 200 years since stethoscopes were invented, they have symbolized trust, connection, and the physician-patient bond,” Carius said. “Besides giving us critical clinical information, stethoscopes are a vital connection in our fast paced, and often stressful, clinical environments that allow us to slow down and literally listen to our patients.”
Four first-year students, and one small dog, celebrate the Matriculation Ceremony of the CU Anschutz School of Medicine Class of 2030 on July 24, 2026. Image by Melissa Santorelli.
‘Patients will be your best teachers’
The keynote speaker of the event, Arun Kannappan, MD, an associate professor of medicine and education leader at CU Anschutz, explained some of the greatest lessons he has learned have stemmed from his own patients.
Specializing in pulmonary and critical care medicine, Kannappan has provided care to a diverse array of patients. One patient, a renowned chef in his 50s who required care over the course of several years, taught Kannappan that “being a doctor is more than prescribing some drugs and treatments.”
“I spent most of our clinic visits just listening to him,” he said. “You’ll be there for your patients in their times of need to learn their stories, and you’ll help them get back their lives,” he said.
In another case, Kannappan cared for a man who almost died due to uncontrolled diabetes. The patient had avoided coming into the clinic for several years because he had lost his job and worried he was not financially stable enough to get care. The experience taught Kannappan that “not all patients start on an equal playing field, especially when it comes to health care, and you’ll start to see ways in which you can level that field.”
“In this profession, there’s always something more to learn,” Kannappan said. “If you adopt a mindset to foster your own growth, fight complacency, you will maximize your impact as a physician.”
Another key lesson came from a 10-year-old boy with leukemia who was in the hospital for chemotherapy. One day, the boy surprised Kannappan by hitting him with a Nerf cannon he had hidden under his bed sheet.
“Even in these difficult times for your patients and their loved ones, you will find those moments of joy and humor. There is healing in laughter,” he said. “Your patients will be your best teachers. You’re going to learn about their stories, their illnesses, and you’re going to figure out how to use that motivation to apply what you’ve learned to help them reclaim their lives.”
Students in the CU Anschutz School of Medicine Class of 2030 celebrated Matriculation Ceremony with their loved ones on July 24, 2026. Image by Melissa Santorelli.
‘This journey is a gift and a privilege’
As part of the Matriculation Ceremony, 35 fourth-year students in the Class of 2027 were inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society. The society recognizes individuals who are “extraordinary exemplars of humanistic patient care,” said Steven Lowenstein, MD, MPH, a professor emeritus and adjoint professor of emergency medicine and medicine as well as an advisor for the medical student chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society.
Among the inductees were David Alexander and Allison Leigh, who shared words of wisdom to the incoming class of students and presented them with gratitude journals that were created by medical students, physicians, faculty, and administrators.
“This journey is a gift and a privilege,” Leigh said. “You will become a witness to disease alongside patients — an immense responsibility and a profound privilege. Our hope is that through the ups and downs of the years to come, you'll practice gratitude, and that you'll benefit from that positive reflection.”
Alexander challenged the Class of 2030 to look for three moments of gratitude each day and record them. He noted that no sentiment is too small, whether it be a positive interaction with a patient, the help of a peer, or a hot cup of coffee.
“Gratitude is positively linked to personal well-being and satisfaction and inversely correlated with burnout — an obstacle our profession routinely faces,” Alexander said. “Our gratitude to be in medicine hasn't left us throughout our training, and we hope it inspires you as you begin yours.”
