Creighton School of Medicine Welcomes the MD Class of 2029
Theresa Townley, MD, associate professor at the Creighton School of Medicine, said it best: "It takes a lot more than medicine to heal people."
Healing our communities is a pursuit of cura personalis, a term Creighton uses to refer to the wholeness of a person, mind, body and soul.
As the School of Medicine prepares to welcome the MD Class of 2029 at the upcoming White Coat Ceremonies in Phoenix and Omaha, this Jesuit value remains central. What sets Creighton physicians apart is not just clinical skill, but a commitment to compassionate care.
“Cura personalis means you have to treat the human before you can treat the patient,” says Gavin Sullivan, who will soon wear his white coat for the first time at the Phoenix campus ceremony.
A collaborative mindset and dedication to whole-person care are vital as physicians confront today’s most pressing healthcare challenges. Medical students bring unique life experiences to Creighton, shaping how they understand, connect with and care for those they serve.
Michelle Yi, an incoming medical student on Creighton’s Phoenix campus, exemplifies this. As a 16-year-old immigrant from Seoul, South Korea, she faced hurdles of a language barrier, homesickness and adjusting to an entirely new culture.
This experience led her to study film and electronic arts at California State University, Long Beach, helping her "deepen my understanding of humanity,” she says.
Her unique path, and the time spent at the bedsides of seriously ill family members, prepared and inspired her for the journey ahead. “I witnessed the incredible perseverance and dedication of physicians,” she says. “These doctors would not just monitor their patients but offer genuine empathy and stand with us through tough times.”
Her varied, unique experiences have inspired her to become an empathetic physician attuned to the social determinates of health, “identifying overlooked areas and making consistent efforts to serve them with excellence.”
Sullivan, a University of Notre Dame graduate, brings a similar sense of purpose shaped by his year of service in the Dominican Republic. “I see the White Coat Ceremony as the start of the rest of my life,” he says.
In the DR, Sullivan worked as a patient coordinator at One World Surgery and a residential mentor at Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos, a home for orphaned and vulnerable children.
“This year, I have seen many patients affected by factors like unemployment, violence in their community and limited access to food and healthcare,” he says. “The practice of addressing the root cause is something I hope to build on at Creighton and beyond.”
He sees Creighton as the place to become the physician he hopes to be — one who provides comprehensive patient care and is engaged with all the factors impacting a patient's health. “I really wanted a career where I could help people in a meaningful way but also play a role in improving how care is delivered,” he says.
This incoming class of 250 medical students represents a powerful blend of lived experience, diverse perspectives and academic achievement. With a mean GPA of 3.82 and a mean MCAT score of 513 — well above the national average (MCAT: under 502), the class enters medical school ready to meet the rigors of Creighton’s curriculum and join nationally recognized teams of researchers.
But they won’t do it alone. Creighton faculty, who are leaders in their fields and dedicated mentors, will guide students throughout their journey and in one of their most important decisions: choosing a specialty. This mentorship ensures students are supported both academically and personally. Equally foundational is Creighton’s mission of service. In Omaha, 100% of Creighton medical students volunteer at the Magis Clinic, offering compassionate care to the city’s most vulnerable populations. In Phoenix, students carry that same spirit into clinical rotations, serving under-resourced communities across the region. Together, these future physicians embody what it means to be formed in both the science and the art of medicine. Their stories are distinct, but their purpose is united: to serve, to lead and to heal with empathy, excellence and integrity.
And it all begins with a white coat.
