On Feb. 10, the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine(OUWB) earned full accreditation from the Liaison Committee of Medical Education(LCME).

Get to know OUWB

Oakland University and the William Beaumont School of Medicine joined forces six years ago with hopes of providing innovative physician training. Through Founding Dean Robert Folberg and Beaumont Health System leaders, the OUWB was created.

A lack of physician care for residents in Michigan was on the minds of OUWB. With strong leadership and professionals from OU and Beaumont, the new medical school plan fell into their hands.

In 2007, Oakland University and Beaumont started the accreditation process with LCME. By 2011 they received preliminary accreditation, the third step in accreditation.

“We have officially reached a milestone in our history,” Folberg said. “Now it’s time to grow the school from here.”

Earning accreditation

While building a plan for an exceptional medical education facility in Oakland County, receiving accreditation for the LCME served as an important step in the process for OUWB.

The LCME accreditation – a process through which students must graduate from accredited programs in order to enter residency programs and receive medical licenses – assures programs meet established standards and leave graduates with a professional understanding of the medical field. The program focuses on creating a legacy for medical schools across the country, according to Folberg.

To earn accreditation, a new university program must complete a five-step process. After recently accomplishing the fifth step, OUWB received notification from the LCME of earning full accreditation.

OUWB’s next steps

Since completing the fifth step for LCME, the school is now considered a fully accredited school.

OUWB joins Michigan State University, University of Michigan and Wayne State University as the four universities in Michigan with fully-accredited School of Medicine programs.

For OUWB seniors, they will be the first charter class to graduate from the fully-accredited program in May.

While residency programs and graduation day linger in the minds of the OUWB students, the near future holds congratulatory festivities.

“The school is celebrating this news and the students are very happy,” Folberg said. “After six long years of work, this is great news.”

Editor’s note: The original article stated incorrectly that the LCME accreditation process is voluntary. That is incorrect – students must graduate from accredited programs in order to enter residency programs and receive medical licenses.