University of Minnesota’s New St. Cloud Medical Campus Selects First Class of Rural Focused Students

(KNSI) — The University of Minnesota Medical School CentraCare Regional Campus in St. Cloud has selected its first class.

Assistant Dean, Doctor Jill Amsberry, told KNSI News the first crop of aspiring physicians has some things in common. “They all have ties to Greater Minnesota and communities around our region, and they have, all through their admissions process, demonstrated a commitment to serving rural Minnesota.”

There’s strong interest in the school, proven by all 24 students they asked to be part of the first class accepting the invitation, which Amsberry says is “highly unusual, and I think a really good representation of how our mission for this campus aligns with the values that the students have that are coming here.”

The medical school’s mission is to combat a significant decrease in the physician workforce in rural regions, anticipating that the crisis will worsen over the next five to ten years.

Dr. Amsberry explained that the medical school is four years, and after that, the students train in residency, which lasts at least three to four more years. She says residency is “where you really define what type of doctor you want to be. So the other thing that we’re doing is making sure that we’re building capacity for our students to stay, to do their residencies close to our campus.”

According to CentraCare, people living in rural areas often face longer wait times for medical care, travel farther to reach services, and experience poorer health outcomes than those who live in larger cities. The median age of physicians practicing in rural Minnesota is 59, and one in three intends to leave within five years.

The regional campus will open on August 18th and add 24 students each year, eventually reaching full capacity in 2028 with 96 students.

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