Universities and health systems across the country are opening new medical schools to meet demand for physicians.
Here is a list of the medical schools announced in 2026.
Editor’s note: This list is updated throughout the year. Please send your news releases to m.taylor@beckershealthcare.com to be included in the list.
1. Columbia-based University of Missouri School of Medicine is expanding its Springfield campus into a four-year regional medical school. The new medical school, which will open in summer 2027, will be hosted in a building the university purchased in November 2025. The first cohort will have 32 students, and the school is expected to host a total of 128 students at full capacity.
2. Mishawaka, Ind.-based Franciscan Alliance, a nonprofit Catholic healthcare system, is planning to build an osteopathic medical school in Crown Point, Ind. The school is expected to open in 2030 and enroll up to 200 students each year. The system will also increase the number of post-graduate residency slots by more than 250.
3. New York City-based New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine has affiliated with the University of Guam, Guam Medical Hospital and Guam Regional Medical Center to train medical students. The medical school operates at its New York City campus as well as at its Arkansas State University campus in Jonesboro. Through the agreement, Guamanians will attend medical school at Arkansas State for two years before completing their remaining two years in clinical rotations at the Guam hospitals.
4. Cincinnati-based Xavier University is on track to open the world’s first Jesuit osteopathic medical school in fall 2027. The university received a $2 million gift from alumnus Gary and Connie Sharpe to support the proposed college of osteopathic medicine and its college of nursing. The gift will be divided between the two initiatives. The College of Osteopathic Medicine broke ground in 2024 and is expected to open with an inaugural class of 75 students.
5. Harrogate, Tenn.-based Lincoln Memorial University is opening a medical school campus in Orange Park, Fla. The new LMU-DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine campus will be the first four-year medical school in the Jacksonville area. This is the university’s first campus outside of Tennessee. The inaugural cohort will start later this year.
6. Athens-based University of Georgia will establish a new independent School of Medicine. The UGA School of Medicine will build on the success of the Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership, and is seeking accreditation from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.
7. Miami-based Larkin University is seeking accreditation for a new College of Osteopathic Medicine. The Jacqueline Nicole Michel College of Osteopathic Medicine is built in a collaboration between the university and Larkin Health system. It is projected to encompass approximately 110,000 square feet and is expected to open in fall 2028.
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