The USF Health Morsani College of Medicine today welcomed the strongest incoming class in its history, with a record-breaking
academic profile that places the students among the most accomplished in the nation
The 140 students of the Class of 2030 arrived with a median MCAT score of 521, equal
to the 98th percentile nationally, or the Top 2% of all test-takers based on current
national scoring data. It represents the highest median MCAT score ever recorded by
an incoming class at the University of South Florida
New college highs were also achieved for GPA, with a median overall GPA of 3.98 and
median science GPA of 3.99. Taken together, the new cohort’s academic credentials
stand alongside the strongest at any medical school in the country
This year’s class arrives as the Morsani College of Medicine continues to receive
national recognition for its educational rigor, research growth and clinical excellence.
Earlier this year, the school earned the highest Tier 1 rating for research from U.S. News & World Report, one of only 16 medical schools nationwide to receive the designation. USF became
the first medical school in Florida to achieve Tier 1 status in 2025 and is the only
one in the state to have held the honor in consecutive years.
Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM, executive vice president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine, said the class’s outstanding qualifications
reflect a decade-long rise in the competitiveness of incoming students, who have continued
setting new standards for academic excellence year after year.
“We are thrilled to welcome such an extraordinary class,” said Dr. Lockwood. “These
remarkable students had their choice of outstanding medical schools, and we are honored
they chose USF Health. We are committed to providing them with an innovative, rigorous
curriculum and supportive, insightful faculty who are deeply invested in their success.”
While the Class of 2030 enters medical school with an extraordinary record of achievement,
students say the numbers are only one part of their story.
Students arrive at USF with a wide range of backgrounds, interests and life experiences.
Some begin medical school after years spent conducting research in laboratories or
serving on patient care teams. Others were drawn to medicine through moments of illness,
caregiving, mentorship and community service that showed them the difference devoted
doctors can make in people’s lives. Despite their unique paths, uniting them all is
a shared desire to become physicians who provide compassionate, patient-centered care
for those most in need.
The class draws from communities across Florida and the nation and includes students
from leading universities throughout the country. Sixty-six students attended undergraduate
institutions ranked among the nation’s Top 30 universities by U.S. News & World Report.
Sixty-eight attended Florida colleges or universities and 35 graduated from USF, making
it the most represented university in the class
Outside of their studies, the students bring a breadth of personal talents and interests,
ranging from embroidery, cooking and bouldering to cricket, pickleball, programming
and filmmaking. Seventy-nine percent of the students speak at least two languages,
while 38% speak three or more
Meet a few of the remarkable students from the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine
Class of 2030
Nicholas Beskow
USF already feels like home for Florida native Nicholas Beskow
Originally from Naples, he grew up in a close-knit family shaped by his parents, who
immigrated from Argentina and instilled in him the importance of relationships and
building community. Those values set him on his path to medicine
Beskow attended USF as a National Merit Scholar, studying molecular biosciences and
graduating from the Judy Genshaft Honors College as part of the accelerated BS/MD program. While an undergraduate, he served as a peer mentor and developed lifelong friendships
with classmates, many of whom are now fellow first-year students at the Morsani College
of Medicine
He also built close relationships with USF mentors and faculty. Beskow served as a
lead research assistant in the I-HOPE Lab, which focuses on pediatric health promotion in oncology and obesity, and worked
on research projects in genetic counseling with Deborah Cragun, PhD, professor in the USF College of Public Health.
Those relationships convinced him the Morsani College of Medicine was the right place
to continue his training
“Everyone I’ve met at USF has been so supportive of each other,” Beskow said. “It
does not feel like a competitive environment. It feels like a team.”
Beskow begins medical school interested in family medicine, inspired in part by his
father, a family medicine physician. He sees the specialty as a natural fit for his
interest in public health and preventive care, as well as his desire to build lasting
relationships with patients and communities
“Tampa feels like home,” Beskow said. “It feels like I was a puzzle piece outside
of the puzzle, and when I came to Tampa, it fit perfectly.”
Kaleigh Delbridge
Kaleigh Delbridge entered college leaning toward a career in medicine, but she wanted
to be sure the profession was right for her
So as an undergraduate at Baylor University, she took every opportunity to gain experience
in the field. She was part of Baylor’s Medical Ethics Discussion Society, worked in
psychology and dementia research labs and served as a genetics learning assistant
She also worked as an emergency department scribe, where she said one patient encounter
confirmed the kind of physician she wanted to become
Delbridge remembers watching as her attending physician sat down with a patient who
had lived for years with chronic illness and autoimmune disease. The emergency department
was getting busier, but rather than rush to the next patient, the physician spent
nearly 30 minutes talking with the patient about her concerns, previous tests and
thoughts about the best path forward
“Watching that provider-patient relationship develop right in front of me cemented
what I wanted to do,” Delbridge said
Delbridge and her older sister, Abigail, a pediatric resident at USF Health, are the
first in their family to enter medicine. After years spent working toward the goal,
Delbridge said beginning her first day of medical school felt like a surreal moment
“To finally be starting at a program like USF, meeting my classmates and seeing everything
become real, it feels incredibly special,” she said
Siddharth Chitta
Siddharth Chitta was exposed to scientific research early in life through the cancer
research careers of his parents
But during middle school, a family experience in health care showed him how his interest
in science could connect with the personal relationships at the heart of medicine
His mother was injured in a car accident and needed spinal surgery. As Chitta watched
her physicians care for her, he saw a side of medicine that felt deeply human
“I realized medicine was science with a personal aspect,” Chitta said. “I wanted to
be in a field where I could do breakthrough research and work on something impactful,
but also interact with people. I really saw that in medicine.”
Born in Buffalo, New York, Chitta grew up in Jacksonville and graduated from the University
of Pennsylvania. He spent much of his undergraduate career in research, including
work at Mayo Clinic and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. He served as biology
director of Science Olympiad at the University of Pennsylvania and worked as part
of the Weber Lab team investigating T-cell function to enhance cancer therapeutics
He brings that research experience to USF as one of five incoming students in the
MD/PhD program, an intensive eight-year path that trains physician-scientists to bridge clinical care and groundbreaking biomedical
research.
Chitta said choosing the Morsani College of Medicine for that journey was an easy
decision. Not only did it allow him to be closer to home, but it offered him access
to an expansive academic health environment that includes USF Health, Tampa General Hospital and Moffitt Cancer Center
“USF felt like the right place to pursue both sides of what I want to do,” Chitta
said. “It gives me access to incredible research and clinical opportunities. For someone
who wants to bring science closer to patients, that combination was really important.”
MD CLASS OF 2030 BY THE NUMBERS
- 140 students
- 521 (Top 2% nationally) median MCAT score
- 3.98 median GPA
- 3.99 median science GPA
- 66 (47%)attended a Top 30 ranked university for their undergraduate degree
- 35 (25%) received undergraduate degrees from the University of South Florida
- 53 (38%) speak three or more languages
