February 26, 2001

Dear Medical Students:

At its February 23, 2001 meeting, the Brown University Corporation Committee on Budget and Finance approved the Medical School’s tuition rate of $29,608 for the next academic year. This figure, which represents a 3.5-percent rise over last year, reflects our continued efforts to moderate tuition rate increases. Indeed, in the current academic year, Brown ranks 26th among the 51 private medical schools in terms of tuition rate.

I am well aware that medical school represents a large financial burden for most students and their families. We are working hard to keep financial support in line with the rising costs of medical education.  This year, for example, more than 90 percent of institutionally aided students received an average increase of $3,000 in their scholarship over the previous year’s amount as a result of the Financial Aid Policy Committee's approval of a reduction in the base loan requirements.  While the base loan for next year will remain the same, budget increases will be absorbed by commensurate increases in scholarship funds - with the majority of students likely to continue to receive larger scholarship amounts.

I invite you all to read my office's report to the Corporation Committee on Budget and Finance (available at http://biomed.brown.edu/deansreport/index.html). As you will see, the Brown Medical School continues to grow in a variety of ways. Our first-class faculty have enjoyed great success in obtaining external research funding; a notable example of this is a new $11 million five-year grant from the NIH to fund research facilities and projects in genetics and genomics.  We have hired three new junior faculty in the basic sciences. We have also made an important addition to the senior administration by appointing Terrie Wetle Associate Dean of Medicine for Public Health and Public Policy.

In addition, to give the Medical School fundraising campaign the means to succeed, we have increased base funding in the Office of Advancement.  And, in anticipation of the new Life Sciences Building, we have included a $200,000 base budget increase; this will enable us continue to prepare the budget to cover debt service and operating expenses.  Finally, we have allocated a 10-percent increase in the acquisition budget for the library.

These are exciting times for the sciences.  All of us - administration, faculty, staff and trustees - want to support your enthusiasm, dedication and hard work in every way we can.  Should you have specific questions about any of these budgetary matters please feel free to contact me by e-mail at [email protected], or Dean McCrossan at [email protected].

Sincerely,

Donald J. Marsh

Dean of Medicine and Biological Sciences