An inaugural class of medical school students will enroll at Colorado State University in Fall 2021. The collaboration between CSU and University of Colorado’s School of Medicine to open a medical school branch in Fort Collins will expand medical education opportunities in Colorado and build on the strengths of both universities through an innovative, far-reaching curriculum.

Housed on the fourth floor of CSU’s Health and Medical Center, the new medical education program is busy establishing local partnerships, hiring faculty and staff, and revamping curriculum with a commitment to current teaching methods, including the use of virtual reality and artificial intelligence.

“No lectures,” said Suzanne Brandenburg, associate dean of the new program. “Our goal is to push the envelope and focus on active, integrative learning while taking advantage of technology.”

The Fort Collins branch will also allow students to have more direct opportunities to work with clinicians and more continuity with patients than some traditional models, all while enjoying a smaller class size and community.

“Being in a slightly smaller community than in Denver, our hope is that students at the Fort Collins branch will get an even better sense of how many different factors interconnect to impact health and individual patients,” said Brandenburg. “From the social determinants of health, to when and how human health is impacted by climate, to the interaction between humans, animals, and our planet, we’re trying to give students a very broad perspective as they launch their medical careers.”