Two BUSM Students Honored by Massachusetts Medical Society

Robert M. Cole and David S. Young have been named 2010 Massachusetts Medical Society Scholars. They are among eight scholars – two from each of the state’s four medical schools – who will be honored at the Society’s Annual Meeting on May 14 at the Seaport Hotel and World Trade Center in Boston.

The Society’s Scholars Awards are presented annually to fourth-year medical school students who demonstrate excellent academic performance, community involvement, and financial need. Each honoree receives a $10,000 scholarship.

Mr.  Cole received his B.A. in biology from Brown University in 2004 and his M.S. in Medical Science with Honors in Research from Boston University in 2006. He is the recipient of the Gold Humanism Award and the Boston University School of Medicine Internal Medicine Award. He has been active in a number of volunteer groups, including Here to Help Advocacy Group for people with intellectual disabilities, the Outreach Van Project which helps the medically underserved, the Student Committee on Medical Students Affairs for the School of Medicine, the Student Services Committee, and the Student Advisory Committee for the Endocrinology, Gross Anatomy, and Pathology Courses. Mr. Cole began his volunteer work at the Fairview Developmental Center in Costa Mesa, California for the mentally and physically disabled. He has applied for a residency position in internal medicine with the intent of sub-specializing in cardiology. He has been an author of peer-reviewed journal articles in the Spine Journal and Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.

Mr. Young earned his B.A. magna cum laude, with a double major in Biology and Psychology and a double minor in Math and Chemistry, at the University of Redlands in Redlands, California in 2003. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and received the Outstanding Senior Award for academic success and community service and the Four-Year Achievement Award for extra-curricular accomplishments. He then completed two masters programs at Boston University’s Sargent College, receiving an M.S. in Applied Anatomy and Physiology and an M.S. in Nutrition. At the medical school, he was inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society in 2009, and earned the Best-Dissection Award in the school’s Gross anatomy Lab in 2006. He was appointed to the Appropriate Treatment in Medicine Committee and volunteered with Here to Help and Boston Medical Center’s Project Trust Inpatient program, where he was appointed Project Development Manager and a member of the Executive Board. Mr. Young plans to continue his work with underserved populations, youth development and education, and public policy.

The Massachusetts Medical Society, with some 22,000 physicians and student members, is dedicated to educating and advocating for the patients and physicians of Massachusetts. The Society publishes the New England Journal of Medicine, a leading global medical journal and web site, and Journal Watch alerts and newsletters covering 13 specialties. The Society is also a leader in continuing medical education for health care professionals throughout Massachusetts, conducting a variety of medical education programs for physicians and health care professionals. Founded in 1781, MMS is the oldest continuously operating medical society in the country.