The Class of 2013 was welcomed to the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine Thursday by faculty members, staff and senior students who urged them to celebrate the achievements that have brought them this far and look ahead to the hard work necessary to become doctors four years from now.

Medical school, the students were told, is very difficult and will require dedication, but they should always remember to draw on their enormous ability, ask for help, and help others.

"There is no more significant message here on Day One than 'welcome - we expect everybody in the room to succeed.' Don't hesitate to ask for advice, and we're proud and happy that you're here," Laurence B. Gardner, M.D., executive dean for education and policy, said to 150 students gathered in a Miller School auditorium and another 48 at the Miller School at Florida Atlantic University, who watched and listened via video conference.

Faculty members say it is important that freshmen be welcomed with warmth, but they also need to be greeted with real reminders of what it will take to become physicians. Richard Weisman, Pharm. D., associate dean of admissions, who was welcoming the first class under his leadership, said he had full faith in the students who made the cut from 4,922 applicants. Months ago, when they were merely applicants, Weisman and his admissions team spent many hours interviewing them, reviewing their academic records, and getting to know them well.

"It's really amazing to see all of the 198 students capitalizing on what was only a dream that each of them shared during their interviews," said Weisman after the event. "To see 198 dreams come true, and the smiling faces, the enthusiasm, the energy - it's just a feeling that is among the best I can recall in my lifetime. I'm sure, as the years go by, it will be repeated over and over again."

For Joanna Bedell, who was born and raised in Miami and attended Brandeis University, it was a day of excitement because "it was finally happening."

"You spend such a long time preparing - thinking about it in high school, going through pre-med. Now you feel like you're finally taking the really big first step," said Bedell.

Dillon Bannis considers being a part of the Class of 2013 "a dream come true."

"It was really surreal at first but it became real for me when I walked in today and saw the folder with my name on it," said Bannis. "I'm looking forward to everything. I can't wait until classes start. I'm looking forward to four years of learning in a place I wanted to come to because I felt the school's mission statement fell in line with the things I think are important in medicine."

Bannis, an African American with an undergraduate degree from FAU, is among the 43 percent minorities (including 8.5 percent underrepresented minorities) who were admitted to the Miller School's M.D. program this year.

The statistics for the Class of 2013 also include 46 percent women and 28 percent non-Florida residents, with 17 students from California, the largest non-Florida representation. The class has an average GPA of 3.68 and an average MCAT score of 31.1.

Individually the students were all high-achievers in their undergraduate programs and that brings a certain pressure when they are together in medical school, said Robert Hernandez, M.D., senior associate dean for medical student administration. But, he told the gathering, starting medical school marks a life change they should all embrace.

"Over the next four years, all of you will undergo significant transformation. You will grow and develop in this medical school and reach your amazing potential," Hernandez said.

The annual welcome program is scheduled to run five additional days with faculty and administrators speaking on issues such as academic policies, the Code for Honorable and Professional Conduct, student health and wellness, and computer services. Dean Pascal J. Goldschmidt, M.D., and President Donna E. Shalala will address the class tomorrow (Wednesday).