Eastern Virginia Medical School - Student Traditions

Student Traditions

• Powderpuff Football Game

Every year during the fall semester, the first and second year medical school classes get together to play a game of football where the female students compete and male students are on the sidelines cheering. Games are refereed by the third and fourth medical school classes, which always makes each year's game interesting. Traditionally, the second year students beat the first years.

• P.O.E.T.S. (Put Off Everything, Tomorrow's Saturday)

Several Fridays throughout the year, EVMS will fund a social outing providing food and often entertainment for the students, residents and faculty at either a local restaurant or on school grounds. A tradition dating back to the school's early years, this tradition is designed to help promote collegiality and provide stress relief throughout the difficult times of medical education. The tradition initially involved alcoholic beverages, however these were removed when they were no longer allowed on campus.

• Senior Auction

To raise money for their graduation-week activities and banquet, the students usually partake in numerous fundraisers throughout their years at EVMS. One of the more significant of these is an auctioning of locally donated products.

• White Coat Ceremony

To mark the official entrance into the medical community and the beginning of a medical student's education, each student is "coated" by an attending physician of EVMS. The ceremony usually ends with the reciting of the Hippocratic Oath.

• White Coat Burning

To signify the transition of the short white coat of the medical student to that of the full-length coat of the physician, the original short coats are burned. This tradition began as an informal, student run activity, but in recent years has been funded, expanded and embraced by the school administration.