On September 20, 2017, "White Coat Ceremony 2017" was held for the first semester students of US MD program of Tbilisi State Medical University. The ceremony was opened and the audience was welcomed by Professor Zurab Vadachkoria Rector of Tbilisi State Medical University.  The freshmen were congratulated by: David Sergeenko Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia; H.E. Yan C. Kelly Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Georgia; Mark G. Hartell, Lieutenant Colonel, Medical Service Corps, US Army, Deputy Commander, the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense (USAMRICD) (USA); as well as other honorable guests.  "White Coat Ceremony 2017" has a special meaning: all 120 new students of the US MD program of TSMU were helped to put on white coats as a symbol of their entrance in to Medical profession,  by: Prof. Zurab Vadachkoria, Rector of TSMU David Sergeenko Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia; H.E. Yan C. Kelly Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Georgia; Mark G. Hartell, Lieutenant Colonel, Medical Service Corps, US Army, Deputy Commander,  the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense (USAMRICD) (USA); and other honorable guests invited to the event. The ceremony was attended by  academic staff of Tbilisi State Medical University, foreign guests and the students of the US MD Program of TSMU, including the fourth semester students of this program, who returned from the United States, where  they participated in a special program - "Summer in  Emory " (for a month). Mark G. Hartell, Vice colonel and Program Coordinator, Associate Professor Eka Ekaladze were awarded the honorary awards for the contribution they made for development and success of the US MD Program. Special thanks to Professor Rima Beriashvili, Vice Rector of TSMU for great contribution  she made for development of this program. At the end of the event, Professor Zurab Vadachkoria, His Excellency Jan C.  Kelly and Mr. David Sergeenko jointly participated in ceremonial cutting of the cake. The US MD Program is functioning since 2013, with the support of Emory University (Atlanta, USA). The curriculum is based on medical education curriculum of the Emory University. The program structure facilitates taking both steps of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) and gaining clinical experience in the United States for the students of the mentioned program. In 2017 three students of US MD Program passed the first step of USMLE exam with the highest scores.