Kathmandu, Feb 29: In a groundbreaking act of philanthropy, a billionaire woman in America has made headlines by donating a staggering 1 billion dollars (equivalent to 1 trillion 32 billion 49 million rupees) to cover the tuition fees of all students enrolled in a renowned medical college. The generous benefactor, Ruth Gottesman, directed her historic donation to the Bronx Medical School, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, located in New York, USA.

Ruth Gottesman, widow of billionaire investor David Gottesman, who was a prominent figure in the investment world, made the donation with the condition that it be used to alleviate the financial burden of medical education for students. David Gottesman, known for his role as one of the major investors in Berkshire Hathaway, had entrusted Ruth with his estate upon his passing in 2022, with a simple directive: “Do with it what you see fit.”

Ruth, who had previously served as a professor at the medical college, seized the opportunity to honor her late husband’s legacy by ensuring access to quality medical education for aspiring professionals. The monumental donation has been recognized as one of the largest ever made to an educational institution in America, and potentially the largest to a medical college, according to the New York Times.

Albert Einstein College has announced that all current fourth-year students, who have already paid tuition fees for this semester, will be reimbursed. Moreover, beginning in August, new students embarking on their medical studies will be exempt from tuition fees, thanks to Ruth Gottesman’s unprecedented generosity.

Previously, the annual tuition fees at the college exceeded $59,000 per student. With this transformative donation, each student can now expect approximately $200,000 in financial support to complete their four-year doctoral studies. Ruth Gottesman’s philanthropic gesture aims to alleviate the financial burden on students and enable them to pursue their medical education without the burden of educational loans, thus ushering in a new era of accessibility and opportunity in medical education.