COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- The University of South Carolina's School of Medicine is scheduled to host a special ceremony that bestows the famed white coats upon medical students.

University spokeswoman Megan Sexton says the so-called Pledge of Commitment ceremony is slated for Friday at the Koger Center in Columbia.

The ceremony is for second-year medical students. Bestowing the white coats symbolizes the students' entrance into the medical profession.

The group will hear from Dr. H. Wade Collins, a Columbia cardiologist and 1981 graduate of the USC School of Medicine.