The first woman admitted to Harvard Medical School wasn't even from the United States.

After her graduation from the University of the Philippines as a valedictorian, Fe del Mundo was offered a full scholarship to any school in the United States for further training in a medical field of her choice by President Manuel Quezon. She accepted the offer and chose to go to Harvard, arriving at Harvard Medical School in 1936, even though HMS wasn't admitting women at that time. 

Harvard officially started accepting women to the medical school in 1945. Harvard was surprised to find that they admitted a woman to their all-male institution but they kept her because of her strong credentials.

She also founded the first pediatric hospital in the Philippines. Unmarried and without kids, she spent most of her life in pediatrics. She passed away in 2011 at the age of 99.