Program Requirements

First and Second Years

Scholarly Concentrations

Scholarly concentrations were designed to provide students an opportunity as early as possible in the curriculum to develop additional expertise in a particular area of interest, and guide students in applying a scholarly approach to an independent mentored project. Students begin by meeting in seminars in their particular area of interest during the intersessions, and subsequently identify a mentor and project timeline. The goal is completion of the project by the end of Year 2. The five areas of concentration from which students may choose are Basic Science, Clinical Research, History of Medicine, Medical Humanities, Bioethics and the Healing Arts, or Public Health and Community Service.

Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine

Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine (TIME) courses are designed to present the behavioral and social science content pertinent to the practice of medicine in the 21st century and provide additional clinical skill development in the preclinical years. They are taught by interdisciplinary faculty and placed at times in the calendar when students have no other competing coursework.

First Year
ME.800.640Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine - Health Care Disparities
ME.600.601Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine
ME.800.641Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine - Nutrition and Behavior Change
ME.800.643Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine - Pain
ME.800.655Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine - High Value Healthcare
Second Year
ME.800.645Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine - Substance Use Disorders
ME.800.647Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine - End of Life/Palliative Care
ME.800.646Topics in Interdisciplinary Medicine - Patient Safety
ME.800.634Transition to the Wards
Third Year
Translational Science Intersessions 2
1

In the third quarter, Year 2 students spend two afternoons per week in Transitions to the Wards, a course designed to prepare students for learning in the clinical clerkships that follow. The course uses a combination of small group discussion and team-based learning to explore clinical problem solving, direct observation of advanced physical diagnosis and presentation skills with college faculty, and procedural and simulation exercise. Every student recertifies in Basic Life Support.

2

The Translational Science Intersessions occur in the last week of each quarter, and are taken by students who have completed one of the eight-week core clerkship rotations in that quarter. Students will generally complete four Translational Science Intersessions during their clinical curriculum. These intersessions are meant to present more advanced understanding of state-of-the-art translational science research with students who have some clinical training. In general the format includes lecture, seminar-type discussions, journal clubs and student presentations with both basic science and clinical faculty. Students choose one small group topic within the general topic to focus the week. One afternoon in each of these weeks is devoted to a discussion of ethics, using a lecture, case presentation and small group presentation led by faculty from the Berman Institute of Bioethics. In the second afternoon session, students participating in the intersessions meet in small groups with their College Advisory Program to discuss critical incidents from the core clerkships.