We are starting a curriculum revision with plans to begin with a new curriculum in 2021! We will update the website regularly.
Below is an overview of the new curriculum as it is currently planned:
2021 is the official launch of the 5 Cs Curriculum: Curiosity, Critical Thinking, Clinical Skills, Competence and Compassion. The graduating class of 2025 will be prepared as resilient and adaptable physician leaders who provide high value, ethical and appropriate healthcare in an ever-changing system; communicate respectfully and effectively in a patient- and family-centered fashion; collaborate with other healthcare professionals to devise treatment plans and strategies for adherence and self-care, tailored to the needs and preferences of the patient; integrate the scientific underpinnings of clinical medicine and best evidence into daily practice; and distinguish themselves as medical professionals in discovery, service and leadership.
The preclerkship curriculum places foundational knowledge in the context of the practice of medicine and the Rutgers RWJMS 66 Core Clinical Conditions. Our culture promotes well-being and students will learn to curate knowledge, to embrace strategies that enhance quality and patient safety and to develop behaviors that lead to better health and healthcare for all.
The Unifying Themes across four years in addition to the focus on the 5 Cs are:
- Patient and Family Centered Care in the Community Context
- Evidence Based Medicine
- Health Systems Science
The Courses in Pre-Clerkship:
Foundations of Physicianship
Foundations in Medical Sciences
Living Anatomy I
Integrated Systems and Disease
Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Systems and Disease
Renal and Genitourinary Systems and Disease
Endocrine and Reproductive Systems and Disease
Gastrointestinal System and Disease
Living Anatomy II Musculoskeletal and Skin Systems and Disease
Neurologic and Behavioral Systems and Disease
The pre-clerkship phase will occur in 19 months. This will allow students to start their clerkship training as early as March of their second year in school. Students will have flexibility in scheduling their Step 1 exam opting to take it prior to their first clerkship or during any block throughout the clerkship phase. The clerkships will have extended time to maximize clinical experience prior to submitting residency applications. Following the core clerkships, students will have time for professional development through electives and further specialized clinical experience.
Clerkship and Professional Development Post Clerkship Curriculum
The clerkship curriculum will include clerkship experiences followed by 2-week intersessions.
The Clerkships and Advanced Clinical Experiences
- Medicine
- Surgery
- Pediatrics
- Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Family Medicine
- Psychiatry
- Neurology
- Emergency Medicine
- Critical Care Medicine
- Acting Internship
- Specialty Specific Boot Camp
The Intersessions: Two-week intersessions will occur every six weeks throughout the preclerkship and core clerkship years. In preclerkship, experiential learning activities in the community, the health system, and the home, and diverse learning modalities will engage students in the unifying themes above, as well as social accountability, individualized scholarly focus activities, professional identify formation, and wellness (with a personal day designated in each intersession). During the clerkships, intersessions will provide time for curation of knowledge and integration of foundational and clinical sciences, simulation experiences, ample elective time and professional identify formation, and wellness (with a personal day designated in each intersession).