Graduate Professional Degree

PROGRAM IN HUMAN MEDICINE

The professional program leading to the Doctor of Medicine degree has been accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education of the American Medical Association/American Association of Medical Colleges.

To achieve its educational goals, the college will:

1. Recruit students from diverse academic, geographical, racial, and ethnic origins.
2. Enact a curriculum for medical students that:
   1. is strongly influenced by the focus of educating exemplary physicians.
   2. utilizes the biopsychosocial model of medicine.
   3. is located, to the extent possible, in communities that closely approximate the environments in which students, as physicians, will ultimately provide health care.
   4. considers the needs of the population which its students will ultimately serve.
   5. emphasizes medicine as a helping profession as well as an applied science.
   6. fosters student responsibility for self–learning, peer evaluation, interactive professional discussion, and decision making in groups of health professionals.
   7. results in the preparation of graduates to enter and complete graduate medical education.
   8. can be evaluated in terms of its intended outcomes.
   9. can be modified based on assessment of its effectiveness.
   10. emphasizes preventive and health maintenance services in clinical practice.
3. Provide oversight to integrated and affiliated community residency and fellowship programs that stress goals similar to those of the medical student curriculum.
4. Promote and support graduate student and postgraduate programs in the disciplines basic to medicine.
5. Provide programs whereby physicians and other health professionals can acquire the conceptual background and skills in instruction, educational planning, evaluation, research, and administration needed to function as effective faculty members.
6. Conduct patient care programs that encourage and foster continued clinical excellence by the faculty and that provide students with examples of quality–evaluated and cost–effective patient care.
7. Sponsor, organize, and evaluate continuing education programs in medically related fields of biological, behavioral, social, educational, and clinical sciences to assist practicing physicians and other health professionals in pursuing lifelong learning objectives, often by collaborating with community organizations and physicians.
8. Collaborate with other colleges in providing educational programs and experiences that would expand the scope of health professions education in the University.

SHARED DISCOVERY CURRICULUM

The College of Human Medicine’s Shared Discovery Curriculum is designed to be responsive to the health care needs of Michigan, the country, and in the educational best interests of diverse learners.

The design of the curriculum is based on a set of core principles that are envisioned as the foundation to all learning within the curriculum. 

Core Principles

1. The Virtuous Professional
   1. Competence, Compassion, Honesty, Social Responsibility, Professional Responsibility, Respect for Others
   2. Acting with Courage, Humility, Mercy
   3. Professional Growth (Dialogue, Reflection, Practice)
2. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice
   1. Building a sense of belonging in and amongst students, staff, and faculty
   2. Addressing health disparities
   3. A focus on community
3. Competence and Mastery
   1. Supporting and achieving competence
   2. Supporting and recognizing excellence/mastery
4. Lifelong Learning for students, faculty, and staff
5. Rational design and implementation
   1. Scaffolded learning
   2. Decision-making based in educational theory or data
   3. Helping students become master adaptive learners
   4. Alignment of objectives, instruction, and assessment leading to curricular coherence
   5. Longitudinal integration of basic, clinical, and social science themes
6. Authenticity
   1. Experiential learning
   2. Authentic assessments
7. Collaboration
   1. Among faculty, staff, and students
   2. Within the profession
   3. With allied professionals
   4. With patients

Learning Societies

Students at CHM are assigned to one of four learning societies, each named after an historical figure who represents the values of the college. Within each learning society students develop a longitudinal relationship with a group of faculty. Over the first two years, these faculty will serve as coaches, advisors and mentors. Students meet regularly over the first two years within smaller units called scholar groups. Within the scholar groups, students develop collaborative problem-solving skills, reflect on their experiences and learning through debriefing and creation of ongoing learning plans, integrate their clinical experiences with underlying necessary science, and develop an identity within the profession of medicine.

The college’s curriculum is organized around a core group of competencies based on residency competencies: Service, Care of Patients, Rationality, Integration, Professionalism, and Transformation. The acronym is SCRIPT, and these are, with the exception of service, based on residency competencies adopted by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

Educational Program Objectives

The college's curriculum is created around core educational program objectives that are organized into six groupings:

Serving the People
Care of Patients
Reflective and Rational Approach to Learning
Integrating into Systems
Professionalism
Transforming Knowledge

Major Curricular Phases

Students engage in clinical experiences in each phase of the curriculum. The first two semesters comprise the M1 phase, and includes an early clinical experience. The next semesters comprise the M2 phase, including a middle clinical experience. Following this phase, students complete their USMLE Step 1 licensing exam. Students then transition to their M3/M4 community campus for their late clinical experience, where they complete their clinical clerkships in their M3 year, and then focus on electives, selectives, and remaining requirements during their M4 year. They complete their USMLE Step 2 licensing exam prior to graduation.

M1 Phase, including the Early Clinical Experience

The M1 (1 year student) curriculum intentionally integrates a strong foundation of necessary basicand social sciences with clinical skills and patient and health care team interactions. Students learnskills of patient-centered interviewing, core physical exam, clinical reasoning, and a variety ofpatient care skills.

The weekly activities for an M1 student includes scholar group (learning society) sessions, basicscience sessions, anatomy and integrative biomedical laboratory sessions, and clinical simulationeach week. In addition, students regularly engage in assessment activities to assess theirunderstanding and skill development, as well as sessions focused on topics such as careeradvising, health and wellness, and optimizing academic skills. 

For the Early Clinical Experience, students engage in a focused clinical block where they participate as part of the team at a primary care clinic.

M2 Phase, including the Middle Clinical Experience

The M2 (2 year student) curriculum further integrates clinical and necessary basic science and social sciences. Students continue to meet with their learning society small groups and engage in clinical simulation and basic science-focused large group sessions.

The Middle Clinical Experience as a part of the M2 curriculum includes multiple clinical rotations. Each of these rotations have their own goals and objectives, supported by a weekly rotation-based small group session precepted by faculty. 

In addition, the M2 curriculum has six non-clinical rotations, where students learn in classroom, lab, and clinical simulation settings, and engage with patient's stories while learning the underlying basic, social, and clinical sciences. 

M3 and M4 Phases, which constitute the Late Clinical Experience

At the start of the M3 phase, students complete a Transition to Clerkships course as they prepare to enter their clerkships. The M3 year of the Late Clinical Experience provides disciplinary clerkships to prepare students for residency and a career of learning in the specialty of their interest. The major disciplines are included through rotations in family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, psychiatry, and surgery. A two-semester course series, Advanced Skills and Knowledge, occurs during the M3 year.

During the M4 year of the Late Clinical Experience, students complete a required selective in critical care, as well as a Transition to Residency course and remaining electives. 

Electives

Before graduation, students are required to complete 28 weeks (42 credits) of approved electives. At least 4 weeks must be clinical electives completed in the community to which the student is assigned for M3/M4. At least 16 weeks (24 credits) must be clinical electives involving direct patient care, and at least 4 weeks (6 credits) of clinical electives must be completed during the final two semesters of medical school. One 4-week (6 credits) clinical elective must specifically engage in the care of medically underserved patients, and the student must obtain approval and submit reflective work associated with this experience to be approved for graduation. Students are encouraged to study broadly and/or to pursue intensively their special interests through elective programs. Varied elective courses are offered, and may include research projects, courses on varied topics, and placements in clinical settings. Students may also take elective courses at other medical schools or be placed in clinical settings other than those associated with Michigan State University.

PROGRESS ASSESSMENT

From the first semester of the curriculum, and at regular intervals throughout the curriculum, a suite of progress assessments enable students and their faculty to verify learners’ achievement of competence and readiness to advance.  Progress testing is a longitudinal competency assessment that facilitates adult lifelong learning and represents the College of Human Medicine’s graduation test for the M.D. degree.  Students are evaluated on these end-competency assessments many times in their College of Human Medicine career, and must pass these assessments in order to advance through the curriculum.

The curriculum utilizes a group of assessments that include the nationally-normed multiple choice examinations associated with a professional education but do not stop at the determination of simply what our learners “know.”  A core assessment is the Progress Clinical Skills Examination assessing actual performance with standardized patients. Other assessments include multi-source feedback by their faculty, peers, and health care team members which indicates what our College of Human Medicine students “do.”  Portfolios of evidence containing essays, multimedia, reflections, scholarly products and projects are regularly reviewed by faculty to assure that acquisition of the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes is taking place, and that learners can receive anticipatory guidance to achieve not only competence, but excellence. Ongoing data flow from these multiple types of assessments assures that students, faculty, staff, and administration are engaging in continuous quality improvement. Students are guided to focus on particular areas of challenge and opportunity.

ADMISSION TO THE PROGRAM IN HUMAN MEDICINE

The College of Human Medicine Committee on Admissions strives to select qualified applicants who are academically, emotionally, motivationally, and socially competent and ready for the rigors of medical school and for a career in medicine. These competencies creates graduates who meet the bio-psycho-social needs of a diverse patient population. As a community-integrated medical school in Michigan, the college’s mission focuses on educating physicians to meet the health care needs of the people of Michigan, including the state’s underserved rural and inner-city areas. In preparation for serving a diverse patient population, the composition of the entering class of 190 students is representative of Michigan’s general population. Students come from a variety of cultural, geographic, and ethnic backgrounds. In recent history, women have comprised more than 50 percent, underrepresented minority students 20 to 25 percent, and Michigan residents 75 to 80 percent of the entering class. Since there is no preference for academic majors, applicants with varied academic backgrounds are represented in each entering class, including those with degrees in the natural sciences, applied sciences, arts, business, engineering, humanities, and social sciences.

The College of Human Medicine uses the primary application services available through the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS). Applicants may contact their premedical advisor, or contact AMCAS at http: //www.aamc.org for application information. The Committee on Admissions encourages students to submit the AMCAS application in June of the year prior to anticipated enrollment, but no later than the November 1 deadline date. The Committee also requires that all applicants submit Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) scores. The MCAT is administered multiple times throughout the year. MCAT scores are valid for three years. For more information about the MCAT, applicants should contact their premedical advisors, or the MCAT Program Office at www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat. For further information about the College of Human Medicine, request a copy of the CHM Handbook for Premedical Students, by contacting the College of Human Medicine at http://www.chm.msu.edu/

The admissions process will continue the college's traditional use of holistic review, which uses a balanced assessment of academic metrics, activities, and personal characteristics, and attributes when making admissions decisions. The College of Human Medicine Office of Admissions evaluates applicants’ AMCAS applications, including life experiences and personal statements, and letters of recommendation (personal characteristics and attributes), and academic profile (major, classes, GPA trends, MCAT scores, undergraduate institution). Admission officers from the admissions office act on direction from the admissions committee to evaluate the applications to determine the most qualified applicants to advance to the next phase of the admissions process, the interview. Students are invited to Interview Day to learn more about the College of Human Medicine through a series of highly-structured interviews and programs. Applicant interviews consists of a one-on-one interview with a medical students and a 100-minute, eight-station multiple mini-interview that incorporates faculty, staff, students, alumni, and other vested individuals. Interviewers are trained to assess applicants on the qualities the College associates with becoming exemplar physicians consistent with the mission of the college.

The Committee on Admissions makes the final admissions decisions based on the following cognitive and non-cognitive considerations:

1. Academic competence including attributes such as fulfilling the premedical requirements, grades, trend in grades, degrees earned, rigors of the degree programs, MCAT scores, research experience, and cognitive skills.
2. Experiences consistent with a commitment and success within medicine, such as clinical experiences, non-medical community service experiences, experiences with people different from self, experiences showing commitment to a community of people, mentoring experiences, leadership experiences, and teamwork experiences.
3. Personal characteristics and attributes that are consistent with a commitment and success within medicine, such as compassion, maturity, social responsibility, professional responsibility, morals and ethics, sociability, cultural competence, self-awareness calm-disposition, honesty, competence, and respect for others.

Minimum requirements which must be fulfilled prior to enrollment in the program in human medicine are:

1. Be a U.S. or Canadian citizen or permanent resident of the United States.
2. Have a valid U.S. or Canadian Driver’s License and reliable vehicle upon matriculation.
3. Have completed at least a four-year high school education or equivalent.
4. Have completed all premedical requirements, including a bachelor’s degree earned in the U.S. or Canada.
5. Have taken the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT).
6. Have taken the CASPer Test.
7. Be immunized per the CDC recommendations for health care providers.

Michigan State University-College of Human Medicine has embraced a flexible approach in providing four options (or pathways) to meeting the premedical course requirements. A description of the four premedical course requirement options can be found here: https://mdadmissions.msu.edu/applicants/prereq.html.
 

Requirements for the Doctor of Medicine Degree
1.	All of the following courses (90 credits):
	FM	641	Family Medicine Clerkship						9
	HM	552	Medical School I						16
	HM	553	Medical School II						13
	HM	603	Transition to Clerkships						1
	HM	651	Advanced Skills and Knowledge in Medical School I						3
	HM	652	Advanced Skills and Knowledge in Medical School II						3
	HM	673	Transition to Residency						3
	MED	641	Internal Medicine Clerkship						9
	OGR	641	Obstetrics and Gynecology Clerkship						9
	PHD	641	Pediatric Clerkship						9
	PSC	641	Psychiatry and Behavioral Science Clerkship						6
	SUR	651	Surgery Clerkship						9
2.	One of the following combinations (32 credits):
	a. Two (2) semester series
	HM	565	Integrated Medical School III						16
	HM	566	Integrated Medical School IV						16
	b. Three (3) semester series
	HM	562	Medical School III						13
	HM	563	Medical School IV						13
	HM	564	Integrated Topics in Human Medicine						6
3.	One of the following Critical Care Selective courses (6 credits):
	MED	643	Medicine Critical Care						6
	PHD	643	Pediatric Critical Care						6
	SUR	643	Surgical Critical Care						6
4.	Completion of 28 weeks of Elective Clerkships (42 credits):
	ANES	619	Introduction to Anesthesiology - An Anesthesia Primer						3
	ANES	620	Chronic Pain Management						6
	ANES	621	Concepts in Clinical Anesthesiology I						6
	ANES	622	Concepts in Clinical Anesthesiology II						6
	ANTR	685	Directed Study in Clinical Prosection						3 or 6
	EM	631	Clinical Experience in Emergency Medicine						3 or 6
	EM	632	Senior Clinical Elective in Emergency Medicine						6
	EM	633	Emergency Medicine Sub-Specialty Clinical Elective						3 or 6
	FM	610	Outpatient Family Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	FM	611	Geriatric Clerkship						3 or 6
	FM	612	Inpatient Family Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	FM	613	Clinical Research in Family Medicine						6
	FM	614	Breastfeeding and Lactation						3
	FM	615	Addiction Medicine						3
	FM	616	Rural Family Medicine Elective						6
	FM	617	Sports Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	FM	618	Palliative and End of Life Care Clerkship						3 or 6
	FM	619	Telemedicine Medicine Experiences in Rural Clinical Settings						3
	FM	620	Family Practice Subinternship						6
	FM	621	Advanced Addition Medicine						3
	HM	606	Student-Designed Non-Clinical Elective						3 or 6
	HM	607	Medical Reading Elective						3 or 6
	HM	608	Sub-Specialty Clerkships						6
	HM	609	Laboratory Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	HM	610	Pathology Clerkship						3 or 6
	HM	611	Hospice Clerkship						3 or 6
	HM	612	Pain Medicine						3 or 6
	HM	613	Complementary Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	HM	614	Student-Designed Clinical Elective						3 or 6
	HM	615	Global Health Experience in India						3 or 6
	HM	616	Radiation Oncology Clerkship						3 or 6
	HM	617	Introduction to Simulation Education Elective						3 or 6
	HM	622	Medical Partners in Public Health Community Resources and Wellness Programs						3 or 6
	HM	623	Medical Partners in Public Health Capstone Project Elective						3 or 6
	HM	627	Interdisciplinary Exploration with Special Populations: Veterans Affairs						6
	Hm	628	Racism and Other Health Disparities						3
	HM	629	Leadership in Medicine for the Underserved Community Elective						3 or 6
	HM	631	Leadership in Medicine for Underserved Urban or Global Elective						3 or 6
	HM	632	Rural Community Health						3 or 6
	HM	633	Advanced Rural Community Health						3 or 6
	HM	634	Indigenous Community Health						3 or 6
	HM	638	Lifestyle Medicine						3 or 6
	HM	639	Northern Wilderness, Emergency and Sports Medicine						6
	HM	648	Care of Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Workers Elective						3 or 6
	HM	691	Research Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	609	Hematology Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	610	Oncology Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	611	Cardiology Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	612	Nephrology Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	613	Dermatology Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	614	Pulmonary Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	615	Gastroenterology Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	616	Allergy Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	617	Sleep Medicine						3 or 6
	MED	618	Infectious Disease Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	619	Advanced Internal Medicine - Ambulatory						3 or 6
	MED	621	Advanced Internal Medicine - Inpatient						3 or 6
	MED	622	Endocrinology and Metabolism Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	624	Geriatric Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	626	Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	627	Rheumatology Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	628	Advanced Internal Medicine: Senior Medicine Sub-Internship						6
	MED	632	Occupational Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	MED	634	Advanced Internal Medicine: Intensive Care Medicine/Critical Care						3 or 6
	MED	636	Advanced Internal Medicine: Medicine/Pediatrics						3 or 6
	NOP	617	Clinical Experience in Neurology						3 or 6
	NOP	620	Ophthalmology Clerkship						6
	NOP	630	Senior Clinical Elective in Neurology						6 to 12
	OGR	609	Advanced Gynecology Clerkship						3 or 6
	OGR	610	Perinatology Clerkship						3 or 6
	OGR	611	Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Clerkship						3 or 6
	OGR	612	Gynecologic Oncology Clerkship						3 or 6
	OGR	614	Advanced Obstetrics Clerkship						3 or 6
	OGR	615	Obstetrics and Gynecology Sub-Internship						6
	PHD	601	Human Development and Pediatric Sub-specialties						3 or 6
	PHD	602	Ambulatory Pediatrics Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	603	Pediatric Infectious Diseases Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	604	Neonatology						3 to 12
	PHD	605	Pediatric Cardiology Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	606	Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	607	Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	608	Pediatric Pulmonary Disease Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	609	Pediatric Genetics Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	610	Pediatric Allergy-Immunology Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	611	Pediatric Critical Care Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	612	Pediatric Gastroenterology Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	613	Pediatric Emergency Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	614	Pediatric Nephrology Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	615	Pediatric Neurology Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	616	Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	617	Pediatric Adolescent Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	618	Pediatrics Sub-Internship						3 or 6
	PHD	619	Pediatric Hospital Medicine Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	620	Child Abuse Pediatrics Clerkship						3 or 6
	PHD	621	Pediatric Rheumatology Clerkship						3 or 6
	PSC	609	Adult Psychiatry Clerkship						3 or 6
	PSC	610	Child Psychiatry Clerkship						3 or 6
	PSC	611	Addiction Psychiatry Clerkship						3 or 6
	PSC	612	Geriatric Psychiatry Clerkship						3 or 6
	RAD	609	Radiology Clerkship						3 or 6
	RAD	610	Advanced Imaging						3
	RAD	612	Interventional Radiology						3 or 6
	SUR	609	Otolaryngology Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	610	Plastic Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	611	Urology Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	612	General Surgery Sub-Internship						6
	SUR	613	Orthopedic Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	614	Neurosurgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	615	Ophthalmology Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	616	Cardiothoracic Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	617	Critical Care Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	618	Anesthesia Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	619	Sub-specialty Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	622	Pediatrics Orthopedic Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	623	Sports Medicine Orthopedic Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	624	Vascular Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	625	Hand Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	626	Pediatric Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	627	Burns Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	628	Trauma Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	629	Colorectal Surgery Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	630	Surgical Wound Care Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	631	Surgical Oncology Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	632	Surgical Nutrition Clerkship						3 or 6
	SUR	634	Neurosurgery Sub-Internship						6
	SUR	635	Perioperative Trauma Medicine						6

Transfer Credits

For a student who is pursuing a full-time M.B.A. degree from MSU jointly with a Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree from Michigan State University - College of Human Medicine, a maximum of 12 credits from the MSU College of Human Medicine may be transferred to the full-time M.B.A. degree program.

Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Admission Pathway

MSU-CHM provides an Oral Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) Pathway for students accepted to the College of Human Medicine who have successfully completed a D.D.S degree and have been accepted to the Henry Ford Hospital Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Residency Program. These students will begin the M2 year upon matriculation, and will complete the remainder of the M.D. program credits through the MD/OMFS residency track program, receiving a waiver for 41 credits. OMFS students must complete all listed Requirements for the Doctor of Medicine degree except for the differences outlined here:

• Exempted from taking HM 552 and HM 553.
• Instead of HM 562, must complete HM 544 Med School III, 10 credits.
• Instead of HM 564, must complete HM 549 Integrated Topics in Human Medicine, 9 credits.
• From the Critical Care Selectives, OMFS students must complete MED 643 Medicine Critical Care, 6 credits.
• Must complete a total of 30 credits of electives for graduation, and are exempted from 12 credits. One elective must be SUR 635 Perioperative Trauma Medicine, 6 credits.