The first- and second-year curriculum provides students with foundations in both the basic sciences and the clinical skills required for patient care. Classes consist of lectures, laboratories, small group discussions, workshops and team-based and self-directed learning. The hallmark of the curriculum is the merging of traditional science disciplines with patient interaction and clinical skills development.

 

Basic Sciences: 
The M1 curriculum is organized into seven organ-based blocks, each covering traditional basic science disciplines taught through the use of two or more case studies. In the Fall of 2012, the M2 curriculum will also use this model of teaching. Grading for the block curriculum is honors (for the top 15% of the class), pass or fail.

 

Clinical Skills: 
The physicianship program, which spans the M1 and M2 years, provides students with the skills to work interactively with patients in the health care setting, including instruction in interviewing, history-taking, physical examination and other required skills. The program begins immediately after M1 orientation with a two-week clinical skills intensive (CSI-Rush), which immerses students in clinical skills. Thereafter, students embark on the student continuity experience (SCE) in which they spend one-half day every other week through the end of the M2 year working with a physician in a medical office in the Chicago area. This unique opportunity allows students to become part of a medical practice and to experience continuity of care with patients. Grading for the physicianship program is pass or fail.