Curriculum Years 3-4
Third- and fourth-year students in the MD Program at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison rotate through required and elective clerkships and a preceptorship at sites throughout Wisconsin, where they gain broad exposure to many aspects of medicine and public health in outpatient, inpatient, community-based, rural and inner-city settings.
As students advance through their clinical years, they have increased opportunities to tailor their electives to their interests and goals.
During the third year, students attend Core Curriculum Days at the Health Sciences Learning Center in Madison. These days consist of active learning about topics such as health care disparities, palliative care and unanticipated outcomes. A Transitional Clerkship that orients students as they enter their clinical years occurs in early July before rotations begin.
Third-year students are also responsible for completing a Patient Safety Curriculum that includes a number of online modules and clinical activity focusing on medication reconciliation.
Students experience seven core clerkships that must be completed by the end of the third year:
Students will complete two required clerkships in either the third or fourth year:
The fourth year includes additional required rotations, including the Internal Medicine Subinternship, Surgery selectives, and a community-based Preceptorship. Students spend their remaining time in electives, including many focused on public health.
View the Clinical Years Requirements (pdf)
On average, students spend about 16 weeks outside of Madison at rotations that include:
- Aurora Sinai Medical Center in Milwaukee
- Marshfield Clinic in Marshfield
- Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center in La Crosse
- Sites in Green Bay, Eau Claire, Wausau, Minocqua, Rice Lake and Appleton
The Year-End Professional Skills Exam (YEPSA) is a performance-based exam given at the end of the third year. It is similar in format to an Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE), and typically includes 11-13 stations. The School of Medicine and Public Health core clinical competencies are tested and evaluated during these stations. Passing YEPSA is a graduation requirement.
Track Assignments in 2012-13
Wisconsin Academy for Rural Medicine (WARM)
- Green Bay: (includes Howards Grove, Two Rivers, Plymouth, Shawano): 5 third-year students and 5 fourth-year students
- La Crosse (includes Whitehall, Decorah, IA; West Union, IA; Prairie du Chien, Tomah): 10 third-year students and 7 fourth-year students
- Marshfield: 5 third-year students and 6 fourth-year students
Training in Urban Medicine and Public Health (TRIUMPH)
The UW School of Medicine and Public Health has accepted 16 second-year students into the Training in Urban Medicine and Public Health (TRIUMPH) program for the 2012-13 academic year. Eight will join the Summer/Fall TRIUMPH program from July-December; eight will join the full TRIUMPH program from January 2013 through the fourth year.
Each group of students will complete Primary Care, Internal Medicine, the Community and Public Health Enrichment Experience (CAPHENE) and Obstetrics-Gynecology in Milwaukee. Students in the abbreviated Summer/Fall TRIUMPH program will be in Milwaukee for five months of their third year; students in the full TRIUMPH will complete five months of their third year, and most of their fourth year in Milwaukee.