MGCS Supplemental Learning

Not all learning occurs during typical coursework or clinical experiences. At the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, we are proud to offer many supplemental experiences to strengthen the foundation on which you will build your professional competency.

Wisconsin Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities

Wisconsin Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (WI LEND) provides interdisciplinary and leadership training for graduate students and community professionals to improve systems of care that promote the prevention of disabilities and assure access to services for children with neurodevelopmental and related disabilities and their families.

Trainees gain competencies in interdisciplinary clinical care, family needs and preferences, and the public health system.

UW Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education

The UW Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education (UW CIPE)‘s mission is to work collaboratively locally, nationally and globally to champion, integrate and advance Interprofessional Practice and Education (IPE) to achieve the “Quadruple Aim:” better health, better care, better value and better work experience. The center provides a variety of learning opportunities for students, faculty, staff and practitioners at UW–Madison and our partners. All students complete two of the four competencies with the option to complete the entire series to earn an IPE Fundamental Badge or pursue the Path of Distinction in IPE.

Adam Rennebohm Perinatal Bereavement Conference

Hosted at the University of Wisconsin in conjunction with Resolve Through Sharing, the conference focuses on perinatal bereavement education. Participation is open to health care professionals providing perinatal care such as genetic counselors, nurses, medical doctors, physician assistants, certified nurse midwives, social workers and chaplains.

This interdisciplinary approach helps participants understand the family experience surrounding perinatal loss. Support is provided by the Adam Rennebohm Endowment Fund.

More about the conference

Center for Patient Partnerships

The Center for Patient Partnerships (CPP) is a patient advocacy service offered to patients with serious or life-threatening medical conditions. Services provided by the CPP range significantly, with the overarching goal of helping a patient navigate their way through the medical world. The genetic counseling training program at UW–Madison in collaboration with the CPP offers an optional certificate in consumer health advocacy.

UW Clinical Teaching and Assessment Center

The mission of the UW Clinical Teaching and Assessment Center (CTAC) at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health is to provide health professions students and faculty with opportunities to practice and demonstrate clinical skills in a setting that duplicates the real world as closely as possible. Students have the unique opportunity to practice and observe their own developing skills in genetic counseling.

University of Wisconsin Grand Rounds

UW School of Medicine and Public Health features a variety of weekly Grand Rounds, covering cutting-edge topics related to the practice of medicine in all specialties. Department faculty, residents and medical students, as well as community-based health care providers and specialists, benefit from these clinically relevant lectures presented by UW faculty and guest faculty from around the country.

John D. Wiley Seminar Series

The John D. Wiley weekly seminar series is held at the UW Waisman Center, where world class experts in the areas of development, developmental disabilities, genetics and neurodegenerative disease are invited to discuss current research.

Genetics Education Series

Students, clinical staff, faculty and fellows participate in a weekly journal club and case conference series. Discussions include current patient cases and review of research articles from leading scientific journals.

Build-a-Lab-GC with PreventionGenetics

Students participate in a lab-based genetic counseling experience in collaboration with PreventionGenetics, an accredited clinical DNA testing laboratory based in Marshfield, Wisconsin. This unique experience is virtual and includes students from other genetic counseling training programs. It is completed in the summer between the first and second year of training and provides students with a range of experiences that a genetic counselor working in a non-patient-facing role would encounter, as well as the opportunity to network with future colleagues. These activities build on skills developed and knowledge learned in the first year of training, with the ultimate goal of understanding the role of a genetic counselor in a lab-based setting.

Global Health Certificate

Students may apply for the graduate certificate program in Global Health. The largely asynchronous, online format provides maximum flexibility for students to complete the certificate within the timeline of the Master of Genetic Counselor Studies (MGCS) training, so extra time on campus is not required. The certificate includes additional coursework during each semester of training and a fieldwork option during the summer between the first and second year of training. Students matched with the MGCS program need to apply to the Global Health certificate program immediately upon the announcement of the match results.