Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine Office of Student Affairs

1. Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of MedicineOffice of Student Affairs CLASS OF 2011 INTRODUCTION TO FOURTH YEAR SCHEDULING & PLANNING

2. Agenda • Fourth Year & Clerkship Track System • Lottery Process • Required clerkships • Elective requirements, registration & VSAS • USMLE Step 2 requirements & timing • Residency Planning: Future Meetings • Online Resources

3. Table of Contents • Slides 4 – 12: 4th Year Overview • 13 – 19: Required Clerkships (Sub-Is and Neuro) • 20 – 25: Electives • 26 – 30: 4th Year by Season • 31 – 33: Intramural Electives • 34 – 43: Extramural Electives • 45 – 46: Discretionary Time • 47 – 49: Step 2 Exams • 50 – 53: Prep for Residency Application

4. Handout • Clerkship Track System and Its Policies • Lottery Timeline • Lottery Numbers • Fourth Year Calendar • Timeline for Elective Registration Calendar • 4th Yr Planning Sheet

5. Calendar • Yr 4 starts July 6, 2010 (July = Period “9A”) • Will there be a start of year orientation program this year? TBA • Qtrly break weeks at end of Sept, December, none formally assigned at end of March • Match Day and Graduation dates tentatively posted

6. Fourth Year Overview of Requirements • 12 weeks of core clerkships • Neurology, Sub-I Wards, Sub-I ICU) • 34 weeks of elective time available • 26 weeks min. requirement • Bioethics Requirements • Completion of Ethics Case Paper • Completion of Ethics Grand Rounds (min. of 4 sessions) • USMLE Step 2 CK and CS

7. Core Clerkships • One 4-week Wards Subinternship Offered eachperiod 9A (July) through 12A (April), except 10C (December) • One 4-week Critical Care Subinternship Offered each period 9A (July) through 12A (April), except 10C (December) • One 4-week Neurology Clerkship Offered eachperiod 9A (July) through 12A (April)

8. Bioethics Requirement • Ethics case paper due July 9, 2010 • Four Ethics Grand Rounds must be completed cumulatively over 2nd, 3rd and 4th years

9. Elective Curriculum • 34 weeks available in track • 26 weeks minimum graduation requirement • 8 weeks = additional elective time or “discretionary time” (use “DT” for extra electives, USMLE study, residency interview time, personal, etc.)

10. Fourth Yr Track Features • Flexibility • Opportunity for student choice • One required core clerkship and two electives in each of first three quarters • Availability of at least half of the elective time in first half of the year

11. Fourth Yr Track System • Assigned to track by lottery • Computer generated lottery number • Rank order all tracks • Submit rank form by January 28, 2010 on myLUMEN

12. Picking a track… • Consider what your elective and residency choice needs may be in each quarter • Consider when you might take USMLE Step 2 CK and CS • Consider which core clerkships could prep you best for the key electives you will take

13. Attendance • Limited time off for serious reasons in both subinternships and neurology (3 days including weekend days) • Final exam schedule is NOT changeable • Plan holiday or interview travel after only determining the date & time of day of exams • Labor Day is a holiday but not a 3 day weekend if service team is not off • Thanksgiving is a four day holiday weekend

14. Clerkship Requirements • Purpose and Assignment Process

15. Subinternships 4-weeks: in-pt medicine (“Sub-I Wards”) LU, VA, MacNeal, West Sub • 4-weeks: intensive care unit (“Sub-I ICU”) • medicine, surgery, pediatrics, or OB • LU, VA, MacNeal, Resurrection, or West Sub

16. Purpose of subinternships • Focus on skills and attitudes necessary to care for hospitalized and critically ill patients • Emphasis is on patient care in the context of wards or ICU; emphasis not on the specialty • Thus, subinternships are posted on SSOM transcript without specialty noted (transcript reads only “Subintern-Wards” and “Subintern-ICU”)

17. Subinternship assignments • Opportunity will be provided to submit preference rank lists for site/service • Assignments by lottery to services & sites by late winter through Dr. Fitz’s office (separate lottery process, using track rank list in reverse order)

18. Neurology Clerkship • In- and out-patient experiences • LUMC and HVA hospital sites • Site assignment by lottery about a month before the clerkship starts

19. Rescheduling Sub-I or Neuro • Changes may be possible according to track system traffic rules • May trade entire track or individual clerkship • After Subinternship site/service assignments are created, changes must be initiated through Debi Kurcab in the Med Dept.

20. ELECTIVES • Policies & registration process • Purpose of elective curriculum • How to design your program

21. Electives • Course Descriptions online in SSOM Elective Catalog • Usually are 4 weeks in length • Several 2-week electives available • At least 20 weeks of your elective program must consist of full –time electives that are at least 4-weeks in length • 26 weeks of electives = minimum graduation requirement

22. Electives (continued) • 12 weeks of elective time permitted away (“extramurals”) • 12 weeks permitted in any specialty • Excludes time in core clerkships in the specialty • Includes electives at Loyola and away • Includes clinical and research courses • Other elective policies in catalog preface

23. Purpose of Electives • Broadens & strengthens clinical experience • Tests interest in an area of specialization • Provides research or special opportunities • Permits self determination & responsibility for content of program

24. Building Your Elective Program Content • Use “Specialty Elective Guide” at online Loyola Elective Catalog site • Talk to faculty and specialty advisor(s) • Attend specialty department sessions & ask questions • Talk to faculty in your field(s) of interest • See Dean Wronski or Dean Mendez for input • Attend SAS programs

25. Keep Objectives in Mind • Electives should provide a broad-based educational opportunity • They are not intended solely as a residency job search tool • What you take is critical to your preparation for internship/residency and USMLE Step 2

26. 4th Year Goals by Season • Focus of each quarter • Summer • Fall • Winter • Spring

27. Summer Goals • Solidify specialty interest • May/may not need to take specialty elective at Loyola to earn a recommendation letter (depends on prior exposure) • Summer work may bump up performance level • Courses provides prep for important externships • May need study wks/month for USMLE Step 2 prep • Preparation of residency application starts • Externships start

28. Fall Goals • Externships continue • Residency interview season kicks in; will you need time off? Should you take DT? • Should you plan an away elective geographically to place you in proximity to residency interview locales? • Sept/Oct courses could still produce residency recommendation letters • Complete Step 2 study and take CK and CS (more on this later)

29. Winter Goals • Take courses to round out your education • Prepare for starting a residency (what do you still need to learn?) • Step 2 study time if still pending • Rank residencies for match (late Jan-Feb) • International elective?

30. Spring Goals • Complete graduation requirements • Take enrichment courses • International elective? • Take residency prep electives offered at SSOM • Get tuition’s worth by staying enrolled • Take DT for personal/transitional use

31. Elective Registration Process • How & When to Register

32. Loyola (intramural) elective sign up • Through submission of an application • Must adhere to the official “timetable for elective registration” (in today’s packet) • Sign up starts about 5 months in advance of the each elective month’s start date

33. Elective RegistrationIntramurals (Loyola) • Review course descriptions & policies in elective catalog online • Online elective registration through myLUMEN • More info from ORR closer to first opening registration date (1st week of March)

34. Externships (extramural electives) • Up to 12 weeks permitted usually through another US med school • Loyola sign up Timetable does NOT apply • Reference AAMC Extramural Elective Compendium for timeline, websites, contact person at site (link available in Loyola Elective Catalog website) • Sign up 1 – 5 months in advance of start date; typically April – mid-May for summer courses. • CHECK YOUR EXTRAMURAL SITE’S SIGN UP DATE!

35. Purpose of externships • To get an excellent learning experience • To help narrow specialty interests • To see a program of interest first hand • To work with an outstanding faculty • To show your stuff & perhaps get a recommendation letter • To assess a program’s compatibility with your needs • To do unique non-hospital based experiences

36. Do you need to do 3 externships (12 weeks)? • It depends… • On your interests, profile, specialty field and geographical considerations • Most students should do one or two • Some specialties discourage more than one elective in the field; others promote student enrollment in several. SEEK ADVICE!

37. Externship Course descriptions • Online at other school’s web site • Or provided by school’s contact office (listed in AAMC Extramural Compendium)

38. Extramural Registration • Review policies in SSOM catalog • Review visiting student policies in other school’s catalog • Application • – on line Visiting Student Application Service (VSAS) OR • paper application packet submitted to site through SSOM Reg & Rec

39. Visiting Student Application Service • Developed by AAMC • About half of US medical schools use VSAS to process visiting student applications; the others use their own paper applications. • See http://www.aamc.org/programs/vsas/students/start.htm for a list of schools using VSAS (will be updated for ’10-11 year in late January). • More info about VSAS forthcoming from Registration & Records

40. Extramural Registrationfor schools not using VSAS • Complete Loyola’s extramural application AND • Complete other institution’s Visiting Student Application • Often possible to list more than one date or several elective preferences • Compile supporting documents; submit to Tess Kazda in Registration & Records • Dean Mendez will review and approve application; application packet will then be mailed to extramural school

41. Extramural Registrationadditional documentation (submitted via VSAS or by paper) Typical Supporting documents • Proof of liability coverage • Current immunization record • Proof of UP/OSHA/HIPAA training • Proof of hospitalization insurance • Possibly SSOM transcript • Possibly faculty/dean’s letter of recommendation • Possibly criminal background check record • Affiliation agreement? Memo of Understanding?

42. Elective Add/Drop Policy • Add: register for electives at least one month prior to start date • Drop (Loyola courses): at least one month prior • Drop (Extramurals): according to other institution’s policy, typically 4 – 6 weeks prior

43. Discretionary Time Use • Time for Additional Elective Opportunities OR • For USMLE Step 2 study time • Residency Interview time off • For extramural calendar adjustment (other school’s calendar doesn’t match Stritch’s) • For remediation needs • For personal needs

44. Applying for Discretionary Time Off • May be taken in one week or longer increments • Request must be submitted in advance • Submit Discretionary Time requests through myLUMEN Elective Registration page

45. USMLE STEP 2 CK & CS • Requirement & Timing • USMLE Step 2 CK & CS must be PASSED to graduate and these scores should be reported at least one month prior to graduation, approx May 1st. • However, residency considerations will require you to have scores available much earlier than May 1st to meet those expectations – likely before mid-February

46. USMLE Step 2 planning: Residency considerations • Early test = take before Sept 30 (scores out before interviews are offered) • Mid-yr test = take by end of Nov (scores out before residency’s make rank decisions) • Late test = after mid-January (scores out after match ranking finished) (not recommended)

47. USMLE Step 2 CK & CS timing • CK: • Scores reported approx 6 weeks after test date. • Take before January 1st to have score available by mid –February before residency rank list is due • CS: Scores are reported according to a block schedule: http://www.usmle.org/Examinations/step2/step2cs_reporting.html May 16 - July 17 – reported Aug 18 - Sep 15, 2010 Jul 18 -Sep 11 – reported Oct 13 - Nov 10 Sep 12 -Nov 6 - reported Dec 8 - Jan 5, 2011 Nov 7 - Dec 31 – reported Feb 2, 2011 - Feb 23, 2011 Jan 1 – Feb 27 – reported by end of April (tentative/projected date)

48. Residency Planning • You may want to know now…

49. Residency Letters of Recommendation • Up to four letters for ERAS/NRMP programs; often only 3 are requested. • Up to three for early match programs • Request letters when opportunities present • Submitted by writer to Student Affairs with 2011 ERAS cover letter in June – mid-Sept (cover letter available in June)

50. CV and Personal Statement • Feedback on CV’s recently submitted • May submit updated copy this spring for Dean’s Letter use (due date TBA) • Personal paragraph needed for dean’s letter - Instructions and timeline will be provided