A Model for Implementing Medical Student Career Development Courses

Abstract

OPEN ACCESSAugust 20, 2010A Model for Implementing Medical Student Career Development Courses Anita Navarro, MEd Anita Navarro, MEd Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Google Scholar More articles by this author https://doi.org/10.15766/mep_2374-8265.8197 SectionsAboutAbstract ToolsDownload Citations ShareFacebookTwitterEmail AbstractAbstract Introduction: Medical students make career decisions with life-long implications during school. Careful decisions about specialty decisions are paramount to physician satisfaction. Further, the career decisions students make are increasingly important as the number of residency slots remain stagnant against the rising number of medical school graduates. This module contains materials for a required career course and an elective that are both geared for M2 students. The required course offers basic information about The Match, while the elective provides information on a personalized approach to specialty choice. Methods: This resource provides facilitator course guides for both the required course and elective, as well as lesson plans for each of sessions of the courses. A student syllabus is also provided for each course. Results: Taught since 2004, the elective grew in popularity until it became prudent to offer the content to all second-year students. Thus, all of our 200 second-year students are required to participate in the fall course. The spring course has always been an elective and enrollment has stabilized at about 12–20 students. The courses are well rated by students and enrollment in the elective has been consistent. Discussion: Choosing a specialty can be a difficult decision, and several U.S. medical schools have recently begun to support this process through curriculum strategies. This module offers one way to offer medical student career development with two courses. A medical school could attempt either a second-year student elective or a required course or both as presented here. Educational Objectives By the end of this session learners will be able to: Explain the basic process of The Match.Articulate The Match process from the perspective of selected residency directors, including candidate qualifications.Describe the best practices in writing and/or updating their curriculum vitae.Demonstrate advanced techniques for writing an effective personal statement for residency programs.Identify the implications of personal finances and career decisions.Discuss career options related to personality, skills, values, interests, and lifestyle factors. Sign up for the latest publications from MedEdPORTAL Add your email below FILES INCLUDEDReferencesRelatedDetails FILES INCLUDED Included in this publication: Instructor's Guide.doc Careers in Medicine Course Syllabus.doc Careers in Medicine Course Facilitator's Guide.doc Careers in Medicine Elective Syllabus.doc Careers in Medicine Elective Facilitator Guide.doc To view all publication components, extract (i.e., unzip) them from the downloaded .zip file. Download editor’s noteThis publication may contain technology or a display format that is no longer in use. Copyright & Permissions© 2010 Navarro. This is an open-access publication distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial license.KeywordsSpecialty Choice Disclosures None to report. Funding/Support None to report. Prior Presentations Navarro A. Study of Student Career Decisions: What We've Learned and Applied to two Careers in Medicine Courses. Presented at: Association of American Medical Colleges Professional Development Conference; June 2009. Navarro A, Lawson S. The Role of an M2 Careers in Medicine Elective in Student Career Decision-Making. Presented at: Association of American Medical Colleges Professional Development Conference; June 2007. Loading ...