Academic Medicine MS

Major: Academic Medicine
Degree Awarded: Master of Science
Calendar Type: Semester
Minimum Required Credits: 36.0 + research-based publication; Additional 25.0 credits for concentration in otolaryngology
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 51.1199
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 25-1071

Note: This program is currently not accepting students.

About the Program

Exceptional residents often pursue scholarly activities in addition to fulfilling their other residency requirements. This program is designed for those residents who publish research and pursue scholarly activities in addition to their typical residency training, and who desire to pursue careers in clinical education in their field of interest.

Students pursuing an MS in Academic Medicine must designate a concentration. At this time the first available concentration is the field of otolaryngology.

The MS in Academic Medicine is designed to address topics of value to the academic physician, including training in leadership, education, ethics, professionalism, public health, health accreditation, statistics, bioepidemiology, research techniques, medical writing and editing, grant writing, research regulations, public speaking and academic health center management. These are topics typically important to educators, but not commonly covered in depth during residency training.

Goals and Objectives

The MS in Academic Medicine provides a structured pathway for physicians planning careers as clinical educators to acquire specialized knowledge and to demonstrate a special expertise in teaching. The objectives of the MS in Academic Medicine include:

• Training young physicians to be skilled clinical educators
• Providing students with core knowledge about academic medicine that is not included systematically in residency training programs
• Encouraging research
• Exposing students to the process of supervising and mentoring research
• Encouraging lifelong continued study of materials and methods for clinical education

Examinations

All residents are required to take in-service training examinations annually. This is a national, standardized test provided for each clinical specialty. Performance at the 70th percentile or better in this examination is considered a passing grade for the MS. Alternatively, board certification would be sufficient to acknowledge that the student has mastered a body of knowledge suitable for the MS degree. Each clinical specialty has its own (very rigorous) requirements for board certification, supervised by the American Board of Medical Specialties.

Admission Requirements

Applications are reviewed by the department in which the degree is offered (for example: otolaryngology–head and neck surgery).

Recommendations for acceptance are presented to the Biomedical Graduate Education Committee of the College of Medicine for final approval. The requirements for admission include but are not limited to:

• Enrollment in an ACGME-approved residency program
• Satisfactory completion of at least one year of residency
• A letter of recommendation from the applicant's department chair or program director
• An in-person interview
• Medical school transcript

Additional Information

Visit the Office of Biomedical Graduate Studies Admissions website for more detailed information about applying to the program, including important application dates.

Degree Requirements

A minimum of 36.0 semester credits are required with a B average or better. Thus, the course of study for the MS in Academic Medicine will be in addition to the standard curriculum for residents plus the requirement of a research-based, first-authored publication.

Research Requirements

Each candidate for the MS will conduct a research project under the guidance of their advisory committee. In most cases this project will encompass clinical or bench research that will result in a first-author publication in a peer-reviewed journal. (Case reports are not sufficient for fulfilling this requirement.) However if the student is involved in scholarly activity of another nature that is deemed sufficiently rigorous by the advisory committee, flexibility to recognize and accept other activities is intended. For example, such activities might include writing a book or developing the curriculum for a new academic program.

Required courses for concentration in Otolaryngology

25.0 semester credits

Writing-Intensive Course Requirements

In order to graduate, all students must pass three writing-intensive courses after their freshman year. Two writing-intensive courses must be in a student's major. The third can be in any discipline. Students are advised to take one writing-intensive class each year, beginning with the sophomore year, and to avoid “clustering” these courses near the end of their matriculation. Transfer students need to meet with an academic advisor to review the number of writing-intensive courses required to graduate.

A "WI" next to a course in this catalog may indicate that this course can fulfill a writing-intensive requirement. For the most up-to-date list of writing-intensive courses being offered, students should check the Writing Intensive Course List at the University Writing Program. Students scheduling their courses can also conduct a search for courses with the attribute "WI" to bring up a list of all writing-intensive courses available that term.