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Contact Us
Office of Admissions
Walter G. Ross Hall, Suite 716
Phone: (202) 994-3506
Fax: (202) 994-1753
Email: medadmit@gwu.edu
Office of Financial Aid
Walter G. Ross Hall, Suite 711
Phone: (202) 994-2960
Fax: (202) 994-9488
Email: medfinan@gwu.edu
Office of Student Opportunities
Walter G. Ross Hall, Suite 718
Phone: (202) 994-2295
Fax: (202) 994-4740
Email: oso@gwumc.edu
Doctor of Medicine Degree Program Curriculum
The curriculum leading to the Doctor of Medicine degree is designed to provide a medical education that prepares graduates comprehensively for residency training, provides them the experience on which to base their career selection, and prepares them for professional lives of continuous learning.
The Practice of Medicine, a course that spans all four years, provides early patient exposure and the means to develop outstanding clinical thinking, technical skills, and a sense of professionalism. In the first two years, the Practice of Medicine offers a clinical apprenticeship in which each student is placed with a practicing Primary Care clinician one day every other week, while on alternate weeks students meet in small groups with faculty mentors to learn clinical assessment skills and to consider ethical, social, and professional issues. In addition, problem-based learning is conducted through small-group, case-based tutorials.
The balance of the curriculum in Years I and II is devoted to didactic basic science instruction. In Year I, that instruction is concentrated on the study of normal human biology and function, with specific courses in gross and microscopic anatomy, biochemistry/genetics, physiology, neurobiology, immunology and behavioral medicine/psychopathology. In Year II, instruction is focused on the study of abnormal human biology, with courses in pathology, pharmacology, and microbiology, followed by Introduction to Clinical Medicine, an interdisciplinary pathophysiology course organized in terms of organ systems.
During the final two years, the M.D. program consists primarily of a series of required clerkships and elective sequences designed to prepare students for graduate training in any field of their choice, while at the same time providing them with extensive exposure to a variety of fields sufficient to enable them to make appropriate career decisions. Basic science content is re-examined and reinforced in the continuing Practice of Medicine course where, among other multidisciplinary considerations, the implications and applications of the basic sciences to the understanding and management of clinical problems are explored, and topics of ethics and patient management are handled on a more sophisticated level.
Third-year required clerkships of eight weeks each include Medicine, Surgery, Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Psychiatry, and Primary Care. In the fourth year, students are required to complete an acting internship in Medicine, Pediatrics, or Family Medicine; clerkships in Neuroscience, Emergency Medicine, and Anesthesiology; and 14 weeks of electives. A variety of elective experiences is available to meet these requirements at the University and its affiliated hospitals; permission may also be granted to take a limited number of electives elsewhere.
CLASS Center
GW's Clinical Learning and Simulation Skills Center (CLASS) Center provides students with one of the most innovative educational environments in the nation. Exemplifying the old adage "practice makes perfect," this facility enables students to supplement their classroom learning with comprehensive clinical exposure, feedback, and evaluation that prepare them to become both technically adept and compassionate caregivers for their patients. This hands-on learning environment proves invaluable in preparation for the USMLE Step II Clinical Knowledge Exam.