Overview
The OU College of Medicine MD program consists of basic science and clinical coursework designed to help students master the core knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary for the practice of medicine. The four-year curriculum consists of two track options: the traditional track offered on the main academic medical center campus in Oklahoma City and the School of Community Medicine (SCM) track offered on the regional branch campus in Tulsa. While the core curriculum on both campuses is identical, the SCM track emphasizes community-based healthcare and the healthcare needs of the under-served. Students must choose a track during the admissions process.
The core curriculum is guided by six competency areas: Patient Care, Medical Knowledge, Practice-Based Learning and Improvement, Interpersonal and Communication Skills, Professionalism, and Systems-Based Practice. Coursework emphasizes both the human and personal qualities of professional development and the scientific foundations of medicine. Patient contact is a major component of each of the four years of medical school beginning with student interactions with standardized patients and extending to hospital and ambulatory settings during subsequent coursework. Students are required to take and pass Step 1 of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) prior to beginning third year clinical rotations. Students must take the USMLE Step 2 examination (including the Clinical Knowledge and Clinical Skills components) during the fourth year and report their score. The average length of enrollment from matriculation to graduation is 4 years.
The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center College of Medicine ensures that MD program expectations, learning objectives, and educational outcomes offered at the Oklahoma City campus and the SCM campus are consistent. Program outcomes between the OKC campus and the SCM campus are evaluated yearly by course directors and reported to the Medical Education Committee and dean of the college
Preclinical Curriculum (Years One and Two)
The College offers a modern integrated, systems-based preclinical curriculum. The preclinical curriculum is designed to emphasize the connections between basic and clinical science concepts, promote learning and retention, encourage independent study and self-assessment, and provide students with opportunities to complement their basic science coursework with enrichment experiences. Students are divided into small "module" groups, a unique aspect to our medical school.
Classroom and laboratory studies are complemented with compelling clinical correlations and case studies, problem and team-based learning, and an extensive online curriculum. The preclinical curriculum includes early exposure to patients in the integrated Clinical Medicine I and II courses. Students learn interviewing skills on standardized patients and practice clinical skills in a new state-of-the-art clinical skills center. The second year curriculum concludes with a novel second-year Capstone course designed to facilitate the integration of concepts introduced during the systems-based courses. Second year medical students must take and pass Step 1 of the USMLE examination prior to being promoted to the third year.\
Clinical Curriculum (Years Three and Four)
Depending on which educational track the student is enrolled in, the clinical curriculum may be taken at either the Oklahoma City or Tulsa campus. The clinical curriculum in Oklahoma City is primarily based at the OU Medical Center and Veterans Affairs hospitals. The Tulsa clinical curriculum uses community hospitals such as Saint Francis Hospital, St. John Hospital, and Hillcrest Medical Center.
All clinical students are required to take core clerkships in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Neurology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, and Surgery. Senior students have a required Geriatrics clerkship, a fourth-year Capstone course, a subinternship rotation, and numerous clinical electives that may be taken on or off campus. During the clinical curriculum students select three two-week "selective" courses from a variety of sub-specialty areas.
Senior students participate in the National Residency Match Program to secure their residency program positions.
Graduation Eligibility Requirements
All MD Program grading, promotion and graduation requirements (including timelines, academic requirements, and non-academic requirements such as immunizations) are stipulated by the College of Medicine Policy Manual.
A fourth-year student must successfully complete all required examinations and scheduled coursework in order to be eligible for graduation. No student may graduate without the recommendation of the College of Medicine faculty.
After completion of the core required clerkships in the third year, all medical students must take and pass a standardized clinical skills assessment (i.e., the Objective Structured Clinical Exam). A student who does not meet the established proficiency standard must undergo remediation and further assessment.
In order to graduate from the College of Medicine, a student must receive a grade of "P" (Pass), "S" (Satisfactory), "C" letter grade or better in all courses. No fourth-year student may be considered for graduation with a failing grade (i.e., “D”, “U”, or “F”) being the grade of record in any course. All failing grades must be satisfactorily cleared in accordance with existing academic policy before a fourth-year student may be graduated.
Fourth year medical students must take and report their scores on the USMLE Step 2 examination. This includes both the Clinical Knowledge and Clinical Skills components.