Cooper Medical School of Rowan Univerisity
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MD Curriculum

As a new medical school, CMSRU had the opportunity to start from a blank page when designing our program for the MD degree. Our goal was to develop a curriculum that is student-centered, and that fosters an attitude of lifelong learning. The program objectives are aligned with our mission and core values, including diversity, professionalism, patient advocacy and civic responsibility, personal mentorship, collaboration and mutual respect.

With the above guides, we provide a curriculum that allows our students to learn in a supportive and collegial environment, integrating fundamental knowledge of the basic sciences with early clinical exposure, highlighting the critical nature of patient-centered care.

CMSRU’s curriculum is broken down into two phases. Phase I is the Foundation and Integration, where students will learn the underlying framework upon which clinical care is based. Phase II is Application, Exploration and Advancement, where teaching will take place in a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings at our clinical affiliates. Throughout all four years, the student-run Ambulatory Clerkship will give students early and ongoing exposure to patient- and family-centered care, providing care to the most underserved urban populations of Camden.

In CMSRU’s state of the art, Medical Education Building (scheduled completion in June of 2012), students will learn in a variety of settings, with most of their in-class time spent in our Active Learning Rooms. These rooms are the students’ “home base” on campus, where groups of 8-10 students and faculty facilitators will meet to discuss and reflect on a variety of curricular topics.

In CMSRU’s Clinical Simulation Center (also in the Medical Education Building), computerized mannequins, standardized patients, virtual reality, and other technologies will be used to allow students to practice and hone their clinical skills – from basic CPR to high-risk, rare medical problems. Live monitoring, recording, and observation will allow debriefing for students and teams in a reflective and collegial environment.

Integrated throughout the curriculum are the standards of professionalism, ethics, and a systems-based approach to care, allowing for students to prepare for the reality of caring for patients in the 21st century.