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Career Counseling

The chief objective of the University of Connecticut School of Medicine is to train students to be superior physicians, who are broadly prepared to enter all fields of medicine. Choosing a career specialty is the single most important academic decision facing medical students, and students often begin thinking about this immediately after matriculation. UConn has taken a liberal-arts approach to designing the curriculum, to provide students with fundamental skills and knowledge in order to be successful in any field, and simultaneously providing comprehensive career counseling throughout medical school. Components include:

1. Careers in Medicine Program

UConn has participated in the Careers in Medicine Program (formerly known as the Glaxo Pathway Evaluation Program) since 1988. The extensive set of resources and decision-making tools is now administered through the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). Students are provided with electronic passwords in year one, and can begin to access the online resources. The first section of a four-hour career-planning seminar is held at the end of the second year. This first session focuses on self-assessment, providing students with a framework to reflect upon their strengths, preferences, and what they hope to avoid in a career. The second-half of the seminar is held in the first semester of the third year, and helps students to objectively evaluate each specialty, and how to eventually reach closure. The AAMC has introduced a multi-question online test in 2005 that provides students with detailed and personalized feedback on how well they "fit" into each specialty. Participation in all aspects of the Careers in Medicine Program is free for medical students.

2. Clinical Advisor

In the middle of their third year, students select a clinical advisor. Clinical advisors are chosen from a group of approximately 50 faculty members who volunteer their time. Students have the option of selecting an advisor in the field they expect to enter, or they can choose from a number of highly experienced counselors, who can help them through the decision-making process. Students and their advisors meet as often as needed, to discuss career plans, from mid-third year through graduation. Advisors specifically address several essential issues such as, planning the fourth year (timing, electives, electives at other schools, educational opportunities abroad); creating and signing-off on special electives; writing a personal statement; drafting a résumé; and preparing for residency interviews. Students may provide their advisors with permission to view their academic files, to help assess their candidacy for competitive residencies. While one faculty member serves as the formal clinical advisor, for signatures and the like, students are free to identify as many other faculty as they wish to serve as secondary advisors. In practice, students regularly meet with three or more faculty on a regular basis for counsel.

3. Academic Mentors

As described in the Mentoring Programs section, a new Academic Mentor program was introduced in 2005 for first- and second-year medical school students. Groups of ten students are assigned to two faculty members. One with a basic science orientation and expertise, and the other with a clinical background. While the main objectives of this program are to address personal, professional and educational needs germane to the first two-years, it is anticipated that career planning decisions will become topics for regular discussion.

4. Special Interest and Scholars Groups

All major disciplines are represented by an interest or scholars group that students may join beginning in their first year. Scholars groups (surgical scholars, family medicine scholars, etc.) permit first- and second-year students to attend the monthly nighttime meetings in faculty homes, and require third- and fourth-year students to present cases or independent research. The interest/scholars groups foster early exposure to diverse disciplines, and students may chose to join as many as they wish. The monthly meetings are an excellent opportunity for students to meet with faculty and fellow students focused on academics and discussion of the specialty, over dinner in an informal environment.

5. Electives

Electives serve as an invaluable role in guiding specialty selection. Phase 1 electives, taken during the first two years, are excellent opportunities for students to select alternatives in a potential career specialty. Many phase 1 electives are designed to expose students to attending physicians, residents and practice environments in a variety of medical disciplines. One example is the emergency medicine elective where students spend 4 to 8 hours each week in the Emergency Department for a semester and have regular didactic sessions. A second unique example is ‘Surgical Pearls’ that offers students the opportunity to shadow surgeons in the operating room, and to personally meet weekly with the department chairman to review classic published studies. Students may also design their own clinical or research electives to explore areas of personal interest. Phase 2 electives, taken in the fourth year, are the single most important method by which students evaluate and eventually decide their career path. Students may design their own fourth-year electives, and can take them anywhere in the United States, to evaluate residency sites, or internationally.

6. Residency Fairs

There are two residency fairs presented for all classes each year. One is organized by the UConn Hospital Consortium, a comprehensive group of all teaching hospitals and residency programs in the University of Connecticut system. Student representatives from the American Medical Student Association organize the other fair with emphasis on residencies in specialties not available locally.

7. Summer Programs

In the summer after year one, approximately one-half of students participate in a UConn sponsored program, on campus, nationally or internationally. Students use these programs to participate in a clinical practicum or research in a specialty of interest. Conducting research provides students with valuable mentoring from specialists and improves candidacy for competitive residencies. One example of a clinical opportunity afforded students is the Anesthesiology Fellowship, offered to eight students of each class. Students receive a stipend and spend four or eight weeks working with anesthesiologists in the operating room. More UConn students have selected anesthesiology as a career since this fellowship began in 1998, almost all of whom participated in the fellowship after their first year.

8. Shadowing Experiences

In addition to required and elective clinical exposure, students are encouraged to participate in shadowing experiences in their free time. Many students choose to shadow during their research fellowships in the summer after their first year. The Office of Student Affairs facilitates this process, helping students find an appropriate preceptor if needed. Students receive full malpractice coverage through the university by completing a simple “Clinical Experiences” form stating the nature of the shadowing; signed by the student, the attending physician, and the Dean of Academic Affairs. Students receive comprehensive malpractice coverage for all required and elective experiences automatically.

9. Research and Enrichment Opportunities

In addition to opportunities offered through the combined M.D./Ph.D., M.D./M.P.H. and M.D./M.B.A. programs, students are encouraged to partake in 12 additional months of competitive intramural or extramural research. This is usually done after the second- or third-years of medical school, although it can be done after the first- or fourth-year as well. UConn students have been very successful in securing nationally offered research positions, such as at the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health. These experiences have helped students define career goals. Since 2002, UConn students received three of 20 Sarnoff Fellowships awarded each year, having spent 12 months performing basic science research at top universities, such as Stanford University, Johns Hopkins and MIT. Students can also apply for UConn’s Fifth-Year Enrichment Program. If selected, students receive a research stipend from the university and mentoring in securing research positions.

10. Associate and Assistant Deans of Students

Career counseling is one of the key responsibilities for the associate and assistant dean of students. They coordinate counseling opportunities and serve as the point of contact for students. Although listed last, students usually begin their career planning by contacting the associate or assistant dean directly. The office of medical student affairs maintains a true open-door policy, allowing students direct and rapid access to the counseling they require.