Medical Student Education

The Internal Medicine Clerkship, often the most highly rated by senior medical students, consists of an eight-week rotation with opportunities for community-based experience as well as inpatient experiences at diverse facilities, including county, Veterans Administration, tertiary referral and community hospitals.

This four-week core rotation is designed to prepare fourth-year students for internship by providing a rigorous clinical experience that closely resembles the internship year. Students are assigned to inpatient Medicine teams that care for patients on the medical ward setting. The participating hospitals all have academic affiliations with IU School of Medicine and are located in Indianapolis as well as throughout the state. Students are given primary patient care responsibilities with a closely guided experience in clinical decision-making of diagnostic and therapeutic management of typical inpatient medical conditions. Close supervision is provided by board-certified faculty and (if applicable) residents. The primary training methodology is active participation in patient care activities with daily teaching attending rounds. Daily hospital-specific conferences will provide complementary educational venues.

A variety of electives are offered by the Department of Medicine for fourth-year medical students. These courses are offered at both on-campus and off-campus clinical sites to generate general or subspecialty experience in inpatient or outpatient care. Other specially arranged programs are available, including hospice care or global health experiences in partnership with Moi University as part of the IU School of Medicine-led AMPATH program.