About

Pritzker and University Policies

Below are the policies and information you need to know on a day-to-day basis at the Pritzker School of Medicine.

Academic Policies and Procedures 2024-25

Students with questions about requirements and milestones for the MD educational program may contact Melissa Pollay (PSOM Interim Director of Medical School Education), Dr. Jim Woodruff (PSOM Dean of Students), or Amanda Young (Associate Director, Graduate Student Affairs) in UChicagoGRAD.

Please click here to review the full Attendance and Participation Policy.

To notify of absences in clerkship courses, please use this link.

M1/M2 Students: To request a pre-planned absence from required course components/activities, please complete the Absence Request Form.

Please click here to review the full Clinical Supervision of Medical Students Policy and the Clinical Students Scope of Practice.

Please click here to review the full Confidentiality of Student Records Policy

Please click here to review the full Conflict of Interest Policy.

Please click here to review the full Evaluation and Feedback Policy.

Please click here to review the full Faculty Evaluator-Student as Patient Policy.

In order to graduate from the Pritzker School of Medicine, students must complete the following general requirements. 

Students are strongly encouraged to fill out the AAMC Graduation Questionnaire. This confidential survey helps the Pritzker School of Medicine evaluate its current program and curriculum while providing national data for the profession as a whole.

General Graduation Requirements

  1. Completion of the full four-year program of study
    • Must achieve an acceptable standard of performance in all coursework
    • Must complete 14 quarters of full-time enrollment and full tuition payment
    • Must discharge all financial obligations to the University of Chicago, including the return of pager, by June 1.
  2. Sit for and register a score on the USMLE Step 1, Step 2 CK exams no later than December 1 of the fourth year.
  3. Review transcript for accuracy and verify that all academic requirements will be met.

Specific Graduation Requirements

Complete coursework in the fourth year totaling 1,350 units

  • CORE REQUIREMENTS - University of Chicago Courses
    • Total of Core Requirements:  700 units
      • Sub-Internship:  150 units
      • Emergency Medicine Clerkship:  150 units
      • Basic  Science Courses:  150 units
      • Additional Sub-Internship or Clinical Elective: 150 units
      • Scholarship & Discovery:  100 units
    • Total of Remaining Electives:  650 units

Many locations where students can receive rich educational experiences are in parts of the world that may pose particular risk to students’ health and security. The following guidelines were established to support students desire to participate in these experiences, while protecting their safety and the integrity of the institution: 

  • All medical students who travel abroad in association with the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine must complete the PSOM Global Health Checklist six weeks prior to departure. Students and their affiliated organizations that fail to complete this checklist will not be eligible to receive university funding or course credit. This policy applies to:
    1. Trips sponsored by University of Chicago student organizations
    2. Programs administered or sponsored by the Pritzker School of Medicine or UCM faculty (including but not limited to the Global Health Scholarships)
    3. Any international experience for which a student hopes to receive course credit
  • The Pritzker School of Medicine will not sanction student travel to countries on the U.S. Department of State Travel Warnings and Public Announcements list unless the student is traveling to a Center for Global Health affiliated site and/or receives approval from the Center for Global Health. Students interested in traveling to a country on the U.S. Department of State Travel Warnings and Public Announcements should contact Sola Olopade, Associate Director of the Center for Global Health.
  • Medical students traveling abroad must adhere to the University of Chicago Medicine Scope of Practice guidelines in order to maintain malpractice coverage through the UCM. Medical students must not practice medicine, as defined by the Illinois Medical Practice Act and must be appropriately supervised by licensed attending physicians when participating in patient care. Students who do not abide by the UCM scope of practice guidelines may not be covered by UCM malpractice insurance in the case of an adverse outcome.

Please click here to review the full Needlestick Injuries and Other Blood-borne and/or Body Fluid Pathogen Control Policy.
Professionalism Feedback and Concern Processes

In response to student lapses in professionalism, any Faculty Member, Faculty Dean, Course Director, Clerkship Director, Staff Director, Track Leader or Research Mentor may provide the student with feedback on this behavior and report the situation to the Associate Dean for Medical Student Academic Advising & Advancement using a Professionalism Feedback Form (PFF) or Professionalism Concern Report (PCR). To best account for context regarding lapses in judgment, the decision to use a PFR versus a PCR is at the discretion of the Associate Dean for Medical Student Academic Advising & Advancement or their designee.

Professionalism Feedback Report

Offenses judged by the Associate Dean for Medical Student Academic Advising & Advancement to be less serious will be reported through a Professionalism Feedback Report (PFR). The purpose of this form is to encourage student feedback on professionalism and to document feedback delivered to the student by the Faculty Dean, Course, or Clerkship Director. In general, PFRs will not be part of the student’s permanent academic record and will be destroyed upon graduation. Should the student’s behavior trigger more than 5 PFR submissions, the Associate Dean for Medical Student Academic Advising & Advancement will present the case to the Committee on Academic Promotion (CAP). The CAP will determine whether such behavior should be documented in the student’s Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE/Dean’s Letter) and permanent record.

Examples of behaviors that might lead to a PFR:

  • Fails to accept and internalize feedback
  • Is unwilling to expand knowledge and competence
  • Fails to complete required tasks or requires constant reminders
  • Fails to notify appropriate staff of absences in a timely manner
  • Repeatedly fails to respond to communication from staff, faculty, etc.
  • Consistently late to commitments

Professionalism Concern Report (PCR)

Offenses judged by the Associate Dean for Medical Student Academic Advising & Advancement to be more serious may be reported by an of the aforementioned individuals through a Professionalism Concern Report (PCR). The purpose of the form is to document feedback delivered to the student by the Faculty Dean, Course, or Clerkship Director and to provide documentation to the Committee on Academic Promotion for mandatory review. All PCRs will be reviewed by CAP. Should the student’s behavior trigger more than 2 PCRs, the student’s behavior may warrant further sanction and may be documented in the student’s Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE/Dean’s Letter).

Examples of student behaviors that might lead to a PCR:

  • Use of illicit substances
  • Use of drugs or alcohol in a way that effects patient care
  • Fails to accept responsibility for own errors
  • Engages in inappropriate relationships with patients, teachers, staff, residents and/or faculty
  • Behaves in a dishonest manner
  • Misrepresents self, others, or members of the team to others
  • Breaches patient confidentiality
  • Acts in disregard for patient welfare
  • Takes credit for the work of others
  • Misuses cadavers or other scientific specimens

If the lapse in professionalism falls within the parameters of the University disciplinary system (e.g. plagiarism; falsification of documents; verbal or physical assault; sexual harassment), the Associate Dean for Medical School Education may refer the student to a University Disciplinary Committee or the PSOM Dean of Students for a possible Area Disciplinary Process.

Please click here to review the full Security, Student Safety, and Disaster Preparedness Policy.

Please click here to review the full Student Advancement and Appeal Process Policy.

Please click here to review the full Student Assignment Policy.

Please click here to review the full Student Duty Hours Policy.

Learn more about our Student Treatment policies.

Surveying our Students