Program Curriculum

Diagrammatic Curriculum

Detailed Curriculum

The MD-PhD Program consists of three phases of training

The first phase (M1-M2: the first and second years of medical school) is based on the Medical School Phase I Core Biomedical Curriculum, delivered using both lecture and small-group formats. There is also a clinical preceptorship component in this first phase, which affords attending physician-supervised patient encounters to allow students to acquire skills in patient interview and physical examination. Upon completion of the first two-year medical school phase, students take the USMLE Step 1 exam, after which they transition into their PhD phase.

The second phase (Thesis Research G1-G3/4) consists of three major components:

1. Mentor Selection: the identification of the thesis mentor is based largely on 2-3 lab rotations. These may include an optional pre-M1 summer rotation before the start of the medical school M1 curriculum, and two in the summer following the end of the first year and before the beginning of M2. The choice of the thesis lab should be discussed with, and subsequently approved by the Program Co-Directors. The mentor should be chosen preferably within 3 months of entering the PhD phase. The choice of mentor can be facilitated by an MD/PhD-specific seminar series that runs from July to September/October each year (the Summer Series) and whose speakers are NJMS investigators. This seminar series affords an opportunity for students to directly interact with potential mentors, thereby facilitating the choice of a thesis lab. The mentor should be chosen preferably within 3 months of entering the PhD phase.
2. The qualifying examination and admission to candidacy: Upon completion of their formal coursework requirement, all students in the program must take and pass a qualifying examination before transiting into the thesis phase of the training. The examination seeks to assess the students’ scientific knowledge, the stringency of their approach to research, their ability to formulate a hypothesis that proposes solving a scientific question at a cellular, molecular, or biochemical level, their capacity to design experiments, to interpret data, to reason logically, and to communicate effectively. The research proposal uses the format of an NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein Individual Predoctoral National Research Service Award (NRSA) F30 Fellowship. After completion of the required 10 credits of PhD coursework (including the NIH-mandated “Responsible Conduct of Research” course) and successful defense of the qualifying examination, the student is officially qualified to begin the thesis phase of the training.
3. Thesis research, defense, and dissertation requirement:  A critical component of the thesis research phase is the establishment of a thesis advisory committee, which is formed to guide the students during the doctoral research. The committee consists of the thesis advisor and at least two other members, one of whom conducts research in an area outside of that of the student’s thesis work. The mentor convenes the thesis advisory committee meeting every six months to a year to review the student’s progress. The student should receive a written report summarizing the conclusions of the meeting and future directions of the project. Copies of the report should be submitted to the Department Chairperson and the Graduate School. After completion of the thesis research, the students prepare a dissertation in the format specified by the Graduate School. In addition, each student is expected to submit one or more manuscripts in the style of an appropriate journal for examination by the Final Examination Committee along with the dissertation. The minimum requirements for graduation are: at least 10 semester credits of relevant graduate level coursework, with at least a 3.00 (B) average; successful completion of the qualifying examination; research proposal acceptable to the candidate’s advisory committee and the Executive Council of the Graduate School; a dissertation based upon independent research, prepared by the candidate and evaluated by the thesis examination committee; a public presentation of the research and successful defense of the dissertation before a Thesis Committee.

The third phase (M3/M4, third and fourth years of medical school) begins upon completion of the thesis work. This is an intensive clinical training period based on the 3rd (Medical School Phase II: Core Clinical Clerkships and Clinical Electives) and 4th (Medical School Phase III:  Acting Internships and Clinical Immersion Electives) year of medical school curriculum, which features mandatory clinical rotations and clinical electives (Re: MD-PhD Curriculum Table). Students will take the USMLE Step 2 examination after completion of their 3rd year clinical core training. During the latter part of the third phase of clinical training, students will begin the process of residency application. The process will be guided by the Co-Directors of the program as well as by other relevant physician scientists.