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Program Structure & Curriculum
The MD-PhD Program at the University of Texas Medical Branch is designed to educate well-trained clinician-scientists who are equally at home at the patient's bedside and the research lab. We believe that such individuals will be uniquely prepared to advance biomedical science and translate these advances into improvements in clinical care. We have developed a specific, integrated, MD-PhD curriculum that combines aspects of both the Medical School and Graduate School experience to optimize the education of physician-scientists. The Medical School curriculum at UTMB is centered around systems-based modules with a primary emphasis on small group and self-learning. This curriculum allows for an unprecedented opportunity to incorporate special seminars and courses tailored specifically for needs of the Combined Degree student. This situation is ideal for the education of MD-PhD students since it integrates the two education tracks with a view toward shortening the time spent in classrooms and speeding the entry of the MD-PhD student into the research phase of his/her training. This truly innovative curriculum fosters the cross-pollination of ideas and helps bridge the gap between basic research and clinical practice.
Integrated MD-PhD Curriculum
Summer prior to Year 1 : Optional 8 week research rotation.
Year 1 : Medical School courses in the mornings. Graduate School course designed to compliment the medical school curriculum in the afternoons. Summer after Year 1: Research rotation.
Year 2 : Medical School courses in the afternoons. Graduate School course work is substituted for clinical practice opportunities. USMLE part 1 is taken at the end of this year. Summer after Year 2: A third research rotation is an option or the student may begin working in his/her thesis lab.
Year 3 : Thesis research. Graduate preliminary exams are taken during this year.
Year 4 : Uninterrupted thesis research.
Year 5 : Continue thesis research. The Practice of Medicine course (5 hours per week) which was not taken during Year 2 is taken along with thesis research.
Years 6-7 : Clinical (3rd year) clerkships (11 months), 4th year clerkships (5 months).
Advantages of the Integrated Curriculum
This integrated curriculum allows the student to be simultaneously connected with the activities of both the Medical School and the Graduate School throughout the entire training program. Several major advantages result from this approach.
First , the students are integrated into both schools immediately upon arrival. This allows them to learn about the research opportunities on campus, be exposed to the different graduate programs and be in a strong, informed position when choosing a thesis research lab.
Second , taking both Medical School and Graduate School coursework simultaneously immediately exposes the students to the benefits of the combined MD-PhD career, that is, approaching medical topics with a scientific perspective while bringing medicine and clinical relevance to bear on science. This combination is possible by postponing some aspects of the medical curriculum to the latter years of the program and incorporating elements of the graduate curriculum as time allows.
Third , the integrated curriculum greatly eases the transition from the lab back to the clinic. Since a portion of the Practice of Medicine course is not taken until the graduate years, the students gain their practical clinical training immediately before the 3rd year clerkships. This advantage is further enhanced by the fact that the students taking the Practice of Medicine course along with the MD-PhD students will be the very classmates with whom the MD-PhD students will take the clinical clerkships. This allows a social and collegial bond to develop which will ease the transition.
Fourth , this combined curriculum successfully integrates Medical and Graduate Schools without the need to do the bulk of the clinical experience before thesis research. This allows students to go on to residency programs immediately after their most intense clinical training period.
MD-PhD Graduate Research Programs
Students in the MD-PhD Program may choose to pursue a Ph.D. in one of the following tracks:
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