University General Course Catalog 2022-2023 
    
    Mar 28, 2024  
University General Course Catalog 2022-2023 ARCHIVED CATALOG: LINKS AND CONTENT ARE OUT OF DATE. CHECK WITH YOUR ADVISOR.

Medicine, M.D.


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The School of Medicine was established in 1969 on the Reno campus as a two-year basic sciences program and was authorized to convert to a four-year, M.D. degree-granting school in 1977 by the state legislature. In 1981, the school graduated the first class of physicians trained completely in Nevada.

The goal of the school is to graduate students who are knowledgeable, caring, skillful, responsible physicians capable of entering any specialty training program and delivering high quality health care to the individual, the family and the community.

Classes, laboratories and clinical activities take place in a combination of on-campus buildings and community health facilities in both urban and rural Nevada. Affiliation agreements with hospitals located throughout the state provide students with access to clinical facilities.

The School of Medicine is fully accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.

The University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine (UNR Med) program objectives for medical education are located on our website at https://med.unr.edu/ome/curriculum/2017-objectives

Years 1 and 2


During their first two years of instruction, students are provided with opportunities to learn the concepts, skills, and professional values essential to the practice of medicine. UNR Med’s integrated, systems-based block curriculum is structured to approach the teaching of medical science concepts within a clinical context, with limited lecture hours, and with emphasis on lifelong learning strategies. Each block will utilize a “case of the week” format to align course content with clearly defined objectives that map out the work necessary for successful student learning. Each block concludes with an assessment week for clinical skills testing and a comprehensive examination. The longitudinal clinical skills courses, that may also include a preceptorship in ambulatory care with community-based physicians, run parallel to the blocks. Students finish their second year with a course in public health and application to the clinical context.

Years 3 and 4


The second two years of medical school are spent in Reno, Las Vegas and rural Nevada communities in the clinical setting (in doctors’ offices, the affiliated hospitals and university-operated ambulatory care centers). Students begin their third year by participating in a week long Transition to Clinical Medicine (MED 611M ) orientation course. The School of Medicine currently requires that students complete the following clinical rotations: Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Surgery, Neurology, and Selectives. These rotations are conducted under close supervision of medical school faculty and residents.

During their Family Medicine-Internal Medicine-Pediatrics blocks, students take Clinical Reasoning in Medicine, a longitudinal course designed to refine students reasoning and diagnostic skills as well as acquaint them with common conditions from an interdisciplinary perspective.

A. Required Clerkships: Third and Fourth Years (48 Weeks Total)


Note(s):


*Longitudinal for fall or spring semester.

B. Additional Required Clinical Courses: Fourth Year (36 Weeks Total)


  • Electives (32 Weeks)

Note(s):


Students spend a required four-week rotation with a rural Nevada physician in order to become acquainted with the practice of medicine in a small community.

Fourth-year medical school students choose a number of elective courses, both in Nevada and out of state, to develop depth and breadth in their clinical training. The choices are based on their interests, potential strengths and desire to enhance clinical skills.

Requirements for Entrance


Students must submit their applications through the American Medical College Application Services (AMCAS), the centralized application service of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). Applications may be accessed on-line at https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/amcas/. The earliest filing of an AMCAS application for the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine is June 1 and the latest is October 15.

The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) is required of all applicants. As of January 2007, the exam is offered numerous times throughout the year. Registration packets for the MCAT may be obtained from the Testing Services Office. The MCAT must be taken within three years of the anticipated date of enrollment and no later than September of the application year. Additional information regarding the MCAT can be accessed at https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/.

Applicants are encouraged to seek and/or possess a broad educational background and to enroll in an in-depth course curriculum that will lead to a discipline-oriented major, e.g., biology, English, psychology. However, no specific major is favored over any other. In addition to the required prerequisite coursework noted below, scholarly, extracurricular, and healthcare related activities are important for applicants. There is no specific time requirement; however, applicants should demonstrate a commitment over a period of time with varied experiences and activities prior to application. A minimum of 90 semester hours is required for admission to the medical school; however, completion of a bachelor’s degree is strongly recommended. Successful completion of the following prerequisite coursework is required prior to matriculation.

The School of Medicine does require specific courses as a prerequisite for admission. These include:


Minimum course requirements include:


  • Inorganic (General) Chemistry (8 units)
  • Organic Chemistry (8 units; applicants strongly encouraged to take pre-professional level courses)
  • Biochemistry (3 units)
  • Biology (15 units; must include six hours of upper division credit)
  • Physics (8 units)
  • Psychology or Abnormal Psychology (3 units: lower or upper division credits accepted)

Please see the School of Medicine Office of Admissions and Student Affairs website for complete information.

Supplementary courses strongly recommended as useful to the study or practice of medicine but not required for admission include: microbiology, immunology, genetics, statistics, and mathematics through introductory calculus.

Students are required to demonstrate competency in English composition and language. Generally, students are expected to satisfy the English composition requirements of their undergraduate institution.

Accepted students are responsible for completing all prerequisite course work prior to matriculation. All required courses must be taken for a letter grade and in a classroom setting. Students will not be allowed to use credit by examination, satisfactory/unsatisfactory (S/U) grades, pass/fail (P/F) grades, or audit grades in lieu of a letter grade for required courses. Correspondence and/or online prerequisite courses are not acceptable for prerequisite course requirements; graduate courses will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Applicants who receive approval from their undergraduate institution for the acceptance of AP credits are NOT required to retake the lower division courses that the AP credits replace. however, applicants are required to take an equal number of credits in that prerequisite subject area that include labs (if applicable)

Early submission of the AMCAS application permits its prompt evaluation during the process. Therefore, applicants are urged to submit their applications and supporting credentials as early as possible.

Selection Factors


Candidates are evaluated on the basis of academic performance; performance on the MCAT; the nature, breadth and depth of their scholarly, extracurricular and healthcare related activities during college years; their balanced knowledge of the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities; letters of recommendation; and personal interview, if selected for the second application process.

Legal residents of Nevada are given the highest priority for admission. A small number of out-of-state applicants who are residents of Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming are also considered for admission. Applicants who are residents of specific California counties on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada mountains and neighbor Nevada counties are also considered for admission. In addition, participants in the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) Program who matriculate and graduate from either UNR or UNLV will be considered for admission. WUE includes the following states: AZ, CA, CO, HI, NM, ND, SD, OR, UT, WA. WUE students will pay out of state tuition. Applicants who are not U.S. citizens must hold a permanent resident VISA and be legal Nevada residents to be considered for admission. Individuals who do not meet these residential requirements are discouraged from applying to the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine. For more specific residency information contact the School of Medicine’s Office of Admissions and Student Affairs or refer to https://med.unr.edu/md-admissions/md-program/application-requirements.

Matriculates for the 2016 entering year had the following profile: undergraduate major, 87% in the sciences including premedical and other health profession majors; mean age, 24; gender–58% male, 41% female; mean total GPA-3.65; mean 2015 MCAT score 506 or >73%.

The University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine does not discriminate against faculty, students or staff on the basis of race, color; religion, sex; age, creed, national origin, veteran status, physical or mental disability; or sexual orientation, in any program or activity it operates.

For additional information on our program visit, http://www.med.unr.edu/dept/asa/.

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