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FAST FACTS

Unique Features of the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Include:

• CWRU is a leader in medical education and curricular innovation. In 2006, the School of Medicine's University Program instituted a new integrated curriculum of medicine and public health awareness. The Western Reserve2 system of medical education emphasizes the interplays between the biology of disease and social and behavioral context of illness, the care of individual patients and public health, and clinical medicine and population medicine.
• Clinical mastery is achieved through early and frequent patient contact. Our students learn physical diagnosis and communication skills in the first 20 months through the Rotating Apprenticeships in Medical Practice (RAMP), a continuity experience through the Clinical Patient Care Preceptorship, and valuable training time in the Mount Sinai Simulation and Skills Center.
• Research and scholarship opportunities to allow our students to develop their interests in basic, translational, clinical, and population-based research.
• A variety of international health opportunities through the Center for Global Health and Diseases. The Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health recently awarded the Center a training grant to lead an educational program in Papua New Guinea for infectious disease research training.
• The Center for Reducing Health Disparities is a distinctive department designed to reduce health disparities through (a) research on root causes, mechanisms, and interventions,
  (b) education of students, providers, and policy makers, and (c) partnership with community organizations and government agencies.
• Clinical opportunities serving and caring for Cleveland's underserved population at The Free Medical Clinic of Greater Cleveland.
• The Office of Urban Health and the Urban Area Health Education Center (OUH-UHEC) enhances health services, medical education, and health promotion/disease prevention in urban Cleveland through university and community partnerships. By facilitating medical student, community, and faculty involvement, the OUH fosters programs and initiatives that focus on improving the health of the underserved. OUH-UHEC is also the home of NetWellness at CWRU, a collaborative consumer health website now in it's 11th year, offered by CWRU, The Ohio State University and the University of Cincinnati.  Medical student participation is welcome in this comprehensive health site serving visitors world-wide.
• Pass/Fail grading scale in the years 1 and 2. Clerkship rotations in years 3 and 4 are evaluated as Honors, Commendable, Satisfactory, and Unsatisfactory. The Pass/Fail system has been in place at CWRU for over 30 years and we have found it creates a collegial atmosphere of collaboration and support among our students.
• We do not have an Ohio resident admissions quota. 79% of the Class of 2011 are residents from other states.
• A unique mentoring system that helps create smooth educational and life transitions. The Academic Societies foster cohesive environments in which our students feel recognized, heard, and encouraged. The goal is to guide our students throughout medical school to all learning, research, and enrichment opportunities.