Unit Policy
Title
School of Medicine: Combined and Additional Degree Program Policy
Introduction
Purpose
The purpose of this Policy is to establish the School of Medicine’s oversight of additional degrees by Doctor of Medicine (MD) students. The Policy also outlines eligibility, the recommended timeline for completion, and credit hour application to Medical Doctorate for each type of degree.
Scope
This Policy applies to MD students enrolled in or seeking to enroll in additional degree programs while simultaneously enrolled at the School of Medicine (SOM).
Policy
General Requirements
The Associate Dean for Student Affairs oversees all additional and combined degree programs. All additional and combined degree programs will require a leave of absence for graduate studies (see Leave of Absence Policy). Students who do not have a passing Step 1 score posted on or before June 30 are placed on administrative leave until a passing score for Step 1 is achieved. This applies to combined or additional degree students, including MD/PhD students, MD/MPH students, or students wishing to pursue a research leave of absence. The Office of Student Affairs oversees the leave structure of all combined and additional degree programs. Students who pursue an additional degree often (but not always) graduate with a different cohort from the cohort in which they entered the Foundation Phase.
The Medical Sciences Training Program (MSTP) MD/PhD Combined Program
The program allows for the clinical study of medicine combined with graduate education and doctoral research in a wide variety of disciplines.
Schedule
- The Foundation Phase is completed in the first year and a half of the program.
- The summer before the first year of the program is used to expose students to potential research areas.
- The summer after the first ten (10) months of the Foundation Phase and before the next fall semester begins is used to expose students to potential research areas.
- After completing the Foundation Phase and taking the USMLE Step 1 exam, students may complete a portion of the Application Phase during the spring semester before starting graduate school in the fall semester.
- The final two (2) years of the program are devoted to clinical medicine.
Application of Credit Hours to Medical Degree
- Students may receive up to eighteen (18) credit hours of elective credit toward the MD degree.
- Students who enroll in the MTEC 499 0: MD-PhD Longitudinal Clinical Elective will be given six (6) hours of elective credit towards the Individualization Phase.
- Students are exempt from the Science of Medicine (SM) selective but must replace it with an elective of equivalent credit hours.
Additional Degree: Master of Public Health (MPH)
Students may enroll in the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree program in the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health (Gillings School).
Eligibility
- The academic records of students applying to the MPH must have a letter of support from the SOM Associate Dean for Student Affairs.
- Students with histories of either academic or professional difficulty may not be approved to take a leave from the MD program to pursue an MPH.
Schedule
- Students must complete both the Foundation Phase and Application Phase before enrolling in the Gillings School. Students also typically complete some portion of the Individualization Phase before starting an MPH program to be on track for the residency match when they return from their leave of absence (LOA).
- The accepted MPH student will follow the UNC graduate school timeline in terms of the start (fall semester) and completion (Summer Session I). Students should expect to start at the end of August and complete the MPH in late June/early July to be an August graduate.
Application of Credit Hours to Medical Degree
- Students who complete an MPH through the Gillings School may receive six (6) credit hours of elective credit toward the MD degree for graduate school courses that are relevant to the MD degree if they complete their MPH degree by August of the Individualization Phase.
- Students who complete their MPH requirements by August of the Individualization Phase are not required to take the Social Health Systems 5 (SHS5) selective course or the Science of Medicine (SM) selective course and must replace them with an elective or electives of their choice that equal the same number of credit hours.
The MD/MBA Additional Degree Program
Medical students may enroll in the Master of Business Administration (MBA) program in the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.
Eligibility
- Students seeking admission to the MD/MBA Program will need to take either the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or apply for a testing waiver.
Schedule
- Students must complete the Foundation Phase and Application Phase before enrolling in the MBA program. Students also typically complete some portion of the Individualization Phase before starting an MBA program to be on track for the residency match when they return from their leave of absence (LOA).
- Students are enrolled in the Kenan-Flagler Business School during their fourth year.
- Students are enrolled in the SOM and in the Kenan-Flagler Business School during their fifth year.
Application of Credit Hours to Medical Degree
- Students in the MD/MBA Program may receive twelve (12) credit hours of elective credit toward the MD degree for medically relevant graduate school courses completed during their time in medical school.
- Students in the MD/MBA program, who participate in the healthcare concentration, are exempt from Social Health Systems 5 Selective and must replace it with an elective of their choice that equals the same number of credit hours.
The MD Degree Program for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) residents
Eligibility
- UNC OMFS residents earn an MD degree over eighteen (18) months.
Application of Credit Hours to Medical Degree
- OMFS residents may receive twelve (12) hours of elective credits towards the MD degree.
- OMFS residents complete the same curriculum as Application Phase Students and then complete an accelerated curriculum during the Individualization Phase which includes the requirements of Critical Care, Acting Internship, SM/SHS5, and Electives.
- OMFS residents are not required to take the Conclusion of Application Phase (CAP) or Transition to Residency (TTR) Course.
Other Additional Degree Programs
Medical students may work toward joint degrees in medicine and another graduate or professional school, including programs at other universities.
Eligibility
- SOM allows medical students to seek approval to complete a graduate program in any area that is relevant to medicine, including but not limited to MD/MA or MD/JD degree combinations.
- Students must obtain approval in advance from the Office of Student Affairs for an additional degree program.
Application of Credit Hours to Medical Degree
- Students in additional degree programs may receive elective credit towards the MD degree if they have completed their additional degree requirements by August of the year prior to MD graduation. Students will need to have completed medically relevant graduate school courses in graduate degree programs.
- Students with additional degrees during medical school who believe they meet exemptions for SHS 5 or SM must submit a request to Curricular Affairs by the deadline indicated in course communications via Qualtrics:
- Science of Medicine
- Social and Health Systems 5
- Students (other than transfer students) earning additional degrees during medical school who believe they meet the requirements for elective credit requirements based on the additional degrees should reach out to the Curricular Affairs team who will facilitate the approval via the appropriate course directors.
Definitions
Combined degree program: A combined degree program is one in which a student applies to both programs with a single application process.
Additional degree program: An additional degree program is a structured academic pathway that allows a medical student to enroll in and complete a second, distinct graduate or professional degree—separate from the MD curriculum—during a designated interruption in medical training, with its own admissions requirements, curriculum, credit requirements, and credential awarded upon completion.
Foundation Phase: The first eighteen (18) months of the medical school curriculum comprised of:
- Nine (9) Medical Science courses (three (3) per semester)
- Three (3) semesters of Patient Centered Care (PCC)
- Three (3) semesters of Social and Health Systems (SHS)
Application Phase: The 13-month phase of the medical school curriculum dedicated to core clinical experiences, beginning in March and ending in February of the following year consisting of:
- Six (6) clinical courses:
- Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Internal Medicine
- Community Based Primary Care
- Pediatrics
- General Surgery
- Psychiatry
- One (1) Conclusion of Application Phase (CAP) Course
- One (1) longitudinal course:
- Social and Health Systems 4
Individualization Phase: The final (thirteen) 13 months of the medical school curriculum dedicated to the completion of graduation requirements and electives tailored to a student's career interest, beginning in March and ending in May of the following year consisting of:
- Two (2) Acting Internships
- One (1) Critical Care Selective
- One (1) Neurology Selective
- Three (3) Electives
- Transition to Residency (TTR)
- Two (2) longitudinal courses:
- Science of Medicine
- Social and Health Systems 5
Related Requirements
University Policies, Standards and Procedures
Contact Information
Primary Contact
Name: Alice Chuang, Associate Dean for Student Affairs
Email: Alice_Chuang@med.unc.edu