Block Calendars

The Curriculum in the first two years is divided into two semesters with two blocks each semester. A minimum of one week is given between blocks for reflection, longitudinal board preparation, and/or in some cases, remediation. Students are given four weeks in the summer between the OMS I and OMS II year to use as a vacation. A student must complete the first two semesters (consisting of four blocks) to be promoted to the OMS II year and all four semesters (composed of eight blocks) to be promoted to the OMS III year. 

VCOM clinical faculty provide the Clinical Medicine Course and the Principles of Primary Care Course during the first two years of osteopathic medical school. The clinical curriculum is planned by the Clinical Chairs and is integrated throughout the four semesters to augment the learning of the biomedical curriculum in a meaningful way and to build each block upon medical knowledge. Students in the first and second-year also learn in faculty-supervised early clinical experiences (ECE). The experiences are varied; however, most are inter-professional and focus on the “team approach” to medicine. These include experiences such as pharmacology rounds, geriatric assessment, EMS, radiology, a day with an ICU nurse, a day with an athletic trainer, and internal medicine rounds with a resident. In VCOM’s service-based learning experiences, patients from medically underserved regions receive free medical care, provided by VCOM faculty and students in free clinics, shelters, and rural community health outreach programs. Additional clinical experiences provided through high fidelity simulation models, including cardiac and pulmonary emergencies, pediatric emergencies, and obstetrical births, prepare students for their experiences with patients during the clinical years.