During orientation you will be given a guide, "Academic Standard Guidelines for Medical Students and the Committee on Promotions," which you can review for a thorough explanation of what to expect academically in your tenure at Pritzker. It covers issues such as the Pass/Fail system, the third year evaluation, obtaining honors, disciplinary procedures, promotions, and many other issues that you may find relevant. In "Life at Pritzker", we want to add the student perspective.

Course overview for the Pre-Clinical Years

The majority (although not all) of your time in the first two years will be spent taking classes, studying, and passing exams. This section provides you with an overview of what those classes will be.

MSI Fall:

Human Morphology (gross anatomy, histology, and embryology)

Physiology

Biochemistry

Introduction to Clinical Medicine (patient interviewing and history writing)

MSI Winter:

Human Morphology

Physiology

Cell Biology

Social Context of Medicine

The Doctor-Patient Relationship (medical ethics)

MSI Spring:

Neurobiology (neurophysiology, neuroanatomy, neuropharmacology)

Genetics

Development and Psychopathology

Nutrition

Epidemiology

Electives

MSII Fall:

Immunobiology

Microbiology

Pharmacology

Cell Pathology

MSII Winter:

Clinical Pathophysiology (CPP)

Clinical Skills (physical diagnosis)

MSII Spring:

Introduction to Therapeutics

Clinical Skills (physical diagnosis)

Review of Basic Sciences (for the Boards Step I)

Electives

The Pass/Fail System (P = M.D.)

Grading

The pass/fail system is new to most of you. You are probably used to doing well in academic endeavors and will continue to strive to achieve at the same level as in the past. However, the amount of information you will be inundated with will increase and your free time may seem insufficient. What to do? Relax. This is the heart of the pass/fail system. P=M.D. Your new task in studying will be to wade through the material and extract the more important points ("high-yield"). You’ll be amazed at all the little stuff that sneaks in along the way. Grasping concepts in crucial, but being able to quote minutia you will find a waste of time.

All required first- and second- year medical school courses are graded on a strictly pass or fail basis. There is no honors designation. Pritzker does not compute a class rank, and it would not be possible to create one. This system is designed to focus attention on the acquisition of knowledge and experience for its own sake. Third and fourth years classes are graded honors/high pass/pass/low pass/fail. But there will be time to worry about this later.

Pass/fail is your friend. While you still need to learn the material, the grading system allows you to pursue other activities that will enrich your life both now and in the future. Skip class to follow a doctor in her clinic, stay up late working on your latest musical masterpiece, volunteer, sleep-in on weekends, etc. Plus there are tons of extra-curricular programs both related to medicine and unrelated to medicine. Teach Chicago middle school students about the effects of drugs on their bodies, baby-sit at a local shelter while mothers learn about maintaining their own health, lead a chapter of a national medical student organization, start your own interest group... Remember that the activities we run weekly don’t change around our exam schedule. Those extra three hours you could have spent to earn 5 extra points on the exam that you were going to pass anyway could make a huge difference in the life of someone you helped instead.

Exams

During first and second years, written exams and lab practicals evaluate academic performance. Sometimes exams are conveniently scheduled for alternating weeks so that you can spread your studying between classes. More often exams get lumped together for one long week. You will be given a schedule of all exams (and all classes actually) at the beginning of each quarter, so you can prepare however far in advance you want.

The exams are written by the course instructors and are usually short answer/essay format. These exams may include drawing diagrams - some people recommended colored pencils for easier comprehension. Lab practicals for human morphology involve timed identification/function questions in the gross anatomy suite. Some professors are moving towards board-style multiple-choice questions (particularly in the spring semester…the horrors of scantron all over again). However, the course instructors write all question and the exams tend to vary minimally from year-to-year. Nobody uses standardized exams that are commercially available. It is a good idea to try to get old exams from second year students. Usually the co-op note service puts the exams on on-line reserve. For some classes many years of exams are available.

Graded exams are returned to students in their mailboxes or in class. Grades are reported numerically to students; sometimes calculated means and standard deviations are posted. The numerical scores are used to determine cut-offs for the pass or fail designation. Course coordinators choose their own method to make this determination. In some classes, an overall average of 60% ( or whatever the professor determines) at the end of the quarter is passing. In other classes, you must get at least 60% on each exam or each part of the exam (written, practical, etc.). In general though, almost everyone will pass. And if you don’t pass, the instructors are more than willing to help you make up the difference. Make sure you talk to them if you are having trouble with the material, don’t do well on an exam, or have extenuating circumstances. In addition, the administration is available if you have other concerns. Numerical exam scores for the whole class are also used to determine letter grades for graduate and undergraduate students who are taking the class. These students need letter grades for their degrees.

One final note. Don’t worry about passing, yet be sure to take your classes seriously. Eventually you are going to have to know the material - either for patient care or the Boards.

Electives and the pass/fail system

The grading of any elective course within the Biological Sciences Division and the Pritzker School of Medicine, including senior elective courses, is at the discretion of the course instructor. Almost without exception, however, course instructors in the BSD and at Pritzker adhere to the strictly Pass/Fail system used for required medical school courses. If a student wishes to have a letter grade on the transcripts, he or she must notify the course instructor by the end of the first week of the course.

Elective courses taken outside the BSD and Pritzker are graded according to the policy of the individual course instructor and/or the appropriate division or professional school. Medical students who wish to register for such electives on a pass/fail basis must obtain permission from the course instructor at the first meeting and complete whatever forms may be required in that professional school or division. A letter grade must be taken if the outside faculty member does not allow pass/fail grades in this course. Letter grades submitted by outside faculty cannot be converted to pass/fail grades at a later date unless permission is obtained directly from the course instructor.

Clinical Grades

At the end of each clerkship (classes in the clinical years), the faculty discuss each student’s clinical and examination performance and assign a final grade. Clerkships include clinical performance over the entire course, an oral exam, and a written exam. The composite clinical grade usually accounts for 60% of the final grade, the oral exam, if given, for 10%, and the National Board Subject Exam for 30%. However, this varies by department. The final designation uses the following scale: Honors, High Pass, Pass, Low Pass, and Fail. A passing grade is required in all three areas. Third year is the one time in medical school when grades really do matter, however these designations are awarded internally and used in drafting your Dean’s Letter for residency; Pass/Fail is still the only designation on the transcript.

The vast majority of students receive a final grade of High Pass or Honors. High Pass is reserved for those students who clearly exceeded the course objectives and Honors for those who were outstanding in all aspects - inpatient, outpatient, and examinations. In the rare circumstance that a student receives a failing grade on any of the three components of the final grade, means of remedying the failing grade are determined on a case-by-case basis.

Recording of Grades

For all required pre-clinical courses, only the P (pass), CN (conditional pass), I (incomplete), or F (fail) designations are sent to the OME. CN and I designations need to be corrected - speak to the course instructor. Usually, the course director will contact students who aren’t doing well early in the quarter. They are just trying to help - no one wants to see you fail. Instructors are required to notify the OME of all students who do incomplete, borderline, or failing work. Again, this is designed to help students who are struggling. If a student does exceptionally well in a course, the instructor may inform the student in writing of his or her performance. This is totally at the discretion of the individual instructor, and will not effect your grade or Dean’s Letter (for residency applications). Scores are only sent to the OME when needed to document borderline or failing performance. You will not receive a grade report in your mailbox. After every quarter, you should go to the registrar’s website to ensure that your grades were all recorded correctly.

For clinical courses, student evaluations are maintained by the departmental offices of student programs. Each student has access to his or her entire evaluation, as do members of the department faculty and faculty advisors. The departments do not rank students. A summary paragraph describing the student’s clinical performance as well as his or her final grade and the grades on the written and oral examinations are sent to the OME and to the student’s mailbox. This information forms the major structure of the student’s Dean’s Letter, which is a very important part of residency applications.

Clerkships outside of Hyde Park

In the third year, students are assigned to various sites off campus for the outpatient portion of the clinical rotations. The family medicine clerkship is taught at MacNeal Hospital, a community hospital. Some students will spend part of their pediatrics time at La Rabida, a hospital for chronically ill children which is affiliated with the U of C.

In the fourth year, students in the regular 4-year MD program are eligible to apply for study at institutions other than the University of Chicago, such as Cook County or institutions in other parts of the country. Some fourth years use this time to experience programs where they might like to do their residency. A maximum of three months of senior electives may be taken off-campus. All applications must be approved in advance by the Dean of Students. A student may petition the Committee on Promotions for more time if unusual circumstances are involved.

When studying off-campus, students must register and pay tuition at Pritzker. Duly registered students are covered by the school’s malpractice insurance and are eligible to purchase health insurance when studying at approved locations. A written evaluation of the student’s performance is required before credit will be given. Ensuring that this evaluation is completed is the responsibility of the student.

Catalogues of senior elective possibilities from other medical schools, as well as residency information, are kept in the OME. More information is also available on the Internet (such as the AMSA web page, and the web pages of individual residency programs). Other resources include the internet based American Medical Association’s Freida database (lists all accredited U.S. Residency programs).

MSTP and other MD/Ph.D. grades

Students in joint MD/Ph.D. programs receive letter grades (A, B, C, D, F) on their permanent transcripts in advanced basic science courses taken as part of their Ph.D. requirements. Medical school courses required for the Ph.D. are also graded A/B/C/D/F. All other basic medical school course work is graded Pass/Fail. When there is a choice, students must decide by the end of the first week of class.

Deficiencies in academic performance

Consider this the "fine print" section - you should know about this information but most likely it will never effect you. Course work is deficient if either the quality or quantity of work does not meet the standards of the course instructor(s). Any student who, for valid reasons such as an illness or death in the family is unable to complete course requirements is given an "incomplete" which appears as an I on the transcript. If all but a single course requirement (such as an exam) are completed satisfactorily, a student will receive a temporary designation of "conditional" or CN which does not appear on the transcript. The worst case scenario is the "fail" or F grade, which indicates that an entire course was completed unsatisfactorily. F grades remain on the transcript permanently even when the course is completed satisfactorily later.

Before a student may advance to the next year of studies all deficiencies must be corrected. In the case of a CN, the designation will be replaced by a P after completing the necessary work as determined by the course instructor and/or the Committee on Promotions (see below). There are two ways to rectify conditional, failing, or incomplete grades. If the course instructor agrees, a make-up exam or additional remedial work may be sufficient. Alternatively, the student could meet requirements through a special departmental tutorial, and have that grade placed on the transcript in addition to the original. If more than one course has been failed, the student probably should review the guidelines for the Committee on Promotions.

The Committee on Promotions is chaired by the Dean of Students and consists of course directors from the basic and clinical science courses who meet every two months throughout the year to review the academic progress of all medical students in that quarter. The committee receives and reviews reports on any borderline, failing, or incomplete work. Recommendations by course instructors are given careful consideration in the committee’s determination of the appropriate action to be taken in the removal of an academic deficiency. The committee operates within a set of performance standard guidelines. These guidelines are distributed to incoming students at the beginning of the first year. Students in academic difficulty will be notified of the problem and the means by which the deficiency may be remedied. It is the policy of Pritzker that no student may continue from one year into the next with deficiencies remaining on the record from the previous year. During senior year, deficiencies must be corrected before electives are taken.

The committee evaluates personal behavior and attitudes affecting the function of the student as a physician as well as objective academic performance. These factors all affect continuance and graduation from medical school. On rare occasions, the committee may recommend to the Dean of Students that a disciplinary committee be convened to consider any serious matter brought to their attention.

Leaves of Absence

The Committee on Promotions also handles leaves of absence. Some students decide to take time off — often to do research, pursue a second degree, or for personal or health reasons. The student must consult the Dean of Students and then submit a petition to the Committee on Promotions. After the leave of absence, the student must re-petition the committee to resume medical studies. The committee, at its discretion, must approve all plans to take leave and return to medical school. All students must discuss their plans with the Dean of Students before submitting a petition.

Academic Advising

Students are counseled regarding academic matters by the Dean of Students and the Committee on Promotions (see above) during all four years of medical school. In addition, most clinicians are very glad to talk to you about their field of specialization. This is very helpful during first and second years - most faculty members are ready and willing to have students shadow them in the hospital or in clinic. Feel free to respectfully approach physicians who teach or guest lecture in your classes or those listed in the faculty directory. The hard part is making the initial contacts.

Third year students select an official faculty advisor in the student’s intended area of specialization. The advisor, along with the Dean of Students, counsels the student regarding residency applications and the residency selection process. Although the student may have only one official advisor, he or she is encouraged to consult with other faculty members regarding career plans and desired programs of study.

Joint Degree Programs

Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP)

The Medical Scientist Training Program is Pritzker’s main MD/Ph.D. program for incoming students. If you’re already in the MSTP, you will receive much more detailed information elsewhere - this is for the rest of you. Students in this program receive full tuition scholarships and a living stipend for six years of study, which includes four years of regular medical school studies. The department or committee in which the student is a member often has a training grant, otherwise student’s advisor provides some funding support from funded research grants.

Training Program in Growth and Development

If you are not MSTP and would still like to pursue an MD/Ph.D., the training program in growth and development (Pediatric Training Grant) offers basic science training for investigation in developmental biology and a breadth of other basic molecular and cellular research. Two to four students per year, a total of 12 trainees at a time, are selected. Usually selection occurs after the first two years of medical school. These students receive full tuition scholarships and a living stipend for the three years of Ph.D. studies and the last two years of medical school. Interested students should contact Dr. Nancy Schwartz, Associate Dean for Graduate Affairs and the Director of the Training Program in Growth and Development.

Other MD/Ph.D. options

Most years, more medical students are interested in combined MD/Ph.D. programs than there are positions available in the TPGD. These students may obtain funding for living expenses and tuition requirements during the period of graduate work from the laboratory where they do their research, as research assistants, or by appointment to any of the training grants that support Ph.D. work. For students interested in neurobiology, individual National Research Service Awards from the NIH can be competitively sought in conjunction with a research sponsor.

Alternatively, medical students who wish to pursue a Ph.D. but do not receive support from any of the sources above, may be eligible for support from outside fellowships. An increasing number of these fellowship awards are becoming available, and recently Chicago students have been very successful in obtaining such support. Further information is available from the OME.

MD/MBA

Selecting this option allows students to explore the relationship between medicine and management. Students must apply directly to the Graduate School of Business. Usually, students apply in the first or second year, and if a student is accepted, he/she will usually start business school after completing two full years of medical studies. Other students have chosen to enter business school after third year. The MBA program must be completed before receipt of the MD degree. Medical students are able to complete the requirements for the MBA degree in four quarters of study. This is a highly competitive process. Please discuss this option with the Dean of Students. One full-tuition scholarship, the Steven Weiner Scholarship, is available yearly on a competitive basis.

MD/JD

This is not a formal combined program. Medical students, once accepted to the law school, may take a leave of absence to complete the JD degree. Usually the combined process lasts seven years - four for med school and three for law school.

Research Opportunities

The University of Chicago is one of the best research institutions in the country. You will find that medical students are very much encouraged to pursue research during their years here, and it is very easy to arrange research in any field that interests you.

Opportunities for students include research in the basic medical sciences, clinical medicine, medical ethics, outcomes research, public policy and community-based research. In addition to those enrolled in the formal MD/Ph.D. programs, many other medical students participate in research during their elective periods, in their spare time, and during the summer after first year. Most basic science and clinical faculty are interested in working with students. Nearly all departments distribute materials to medical students describing research opportunities for the current year. In addition, second years are a good resource to talk to about research - many just finished doing summer research projects. Finally, announcements concerning special opportunities (for example, the Howard Hughes and Sarnoff Research Fellowships) are distributed to medical students as they become available.

A research information session will be held in the winter quarter with ample time to find a lab and mentor for spring and summer research. You will learn about specific research opportunities, but not all opportunities are explicitly promoted. If you feel you have not learned about specific areas of interest, contact the deans in the OME or a specific faculty member. They can usually provide with a list of people to contact for further opportunities.

Academic year

Many students use some of their elective time in MSI Spring quarter to start a summer research project. Others have done research solely during the academic year and do something else for the summer. In either case, there are many opportunities for research - all you have to do is find them.

Summer

The summer research program is a great way to become involved with medical research and it’s a good way to meet faculty members. About 50 or 60% of the first year class participates each summer. The program involves a twelve-week commitment to a well-defined research project. All areas of medicine, including basic science and clinical science, provide potential projects. It is the student’s responsibility to chose a project and get a faculty member to sponsor that project. (A booklet of possible projects and mentors is provided by the OME at the Summer Research Orientation meeting.)

Participation in the program also includes weekly cluster group meetings (required) and seminars every couple of weeks (also required). The cluster groups are composed of students working on similar research projects and interested faculty members. These meetings are "work-in-progress" sessions, during which students update other members of the group on their latest research findings. Seminars will be on various topics relevant to all student researchers. At the end of the summer a Scientific Forum will be held, and all students are required to present their research (10 minutes), followed by a five-minute discussion with a faculty mentor. Five awards are given for the best work; two in basic science; two in clinical research; and one overall-best award.

This program is compensated with a stipend that may be sacrificed if mandatory sessions are not attended. The funding comes from the OME and the National Institutes of Health. You will be given more information in the winter quarter.

Remember - this will be your last free summer. You don’t have to do research here. Many people travel, work or do research elsewhere.

Senior Scientific Seminar

One good thing about doing research during medical school is the chance to present that research at the senior scientific seminar. Presenting at the seminar might lead to graduating with honors. Every year about 20% of the graduating class presents research at this annual symposium held during the spring quarter. Of these, about half have received a Ph.D. The rest did research in the summer and elective periods as described above. Four presenters are selected for recognition at the Divisional Honors ceremony.

Interested students should contact the departmental chairpersons, advisors from that department, or (as always) the OME. A list of chairpersons and phone numbers follows this section, but students should feel free to speak with any member of the faculty. Students interested in the social, legal, and public policy issues associated with medicine are encouraged to discuss research opportunities with the Director of the Center for Clinical Medical Ethics, as well as faculty in other divisions or professional schools in the University.

Employment

Various employment opportunities are available to medical students. These include course assistantships, medically related jobs, work-study jobs, and other part-time positions. A brief description of each is provided below.

Teaching Assistantships (TA)

TA jobs with stipends are available in several of the first and second year medical school courses and in many undergraduate classes. Interested students should contact the course directors for the respective classes. In addition, watch for announcements on bulletin boards in the BSLC. For more information and to obtain a course listing, ask in the OME.

The undergraduate premed student organization (PMSA) sponsors a yearly MCAT preparation class in the winter quarter. They usually recruit teachers from the first and second year classes. Teaching involves preparing and presenting a total of 6 hours (three Saturday mornings) on one of the MCAT subjects. A few open office hours are also expected. Last year PMSA paid $200 for the whole class.

Medical jobs

Positions such as phlebotomists, ECG technicians, and CPR instructors are available to students on a limited basis. Interested students should contact the University Medical Center Personnel Office (AMB B124). Also, pay attention to announcements and posters.

Work-study and part-time

Work-study opportunities are available for eligible students (as determined by the Financial Aid Office). Those interested should contact the Office of Career Planning and Placement in Ida Noyes Hall. Hours are Monday through Friday, 9 to 11 AM and 1 to 5 PM (702-7040). This office also maintains a listing of on and off campus part-time jobs. Other good sources for part-time job listings are student newspapers, local papers, and bulletin boards throughout the campus.

Resident Advisors (RA) and Assistant Resident Heads

Graduate/Medical students may apply to be RAs or resident heads for the University Housing system. These positions involve frequent on-call nights, some programming, and some student discipline enforcement. In return, students receive room, board, and a small stipend (in other words you get to eat and sleep for free - rare in medical school). This is also a good way to meet undergraduates and adults associated with the university (as resident heads). Medical students have occasionally held these positions - try to talk to one before applying for these positions. Interested students should contact the University Housing Office (702-7366). Applications are usually available in the winter quarter for positions in the subsequent year.

For those lucky few of you who have already taken biochem, you will have an opportunity to test out of the course on Saturday, September 15^th, 8:00am-10:00am in room 115 of the Biological Sciences Learning Center. Dr. Meredith, the course instructor, urges you to take the test if you have already had the class and feel pretty comfortable about the course content. You have absolutely nothing to lose by taking the exam–THERE IS NO PENALTY FOR FAILING–and Dr. Meredith promises not to laugh at your score. Testing out will give you the opportunity to do something different (and stimulating) with your time, and I guarantee that you will be bored in biochem if you already know it cold. Last year, many students planned to coast through the course their second time, but by second week I noticed a strange look of desperate boredom sweep over all of their faces (and pure terror before exams). It was not pretty. Take the test.

The test is long answer (essay). You will be given around 10 or so questions and asked to pick approximately 5 to write about. It should take one to two hours, but you will not be timed.

You will not be tested on what comes after isocitrate in the krebs cycle (phew!). The course instructor is looking for broad, general knowledge of important principles in biochem. DO NOT SIT AND MEMORIZE PATHWAYS. It will do you no good. Just know why the pathway occurs, and consequences of it (energy saving/expenditure, how it can go wrong, alternate pathways, etc.) Get it?

MACROMOLECULAR STRUCTURE:

-amino acids, nucleic acids, and protein structure

-pH and buffers

-enzyme and catalysis

METABOLISM

-glycolysis

-metabolism (lipid synth and metab, aa, metab, purine synth and metab)

-fatty acids and cholesterol

MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF THE GENE

-DNA replication and repair (UV radiation damage, etc.)

-RNA synthesis and processing

-protein synthesis

Because you have already learned this stuff once, I recommend buying a medical board review book like Lippincott’s Illustrated Reviews: Biochemistry by Champe and Harvey. This is advice in hindsight and with a year of medical school under my belt. I tested out of biochem, but I studied completely wrong for it. I took a week before the exam to pretty much read through Voet and Voet’s Biochemistry Fundamentals textbook. To say that I overprepared would be the biggest understatement in the world. Please take my advice and (I stress!!!!) buy Lippincott’s. You will use it again for the boards anyway.

Any questions? Please feel free to call me at 773-256-0961.

Your co-chair,

Jen

Recommended Book Survey

We polled MSIs about books after finishing their first year. Of those who purchased or owned the following books, we asked how they felt about their usefulness. As you can see by the results below, opinions are quite varied. Some people need books to solidify their understanding of material, whereas others are satisfied with the information provided in class. . Remember that people like to study in different ways and that some will find certain books and study tools useful while others will not.. Ask your second year mentor or anyone else with experience through first year for guidance and remember that opinions will vary dramatically. Some students purchased very few textbooks, whereas others felt it necessary to buy all of them. Many books are available on reserve and the bookstore does have a short return policy, so you can find out if you like a book before you really spend the money.

Note: Not all columns add to 100% due to rounding.

All books were priced at amazon.com, except this noted with (*).

Clinically Oriented Anatomy — "Big Moore," Moore & Dalley, 4^th ed., 1999, $65. This is the unabridged text which provides useful adjuncts to enhance understanding. The blue boxes provide clinical correlation which ma be useful for the Boards.

The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology, Moore & Persaud, 6^th ed., 1998, $48.29. This is the all-encompassing guide to embryology. The diagrams are useful in appreciating the 3-dimensional nature of development and the text is useful in understanding system development.

Essential Clinical Anatomy — "Baby Moore," Moore, et al, 1995, $45. This is the abridged version of Moore. For many people this is all they need, others need the more detailed text and diagrams of Big Moore.

Basic Histology, Junquiera, 9^th ed., 1998, $44.95. This is a text guide to histology that works well along Wheater to gain a total understanding of histology. It provides the physiological details absent from Wheater’s picture heavy guide.

Wheater’s Functional Histology, Young & Heath, 4^th ed., 2000, $59. This book combines concise text with histological preparations. Now it comes with a CD-Rom.

Atlas of Human Anatomy, Netter, 2^nd ed., 1997, $64.95. This is an excellent book of drawings detailing human anatomy at a multitude of levels and views. Your lab table should pool money and buy one early. Lock it up when you leave lab or it will walk off.

Grant’s Atlas of Anatomy, Agur, et al, 10^th ed., 1999, $59.95. It may help you in studying since they use diagrams from this atlas for some exams.

Color Atlas of Anatomy, a Photographic Study, Rohen & Yokochi, 4^th ed., 1998, $66.95. Many people who owned this book considered it the source for passing practicals. It is a book of photographs of immaculate dissections with number labels so you can quiz yourself.

Clinical Anatomy Made Ridiculously Simple, Goldman, 1991, $19.95. Provides easy to remember though often far-fetched analogies to help you remember anatomical concepts.

Board Review Series (BRS) Anatomy, Kyung, 1995, $26.95 (* medsite.com). The outline for board review summarizes concepts in bullet form.

Other books that some students found useful include:

Clemente’s Anatomy, Gray’s Anatomy (for the stuff you can’t find elsewhere), Shell’s Human Anatomy (in Crerar, concise), Human Anatomy Coloring Book, Gartner and Hiatt Color Atlas of Histology.

Physiology, Berne & Levy, 4^th ed., 1998, $69. This is the recommended text for physiology. It is very detailed but covers specific topics in a concise manner.

Renal Physiology, Vander, 5^th ed., 1995, $29.95. This is well-written, easy to read, and necessary book along side class notes.

Gastrointestinal, Hepatobiliary, and Nutritional Physiology, Chang, et al, 1996 (out of print), 24.05 (used). This book is now out of print. Dr. Chang, who wrote the book, distributes notes that represent the book very well. Some Students still found it useful to get their hands on the book as well.

BRS Physiology, Costanzo, 2^nd ed., 1998, $28.95. This is a great review book and useful adjunct to the course.

Other book that some students found useful include:

Constanzo’s ‘Stars’ Physiology Review

Biochemistry, Voet & Voet, 2^nd ed., 1995, $126.50. The recommended text for biochemistry, many students survived without purchasing it.

Biochemistry, Stryer, 4^th ed., 1995, $125. This is another detailed text.

Lippincott’s Illustrated Reviews — Biochemistry, 2^nd ed., 1994, $32.95. This book is more necessary if your background in biochem can use a boost.

Other books that some students found useful include:

Lehninger, Nelson, and Cox Biochemistry, BRS Biochemistry (better than Lippincott’s but with less figures), Voet, Voet, and Pratt Fundamentals of Biochemistry (smaller, easier to digest), Zubay Biochemistry.

Principles of Neural Science, Kandel, Schwartz, & Jessell, 2000, $85. You will be told that this book is a must have for your career in medicine. Decide for yourself.

Neuroscience, Purves, 2000, $76.95. This book is readable but a bit basic is some areas.

High-Yield Neuroanatomy, Fix, 2^nd ed., 2000, $15.95.

BRS Neuroanatomy — out of print substitute with:

NMS Neuroanatomy, Demyer, 2^nd ed., 1998, 28.00

Lippincott Pharmacology, Mycek, et al, 2^nd ed., 2000, $32.95. This is a valuable book in Dr. Heller’s section of neuropharmacology.

Pharmacology, Rang, 4^th ed., 2001, $49.95. New edition due out in 2001, this year some used the reserve copy.

The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, Goodman & Gilman, 2001, $125. Supposedly a must have for studying pharmacology, the new edition is due out in August.

Neuroanatomy Text & Atlas, Martin, 2^nd ed., 1996, $79.95

Neuroanatomy: an atlas of structures, sections, and systems, Haines, 5^th ed., 2000, $37.95. This is a very useful guide through neuroanatomy labs.

The Brain Atlas, Hanaway, 1^st ed., 1998, $55.

Other books that some students found useful include:

BRS Pharmacology, Neuroanatomy Made Ridiculously Simple, Haines Fundamental Neuroscience, Lange Pharmacology

Molecular Cell Biology, Lodish, 4^th ed., 1999, $106.40. Though some found this book valuable, others never laid eyes on it.

Medical Genetics, Jorde, 2^nd ed., 2000, $45. Most people found the notes sufficient.

Genetics Pre-test, Wilson, et al, 1998, , $24.94. This book is all practice questions and answers.

High Yield Biostatistics, Glaser, 2001, $15.95. Most used this book to supplement the course lectures and notes.

BRS Behavioral Science, Fadem, 1999, $26.95. Most students read this BRS cover to cover before the exam. It covers more than the course does but should not substitute for the course notes.

Medical Nutrition & Disease, Morrison & Hark, 1999, $36.95. This book was most valuable as a reference in completing the course assignments and the open book cased based portion of the final exam.

Other books students found useful include:

Cell Biology: Alberts Molecular Biology of the Cell (if you already won it, don’t buy Lodish)

Genetics: Thompson and Thompson Genetics in Medicine

Epidemiology: Petrie and Sabin Medical Statistics at a Glance(valuable as reference for future

researchers)

Psychopathology: BRS Psychiatry, Kaplan and Sadock Synopsis of Psychiatry

In the fall of 1993, the University of Chicago opened the doors to its new Biological Sciences Learning Center, known affectionately as the BSLC. The BSLC is one building with a dual purpose: to transfer existing information to new generations of students, and to generate knowledge through research. For the next two years you will spend most of your time in this building, located on the north side of 57th Street, across from the John Crerar Science Library. Illustrated below are some of the main features of your new home:

Learning Center (south wing)

-Five Story atrium allowing sunlight through all levels.

-Large lecture rooms, with the latest in audio/video technology.

-Computer lab on lower level and Sun System stations for email and internet.

-4th floor anatomy and histology labs, as well as another small computer lab accessible only to first year medical students.

-Coffee shop/snack bar on the second floor.

- 19,023 square foot greenhouse on the top floor.

Jules Knapp Medical Research Center

(north wing)

Five floors devoted to the following labs and offices:

1. Gwen Knapp Center for Lupus and Immunology

2.Center for Molecular Oncology

3.Center for Molecular Cardiology

4.Brain Research Foundation for Molecular Neurobiology

5.Genetics (I st Floor)

Computer Lab & Interactive Classroom

Located in the lower level of the BSLC, these lab are evolving so check and see what they has become in the fall. Descend the stairs, continue down the hall and through the double doors. There will be a scanning station, both IBM and Macintosh compatible computers, and free laser printing.

Anatomy Suite Computer Lab

On the fourth floor across from the anatomy lab, there is a small computer room with 8 computers equipped with laser disk players and a laser printer and scanner. It is only accessible to first year med students via their key cards. Thus, you have 24-hour access to computer facilities. This is the best place to view Histo slides, Anatomic and Neurologic dissections utilizing the laserdisc programs provided for you.

Training

At the beginning of each new quarter, training on how to use the AudioVisual equipment in the building is offered. Also offered are classes and individual sessions on how to use MultiMedia in teaching, e-mail and using the Internet, how to get the most out of the equipment the building has to offer, and more. Please call or e-mail the Training Specialist (phone extension 5-9421 or e-mail to [email protected]) to find out when classes are scheduled.

Computers

The computers in the BSLC will play an integral part in your first year experience, both academically and socially. Though there is a move towards decreasing the use of the internet as the primary tool in some classes, still many resources will remain online. The recently established Chalk system (chalk.uchicago.edu), accessible with user name and password, organizes many of the online webpages for each of your classes. Those classes not enlisted with chalk will be found on the OME web site at ome.bsd.uchicago.edu through the e-curriculum link.

The computer lab on the fourth floor situated between the histology labs and across from the anatomy lab is always open though not always running at 100%. You’ll see. On the lower level of the BSLC is an evolving computer lab. Another computer lab is the fresh USITE Computer Cluster in the basement of Crerar, complete with internet café. You’ll use this lab for most of your laser printing and scanning needs.

Besides the internet, which you can access all around campus, a variety of programs are installed exclusively on the BSLC computers. Though all fairly easy to use, their usefulness varies from person to person. They often serve to reinforce ideas presented in morphology, physiology, and neurobiology. Give them a try to find out whether or not computer learning is for you.

EMAIL and the INTERNET

The internet has an unlimited number of resources for the medical student. Surf away. Some are linked to course web pages; other can be found through search engines and are often linked to other universities. If you do find something good, don’t forget to share.

STUDY AIDS

The anatomy and histology class can put you in front of the computer for several hours before an exam. Supposedly there are laser discs which can be used in the laser disc player in the BSLC computer lab. The "Microscopic Anatomy" application should prepare you well for histology exams as a similar program is used. Other programs on laser disc may help in preparing you for anatomy practicals. A CD-rom accompanies the new Wheater’s histology book and provides similar, though overly detailed, slides. The primary source used by many students is the OME based human morphology web page via the lab link. This provides a selection of slides hitting the major points.

Other programs include:

• Clinical Anatomy - an Interactive Lesson - This program has a Textbook, Lesson and Atlas Mode, so it may have all you need wrapped up in one package!

• Anatomic Explorer - This program shows the horizontal cross sections of the human body. Cross sections are on the lab practicals, so don’t forget to look at them before the test. The "real" (non-labeled) sections can be found in the Anatomy suite, but this program is almost more helpful (at least until you get used to these sections). It is a good idea to follow one structure from slice to slice to help you put together some sort of 3-D body picture in your head! This program is found on the hard drive in the Embryology Apps folder within the Biology Applications folder. There is also a computerized tomography (CT) version in this same folder.

• Animated Embryo - This is in the same folder as the Anatomic Explorer. This program gives the stale chick embryo cross-sections some life! It allows you to click back and forth from cross-section to a 3-D type whole mount that will turn around in space for you This really helps put everything in perspective, and the computer screen is easier to look at than those damn microscopes!

• Brain Storm - This is a terrific tool for Neuroanatomy in the spring quarter. It is a very interactive and informative program that will really help put the brain in perspective. The program provides informational text, with key words linked to their respective cross-sections, whole-brain pictures, and drawn diagrams. Many students used this as a strong supplement to or instead of the real brains used in lab. This program is on CD, and there are many copies in the BSLC computer labs.

• Hyperbrain - This is supposed to be really good and may add to the Brain Storm program

• Symbiosis — this will be introduced to you as a lab in fall quarter physiology. It is useful in simulating the physiological processes of the body and has some easily understood explanations of systems with follow-up quizzes.

Extra Note: When you are reading/writing/ thinking in the computer lab and you come across more vocabulary that you don’t know, remember Stedman’s Medical Dictionary is on the computers and is really helpful as a reference. It is on the BSDAC hard drive in the Applications folder.

The computer resources are very valuable and can really help present the volumes of information you will be trying to learn in a concise and relevant manner. Surely, by the time you read this, the terrific faculty will have found more computer-assisted learning tools for you to try out.

Key Cards

During orientation, you will pay a $10 deposit for a key card that will grant you 24/7 access to the BSLC, the anatomy labs, and the MSI computer lab. The keys are programmed by your academic year such that the second years do not have the same access as first years. If you lose key card, you must pay a replacement fee at the OME. Many of the doors are supposedly alarmed so as to notify campus police if the doors are held open for greater than 20 seconds. Key cards can be forfeited for an infraction. Key cards can be read through wallets and even outer pockets of backpacks. If your card is in your back pocket, all you have to do to get into the building is wiggle your butt in front of the card reader.

University of Chicago Cards

All University of Chicago students are issued the University of Chicago Card. Watch for signs during Orientation Week and stop by the administrative building to get your picture taken. These cards are both bar and magnetically coded and allow you to store up to $50 on them. They can also be used to make copies and use in vending machines. They must also be scanned to gain access to Crerar, the Regenstein, and the athletic facilities. The must be presented upon entrance to the BSLC in the evening and on university buses.

Hospital ID Cards

Hospital ID cards should be worn at all times while in the hospital. They must also be presented to gain admittance to the hospital and Crerar (unless you have your U of C card). They must be swiped to gain entrance to the Student Lounge in the hospital and to use the elevators in the hospital between 8:30 p.m. and 7:00 a.m..

All University of Chicago Medical Center identification cards must be validated annually in late December for the following calendar year. For this, simply go to the Medical Center Security Office, Billings Hospital, Room M-041.

If you lose your ID card, it can be replaced at the Medical Center Security Office (M-041) between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. with a letter of authorization from the OME and a receipt of payment of the replacement fee at the Goldblatt Pavilion cashier’s office in the hospital.

The Medical Center

While most of your time during the first two years will be spent in class, you will need to be somewhat familiar with the hospital, especially when you go to interview patients for Introduction to Clinical Medicine. Maps are available at all entrances and signs can lead you to many locales.

The Cummings-Crerar Tunnel

This tunnel provides a route for travel between the hospital and Crerar library (with Cummings Life Sciences Building in between) without going outside in inclement weather or in the wee hours of the night. From the student lounge continue straight down the S corridor and when you reach the first intersection (not counting the cafeteria entrance) turn left and go down the P corridor. When you come to a corridor on your right with a clock and punch cards on it, take it. You will be passing through open fire doors into a corridor that goes left, turns right, goes straight and finally turns right again. Go downa ramp. Take the door on the left. Walk through the tunnel and the door at the end.

If you want to go to Cummings, take the branch that goes left, and go up the stairs that will put you on the first floor. If you want to go to Crerar Library, continue straight along the corridor and through the door at the end. This puts you in the basement of Crerar, where the internet café is. Go up the stairs to get to the library. To take the tunnel in the opposite direction, your hospital or university ID will be required.

Scrub Machine

The location of the scrub machine changed several times this past year. It’s last known location was in the subbasement of the hospital. Take the F elevator to the subbasement, turn right and then left. The door will be in your right. The scrub exchange process consists of two machines. One of which is a depository. Scan your cards, put your scrubs in. Go to the other machine, scan you card, pick your size, retrieve your new clean scrubs.

Student Lounge

The Student Lounge is a cool place. Here is the place in the hospital for you (simply because you are a student in the med school/BSD) to play pool, foosball, and sleep (all for free!). Upperclasspersons who no longer have classes in the BSLC receive mail here, and flyers and scrubs run aplenty. You will need your hospital I.D. to obtain access. Try your I.D. after you receive it. Many of us have found that we were unable to access the lounge with our I.D.’s. If you cannot get into the lounge, go back to the security office and they will remedy the problem.

If you understand the corridor labeling system in the hospital remember that the lounge is room S-010 (in the basement near the cafeteria). Invited guests are welcome, and tours often bring down prospective students to show them a cross-section of the medical student population.

Activities

Depending on the ambition of the senior class, Student Faculty Social Rounds-more commonly known as Liver Rounds-are held in the Student Lounge every Friday from 5-7 p.m. The beer is cheap and selection is plentiful. This is a great time to talk to students, staff and faculty outside of classes. It’s also a good time to have a beer, play a game of pool or foosball, and plan your Friday night. This is the only regularly scheduled activity in the lounge, but during the day you can almost always find people to get together for a game of pool or a conversation. The Student Lounge also has a stereo, television, treadmill, and several computers that can be used for games or e-mail.

Mailboxes

The mailboxes in the lounge belong to the third- and fourth-year students. First- and second-year students receive their mail in the BSLC mailroom. Regardless of the location of their mailboxes, everyone gets all sorts of important announcements, returned tests, and sufficient junk mail. If you receive mail care of the OME, it will be delivered here. Look around, paper recycling bins are never far away.

Bulletin Boards

There are bulletin boards in the lounge, in the BSLC mailroom, and near all your major classrooms. Sometimes they get pretty covered, so you may have to wade through the minutia if you make the effort.

On-Call Beds

The OME has kindly and mercifully installed an on-call room for those third- and fourth-year students who have to stay overnight. This room lies just off the student lounge, so keep the noise level low during late-night socializing in the lounge so that they can sleep.

Student Physician Conduct and Dress Code

Medical students are expected to conduct themselves professionally at all times while involved in patient care duties. This includes a dress code, which not only confers respect for the profession and the patients, but also will help you to look like you belong in the hospital (although you may not necessarily feel as such). The dress code for physicians in the University of Chicago Medical Center applies equally to medical students in the third and fourth years and to any student involved in patient contact and activities in patient care areas. The code also applies in clinical classes when patients are present or when interviewing in the hospital. Professional dress should be worn whenever on duty in the Medical Center and validated hospital identification badges should be visible at all times.

Here are the guidelines of the dress code:

Women: dress slacks or skirts & blouses, business dresses, suits, and white coats

Men: dress shirts & slacks, ties, suits, and white coats

Scrubs cannot be worn outside designated areas or without a white coat over them. Operating room masks, hats, or shoe covers cannot be worn outside the OR area. T-shirts, sneakers, shorts, and jeans are unacceptable in the dress code.

Medical Instruments

Sophomore students will need instruments for the Physical Diagnosis course in the winter quarter. These should be purchased during the fall quarter. Basic instruments include: stethoscope, otoscope, and ophthalmoscope set, reflex hammer and tuning fork. Optional items that you may want to consider include a physician’s bag that you probably won’t use, a helpful ECG caliper, a penlight, and a pocket eyechart.

The AMSA Medical Instrument Co-op will hold a general meeting early in fall quarter, during which attending physicians and upperclassmen describe what instruments are needed on the wards. Instrument company representatives present their instruments, and afterwards, students can examine the goods first-hand and discuss features and warranties with the salespeople. Orders are placed a week later. After a few weeks, the instruments will arrive and will be distributed to those who remember to keep their receipt.

Medical bookstores also carry medical instruments, but they cost more and are not as convenient as the AMSA sale. Upperclassmen and house staff may also sell pre-owned instruments at a low price, but their warranties may have expired or be nontransferrable.

Repair

Manufacturers warranties usually last until graduation. All instruments sold in the AMSA Instrument Co-op sale are covered by AMSA’s distributor. For repair, take the instrument back where you bought it or to the AMSA distributor.

Engraving

Engraving these expensive items adds that personal touch and also increases your chances of recovering lost items. The security office (room M-041) has an engraver for your use, free of charge.

Department Chairs

Department/Committee Chair Phone Location

The Basic Medical Sciences:

Anatomy Phil Ulinski 834-7472 CH 108

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Anthony Kossiakoff 834-2846 CSLC 161

Ecology and Evolution Cbung-I Wu 702-2565 Z 201A

Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology Anthony Mahowald 702-2184 CLSC 701

Health Studies Ronald Thisted 702-8332 AMB W250

Human Genetics David Ledbetter 834-0525 JFK R11O

Pathology Vinay Kumar 702-0647 AMB S329

Pharmacology and Physiology Sangram Sisodia 834-2900 Ab 316

Radiology Martin Lipton 702-6024 AMB P220

Committee on Biopsychology Martha McClintock 702-2579 HD 203

Committee on Cancer Biology Marsha Rosner 702-0380 AMB N704

Committee on Cell Physiology Mitchel Villereal 702-9340 AB 532

Committee on Clinical Pharmacology Mark J. Ratain 702-4400 FMI I-229

Committee on Developmental Biology Ed Ferguson 702-8943 CLSC 755A

Committee on Evolutionary Biology Jeanne Altmann 702-8920 CLSC 561

Committee on Genetics Rochelle Easton Esposito 702-8046 CLSC 813F

Committee on Immunology Jeffrey Bluestone 702-0401 AMB O-327

Committee on Neurobiology Phillip Lloyd 702-6371 SBRI J233A

Committee on Nutrition Reed Graves 702-6741 AMB S401

Committee on Virology Bernard Roizman 702-1898 MKL 107

The Clinical Medicine Departments:

Anesthesiology and Critical Care Jeffrey Apfelbaum 702-1190 AMB I428

Center for Clinical Medical Ethics Mark Siegler (Director) 702-1453 AMB W732

Medicine Harvey Golomb 702-1051 AMB W604

Cardiology Section Jafar Al-Sadir (*) 702-1370 AMB W217

Dermatology Section Keyouniars Soltani 702-6559 CLI L516

Emergency Medicine Section James Walter 702-9500 CLI L550

Endocrinology Section Fred Wondisford 702-6217 AMB M270

Gastroenterology Section Stephen Hanauer 702-1466 AMB M401

General Internal Medicine Section Wendy Levinson 702-3045 AMB W701

Hematology/Oncology Section Everett Vokes 702-9306 FMI I215

Infectious Disease Section Paul Arnow 702-2711 CLI L307

Nephrology Fredric Coe 702-1475 AMB S503

Neurology Raymond Roos 702-6390 SBRI J209

Obstetrics/Gynecology Sandra Culbertson (*) 834-2229 CLI L233

Ophthalmology J. Terry Ernest 702-8888 AMB S209A

Pediatrics Herbert T. Abelson 702-6205 WCH C120

Psychiatry Elliott Gershon 834-2660 AMB B453

Department/Committee Chair Phone Location

Pulmonary and Critical Care Alan Leff 702-1859 AMB W656

Radiation Oncology Ralph R. Weichselbaum 702-0817 CAM 1332

Radiology Martin Lipton 702-6024 AMB P220

Rheumatology Section Michael Becker 702-6899 AMB NB20

Urology Section Charles B. Brendler 702-6105 SBRI J653

Surgery Bruce Gewertz 702-0881 SBRI J557

Cardiac Surgery Section Valluvan Jeevanandam 702-2500 AMB E500

General Surgery Section Fabrizio Michelassi 702-6237 AMB G209

Neurosurgery Section Frederick Brown 702-2123 SBRI J349

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Section Eric Pulver 702-2800 CAM 4H

Orthopedic Surgery Section Michael A. Simon 702-6144 AMB E309

Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Section Robert Naclerio 702-0080 AMB E102E

Pediatric Surgery Section Walter Chwals 702-6175 WCH C405

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Section Robert Walton 702-6302 SBRI J641

Surgical Critical Care Section Thomas Vargish 702-5826 AMB G201

Thoracic Surgery Section Mark K. Ferguson 702-3551 AMB P217

Transplant Surgery Section J. Michael Mills 702-6319 SBRI J517

Zoller Dental Clinic Section Louis Graham 702-3250 SBRI S553

Key:

(*) Acting Chair

A: Anatomy Building

AB: Abbott

ALAB: Animal Laboratories

AMB: Billings Hospital (with Corridor Letter)

CAM: Center for Advanced Medicine

CLI: Chicago Lying-In Hospital

CLSC: Cummings Life Sciences Center

FMI: Franklin McLean Memorial Research Inst.

HD: Human Development, 5730 Woodlawn

MKL: Marjorie B. Kovler Viral Oncology Lab.

SBRI: Surgery Brain Research Institute

VSC: Visual Sciences Center, 939 E. 57th

UCCH: University of Chicago Children’s Hospital

Since you already received a detailed housing packet in the mail, this section will serve as a brief reference and summary. See your housing guide for details.

International House:

Location: 1414 East 59th Street

Telephone: (773) 753-2270

This is a great building right on the midway between Dorchester and Blackstone. It is home to many of the University’s international students, mostly studying at the graduate level. It also serves as a youth hostel and rooms can be rented nightly for this purpose. The single rooms are small and dorm-like with bathrooms shared by all residents of a given floor. The benefits: cool, historical building with diverse residents, cafeteria and snack shop on the first floor, and awesome outdoor courtyard complete with euro-style fountain. The drawbacks: Rooms are small, no private bathroom, definitely not the best value for your money in Hyde Park. You’ll probably only end up in I-house for the Salsa Party and the cool Halloween party they throw every year, but you most likely won’t end up living there.

Neighborhood Apartments:

Graduate Student Housing

Telephone: (773) 753-2218 (Assignment Office)

For a complete listing of University-owned apartments, call the Graduate Student Housing Office. These apartments are scattered throughout Hyde Park and range in quality from pretty nice to sort of sketchy. The good ones go fast so you have to send in your application and deposit promptly. This is a good option if you want an apartment but can’t get to Chicago ahead of time to pick out your own.

Most students live off-campus in Hyde Park, but you shouldn’t take an apartment that you haven’t seen (unless you have a roommate doing the searching and you trust this roommate very much). If you can’t make it to Hyde Park to find an apartment, the University housing system is probably a safer bet. When choosing an apartment, consider the area described earlier patrolled by the University Police. In terms of housing, this generally means 51st-59th Streets (north-south) and Maryland to Lake Shore Drive (west-east). Some students live outside this area, but it’s best to pick your first apartment within this zone until you become more familiar with the neighborhood.

Listed below are a few resources to consider as you look for off-campus housing.

• Apartment listings from the Student Government Housing Services: Ida Noyes Hall, 3rd floor; 1212 E. 59th St.; (773) 702-9732. Usually have lists of people looking for subletters, roommates, etc.

Here is an abbreviated list of major realtors in the area. Some important points to keep in mind as you call around:

McKey & Poague: 1348 E. 55th St., (773) 363-6200

Parker-Holsman: 1461 E. 57th St., (773) 493-2527

K & G: 1609 E. 53rd St., (773) 288-2758.

Also 5337 South Hyde Park Blvd., (773) 947-0721

Hyde Park Realty: 1743 E. 55th St., (773) 324-1600

Wolin-Levin: 1740 E. 55th St., (773) 684-6300

Blackstone Management: 5418 South Woodlawn, (773) 667-1568

Regents Park: 5050 S. Lake Shore Dr., (773) 288-5050

Windermere House: 1642 E. 56th St., (773) 643-1500

University Park Condo: 1451 E. 55th St., (773) 363-1440

The Flamingo on the Lake: 5500 S. Shore Dr., (773) 752-3800.

Hyde Park Towers: 5140 Hyde Park Blvd., (773) 752-5140

The Versailles: 5254 S. Dorchester, (773) 324-0200. Only has studios and one bedrooms.

The Carolan: 5480 S. Cornell, Marian Realty, (773) 324-7400

Algonquin Twin Towers, 1606 E. Hyde Park Blvd. (773) 684-2333

Every year a few students will decide to buy a condo or house. Some of the management companies listed above have property for sale (such as Parker-Holsman and McKey & Poague) but you can also try calling major realtors. The local Office for Century 21 is located at 5508 S. Lake Park Ave., (773) 667-6666.

Some students opt to live in other Chicago neighborhoods, including the Loop, Lincoln Park, Bucktown, etc. The advantages include proximity to better night life and restaurants but the major disadvantage is the commute. Public transportation to and from Hyde Park is considered in another section, but most students who live outside H.P. drive to campus. In this case, daily parking can be a hassle. A new parking structure was completed this year at 55th and Ellis Avenue where the rate is $1 per hour. The University operates some other parking lots that you must apply in the parking office to use. In this case, you pay for the space quarterly or yearly and the waiting lists can be very long. Street parking is coveted and failure to keep up with a city meter will earn you a $30 ticket.

Malet Realty: 14 W. Jackson Blvd., (312) 360-1400

Draper & Kramer: 33 W. Monroe, (312) 346-8600. Also has some apartments in Hyde Park.

The Grand Ohio Management Co., 211 E. Ohio St., (312) 645-1810

Relcon Apartment Guide

Chicago Reader Online

http://www.chicagoreader.com

After you find an apartment, you’ll have to set up your utilities. Below is a short guide to handling this hairy and very un-fun task.

Have these pieces of information handy when you call to set up your new utilities services:

• Your Social Security number

Phone service can be established by calling Ameritech at (800) 451-2761 nationwide 24-hrs, 7-days a week or (800) 244-4444 in Illinois. There is a $85.00 hook-up fee that can be spread out on your phone bill for up to 10 months or paid with your first bill. The hook-up time could be from 2 days to 2 weeks depending on the situation, so call AS SOON AS POSSIBLE so you have service when you move in. It is helpful to know what type of service you want before speaking with a representative. Only subscribe to the services that you absolutely want and/or need. One service that you may want to consider is the LineBacker insurance program. If something goes wrong with the physical phone line inside your apartment, you don’t have to pay for repairs if you subscribe to LineBacker. Hyde Park apartments are old and the telephone lines have been known to get crusty from time to time. (Note: some students use companies other than Ameritech for local phone service. If you choose one of these companies, be aware that all the physical phone lines are still owned and operated by Ameritech.)

Commonwealth Edison is another company that can be reached nationwide for hook-up 24 hours a day by calling (800) 334-7661. There is usually no hook-up fee, and it should take about 24 hrs for the process to be complete. Often electricity will be on in your apartment already and you will just have to call to switch the account to your name (but don’t do this if electricity is included in your rent!) In addition to electric service, ComEd offers light bulb service for $0.70 a month, and the bulbs can be picked up at local stores.

Setting up gas service is a relatively simple process if the tenants before you paid their bills. However, People’s Energy can cause you some pain if the tenants in the apartment before you didn’t pay their bills and the gas was shut off. If this has occurred, you will have to get a copy of your lease and some other papers and take them down to the office or fax them over. The number for hook-up is (312) 240-4000. Like electricity, the gas may be on already and you just have to switch the account to your name. Be honest about this, or by the time they catch on you’ll have a very large bill. If service is not already hooked up it may take anywhere from one to ten days to start. Service fee for hook-up ranges from $10 to $17.

AT&T Cable: (773) 434-8710

Prime Cable of Chicago: (773) 736-1800

DirectTV: (800) 4-DIRECTTV

If you live in a high rise, the building may already have contracts with specific companies so you won’t have a choice as to which company provides your service.

Metra

This safe, clean, run-by-humans train is the best way to get in and out of Hyde Park. The University Park train runs parallel to Lake Park Avenue (north-south) and has stops at *51st-53rd Streets, *55th-57th Streets, and 59th Street. The northbound stops include 12th Street/Roosevelt Road convenient to the Museum Campus and Soldier Field, VanBuren Street convenient to the Art Institute and Grant Park, and the northernmost stop is at Randolph and Michigan Avenue, which puts you within walking distance of the whole Magnificent Mile. Tickets are $1.95 each way, but you can save money on a ten-ride pass or a $5 weekend ticket that gives you unlimited rides on Saturday and Sunday. For information and schedules call (312) 322-6777 or (312) 322-6900.

*these are combined platforms, not individual stops.

Buses

These run all over the city, some 24 hrs a day. Call (312) 836-7000 for schedules and information. The fare is $1.50, or $1.80 with a transfer, which will allow you two bus or el changes to your final destination. The buses take dollar bills, but you need exact change! The major routes through Hyde Park are: #6 Jeffrey Express which runs on Lake Shore Drive as far as Randolph Street in the Loop, #1 Indiana-Hyde Park which runs locally to the Loop area and also goes to Union Station, and #55 Garfield which runs on 55th Street and then Garfield Boulevard to Midway Airport.

The El (Elevated train)

The el stop convenient to Hyde Park is really not that convenient (located far west of campus in not-so-safe Washington Park, near the Dan Ryan expressway.) People do use this train and then take a bus to campus, but the el is more useful (and safer) for transportation around the loop and other neighborhoods in the city. You should take the Metra to get out of Hyde Park and then use the el from downtown to get to your specific destination. For information and schedules, call (312) 836-7000.

Taxis

A taxi ride between Hyde Park and downtown will cost around $20, so this option works best when you are riding with friends who can split the fare with you. Some big cab companies are listed below:

Wolley Cab Co.: (877) 888-8294

Blue Ribbon Cab: (773) 878-5400

Flash Cab Co.: (773) 561-1444

Yellow Cab: (312) TAXI-CAB (829-4222)

Checker: (312) CHECKER (243-2537)

You must have your university I.D. (NOT YOUR MEDICAL CENTER I.D.) to use campus transportation.

Daytime Campus Bus Service

The daytime campus bus service is operated by the CTA and is free to students and staff with UCID. Routes cover all of Hyde Park: #170 Midway, #171 Hyde Park, and #172 Kenwood. Buses run every 15 to 45 minutes depending on the time of day (they operate more frequently during rush hours). Routes and schedules are available at the Reynolds Club and the Regenstein Library.

Evening Bus Service

There are six routes, A-E & M; four start in front of Regenstein Library, and two start in the main quadrangle. Route maps can be obtained at the Reynolds Club. Also, routes are conveniently posted outside the Reg.

University of Chicago Hospitals Rail Shuttle Service

This chartered coach bus travels four times in the morning from Union and Northwestern train stations to the hospital and returns back to Union and Northwestern stations five times during the afternoon and evening. From these stations, one can then take various Metra trains to suburbia. Individual tickets cost $2 while a 42 ride pass can be purchased for $75. Tickets and schedules can be obtained from the cashier’s counter in the Mitchell Hospital Lobby.

The University of Chicago Express

This U of C coach bus departs daily from the Reynolds Club at 5 p.m. and then every half hour beginning at 6 p.m. (no 5:30 p.m. departure). Sunday through Thursday the last departure from Reynolds Club is at 10:30 p.m., returning to Reynolds Club at 12 a.m. Friday and Saturday the last departure leaves at 1:30 a.m., returning at 3 a.m. The route passes through downtown and proceeds to 3200 N Halsted. 2-ride tickets cost $3.00 and 10-ride tickets are $12.00. To obtain a map of the Express route or to purchase tickets, stop by the Reynolds Club info desk on the first floor.

Late-Night Van Service

This service runs from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m. Sunday through Thursday, and from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. This van service works on an on-call basis through University security. Call 702-8181, or use a white box and give your precise address. The van picks up callers in the order their calls were received, so there may be some delay. Give the dispatcher a number where you can be reached, and wait inside, if possible, until the so called "drunk van" arrives.

Umbrella Coverage

See "Security" section. A police car can shadow you as you walk home.

Holiday Transportation

The student government sponsors special shuttles to Midway and O’Hare airports around holiday and break periods. Information regarding these shuttles can be obtained from the Student Government Office.

Airport Shuttles

The only shuttle that serves the South Side reliably is Omega, (773) 483-6634. Ask for a student discount.

Owning a Car

First, if you own a car in Hyde Park, observe the following:

1) Buy a Club, even if you have a security system.

2) Always lock your car.

3) Don’t leave valuable items in view on the seats.

Second, be prepared to have parking-induced headaches daily. To get street parking near campus, you must arrive by 7 a.m. or you can basically forget it. To find out about applying for a spot in the University paid lots, call (773) 702-8969.

The other thing to watch out for, whether you are commuting or simply parking a car in Hyde Park full time, is STREET CLEANING. The University area is kept clean by frequent street-cleanings that occur spring through fall and cause entire streets to be closed for parking from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on those days. Be sure to keep an eye out for the ORANGE No Parking signs; they appear one day before cleaning. Street cleaning fines are 50 bucks so be careful about this.

Chicago, IL 60628

(773) 995-2626

City Hall (for required city stickers):

121 North LaSalle, Room 107

(312) 742-9200

Citibank

(312) 263-6660 For 24-hour automated service

(773) 256-2280 For the local branch on Ellis Avenue

Citibank has two branches at the University: one mini-bank in the corner of the hospital at 58th and Ellis (across from the bookstore) and ATM service on the lower level of the Reynolds Club.

Bank One

Like Citibank, this is a large nation-wide bank. It has ATM service in the bookstore as well as the local Walgreen’s (55th and Lake Park).

Hyde Park Bank

Locations: 1525 E. 53rd Street and 1311 E. 57th Street.

Telephone: (773) 752-4600

University National Bank

Location: 1354 E. 55th Street

Telephone: (773) 684-1200

For Men:

Reynolds Club Barber Shop, lower level of Reynolds Club, (773) 702-8573. Mixed reviews, convenient and cheap.

University Barber Shop, 5700 South Harper, (773) 684-3661

For Women:

Curl up and Dye, 2837 N. Clark, (773) 348-1000. A little expensive but funky.

Michael Anthony Salon and Day Spa, 1001 W. North Ave., (312) 649-0707. Not too pricey for a fancy day spa with excellent scalp massages.

Sahan’s Motherland African Hair Braiding, 1459 E. 53rd St., (773) 643-8181

For Anyone:

Hair Design International, 1309 East 57th Street, (773) 363-0700 Ask for discount days.

Mario Tricoci, 211 E. Ontario, (312) 944-5500. Sort of expensive but you can save money by having a trainee cut your hair (this isn’t as dangerous as it sounds, they are already certified to style hair but are still in Mario Tricoci training.)

Hair Cuttery, for nearest location call (800) 956-HAIR. Haircuts for ten bucks.

University Branch, next to bookstore (end of cul-de-sac on 58th Street just west of Ellis), (800)-275-8777

Co-Op Grocery Branch, on lower level of Co-Op Market (55th and Lake Park), (773) 667-1444

Main Hyde Park Branch, 4601 South Cottage Grove, )773) 924-9221

Blockbuster Video: 1644 E. 53rd, (773) 363-4200. Open 1am-10pm, 7 days a week; free membership.

Hyde Park Co-Op Video Store: (773) 667-1444. Use group membership card to take videos.

Hollywood Video: (773) 667-2281, 1530 E. 53rd St. Open until midnight so when Blockbuster closes, go here.

Video Connection: (773) 947-8100, 1204 E. 53rd. Has a reduced rate for students.

Hyde Park Co-Op Grocery Stores

55th & Lake Park, (773) 667-1444.

47th Street (just west of Lake Park), (773) 268-4700

Mr. G’s Co-Op, 53rd and Woodlawn, (773) 363-2175

The three cooperative groceries in Hyde Park are the most popular places to shop for food. You can buy shares for $15 and in return you save some money and can write checks there. The prices are high, although occasionally they run specials. The selection is pretty good at the 55th and 47th street locations, whereas Mr. G’s is more like a small grocery store and less like a big supermarket than the other two. There is a post office, video store, and liquor store in the basement of the 55th Street Location. Cash stations are on the first floor. Mr. G’s has a cash station right outside.

Village Foods

1521 E Hyde Park Blvd., Village Center, (773) 288-8180.

They often have inserts in the "Hyde Park Extra" which is a circular delivered to local apartments. Their selection is smaller, but the prices are reasonable. A good spot to re-supply if you are in the area. Be prepared to wait in the checkout lines.

Hyde Park Produce

1312 E. 53rd Street, (773) 324-7100

This is an awesome place to shop for fresh produce at reasonable prices. They also have a small deli with imported feta cheese, olives, and freshly-made salsa and guacamole. Great place for fresh-squeezed orange juice.

University Market

1323 E. 57th Street, (773) 363-0070

This place is way too expensive to buy your groceries here, but they have the best made-to-order deli sandwiches anywhere near campus (according to Michael Flicker, UM sandwiches are "better than cocaine.")

Nite and Day

1613 E. 55th Street, (773) 324-4300

Harper Foods

1455 E. 55th Street, (773) 363-6251

Walgreen’s Drug Store*

1554 E. 55th St., (773) 947-8886

Osco Drug*

1420 E. 53rd St., (773) 643-1395

(*Note: Walgreen’s and Osco are not full grocery stores. They offer a few food items but are convenient places to go for deodorant, shampoo, snacks, film, and pharmacy services. The Walgreen’s pharmacy is open 24 hours.)

If you have a car, it might be cheaper to get groceries at a larger chain store. Below is a short list of some places nearby.

Cub Foods

112 W. 87th, (773) 874-9592

You pack your own groceries here, but as a result you save money. Good selection, lots of sales.

Dominick’s

3145 South Ashland, (773) 247-2633

2101 East 71st Street, (773) 955-4775

Jewel/Osco

7530 South Stony Island, (773) 955-8150

Jewel is a big food store, combined with Osco which is a drugstore/liquor store/general merchandize store. Very convenient.

For a summary of fun shopping venues in Chicago, see the section on Shopping. Here we just list a few necessity stores in Hyde Park that you might need to know about when you first move in (so you can buy lightbulbs, brooms, extension cords, etc.) For bookstores (medical and otherwise) see the section called Informal Guide to First Year (PAGE #).

Ace Hardware

5420 S. Lake Park, (773) 241-6300

1304 E. 53rd St., (773)493-1700

You can get brooms, mops, lightbulbs, batteries, step ladders, keys, bug traps, tools, gardening supplies, and much more at these two overpriced but convenient locations.

Office Depot

5420 S. Lake Park, (773) 643-7474

Here you’ll find school supplies, binders, and colored pens galore (handy for Darin Croft’s anatomy lectures). They also have a selection of office furniture and computer gadgets as well as a copy center. Which brings us to…

Kinko’s

1315 E. 57th St., (773) 643-2424

24 hour copy center with slow service and crabby employees.

Local Gas Stations:

Mobil at 53rd and Kimbark

Amoco at 51st and Lake Park

Shell at 51st and lake Park

Hutchinson Commons, 57th and University in the Reynolds Club

Barnes and Noble Bookstore, 58th and Ellis

Bio Café, 2nd floor of the BSLC building

C-Shop, 57th and University in the Reynolds Club

Cobb Hall Coffee Shop

Classics Cafe

DCAM Food Court

Divinity (Div) School

Ex Libris, A-level of Regenstein Library

Hospital Cafeteria, Basement of the Hospital

The Pub, basement of Ida Noyes Hall on the corner of 59th and Woodlawn Ave.

Second-Floor Coffee Shop, located on the first floor of the Reynolds Club.

Outside of the options on campus, you will probably frequent these restaurants the most during your stay in Hyde Park. A complete, alphabetical listing of these same restaurants appears in the back "Yellow Pages." Unless otherwise noted, you can get a meal at all of these restaurants for ten bucks or less.

*Far East Kitchen, 1509 E. 53rd, (773) 955-2200. Open late until 1am. Cantonese and Mandarin.

Kikuyo Japanese Restaurant, 1601 E. 55th St., (773) 667-3727. Sushi, tempura and teriyaki. Slightly more expensive than average (about $15 per person).

Noodles, Etc., 1458 E. 53rd St. and 57th & Kenwood, (773) 947-8787. Some good "big bowl" type dishes.

*Siam, 1639 E. 55th, (773) 324-9296. Inexpensive to moderately priced Thai food.

Snail, 1649 E. 55th, (773) 667-5423. Authentic Thai cuisine. BYOB.

Thai 55, 1605 E. 55th, (773) 363-7119. Good Thai food at reasonable prices.

Thai Twee, 1604 E. 55th, (773) 493-1000. Another Thai place.

*Wok’n’Roll ,1408 E. 53rd, (773)-643-3500. Cantonese and Mandarin dishes available for eat-in, pickup, or delivery.

Bon Jour Cafe and Bakery, 1550 E. 55th, (773) 241-5300. Great pastries and hot chocolate. Come early if you want a baguette.

Jacob’s Bros. Bagels, 53rd and Kimbark, (773) 493-2245. Tasty bagels, sandwiches, coffee, and juice. Tuesday bagel special.

Morry’s Deli, 5500 S. Cornell, (773) 363-3600. Deli with some tables and stools. New York Bagel Company bagels.

Pockets, 1307 E. 53rd, (773) 667-1313. Pitas, calzones, pizza.

Café Corea,1603 E. 55th, (773) 288-1795. Korean food, evidently.

C’est Si Bon!, 5225 S. Harper (Harper Court), 773-363-4123. Gourmet bistro dining in a cozy setting.

Mellow Yellow ,1508 E. 53rd, (773) 667-2000. Good food, chill atmosphere, and you can get alcoholic beverages for breakfast (see the "Morning Mellowers" section of the breakfast menu.)

Original Pancake House, Village Center, 1517 E. Hyde Park Blvd. (773) 288-2322. Great pancakes, long waits (especially Sundays), cash-only establishment.

Salonika Restaurant,1438 E, 57th, (773)752-3899. Greek-American food, serves breakfast all day long.

Valois Cafeteria is also awesome for breakfast. See listing in Southern/Caribbean section.

Harold’s Chicken Shack, Fish, and Pizza, (Kimbark Plaza) (773) 752-9260. The name of this place tells what they serve. Not known for being the cleanest place in Hyde Park.

*Ribs and Bibs, 5300 S. Dorchester, (773) 493-0400. Take out/delivery only.

Sammy’s Food, Cottage Grove and 57th, (773) 288-2645. Open late, popular place for med students to get late-night study food.

Baskin-Robbins, 1400 E. 53rd St., (773) 288-4434. Ice Cream. Nuf said.

Boston Market, 1424 E. 53rd St., (773) 288-2660. Rotisserie chicken and more.

Burger King, 1527 E. 51st St. (in the Village Center), (773) 684-9505

*Domino’s Pizza, 1453 E. Hyde Park Blvd., (773) 324-3800. Delivers until 12:30 a.m.

Dunkin’ Donuts, 53rd and Dorchester, (773) 288-5719. Open 24/7, now includes a sandwich selection as well (Togo’s).

Kentucky Fried Chicken, 1513 E. Hyde Park Blvd. (Village Center), (773) 288-2221. Pretty much carry-out only.

McDonald’s, 1344 E. 53rd St., (773) 493-1622. Known all over the city as "the worst McDonald’s in the universe."

Starbuck’s, 53rd and Harper, (773) 324-1241.

Subway,1363 E. 53rd, (773) 288-8400.

*Caffè Florian,1450 E. 57th, (773) 752-4100. Really much more than Italian. Try the vegetarian black bean nachos. They also have a great hot beverages menu.

*Leona’s, Woodlawn & East 53rd St. (Kimbark Plaza), (773) 363-2600. Take out and delivery available in addition to dine-in. Wide selection, food is just okay.

*Piccolo Mondo Café, 1642 E. 56th (in the Windermere), (773) 643-1106. Moderate to expensive Italian dishes (around $15 for most entrees). Imported coffee and espresso. Real spumoni!

Pizza Capri, 1501 E. 53rd, (773) 324-7777. Pizza, salads, appetizers, pasta, sandwiches, and good service.

*Jalapenos, 1660 E 55th St. (773) 643-5500. A decent, sit-down Mexican restaurant.

Maravillas, 5211 S. Harper Ct. (773) 643-3155. BIG, phat, cheap burritos, open until midnight.

Pepe’s, 1310 E 53rd St. (773) 752-9300. Mostly a take-out restaurant, not many tables available. Also a little pricey for fast-food.

*Cedars of Lebanon, 1618 E. 53rd, (773) 324-6227. Yummy Middle Eastern dishes, good prices, no pork. Carryout and delivery on weekdays only.

The Nile Restaurant,1611 E. 55th, (773) 324-9499. Good Middle-Eastem food.

Rajun Cajun, 1459 E. 53rd, (773) 955-1145. Fast-food Indian and southern fried chicken with collard greens. Hmmm. You’ve got to see it to understand.

*Edwardo’s, 1321 E. 57th, (773) 241-7960. Great spinach stuffed pizza, cheap lunch specials, and fifteen percent discount for eat-in with UCID.

*Giordano’s, 5311 S. Blackstone, (773) 947-0200. Definitely one of the best deep dish pizzas in Chicago.

*Medici, 1327 E. 57th, (773) 667-7394. A favorite among U of C students. Great desserts, burgers, pizza, and salads. They have an outdoor area on the second floor. BYOB.

Pizza Capri, See description in Italian section

Calypso Café, Harper Court, at 53rd and Harper, (773) 955-0229. Good Caribbean food and exotic drinks. About $12-$15 for most entrees.

Dixie Kitchen and Bait Shop, 5225 S. Harper (Harper Court), (773) 363-4943. Cajun/Creole dishes such as catfish, gumbo, jumbalaya, corn bread, all in a 1930’s down-home environment.

Jackson Harbor Grill, 64th and Lake Shore Drive, (773) 288-4447. Awesome outdoor eating area overlooking the harbor. Cajun style seafood and other southern fare (including grits). Entrees average around $15, sandwiches and salads are cheaper (<$10).

Nathan’s, 1372 East 53rd St., (773) 288-5353. Jamaican take-out.

Rajun Cajun, See description in Middle Eastern/Indian Section.

Valois, 1518 53rd St. (773) 667-0647 Cafeteria style southern food. Excellent for breakfast. CHEAP.

Chicago offers an array of interesting restaurants, there’s no way to summarize them here. Anna says, "you can eat yourself fat living in Chicago." So please use this list as a starting place, but use the following websites to explore the culinary possibilities:

www.metromix.com

www.chicago.citysearch.com

www.zagat.com

Prices are per person, and usually include non-alcoholic drinks and dessert.

ITALIAN

Club Lucky

1824 W. Wabansia (between Ashland and Damen), (773) 227-2300

$18-23. The retro décor and renowned Martinis make this Bucktown Italian something special.

Ignotz Ristorante

2421 S. Oakley, (773) 579-0300

$15. Old-fashioned ambiance with nice owner.

The Italian Village

71 W. Monroe, (312) 332-7005

$12-$25. This Loop classic (over 60 years old) has great kitsch décor.

Mia Francesca

3311 N. Clark, (773) 281-3310

$10-20. Very popular restaurant with good wines to sip while you wait.

Rosebud

1500 W. Taylor, (312) 942-1117

$15-$20. There are now Rosebud’s all over Chicagoland, but this is the original. Frank Sinatra used to eat here.

Scoozi!

410 W Huron, (312)943-5900.

Less than $10, Bustling, busy, fun place.

PIZZA

Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder

2121 N. Clark, (773) 248-2570.

$11-$20. Try the unique pot-pie pizza. Very interesting place. Cash only.

Gino’s East Pizzeria

633 N. Wells., (312) 943-1124.

$10-$15. This place is known for having one of the best pizzas in the world. Famous actors and British Royalty (Queen Elizabeth) have all sampled this culinary delight. The ambiance is great as well. Bring your black marker because you can write on anything you want.

Pizzeria Uno

29 E. Ohio, (312) 321-1000

$10-$15. The original Chicago Style Pizza. This place has been franchised in other cities but it started in Chicago, so maybe you’ve sampled their fare in San Francisco or Boston (but you haven’t truly had Chicago style pizza until you’ve had it in Chicago!)

SPANISH, CUBAN, & MEXICAN

Café BaBaReeba

2024 N. Halsted, (773) 935-5000

SPANISH, $20-$25. Gran Señora of Chicago tapas.

Cafe Iberico

739 N. LaSalle, (312) 573-1510

SPANISH, $15. Very popular tapas place, great sangria, reasonable prices

Café 28

1800 W. Irving Park, (773) 528-2883

CUBAN-MEXICAN. Kind of up-scale, reasonable prices, great food. Worth the wait.

Flash Taco

2556 N. Clark, (773) 248-3901, or 1570 N. Damen, (773) 772-1997.

MEXICAN, <$10. Open until 3 a.m. on weekdays, 5 a.m. on weekends.

Frontera Grill

445 N. Clark, (312) 661-1434

MEXICAN, $10-$15. Said to be one of the best Mexican restaurants in America.

Uncle Julio’s Hacienda

855 W. North Ave., (312) 266-4222

MEXICAN, $20. Excellent food, plentiful portions, nice atmosphere.

JAPANESE & CHINESE

King Wah

2225 S. Wentworth, (312) 842-1404.

CHIN ESE, under $10. Helen owns it, she’s a real sweetheart. Good food. Anna likes it.

Kamehachi

1400 N. Wells, (312) 664-3663

JAPANESE, $20-$30. Oyster shots and excellent sake.

Matsuya

3469 N. Clark, (773) 248-2677

JAPANESE, $15-21. The sushi here is comparable to almost anywhere on the West Coast. Their combination plate is outstanding, or check out the teriyakis. The wait is long unless you go after the usual dinner crowd (after 9 p.m.)

Nagano

3475 N. Clark, (773) 871-2312

JAPANESE, "super cheap". Small place, home-style Japanese food, noodle and rice bowls available.

Sai Café

2010 N. Sheffield, (773) 472-8080

JAPANESE, $20-$30. Yellow tail sushi is "to die for."

Three Happiness

2130 S. Wentworth, (312) 791-1228

CHINESE, $10-$15. Most popular dim sum in Chicago.

Yen’s

2856 N. Clark, (773) 549-0707

CHINESE. Slow service, carry-out is best (if you live in Lincoln Park.)

Yu’s Mandarin Chinese Restaurant

200 E. Golf Road, Schaumburg. (847) 882-5340.

CHINESE, $10 and up. A trip out to the suburbs will get you a meal at what is supposedly known in China as the Chinese restaurant to try in the States.

For more Chinese restaurants, go to Chinatown (exit Lake Shore Drive at 22nd Street).

GREEK

Costa’s, 340 S. Halsted, (312) 263-9700

$20-$25. Arguably the best of Greektown.

Greek Islands

200 S. Halsted, (312) 782-9855

$15-22. Try the flaming cheese.

OTHER

Bandera

535 N. Michigan, (312) 644-3524

AMERICAN, $15-$20. Cool atmosphere, good food (salad served on chilled plates), and excellent service.

Berghoff Resaurant

17 W. Adams St., (312) 427-3170.

GERMAN, $12-$17. Great beer, bread, kraut und sauerbraten.

Bistro 110,

110 E Pearson St., 312-266-3110.

FRENCH/AMERICAN, $15-20, Great food and people-watching.

Croften on Wells

535 N. Wells, (312) 755-1790.

FRENCH-AMERICAN, ($35+). Reservations recommended. Romantic, good food.

Earwax Café

1564 N. Milwaukee Ave, (773) 772-4019

VEGETARIAN AND VEGAN. Funky atmosphere.

Ed Debevics

640 N. Wells, (312) 664-1707

AMERICAN, $10. Set up like a 60’s diner, the waitstaff is actually made up of actors who are paid to be as rude as they can to you. They can sometimes be seen dancing on the tables or having condiment fights. This is a tourist must.

Foodlife

Water Tower Place, 835 N. Michigan Ave., (312) 335-3663.

A high-end cafeteria. Food is fresh, but prices can add up as you fill your tray.

Geja’s Café

340 W. Armitage, (773) 281-9101

FONDUE, $31-$40. Romatic spot for fondue and fine wine. Also, Ben and Jerry’s ice cream shop right next door.

Jerome’s

2450 N. Clark, (773) 327-2207

A BIT OF EVERYTHING/ BRUNCH $10-15. Great Sunday brunch, all baked goods made on premises.

L’Olive Moroccan Restaurant, 1629 N. Halsted, (312) 573-1515.

MORROCAN, $15, cozy, warm atmosphere serving up couscous galore.

Potbelly Sandwich Works

2264 N. Lincoln Ave, (773) 528-1405

Potbelly now has 6 locations all over the city, but this one is the original. They have the best subs in the universe all under $4. Great shakes, cool atmosphere. You’ll get addicted.

Reza’s

432 W. Ontario, (312) 664-4500.

PERSIAN, $15-$20. Exceptional vegetarian dishes.

Russian Tea Time

77 Adams St., (312) 360-0000.

EASTERN EUROPEAN, $30. One of the most elegant dining rooms in the city; less expensive at lunch. Great tea selection.

Soupbox

2943 N. Broadway, (773) 935-9800

SOUP, <$10. Offer a wide variety of soups in the winter and a large frozen drink selection in the summer.

Twin Anchors

1655 N. Sedgewick, (312) 266-1616.

RIBS, $10-$15. Great ribs, worth the wait.

Viceroy of India

2515 W. Devon Ave., (312) 743-4100

INDIAN, $15. Great samosas, not too pricey. Lots of other Indian restaurants in the area so go check it out.

Wishbone

3300 N. Lincoln, (773) 549-2663

1001 W. Washington, (312) 850-2663

AMERICAN SOUTHERN, $12-18. Cool atmosphere, four-star rating on citysearch.com.

Intelligensia Coffee Roasters, 3123 N. Broadway, (773) 348-8058

Cool atmosphere for studying, fresh-roasted beans for sale,

La Tazza Bella, 1345 W. Taylor, (312) 850-1510

Cozy and quaint.

The Local Grind, 1585 N. Milwaukee, (773) 489-3490

Big cool coffee shop with couches. Also serve sandwiches and dessert.

The Cove Lounge, 1750 E. 55th, (773) 684-1013

Quieter place to talk, cheap drinks.

Jimmy’s Woodlawn Tap, 1172 E. 55th Street, (773) 643-5516

University hang-out, very low-key. Open until 2 a.m. on weeknights, 3 a.m. on weekends.

The Pub, Lower Level of Ida Noyes Hall, (773) 702-9737

Monday night offers ten cent wings. Med students flock here for this event weekly.

There are hundreds of bars in this city. Here are a few we like.

Bar 13, 1944 W. Division, (773) 394-1313

Swanky bar, same owners as Harry’s (see below) but has no cover.

The Blue Frog, 676 N. LaSalle, (312) 943-8900

Karaoke and board games, a fun place to stop.

404 Wine Bar, 2856 N. Southport, 773-404-5886. Less -pretentious than many wine bars, you have to pass through the grubby Jack’s Bar & Grill to enter the relaxed wine bar experience.

Goose Island Brewery, 1800 N. Clybourn, (773) 915-0071, also in Wrigleyville at 3535 N. Clark, (773) 832-9042. Local brewery and restaurant with good beer.

Harry’s Velvet Room, 54 W. Illinois, (312) 527-5600

Swank as hell, expensive. Best martinis in town.

Hudson Club, 504 N. Wells, 312-467-1947. Popular after-work wine bar, suits abound.

Jilly’s Retro Club, 1007-1111 N Rush, 312-664-1001. Laid back classy cigar bar playing retro tunes.

Joe’s, 940 W. Weed, (312) 337-3486

Very large sports bar with good specials throughout the week.

John Barleycorn, 658 W. Belden, (773) 348-8899

Nice bar with outdoor beer garden. Another location at 3454 N. Clark, (773) 549-6000 which has a dance floor and a more rowdy crowd.

The Matchbox, 770 N. Milwaukee, (312) 666-9292

Very small bar with the best mixed drinks in Chicago.

NoMI, 800 N Michigan, 312-239-4030. On the 7th floor of the Park Hyatt, great view of the action on the Mag Mile.

Sauce, 1750 N. Clark, (312) 932-1750

New. Young, trendy crowd.

Signature Lounge, 875 N. Michigan, 312-787-7230. The posh lounge on the 96th floor of the John Hancock Building…views that will make you ignore the price of drinks.

Tantrum, 1023 S. State, (312) 939-9160

Cool atmosphere with chill, diverse patrons. Cool owner and bartenders.

The Tasting Room at Randolph Wine Cellars, 1415 W. Randolph, (312) 942-1212

Another swanky place, great for sampling wine and cheese, sort of hip and trendy but not too crowded.

Ten 56, 1056 N. Damen, (773) 227-4906

Laid back martini bar with free-style rappers.

The Village Tap, 2055 W. Roscoe, (773) 883-0817

Chill bar with good wings, diverse crowd, good music, outdoor beer garden.

Whiskey Bar, 21 E Bellevue Pl, 312-475-0300. Ultra-trendy whiskey bar (as the name implies) brought to Chicago by Cindy Crawford’s husband.

Blue Chicago, 736 N. Clark St., 312-642-6261. A bit small, good music, relaxed.

Buddy Guy’s Legends, 754 S. Wabash, (312) 427-0333. Chicago’s largest blues club, with national and local acts.

Green Mill, 4802 N. Broadway, (773)-88-5552. Old-school jazz club with great music.

House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn, (773) 527-2583. Great music acts, food, and atmosphere.

Kingston Mines, 2548 N. Halsted, (773) 472-2031. Only place for late-night blues.

Rosa’s, 3420 W. Armitage, (773) 342-0452. Small, out-of-the-way blues club.

Betty’s Blue Star Lounge, 1600 W. Grand, (312) 243-1699.

Open late, cheap cover, great late-night spot for dancing.

Drink, 702 W. Fulton, (773) 773-7800.

Huge, fun, nice club.

Funky Buddha Lounge, 728 W. Grand, (312) 666-1695

Mixed crowd, Friday nights they have African drummers playing along with the hip-hop.

Hothouse, 31 E. Balbo, (312) 362-9707

Non-profit club with dance floor and stage area. Affordable.

Kustom, 1997 N. Clybourn, (773) 528-3400

Trendy, expensive, with outdoor area in the summer.

Leg Room, 15 W. Division, (312) 337-2583

Chill place, small dance floor, good music.

Le Passage, 937 N. Rush, (312) 255-0022

Trendy, expensive, late-night spot.

Nacional 27, 325 W. Huron, 312-664-2727. Good eats and weekend latin dancing…a new hot spot.

Nocturnal, 1111 W. Lake, (312) 491-1931

Swank, nine bucks per drink.

Pasha, 642 N. Clark, 312-397-0100. Tues and Sat Latin Night. Trendy, fun crowd, posh atmosphere.

Red Dog, 1958 W. North, (773) 278-1009

Loud, call to find out about salsa nights.

Sage, 464 N Halsted, 312-409-7055. Like Sinibar (1540 N Milwaukee, 773-278-7797), this is hip hip-hop/funk club.

Transit, 1431 W. Lake, (312) 491-8600

Pretty people, "slick, futuristic haunt." Drinks are expensive.

Webster Wine Bar, 1480 W. Webster, 773-868-0608.Casual, romantic wine bar…all the wine without the snobs.

Whitestar, 225 W. Ontario, (312) 440-3223

Expensive but fun crowd, go with hot chicks to get cheaper covers.

This section lists bars and clubs for the gay and lesbian community. Some places come with recommendations but for most listings you should call or look on metromix.com to get an idea of the atmosphere and crowd composition.

Baton Club, 436 N. Clark St., (312) 644-5269. Drag shows nightly.

Berlin, 954 W. Belmont, (773) 348-4975. Very small but intense dance club for gays and straights.

Big Chicks, 5024 N. Sheridan, (773) 728-5511. Despite it’s name this is not a lesbian bar, although you will find many lumberjack-I-didn’t-know-he-was-gay types.

Big Daddies Bar & Grill, 2914 N. Broadway, (773) 929-0922. The name says it all.

Buddies Restaurant & Bar, 3301 N. Clark St., (773) 477-4066. Country/western style.

Charlie’s Chicago, 3726 N. Broadway, (773) 871-8887. Huge country/western scene, turns to regular dance music late night. Open until 5 a.m.

Circuit, 3641 N. Halsted, (773) 325-2233. Hardcore industrial techno dance club. "You will be out of place unless you are physically ripped and shirtless." Open until 5 a.m.

Closet, 3325 N. Broadway, (773) 477-8533

Cocktail, 3359 N. Halsted, (773) 477-1420. Friendly one-room drinking tavern.

Gentry on Halsted, 3320 N. Halsted, (773) 348-1053. Live piano music.

Girlbar, 2625 N. Halsted, (773) 871-4210

Little Jim’s, 3501 N. Halsted, (773) 871-6116.

Lucky Horseshoe, 3169 N. Halsted, (773) 404-3169. Seedy hustler bar on the gay strip in Boystown.

Manhole, 3458 N. Halsted, (773) 975-9244. This one speaks for itself.

The North End, 3733 N. Halsted, (773) 477-7999

Roscoe’s, 3354-3356 N. Halsted, (773) 281-3355. Most popular gay bar in Chicago, lots of drink specials and dancing, very "neigborhoody."

Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted, (773) 477-9189. "Stand and Model, for all you pretty boys; very popular place, no dance floor but it has big screen TVs."

Spin, 3200 N. Halsted, (773) 327-7711. Lots of suburban kids because the doormen don’t know (or don’t care) about fake IDs. Wednesdays are dollar drink nights.

Star Gaze, 5419 N. Clark, (773) 561-7363

DuSable Museum of African American History, 740 E. 56th Pl, (773) 947-0600. Adults $3, Students $2, Free on Thurs. Various exhibits featuring artifacts and memorabilia relating to the African-American experience.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House, 5757 S Woodlawn, (773) 834-1847. Tours daily at noon and three. Call for admission prices and ask for student discounts. If you have never seen one of his designs, at least walk by. It’s amazing.

Museum of Science and Industry, 57th and Lake Shore Dr, (773) 684-1414. Adults $8, Children $4.25. Free on Thursday. An awesome museum right down the street. They also have a huge Omnimax movie theatre featuring some pretty cool (and usually also educational) film exhibits.

Oriental Institute, 1155 E. 58th, (773) 702-9521. Free Admission. Recently renovated, it consists of a large collection of art and archeological artifacts from the Near East, ranging from 5000 BC to 1000 AD. Find out why the U of C inspired the Indiana Jones movies. Frequently has special films and exhibits.

Smart Museum of Art, 5550 S. Greenwood Ave., 702-0200. Free. Curated by the university’s art department, this small museum usually has exceptional special exhibits.

The city offers a huge array of cultural and educational experiences. The following museums are just a sample. Most have free days, so call ahead to find out when they are. Also ask about student discounts.

Adler Planetarium (312) 922-7827, 1300 S. Lake Shore Drive. See planets and stuff.

Art Institute of Chicago (312) 443-3600, 111 S. Michigan. Huge and diverse collection. Advertised as the best Impressionist collection outside of France.

Field Museum of Natural History (312) 922-9410, 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive. The famous T-Rex Sue lives there, and so does our anatomy professor Darin Croft.

Museum of Contemporary Art (312) 280-2660, 220 E. Chicago Avenue. If you’re into modern art, this is the place.

Shedd Aquarium (312) 939-2426, 1200 S. Lake Shore Drive. Lots of fish and an oceanarium with whales and stuff.

Terra Museum of American Art (312) 664-3939, 664 N. Michigan Ave. This is a beautiful museum that often gets neglected due to its proximity to the Art Institute and the MCA. It’s definitely worth checking out.

Doc Films, 702-8575.(24 hr film line), (773) 702-8574. Showing nightly in Max Pelevsky Cinema of Ida Noyes Hall. Call for quarterly showings, or pick up schedules at Ida Noyes. Tickets are cheap (<$4) and even less if you buy a quarterly pass.

International House Movies, (773) 753-2270. Shows mostly foreign films. Look for schedules at the beginning of the quarter.

Inner City Entertainment, Hyde Park Theatre, 5238 S. Harper, (773) 444-3456. Short on selection, but close to home.

Court Theatre, 5535 S. Ellis, (773) 702-7005. Discount ticket prices for students the day of the show. Classic theatre production from a professional company. Directors have a city or national reputation.

University Theatre, (773) 702-3414. Produces various shows throughout the year, such as off-off campus comedy, classic theatre, musicals, short experimental works, student plays,and dance. Call to find out about the different shows.

Brew & View, 3145 N. Sheffield, (312) 618-8439. Drink and watch movies.

Cineplex Odeon, 600 N. Michigan, (312) 255-9340

Esquire, 58 E. Oak, (312) 280-0101

Landmark Century Centre Cinema, 2828 N. Clark, (773) 248-7744. Like Piper’s Alley, this theatre offers some cool not-as-mainstream films in addition to the latest Meg Ryan movie.

Piper’s Alley, 1616 N Wells, (312) 642-7500. Has some interesting picks, more than just Hollywood blockbusters.

McClurg Court, 330 E. Ohio, (312) 642-0723

Music Box, 3733 N. Southport, (773) 871-6604. Art flicks, foreign films, independents. Pick up one of their free schedules and you’ll always have something cool to do.

900 N. Michigan Cinemas, (312) 787-1988. Limited selection, classy location.

Three Penny Cinema, 2424 N. Lincoln, (773) 935-5744. Small theatre showing independent films.

Water Tower Theatres, 845 N. Michigan Ave., (312) 649-5790

***For info on movie theaters and show times in the Chicago area, check the newspaper or call (312) 444-FILM. This service will also allow you to purchase tickets over the phone so that you can get them early for a popular show that might be sold out.

American Theatre Company (773) 929-1031, small theatre company, good mix of new and classic plays, student discounts.

Auditorium Theatre (312) 922-2110, Internationally recognized as one of the most beautiful and functional theatres in the world. Broadway shows and dance performances (including the Joffrey Ballet’s Nutcracker)

Chicago Symphony Orchestra (312) 294-3333. Me: "What should I say about the Chicago Symphony?" Anna: "It’s good."

Chicago Theatre (312) 263-1936, musicals, comedians, and touring musicians.

Schubert Theater (312) 977-1701, Broadway shows and other large stage productions.

Second City, 1616 N. Wells, (312) 664-4032

Improvisational comedy troupe that graduates its best to Saturday Night Live.

Steppenwolf Theatre (312) 335-1650, former performance home to John Malkovich.

Tony & Tina’s Wedding, 230 W. North Ave., (312) 664-8844

Interactive spoof of a stereotypical Italian Catholic wedding. Audience members go as wedding guests. Dinner is included in the ticket price.

Check the weekly Reader for details on shows and performances throughout the city.

Architectural Boat Tours, (312) 922-3432. Michigan avenue entrance. $18. If you like architecture, you will love this tour. As seen in the movie My Best Friend’s Wedding.

John Hancock Center Observatory, (312) 751-3681, 875 N. Michigan Av., 9 am to 12 midnight. Some say the view is better than from the Sears...

Sears Tower Sky Deck Tours, (312) 875-9696, 233 S. Wacker Dr., 9 am to 10 pm except from October until February when it remains open till 11pm.

Wendella Sightseeing Boat Tours, (312) 337-1446, 400 N. Michigan Av. on the river. Only between April and October.

Brookfield Zoo, 8400 W. 31st, (708)485-2200. Beautifully landscaped large zoo about 25 minutes away. Expensive.

Lincoln Park Zoo, 2200 N. Cannon Drive, (312) 742-2000. Smaller zoo but located just north of downtown on the lake. Free!!!

This section lists a few shops you might want to check out. Grocery stores and drug stores are listed in, well, the grocery store/drug store section. This part is more about places you would shop for fun, not necessity. Chicago is littered with unique stores tucked away in out-of-the-way neighborhoods. As such, this list mostly sticks to the big stuff and we count on you to explore the city to find your own little favorites.

900 North Michigan Shops

Located at, um, 900 N. Michigan. (312) 915-3916

Bloomingdales (best shoe department in the city), J. Crew, Benetton, and more. Go to www.shop900.com for a complete list of stores.

Water Tower Place

845 N. Michigan Ave., (312) 440-3164,

Lord &Taylor, Marshall Fields, Gap, Abercrombie, Banana Republic, etc. Go to www.shopwatertower.com for a complete list of stores.

In this immediate area (all of North Michigan Ave.) you will see Saks Fifth Avenue, Crate & Barrel, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Borders, Niketown, The Levi’s Store, and other major retailers. It’s impossible to list them all. Go there and see for yourself. It’s pretty insane.

Marshall Fields

111 N. State St., (312) 781-1000

This is a very old, very beautiful Marshall Fields with lots of Chicago history. Nearby on State you will find Carson Pirie Scott and other shops.

Diesel

923 N. Rush, (312) 255-0157

Very expensive, but a cool place to look around.

Urban Outfitters

935 N. Rush, (312) 640-1919

2352 N. Clark, (773) 549-1711

Expensive hipster clothes, shoes, accessories, some housewares & novelty items. Look for sales.

Lots of cool stores in this neighborhood, kind of like the Magnificent Mile for alterna-teens. A few high points are listed below. (Visit www.urbanstyle.net for more.)

The Pink Frog

857 W. Belmont, (773) 525-2680

Mostly women’s clothes, sort of trashy but has some good deals.

The Alley

854 W. Belmont, (773) 348-5000

A tourist attraction as much as a store. Good selection of Dr. Marten’s footwear.

Ragstock

812 W. Belmont, (773) 868-9263

New and used clothes for men and women.

Belmont Army Surplus

945 W. Belmont, (773) 868-9263

Awesome shoe and leather collection. Great place to get an authentic and very warm Navy pea coat for our beloved Chicago winters.

Something Old, Something New

1056 W. Belmont, (773) 271-1300

A huge resale shop.*

(*A note about resale shops: Chicago is full of them and you’ll do best to seek out your own favorites. One not to miss is the White Elephant Store at 2380 N. Lincoln, (773) 883-6184. It has clothes, books, jewelry, and furniture. All proceeds benefit the Children’s Memorial Hospital.)

• 2301 N. Clark, (773) 477-5994
• 214 S. Wabash (312) 663-0660

• Virgin Megastore, 540 N. Michigan, (312) 645-9300
• Reckless Records, 1532 N. Milwaukee, (773) 235-3727

Usually not worth mentioning, malls litter the Chicagoland area. The only reason I’m mentioning this one is because it’s the biggest in Chicago, formerly the biggest in the country (until Mall of America was built in Minnesota), and med students actually venture here because it’s near a huge IKEA retail store.

Woodfield Mall: At junction of I-90 and I-290 in Schaumburg NW of the city, visit www.gowoodfieldmall.com for details.

Cubs Baseball at Wrigley Field, call (773) 404-CUBS for tickets and information.

White Sox Baseball at Comiskey Park, call (312) 831-1SOX for tickets (or use Ticketmaster (312) 559-1212).

Bulls Basketball at the United Center, call 1-800-4NBA-TIX or use Ticketmaster.

Blackhawks Hockey at the United Center, call (312) 943-7000 for ticket info.

Bears Football at Soldier Field, visit www.chicagobears.com

Fire Soccer at Soldier Field, get tickets through Ticketmaster. For info go to www.chicago-fire.com

Major concerts will take place at major concert venues, and you’ll hear about those even if you don’t want to. Listed here are a few less-advertised venues that are helpful to know about. Check the Reader for shows and times.

Ravinia Festival

(847) 266-5100, www.ravinia.org

This wooded amphitheatre in Highland Park hosts outdoor concerts June through September. Lawn tickets are $10 and almost always available. BYOB.

Aragon Ballroom, 1106 W. Lawrence, (773) 561-9500

Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western, (773) 276-3600

The Metro, 3730 N. Clark, (312) 549-3604

Schuba’s, 3159 N. Southport, (773) 525-2508

The Vic, 3145 N. Sheffield, (773) 472-0366

These venues host alternative, punk, and independent rock bands in addition to some mainstream acts.

AM

WIND 560 Spanish

WMAQ 670 All News/ Sox and Bulls Games

WGN 720 News/ Cubs and Bears Games

WBBM 780 News, Blackhawks’ Games, Weather on the 8’s.

WSCR 820 All Sports Talk

WLS 890 Talk

WMBI 1110 Christian

WGCI 1390 Oldies but Goodies

WEEF 1430 Multicultural Programming

FM

WCRX 88.1 Dance Music

WHPK 88.5 UC Student Radio

WBEZ 91.5 Chicago Public Radio, NPR

WXRT 93.1 Progressive Rock

WLIT93.9 Easy Listening

WXCD 94.7 "80’s and beyond"

WNUA 95.5 Soft Jazz

WBBM 96.3 Top 40

WDRV 97.1 Classic Rock

WLUP 97.9 Rock

WFMT 98.7 Fine Arts

WUSN 99.5 Country Music

WPNT 100.3 Contemporary 80’s and 90’s

WKQX 101.1 Alternative and Rock

WTMX 101.9 Contemporary Mix

VIVA!! 103.1 Spanish Pop

WWBZ 103.5 Dance Music/Top 40

WJMK 104.3 60’s and 70’s

WGCI 107.5 R&B and Rap

ARCHITECTURE

The Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio in Oak Park offers intelligent tours of the home and studio which can be followed by a walking tour of the many other houses by FLW in the neighborhood around the home and studio. It is a great half day when the weather is nice. Call (847) 848-1976 for more information and directions.

One of the two homes in the world designed by Meis Van der Rohe (yes, he only designed two houses) is outside of Chicago. It is called the Farnsworth House and is in Plano which is about an hour outside of the city by car. The tour is excellent and also includes the sculpture garden of its present owner (Lord Peter Polumbo). Call (630) 552-8622 for information and directions.

THEATER

The Neo-futurarium, performs "Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind". It consists of 30 plays in 60 minutes and every week they change some of the plays. They’re awesome and the place is located at 5153 N. Ashland. (773) 275-5255.

Navy Pier Shakespeare Theatre, (312) 222-9328

MUSIC

Ravinia festival, outdoor summer concert venue. See section on concert venues.

Petrillo Band Shell in Grant Park. Lots of free concerts and plays here in the summer. (312) 742-4763.

Summer music fests in Grant Park

Bluesfest (June)

Jazzfest (Sept)

Celtic Festival (Sept)

Jammin’ at the Zoo. Summer concert series at the Lincoln Park Zoo. (312) 742-2000.

Summerdance--a band and dancing (starting with a 1-hour lesson )every Thursday thru Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon. They offer African dancing, Swing, Tango, and more. The garden is beautiful and

there are snacks and drinks for sale. It's a very non-intimidating place to

take a dance lesson as there are a lot of beginners.

http://www.ci.chi.il.us/CulturalAffairs/SummerDance/

Chicago Outdoor Film Festival-- classic movies (An American in

Paris and the Maltese Falcon were among those featured this summer) showing outside in Grant Park every Tuesday evening for 6 or eight weeks starting mid-July.

http://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/press/outdoormovie.htm

OTHER FESTIVALS AND EVENTS

Taste of Chicago (starts last week in June, ends the weekend after July 4.)

At Taste of Chicago, a bunch of the city’s restaurants set up stands side-by-side and you fight huge crowds for FOOOD! They also have some rides and games, great bands, and an awesome fireworks display on the third of July.

Jazzin at the Shedd

Thursdays starting at 5 p.m., May-September at the Shedd Aquarium. There is a Happy Hour outside on the water with food and cocktails. Call the aquarium at (312) 939-2426 for details.

After Hours at the Art Institute

One Thursday a month is set aside for an evening of art and socializing at the museum. (312) 443-3600

Summer Solstice at the MCA

For a day or two surrounding the summer solstice (June 21), the MCA remains open for 24 hours and hosts a bunch of different events including music, food, and special exhibits. (312) 280-2660

OUTDOORS/HIKING/EXERCISE

Chicago’s awesome lakefront

There are cycling and running paths and places to rent bikes and rollerblades. Go to www.chicagoparkdistrict.com for info.

Promontory Point

Our Hyde Park stretch of lakefront juts into the water at 57^th Street to form a beautiful park and play area with water on all sides. Popular place for swimming, sunbathing, grilling, frisbee, biking, and jogging. Cross Lake Shore Drive via an underpass just south of the east end of 55^th St.

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore

Located on Hwy 12 in Indiana, this features a great beach and really tall sand dune to climb. Stick around into the evening to enjoy the sunset. Camping is available in the National Lakeshore.

Starved Rock State Park

Good place for hiking and camping

Sailing

Check out the Northwestern comprehensive sailing school or contact the Chicago Park District about their Rainbow Fleet sailing program at (312) 745-1700.

Volleyball

Popular summer sport at North Avenue and Oak Street Beaches.

AMUSEMENT PARKS

Great America

Located about 1hr north of Chicago on I-94 in Gurnee, it has awesome roller-coasters. Expensive but fun.

This book is a small introduction to your new life at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, the neighborhood of Hyde Park, and the City of Chicago as a whole. Here are some tips to help you maximize its efficacy:

• Realize that this book is only a starting place for you as you become familiar with your surroundings. The University and the great city around it have much more to offer than we could contain on these few pages.

Welcome to Pritzker,

Cathy Humikowski and Anna Meyerson

[email protected], [email protected]

We’d like to thank our classmates for their input and suggestions on the content of this book.

An Informal Guide to the First Year

Congratulations! Welcome to Pritzker School of Medicine from members of the second-year class. You have worked hard to attain this goal and pursue this career. You are about to depart on what will stand to be another tumultuous segment of the journey we call life. You are probably nervous and not quite sure what to expect. You knew what questions to ask at your medical school interviews to demonstrate your interests but there is much to learn about the program you are about to start and you did not even know what questions to ask. That’s how most of us felt. But, somehow, we all figured things out with a little help from our predecessors and the Office of Medical Education. The OME works hard to provide you with guidance, resources, and opportunities to get you through. We have just barely finished what you are about to begin and we want to give you a little reassurance and helpful information to set you off in the right direction, hence this informal "guide". The class that preceded us is the group of upperclassmen and -women that we had the opportunity to know best. Likewise we look forward to getting to know you.

Excuse Me, Is there a Doctor in the House?

Are you really becoming a doctor? Do you really deserve to walk around the hospital wearing a white coat? Do you know enough to advise others? At this point, you should probably answer "no". However, by the end of your first year you will begin to feel that a small, but perceptible change has taken place. You are learning medicine! You will start during the first quarter with a course called Introduction to Clinical Medicine (see below) which, among other exercises, gives you the opportunity to interact with patients in the hospital. You will soon realize that most patients have an implicit trust in you. One of the hardest things about this course is to convince yourself that it is not a goofy charade, but an essential exercise in learning to communicate well with people who are ill. By the time spring quarter rolls around, many of you will have volunteered in local clinics and enrolled in preceptorships with clinicians because you want more can’t get enough clinical experience. After all, patient contact is keystone in the practice of medicine.

The Hospital

As your interview experience may have already demonstrated to you, the University of Chicago Hospital complex is a labyrinth. In spite of this, you are expected to find your way around. Follow the signs, ask around, travel with a friend and don’t lose your map! The elevators are good landmarks. Chances are once you know how to find a specific location, you will retrace your steps there every time.

Your Life as a Medical Student:

The academic life at Pritzker is, without a doubt, rigorous and time-consuming. However, it should not occupy all of your time, especially during the first year. For some of you, a portion of the material covered during your courses will be a review of material that was covered in your undergraduate courses. Those of you with less of a background in biological science may be challenged more by some of the courses. The pass/fail grading system is designed to level the playing field and eliminate the need for competition. As a result, you are free to approach medical school as a long-term enterprise rather than obsess about every grade. In the end, everyone completes their first year with a series of P’s on their transcript. Under the pass/fail system most students in our class maintained a full palette of extracurricular activities and continued or began to establish good habits such as exercising regularly and maintaining relationships. There are lots of opportunities to fill your free time and this includes having some fun!

Value your free time and take time to get to know your classmates. Parties generally abound early on as people continue to meet one another. If that’s not your scene, get together a smaller group and avail yourself of some of the fine gustatory experiences to be had in the Chicago area. Explore the campus and Hyde Park. The university sponsors a myriad of cultural events ranging from lectures, film, theater and orchestral music to outdoor concerts, a wacky scavenger hunt and intramural sports. And Hyde Park has a few cultural treasures that are truly worth visiting. There are lots of interesting things to do in Chicago. Friday faculty-student social rounds (a.k.a. "Liver Rounds") held in the hospital is a place where many students gather to make plans for the weekend. The University of Chicago has a large graduate school population and graduate school mixers are held throughout the year.

Some of you will be living with family members while going to medical school, or living with your spouse or significant other. Make sure you start to talk about how you will integrate the demands of medical school with your responsibilities to loved ones. Don’t forget about your friends outside of medical school. They offer something very important: a viewpoint of life that is not tainted by a need to know the intricacies of the human body.

Much of your first year will be spent adjusting. It can be uncomfortable at times. You are with the same group of people, often from 8:30am-5pm, and there can be a bit of a fishbowl effect. As the novelty of medical school wears off and the routine of studying for and taking tests becomes annoyingly familiar, morale usually becomes less jovial. By the end of the year most of you will be focused on simply finishing and starting summer. This mood swing will happen at different times for different people. During winter quarter, darkness falls before you leave lab. Many people go through a phase of depression (which Dean Wagoner will refer to as the "D" zone) and self-doubt. Medical school is very trying and can seem overwhelming. The reason we say this is that almost all of us have been there. Make sure you don’t feel that you must endure these feelings alone. Your relationships in and out of medical school as well as with the staff of the OME are there to help get you through–and you do get through it. On the other side is a more realistic expectation of your academic life and career. It is also important to remind yourself that your medical career develops over the course of seven to ten (or more) years of training. We are told time and again that the most important things come later and that the first years are for establishing a foundation.

The OME anticipates the doldrums that we experience by treating the first year class to the First Year Retreat! It is a much needed weekend getaway in the middle of winter quarter after a brutal set of midterm exams. It is scheduled right around the time when most people are in the D-zone. There is plenty of good food, a stress management workshop, a talent show, faculty-led workshops on different humanistic topics (e.g., medicine and marriage, time management, art in medicine, among others), a personality workshop, and a great party. It is an ideal time for you to bond (or re-bond) with your classmates and get to know some of the people that you haven’t yet. Virtually everyone attends.

As spring rolls around, the weather gets better and virtually everyone comes back to life. The work-load seems somewhat lighter as most classes are only tested at the end of the quarter. This can make for a very stressful period just before finals as you attempt to make up for weeks of slacking. Try to stay on top of your work throughout the quarter. With the opportunity to take some electives, you have the chance to explore some of the things that really interest you. There will be a meeting in winter quarter to present what to expect, how to plan, and what opportunities are available for spring quarter courses and electives.

Academic Life: A Brief Introduction

You will spend much of your weekdays in class. Below, we present a few necessary details so that you can get a sense of what is on the horizon. Speak to upperclassmen and -women about their experiences. Ask them about their strategies for dealing with the volume of information. Take each piece of advice lightly. Though you should use it to develop your own habits, you should remember that everyone will have a different opinion and everyone has different strategies for success.

Regarding placement exams: a reason to take them is to gain some flexibility in an otherwise inflexible academic program. If you feel uncertain about how much you retained from your undergraduate biochemistry course, take the placement exam anyway and see how you do. Feel free to speak to the course directors about any concerns you may have.

A word about "failing" at Pritzker: keep in mind that everyone wants to see you do well. If you are having trouble keeping up with the material, there are lots of people who can help. You will work hard, but you should try to enjoy the process as much as possible. You should begin to feel an emerging sense of competence by the end of the year. Whatever your approach, know that there are 104 other students in the same boat as you.

During orientation, you will be told that group study is the best way to success. Though team work is important in the medical practice, many people study more effectively on their own. Develop the study techniques that work best for you. Learning styles vary from person to person and don’t feel pressured to study in a way that is less comfortable for you.

Academic Life: Fall Quarter

Biochemistry

Biochemistry is a traditional didactic course. Interspersed among the daily fifty minute lectures are a handful of computer based labs. The course covers a wide array of topics including protein and enzyme biochemistry, lipids and membrane biochemistry, metabolic pathways and their regulation, biochemistry of nucleic acids, and protein synthesis. Exams are given about every three weeks or so and are non-cumulative. It is advisable to go to class and take good notes, and you may not even need a textbook. This course and its complement during the winter quarter (Molecular and Cellular Biology) are intended to provide a foundation for subsequent courses in the basic medical sciences such as pathology. This course covers a lot of material that will be a review for those with a solid background in biological science or biochemistry. Dr. Meredith, the course director, offers a placement exam to anyone who wishes to take it.

Introduction to Clinical Medicine

As the name implies, this is the first in a series of courses you will take throughout medical school that teaches specific aspects of clinical medicine. You begin with the basics: learning to perform a structured medical interview and learning basic doctor-patient communication skills. In the past, the course has met twice each week for an hour and a half. The course directors intend to incorporate a number of different opportunities to gain practical experience and feedback on your communication skills including supervised medical interviews of patients in the hospital. Professional dress and white coat are required.

Cell and Organ Physiology

Physiology is a two quarter course that spans the fall and winter. The course meets daily for fifty minutes. The first half of the fall quarter course covers some fundamental principles that will for a basis for the rest of the course. Starting with the study of cell membranes, membrane potentials, and epithelial transport, the course becomes more clinical as muscle physiology, cardiovascular physiology and respiratory physiology are covered. There are three or four labs integrated into the course utilizing the computer program "Symbiosis". The labs require you to apply the ideas that were covered in preceding lectures to clinical scenarios. Most of us found them to be an enjoyable and useful way to integrate lecture topics. Exams are given every three weeks or so and are non-cumulative.

Human Morphology I

Human Morphology combines embryology, histology and gross anatomy. The course directors feel that teaching these subjects in a unified fashion will encourage better integration of the material. Human Morphology spans the fall and winter quarters. This course tends to dominate as the primary academic concern during the autumn and winter quarters, although not all students regarded it as such. There are daily lectures in the morning followed by lab in the afternoon. A set of colored pencils or a multi-colored pen will prove very helpful throughout the course. You won’t work with the cadaver until the end of the second week of class. The first two weeks are devoted to the study of embryology by examining chicken embryos under the microscope. The rest of the fall quarter is spent exploring the thorax, the abdomen, and the pelvis. Histology and dissection labs are integrated to give both a gross and microscopic perspective of the various structures and organ systems. Exams are given after each section of the course and are non-cumulative. The TAs for the course (second year medical students) will be an invaluable asset to you. They will help you navigate the difficult terrain of the gross and microscopic anatomy of the human organism.

Facing the Issues of Death and Dying in Human Morphology Lab

The Human Morphology course, perhaps like no other in the first two years, is a potential source of anxiety due to the fact that you will be dissecting a cadaver. Some people dread the idea of handling a cadaver while wannabe surgeons are more excited to get inside the human body. Please don’t be alarmed if you have no feelings other than a natural curiosity. All of these reactions are well within the limits of "normal." We are encouraged to maintain a high degree of respect for the bodies that we study and this usually helps one adjust to the necessity of the task at hand. The initial lab period you spend with the cadaver will not involve any dissection. It occurs at the end of the second week of the first quarter and will be a relatively brief exercise in wrapping the body with wet cloths to prevent the cadavers from drying during the time you will work with them.

Kyle Nash (a specialist on death and dying issues at the hospital and fellow at the ethics center) gives a rather unique lecture as a preparation for gross anatomy lab. She provides an historical perspective on dissection as a part of medical education and the rather lengths students and faculty had to go to in the past to study anatomy. She also explains the details of how and where cadavers are presently obtained by medical schools in Illinois. Afterwards she gives people an opportunity to tour the anatomy lab and express their feelings if they feel the need to do so. With the help and support of Kyle, Pritzker students organize a memorial service to honor those who have given their bodies for our edification at the conclusion of the course. Most students attend the service, and many participate by writing poems, singing songs, or sharing their personal experiences.

A Message from Kyle Nash:

A very wise student reminded me to stress that here at Pritzker no one has to be alone in this. Students are very supportive of one another. I’m here as an optional resource: a supportive presence. If nothing else, we’ll just "shoot the breeze." Whatever your reaction(s) to dissecting the human body, it is a profound experience, one in which I feel honored to share.

-Kyle Nash

Academic Life: Winter Quarter

Molecular and Cellular Biology

This is another traditional didactic course that convenes daily for a fifty minute lecture and a few additional times to discuss a relevant scientific paper (i.e., "journal club"). The journal club papers offer you the opportunity to reflect critically on published experimental observations. Topics covered during the course include prokaryotic and eukaryotic gene expression and its regulation, signal transduction, cell cycle and its relation to cancer, intracellular trafficking, cell structure and organization, and cell-cell communication. It may be a review for some of you. Exams are given every three weeks or so and are non-cumulative.

Organ Physiology and Endocrinology

During this quarter you will continue studying the physiology of the major organ systems and culminate with four weeks of endocrinology. Lectures are given daily for fifty minutes. The winter course presents basic human physiology and then applies these principles to clinical scenarios. The renal physiology section incorporates weekly case-based discussion sections in place of a lecture. After renal physiology, you will spend a few weeks on gastrointestinal and hepatic physiology before endocrinology begins. Exams are given after each section and are non-cumulative.

Human Morphology II

The second part of the Human Morphology course is less time-intensive because there is scant histology and embryology. Lectures convene three times per week, as do labs. You will begin by dissecting the legs and hips, arms and shoulders, before concluding with anatomy of the head, face and neck. This involves learning the cranial nerves. These dissections are tricky, so you will rely on your dissection skills of first quarter. You will probably feel that the winter course requires you to fine-tune your memorization skills. TAs are fewer in number and play a less prominent role in the course, but are quite knowledgeable. Pritzker’s future orthopedic surgeons (fourth year medical students) typically TA the course. Exams are given after each segment of the course and are non-cumulative. They focus more on gross anatomy and less on physiology, embryology and histology.

The Doctor-Patient Relationship II / Medical Ethics

This course sets the University of Chicago curriculum apart from many other medical school curricula. It stems from the University’s tradition of pioneering work in the field of medical ethics, much of which was done by the course co-director, Dr. Mark Siegler. Different faculty members cover a wide range of topics including euthanasia, pediatric ethics, reproductive issues and genetic engineering, and the ethics of human experimentation. The course meets once a week for a lecture, followed by facilitated small group discussions. Students are also encouraged to participate in extracurricular ethics discussions, such as case conferences and the student-run Bioethics Interest Group. The final exam is a take home essay exam that requires an ethical analysis of a case.

The Social Context of Medicine

This course covers the economics, politics and social underpinnings of the American medical profession. It meets once per week for lecture/discussion. This is an evolving course. Course format and issues are likely to vary from year to year, but may include such topics as how doctors are paid, managed care organizations, the structure of an academic medical center, health care for the poor, public health, racial discrimination in medicine, and information technology in medicine. The course requires you to attend a couple of small group sessions that are held weekly with attending physicians from the hospital. The presenters give a brief lecture and lead a discussion on a topic in which they are involved. A brief write-up is submitted. There are several short papers required and a longer final research paper.

Academic Life: Spring Quarter

Medical Neuroanatomy and Neurobiology

This class is really a two quarter course combined into one quarter. Lectures are given an average of two times per day (sometimes three or four) with neuroanatomy and neurophysiology labs once or twice per week. Basic neuroanatomy is introduced, then revisited in a functional context. You will learn several neural pathways and their function: sensory/motor, pain, vestibular, oculomotor, auditory, visual, and limbic. Cranial nerves will be reviewed. Other topics include neural system differentiation, membrane potentials, synaptic transmission and neural/synaptic plasticity. Clinical applications are presented throughout the course. The last few weeks of the course mainly cover autonomic neuropharmacology. Exams are given every three weeks or so and are non-cumulative.

Development and Psychopathology

This course is a traditional didactic course with lectures given three times per week. It begins with lectures on normal human development and follows with coverage of major categories of mental illness, their diagnostic criteria and treatment options. The final (only) exam is a "Boards" style, case-based exam that tests your ability to integrate the material. The course directors will evoke the fear of failure in you as you are presented with your first Boards style cumulative exam. Try not to get to worried and do your best to learn the material.

Medical Genetics

This course meets three times per week. Topics include analysis of Mendelian and non-Mendelian inheritance patterns and their molecular basis, pedigree analysis and risk assessment, molecular diagnostic techniques, chromosomal abnormalities, genetic counseling, biochemical disorders, and the genetics of cancer. A number of clinically relevant congenital disorders are discussed in detail and efforts are made to demonstrate clinical applications. You are evaluated with a single exam given during finals week. You may feel that you have a good background in genetics, but this course emphasizes the medical application of human genetics. You may be able to place out of it if you have taken a comparable medical genetics course, but the course director encourages students to take the course because most undergraduate genetics courses do not emphasize human medical genetics or genetic counseling.

Epidemiology and Biostatistics

This course covers the basics of biostatistics and epidemiology. It also covers basic principles for analyzing and using medical literature for improving the practice of medicine (i.e., evidence-based medicine). It meets three times per week for lectures. Dr. Thisted does his best to accommodate students. The course evaluation was based on on-line quizzes every other week.

Nutrition

This course revolves around one weekly lecture and one weekly small group discussion with assigned cases. There are a few activities to complete during the quarter, including a diet analysis, and a final exam.

Electives

Many students use their spring elective period (100 credits; more if you place out of a course) to begin research that they hope to continue through the summer. Several students do a clinical preceptorship in order to explore clinical work. There are a number of popular courses offered by the medical school that are somewhat different than the traditional didactic courses you’ve had until now. Most have a substantial clinical component. Courses in the college and graduate school are also viable options if you can find one that does not conflict with your schedule. The OME circulates a list of electives to give you some ideas. You are at liberty to pursue any interest you have, even if it is not medically related.

Buying Books

Professors may require certain textbooks, while students may highly recommend other books for clearer comprehension. Some students rely only on lecture notes, but books are usually more helpful because of their indices, glossaries, and figures. Many students found board review books particularly useful and wished they would have used them more during their first year. Most textbooks are available on reserve in Crerar library. The disadvantage to reserve books is that you cannot write in them, you are limited by time, and other students may have them out. Some books will be worth owning; whereas others may be useful for reference only. We have polled our class and the results are to follow. You will be able to tell by the data that many people have different opinions about books. Go over the survey and ask second years during orientation and beyond. This year, the second years are coordinating a Book Fair in order to organize second, third and fourth years who have books they want to sell. These used books will be available cheap and a portion of all sales will go to an AMSA charity (T.B.A.). This event will be held during orientation, so it would be best to save your money and buy books during the fair. Take a look at the book survey before the sale because supplies are limited and there will be a rush.

The U of C Bookstore

Barnes and Noble bought and renovated the University Bookstore in the fall of 1995. In addition to the medical books located on the second floor, it contains a Starbuck’s coffee shop and ATMs (BankOne). B & N will order any published book in the world at the customer’s request.

Other Sources of Books

Some professors order their books through the Seminary Coop Bookstore (752-4381) at 5757 S. University, a cramped place with lots of character. Members get 10% off all purchases, and they will special order.

The Seminary Coop Bookstore also operates 57^th Street Books (684-1300) at 1301 E. 57 St. Though this is not the place to buy textbooks, it is a very cool bookstore for your non-school book buying needs. Also noteworthy is Powell’s (955-7780) at 1501 E. 57 St. They usually have a collection of free books out front for the taking.

For a female/lesbian centered bookstore, check out Women & Children First Bookstore at 5233 N. Clark, 773-769-9299.

The Logan Medical Bookstore (733-4544), across from Cook County Hospital, is a good place to explore if the book you want is out of stock in Hyde Park. You might also check at the Northwestern University Medical Bookstore at 710 N Lake Shore (312-503-8486) or the University of Illinois Medical Bookstore at 828 S Walcott (413-5500). Call ahead for hours and details of how to reach these places.

Probably the most popular means of purchasing books is the ubiquitous internet. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc have a plethora of our texts available. Medsite.com has a deal with AMSA through which membership in AMSA (www.amsa.org) will get you a free Netter’s Atlas when you order through their website. Listen up during orientation for details.

Some students prefer to purchase books by phone at 1-888-BUYALLB (1-888-289-2552). Reportedly the prices are discounted 20% and UPS shipping is inexpensive. You can save on shipping costs by ordering in groups. This is the cheapest way to buy your books. However, it takes 7-10 days to receive them, so order before the quarter begins (i.e. during orientation week and quarter breaks).

Recommended Books for the First Year

This is by no means an exhaustive list of available books. We polled the class of 2004 and of those who purchased or owned the following books, we asked how they felt about their usefulness. As you can see by the results below, opinions are quite varied. See "Buying Books" above for more information. Remember that people like to study in different ways and that some will find certain books and study tools useful while others will not. Some students purchased very few textbooks, whereas others felt it necessary to buy all of them. Many books are available on reserve and the bookstore does have a short return policy, so you can find out if you like a book before you really spend the money. Look for the AMSA book sale and postings on the listserver. Some mentors will even loan the books to their mentees, but will (and should) expect them back in the late winter and spring as they review in CPP and prepare for Boards.

Note: Not all columns add to 100% due to rounding.

All books were priced at amazon.com, except this noted with (*).

Clinically Oriented Anatomy — "Big Moore," Moore & Dalley, 4^th ed., 1999, $65. Unabridged text which provides useful adjuncts to enhance understanding; blue boxes provide clinical correlation which may be useful for the Boards.

The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology, Moore & Persaud, 6^th ed., 1998, $48.29. This is the all-encompassing guide to embryology. The diagrams are useful in appreciating the 3-dimensional nature of development and the text is useful in understanding system development.

Essential Clinical Anatomy — "Baby Moore," Moore, et al, 1995, $45. Abridged version of Moore. For many people this is all they need, others need the more detailed text and diagrams of Big Moore.

Basic Histology, Junquiera, 9^th ed., 1998, $44.95. Text guide to histology that works well along Wheater to gain a total understanding of histology; provides the physiological details absent from Wheater’s picture heavy guide.

Wheater’s Functional Histology, Young & Heath, 4^th ed., 2000, $59. Combines concise text with histological preparations; comes with a CD-Rom.

Atlas of Human Anatomy, Netter, 2^nd ed., 1997, $64.95. Excellent book of drawings detailing human anatomy at a multitude of levels and views. Your lab table should pool money and buy one early (keep it locked up).

Grant’s Atlas of Anatomy, Agur, et al, 10^th ed., 1999, $59.95. May help you in studying since diagrams from this atlas are used for some exams.

Color Atlas of Anatomy, a Photographic Study, Rohen & Yokochi, 4^th ed., 1998, $66.95. Many considered it the source for passing practicals; book of photographs of immaculate dissections with number labels so you can quiz yourself (your dissections will never look like these).

Clinical Anatomy Made Ridiculously Simple, Goldman, 1991, $19.95. Provides easy to remember though often far-fetched analogies to help you remember anatomical concepts.

Board Review Series (BRS) Anatomy, Kyung, 1995, $26.95 (* medsite.com). Outline summarizes concepts in bullet form.

Other books that some students found useful include:

Clemente’s Anatomy, Gray’s Anatomy (for the stuff you can’t find elsewhere), Shell’s Human Anatomy (in Crerar, concise), Human Anatomy Coloring Book, Gartner and Hiatt Color Atlas of Histology.

Physiology, Berne & Levy, 4^th ed., 1998, $69. Recommended text for physiology; very detailed but covers specific topics in a concise manner.

Renal Physiology, Vander, 5^th ed., 1995, $29.95. Well-written, easy to read, and necessary book to complement class notes.

Gastrointestinal, Hepatobiliary, and Nutritional Physiology, Chang, et al, 1996 (out of print), 24.05 (used). Now out of print. Dr. Chang, who wrote the book and teaches the course, distributes notes that represent the book very well. Some Students still found it useful to get their hands on the book.

BRS Physiology, Costanzo, 2^nd ed., 1998, $28.95. A great review book and useful adjunct to the course.

Other book that some students found useful include:

Constanzo’s ‘Stars’ Physiology Review

Biochemistry, Voet & Voet, 2^nd ed., 1995, $126.50. Recommended text for biochemistry, many students survived without purchasing it.

Biochemistry, Stryer, 4^th ed., 1995, $125. Another detailed text.

Lippincott’s Illustrated Reviews — Biochemistry, 2^nd ed., 1994, $32.95. More necessary if your background in biochem can use a boost.

Other books that some students found useful include:

Lehninger, Nelson, and Cox Biochemistry, BRS Biochemistry (better than Lippincott’s but with less figures), Voet, Voet, and Pratt Fundamentals of Biochemistry (smaller, easier to digest), Zubay Biochemistry.

Principles of Neural Science, Kandel, Schwartz, & Jessell, 2000, $85. You will be told that this book is a must have for your career in medicine; decide for yourself.

Neuroscience, Purves, 2000, $76.95. Readable but a bit basic is some areas.

High-Yield Neuroanatomy, Fix, 2^nd ed., 2000, $15.95.

BRS Neuroanatomy — out of print substitute with:

NMS Neuroanatomy, Demyer, 2^nd ed., 1998, 28.00

Lippincott Pharmacology, Mycek, et al, 2^nd ed., 2000, $32.95. Valuable book in Dr. Heller’s section of neuropharmacology.

Pharmacology, Rang, 4^th ed., 2001, $49.95. New edition due out in 2001; some used the reserve copy.

The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, Goodman & Gilman, 2001, $125. Supposedly a must have for studying pharmacology; new edition due out in August.

Neuroanatomy Text & Atlas, Martin, 2^nd ed., 1996, $79.95

Neuroanatomy: an atlas of structures, sections, and systems, Haines, 5^th ed., 2000, $37.95. Very useful guide through neuroanatomy labs.

The Brain Atlas, Hanaway, 1^st ed., 1998, $55.

Other books that some students found useful include:

BRS Pharmacology, Neuroanatomy Made Ridiculously Simple, Haines Fundamental Neuroscience, Lange Pharmacology

Molecular Cell Biology, Lodish, 4^th ed., 1999, $106.40. Some found this book valuable; others never laid eyes on it.

Medical Genetics, Jorde, 2^nd ed., 2000, $45. Most people found the notes sufficient.

Genetics Pre-test, Wilson, et al, 1998, , $24.94. book of practice questions and answers.

High Yield Biostatistics, Glaser, 2001, $15.95. Some used this book to supplement the course lectures and notes.

BRS Behavioral Science, Fadem, 1999, $26.95. Most read this BRS cover to cover before the exam; covers more than the course does but should not substitute for course notes.

Medical Nutrition & Disease, Morrison & Hark, 1999, $36.95. Most valuable as a reference in completing the course assignments and the open book cased based portion of the final exam.

Other books students found useful include:

Cell Biology: Alberts Molecular Biology of the Cell (if you already own it, don’t buy Lodish)

Genetics: Thompson and Thompson Genetics in Medicine

Epidemiology: Petrie and Sabin Medical Statistics at a Glance(valuable as reference for

future researchers)

Psychopathology: BRS Psychiatry, Kaplan and Sadock Synopsis of Psychiatry

Co-op Note Service

During the first two (pre-clinical) years, students traditionally establish a note-taking service that records every anatomy lecture (directly from a cassette deck on the podium connected to the lecturer’s microphone) and provides edited transcripts to members of the co-operative. Each co-op member takes his/her turn transcribing so that no single person does all the work. This is an independent, student-run organization. It sounds like a lot of work, but when it’s split between 90 people, it isn’t so bad. Co-op notes can be very useful when it comes to translating the language that the professors speak in class into plain, ordinary English. It also provides you with a big picture understanding of the material.

The notes also serve as a good source of comic relief, as most people personalize or theme their notes.

The service also routinely provides copies of old exams for all classes. Co-op organizers obtain these old exams away from second year students to put them on on-line reserve.

The members of the co-op select which courses they would like transcribed. Our class only transcribed human morphology lectures and lab boards. In the past, classes have had physiology and neuroanatomy lectures transcribed as well. Mostly the notes provided by the professors are sufficient for other classes. Talk to second and third year students if you want more advice.

Some general advice: have transcribers show their notes to the lecturer before distribution so errors can be caught and points clarified. Tape directly from the podium. Set fees at an affordable level that will cover cost ($45 this past year). Consider handing out co-ops from previous years for the material immediately preceding the test. Some have suggested getting a hold of last year’s notes and lighten the load by updating, modifying, and enhancing those already transcribed. This will save people time and effort since the vast majority of lectures (and exams) remain unchanged from year to year. Mailboxes are the way to distribute co-op notes.

Unfortunately, peer pressure seems to be required in order to generate and maintain co-op quality. If you feel that a co-op is sub-par, submit an evaluation form (which should be offered by the co-op leaders) informing the author of your suggestions for future improvement.

A good co-op should be able to stand on its own apart from handouts received in class; in other words, don’t just add a few explanatory remarks made by the lecturer and staple them to the lecture notes nor photocopy pages from textbooks most students already own. Try to augment your fellow students’ understanding, using the text or other sources to explain any confusing points. Remember: if you do a good job, others will be inspired to do the same.

An Informal Guide to the Second Year

Autumn Quarter

Pharmacology

This is a course that is worth the time invested. Introductory Pharmacology focuses on concepts using relatively few (but important) drug classes as examples. Some students consider the lectures a bit too general and a little heavy on calculations, with lots of details given on a few major classes of drugs. You will need to learn the rest of the drugs on your own. The course direction will be changing so ask for more info about this class after we complete it. The text by Goodman and Gilman comes out in new edition this August and is a good reference which is worth owning. It is also on reserve in Crerar. Lippincott’s is a much better buy but many people found "Pharm Cards" to be helpful, especially in the spring (although they do not cover all of the material on the Boards).

Microbiology

Microbiology covers bacteriology, virology, and parasitology. Make good charts or notecards during the course, as they will be very helpful for both the in class exams and on the Boards. The lectures are generally excellent and lab is pretty laid back and fun. If you have had microbiology lab before, this one is pretty basic and can be unproductive. The lab practicals aren’t too stressful (open book in groups of four), but the written components are tough. Medical Microbiology and Immunology ,which has excellent charts and great summaries for quick reviews, is strongly recommended. Clinical Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple is also a good text. The NMS Microbiology textbook can be a good resource as well.

Cell and General Pathology

This is more or less a preview of the Clinical Pathophysiology (CPP) course in the winter quarter. It consists of histopathology (i.e. all the disease parts of histology), as well as the causes and mechanisms of several diseases. Dr. Meredith, Dr. Wong, and several other professors are excellent, and the course is well taught. Be prepared for long lectures and labs. Know the stuff well, for it will return in CPP and the Boards. Pathologic Basis of Disease by Robbins is a must and will remain useful for years to come. Pocket Robbins is also handy. Coffee, juice, and doughnuts are served during the morning exams!

lmmunobiology

You can learn a lot in this course, which covers basic immunology and, since this is U of C, basic research. Due to the fast pace of research in this field, a lot of the materials presented in lectures can’t be found in textbooks, which can make co-op notes helpful. Don’t get overwhelmed by the material, since it is very important and will be on the Boards. A good overview of the material is available in the Medical Microbiology and Immunology.

Winter Quarter

Clinical Pathophysiology (CPP )

This is one of the best courses you will encounter in the first two years of medical school at Pritzker. It is brutal, but extremely rewarding. The course meets MWF with two lectures and a lab in the morning and two lectures and a lab in the afternoon. The key to surviving this class is to keep up with the material and stay sane. The essence of this course is to integrate all that you have learned so far, and make some sense out of it. Labs are case-based, quite long, and full of histopathology. Robbins’ Pathologic Basis of Disease, baby Robbins’, Cecil or Harrison’s baby version, as well as the BRS & NMS Pathology are recommended. But be choosy, you don’t need all these books. This is the time when a lot of students invest in either Cecil’s or Harrison’s medical textbooks. They are not essential for this quarter, but will be a key to your third year clinical rotations. New computer-aided learning for lecture and lab are of great help, particularly the casebook web-site. This web-site contains an old exam, as well as answers and slides from the labs. Lectures are given by a wide variety of clinicians and tend to be very good.

Physical Diagnosis

During winter quarter, you will learn how to perform physical examinations on your partners, use your medical instruments properly, and how to present your patients to the attending. In the spring quarter, you will actually perform these exams on real patients. It is an exciting course, but individual experience depends a lot on the attending, resident, and fourth year students to whom you are assigned. Try not to miss too many lectures as your absence will be noticed! Small group sessions are scheduled to help teach specialized exams (e.g., cardiac, orthopedic). Special training sessions with model patients and professional guidance are set up for the female pelvis, male prostate, and rectal exams. These are time-consuming but excellent experiences. This is also a good time to learn about reading hospital charts and interpreting medical abbreviations. It is helpful to read up on the patient’s disease after seeing him/her, since this will be beneficial to you in CPP as well. The final exam in the spring quarter is based on standardized patients, so if you practice on patients during the quarter, you should be well-prepared. Additionally, there is a practice session with the same models half way through the course-so there are no surprises on the final "head to toe" exam. The recommended book is Swartz’s Textbook of Physical Diagnosis. It is a good book and can be very helpful in leaming certain techniques, but often requires lots of hard-to-come-by reading hours. It is definitely not essential in order to learn how to perform a great physical.

Spring Quarter

Clinical Pharmacology: Introduction to Therapeutics

This is a good preparatory course for the Boards and clinical rotations. Study hard throughout the quarter so you will need minimum supplements to prepare for the Boards. It covers general categories of drugs, their usage, and adverse effects. The psychiatric drugs may not be adequately covered but are nonetheless important, so read up on your own. Handouts are generally pretty good. The final is Boards-style shelf exam and a good practice for multiple choice test taking. Students found Lippincott’s Pharmacology and Pharm Cards to be extremely helpful. Drug classes, specific agents, mechanisms, side effects, and clinical indications are all pertinent to the Boards. This is a good course to use to help review some pathology and microbiology.

Electives

You have 100 units worth of elective course. You may want to consider a class that will help you review for the Boards.

Review for the Boards

United States Medical Licensensing Exam. Step I

Chance favors the prepared mind

-Louis Pasteur

The first step of the newly revised, three part United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) is administered to second year medical students in June (or whenever, between May and September, the OME schedules it with the USMLE). Step 1, a day-long examination of approximately 350 items, is designed as a broadly based, integrated examination. There are seven, one-hour sections comprised of anatomy, behavioral sciences, biochemistry, microbiology, pathology, pharmacology, and physiology, as well as interdisciplinary topics such as nutrition, genetics, and aging. The examination is written to test the scientific principles and basic medical knowledge that a student should understand for subsequent educational experiences and for his or her career as a physician. The exam became a computer-based test in 1999. The OME provides a thorough orientation to its format and scheduling during MSII.

For Step I (and II), the standard score scale is such that a standard score of 200 represents the mean of the original 1991 anchor group. In general almost all the Step I (and Step II) scores will fall between 120 and 260 on the standard scale. A score of 179 or better is required to pass Step I and a score of 170 or better is required for passing Step II. A second two-digit score will be provided to each examinee. This score only has relevance to the Federation of State Licensing Boards in each state at the time you are applying for licensure. Students who record a passing score may not retake the exam to better their scores.

You should strive to do well on the Boards. Some residency programs, especially in the competitive career fields, emphasize Board scores significantly in their evaluation of potential candidates. However, do keep in mind that not all programs emphasize Boards, and passing is your first priority.

With regard to study preparation, it is important to remember that students have been successful with various study preparation techniques. You should simply choose the one that you believe will work best for you. Do not spend time worrying about how others are preparing, it will only stress you out.

There are two main kinds of preparatory books on the market: review books and pre-test books. The review books are generally a combination of review outlines/texts on the topic plus end-of-the-chapter questions. The pre-test books simply provide hundreds of questions in National Board format on a specific topic, with associated detailed answers. No general summary or outline material is provided.

Essentially everyone uses First Aid for the Boards as a guide for which books to buy. The back of this book has a student-ranked listing of review books in every subject. In addition, this book contains sections with high-yield facts and study advice. The Board Review Series (BRS) is also popular, presenting information in an intelligent outline format.

With regard to the pre-test books, the McGraw-Hill Series is probably better than the Medical Exam Review Series because the descriptive answers are more complete. In general, it is a good idea to read the entire descriptive answer even if you get it correct. Don’t go too crazy, as your time to read and learn all of this material is limited. Also keep in mind that many pretest book questions are based on the old format of the exam, so they are often very detailed and more difficult than the actual Board questions.

You can spend a small fortune on these review and pre-test books, so look for bargains on them. Many of the books can be obtained from the Senior Class Book Sale or junior students. Also, many students buy books as small study groups and thus defray some of the cost by spreading it around.

Most students recommend beginning study review early in the spring quarter. Begin before then if you are really worried, but remember, you’ll have your hands (and brains) full with CPP and Physical Diagnosis.

Also keep in mind that the OME facilitates students’ ability to take NBME Subject Exams in some topics (i.e., Path, Pharm, and the Comprehensive Basic Science Examination). These exams often point out weak points in a student’s knowledge base or test-taking strategy.

The suggestions above are not hard-and-fast rules, but merely a compilation of many students’ recommendations. Different strokes for different folks. You know best what works for you.

The curriculum has been rearranged so that the quarter ends about 5 weeks early leaving "free-time" to study for the Boards. Some electives may continue through the entire quarter so be choosy.

Remember, 55-60% correct will earn you a passing grade. Don’t flip out. Think of yourself as being fully capable of scoring well if you have prepared. Put yourself in a position to demonstrate this. Do not sabotage yourself. Do not begin to prepare the week before the exam. Remember to get lots of rest and to eat well.

A Personal Overview of the Second Year

Previous second years have reflected:

It is a wonderful feeling to wake up one day and know that you have learned as much about medicine as the doctors who teach you; in fact, by the time the Boards arrive, you will have more trivial medical knowledge than most attendings. So you see, second year is filled with excitement, saturating information, and very little sleep. I actually had a terrific time second year, and you can too. It’s all in the attitude. The exhilarating feeling you get from accomplishing and tackling second year is really indescribable and wonderful. Once it’s all over, you feel a wave of relief and then sudden panic when you realize that soon third year will begin. So enjoy your last few months in class and revel in your ignorance for a little while longer while you can still use it as an excuse for not knowing all the answers. If you ever feel completely overwhelmed, overworked, and overcharged for this education, just remember these are NORMAL responses and will gradually lessen as the year moves on. Time passes faster than the mind can tell, and soon the year will be over and you won’t believe that you’ve come through it alive. We have all been there and understand your position so come to us for support, advice, or a shoulder to lean on, that’s what we’re here for. GOOD LUCK, KEEP SMILING, AND ENJOY EVERY WONDERFUL MOMENT!!

A Whirlwind Guide to the Third Year

Introduction

All that studying you did first and second year will finally be put to use during the third year. Despite occasional moments of sheer frustration, the excitement of patient care and having a taste of life after medical school can’t be beat! But don’t be fooled. Third year also has its pitfalls. Never before and never again will you have such a rigorous schedule during which you will know all details of your patients’ care and still know that you have to study for an exam that will likely not test you on what you spent all day trying to learn. You will also be glad when this year is behind you.

There is no one best approach to third year, but most will agree that enthusiasm and commitment to being a team player will take you far during this long year. Every team will appreciate a student who is eager to learn and to be a team player. Students who try to make themselves look good at the expense of others quickly become apparent and will likely not earn the trust of the team. The team will also expect you to, on occasion, do what seems like pointless work. This work is called scut. You will have to determine for yourself where to draw the line between doing scut and not, but you’ll find that doing scut often does have some value in your education; the time you save your team will (or at least should) buy some time for teaching and learning.

Common sense will soon tell you that as a third year you really don’t know much that matters to the day-to-day inner workings of patient care. In spite of this, you will have the unique opportunity to know everything about your patients. You will carry a manageable number of patients (unlike your intern for whom there is no mercy!) and you have the luxury of having just completed CPP. Treating the nurses and ancillary staff with kindness will save you when your team asks you to get "that stretchy tape" that everyone on the team seems to know except you. Your role will be like that of a sponge - to soak in all of the information and good (and bad) role modeling that you will see around you. Before you know it, you will finally develop your own style during third year. You’ll realize that you still have a long way to go, but the overwhelming sense of accomplishment, knowing that you’ve already come a long way, can’t be beat!

Comfortable shoes will come to symbolize your having to be several places at once in a given day, as will the multiple hats you will wear throughout the year as you rotate through virtually every aspect of medicine. One minute you will be holding a retractor that is digging into your hand that you know you can’t move. In another you’ll be standing outside your patients’ room as your attending describes every intricacy of the urine chloride level as a valuable diagnostic tool. Next you’ll be running in the rain trying to catch a flight to Denver for an organ harvest at 2am in the morning, or more likely you’ll be running to catch up with your team as "DR CART! DR CART! D-504!" blares overhead. Nevertheless, one of the challenges and beauties of this year is that you will be everywhere. You will know the hospital in general better than any intern. Someday your team may have to get from the children’s hospital to the OB/GYN library and only you will know the shortcut!

Being everywhere has its drawbacks. Once you have finally reached some sense of equilibrium where you are, your rotation is over and you are whisked away to another service to find that you are back to square one. But don’t fear. The "stupid time" during which you feel utterly lost and confused at the beginning of each rotation shortens as you go, and by the end of the year you’ll have mastered how to get around and will begin to figure out which "rotation" you want to make into your career. Through all of the rotations and rounds, you will find that this will likely be one of the most challenging times of your life. You will be asked to do what seems to be superhuman and you may wonder if you will ever know enough. Balance will, more than ever before, be the key to your success. Balance between reading about what you think is interesting and what you need to know. Balance between sleep and study. Balance between your professional and your personal lives. The tools you develop to balance these priorities this year will last you a lifetime.

The Third Year Curriculum

With the input of your classmates as representatives on the various school curriculum development committees, the Third Year Curriculum has evolved to balance your needs with the demands of a changing medical world.

The year is divided into six clerkships: three months each of surgery and internal medicine, one month of family medicine, two months of pediatrics, and six weeks each of OB/GYN and psychiatry. Each clerkship is subdivided into various rotations during which you will see different aspects of that field. Between the clerkships you will have vacation varying in length from a weekend to ten days depending on the length of your rotation and the time of year. Interspersed throughout will be a combination of inpatient and outpatient care during which your day may vary from 9am-5pm to 5am-9pm.

Clerkship Lottery

During your second year you will be asked to rank in order of priority the twenty-four possible combinations of clerkship orders. The computer assigns you a random number which is then ranked and rotations are assigned, based on that random rank. Believe it or not, the system actually works and most people will discover that there is really not that much difference between their first and fourth choices. In the small chance that things didn’t work out or circumstances change, you will have the opportunity to swap rotations once the first lottery results are posted.

Much will be made of the order in which you do your rotations. You will have ample opportunity to consider this decision as the second year draws to a close. The bottom line is that you will have to determine for yourself which priorities are more important to you at what time and which clerkship order will likely best meet those priorities. Keep in mind that there is an outpatient component to every clerkship so you will have flexibility throughout the year to juggle weddings and other hallmark events. In spite of this, the larger concern of how best to prepare for fourth year and indeed your career with your clerkship order will undoubtedly come into question.

While no one can give you definitive answers, it helps to consider some important questions. How do you learn best? Are you at your best after you have had time to "build up" or do you burn out and need to hit the ground running? Are there any important events like weddings that you will need to plan around? What experiences do you think will be most important to have by the end of third year when you will need to plan your fourth year? And note, there is no universal rule about when to do what "you think you want to do" because a) that may change, and b) you might find that there are benefits to doing that field first when you’re fresh or last when you’re seasoned. Bottom line: don’t stress! It will work out!

The Medicine Clerkship

Directors of Medical Student Education, Medicine

Adam Corfu, M.D., Patricia Kurtz, M.D., and

Scott Stem, M.D.

Medicine Student Program Coordinator

Debra Milton

Office of Medical Student Programs, Medicine

Billings Hospital, Room A-615

702-0351

Although it is one of the most challenging times of the year, most will agree that your three month medicine rotation is also one where opportunities to learn will abound. During your inpatient months, you will be asked to follow two to four patients, meaning that you will assist the team during their admission, gather information pertinent to their day-to-day hospital course and begin to formulate your thoughts on their day-to-day management. Days generally last 10 to 12 hours and you will be on call every fourth night (q4) during your inpatient months, one of which is spent in general internal medicine ("gens") and the other in a medicine specialty (cardiology, heme-onc, or GI/private). During the outpatient month you will work approximately 8:30-5, five days a week, with no call. This outpatient month may be done at U of C or at various sites throughout the city, each with its different patient population and different attending faculty.

Inpatient Month

On top of your patient care and team responsibilities, your days are interspersed with various conferences and meetings. At your faculty preceptor group, you will have the opportunity to discuss concerns that arise on the floors with your patients as well as others that you or your preceptor introduce at each meeting. Although you are not fed lunch as are the interns in medicine or the interns and students on other rotations, you will also be asked to attend lunch conferences and grand rounds. Much is made of rounds in internal medicine. An opportunity to hear an expert deliver a presentation, the weekly grand rounds is a chance for you to finally sit down, relax, and try to learn a thing or two from someone sitting far away in the dark...

A typical inpatient day might be as follows:

7am Preround. Gather information on your patients and prepare for workrounds.

7:30-9 Workrounds. Same as above but with

your residents and interns.

9-10am Floor work. Gather morning labs,

schedule procedures, write notes.

10am-?? Attending Rounds. Present your

patients, discuss other related topics,

discuss other unrelated topics.

Your time to learn!

Lunch Conference

1-4pm More floor work

4-5pm Lecture

5-? Finish up floor work, usually home by 7pm.

Outpatient Month

The month of outpatient medicine can be a great experience regardless of what you think you want to do. After taking a focused history and performing a pertinent physical exam you will present your thoughts to your attending and work together to formulate a plan for your patients. During the month of outpatient work, you will also be required to meet with the other outpatient students and present formal cases as well as talks on topics related to the presentations. Typically your days are shorter than on inpatient services and don’t include weekends, so you will have time at night and on weekends to catch up on sleep, reading or having a social life!

Clinical Evaluation

Students are evaluated in several areas, including the quality of written and oral presentations, the ability to formulate a case,, general fund of knowledge, the ability to interact with patients and colleagues, reliability in caring for patients, and humanistic qualities. Emphasize your oral presentations. These 4 - 6 minute spiels may be the best and only chance for your attending to see you in action. Make sure you have reviewed your presentation at least once with a resident before you formally present on attending rounds.

For all students, the course directors solicit opinions on the student’s clinical performance from physicians with whom the student works, including the preceptor and house staff. Although all physicians are encouraged to return written evaluations, usually with a grade (honors, high pass, pass, low pass, fail), only attending physicians and the preceptor are required to do so. The course directors encourage each attending to meet personally with each student in order to provide feedback throughout the rotation. In reality, this may not always happen and you might find that stepping forward to ask your attending about your progress might do the trick. Although it is easier said than done, don’t let the rotation pass without knowing from your attending what he or she expects. How you perceive your day-to-day performance may differ greatly from theirs, and for the purposes of your grade, its their perception that counts. While your residents and interns may have input, depending on your attending, your clinical grade will come down to how your attending feels you have progressed throughout the month.

Examinations

There is a comprehensive two-and-one-half hour multiple choice written examination (NBME Subject Exam) at the end of the clerkship. There is no oral exam in Medicine.

Final Evaluation

A composite clinical grade is calculated from the individual grades received from your preceptor and your attendings on each rotation with grades being averaged for a particular rotation if more than one physician was on service. An overall clerkship grade is determined by considering each student’s composite clinical grade, presentation grade, and final exam grade. The relative weights of each component of your performance is then applied to each grade and a final grade is calculated. You and the Dean of Students Office will receive a summary of the comments made by the student’s attending physicians as well as the overall clerkship grade and exam grade.

Informal Guide to Medicine

Due to its combination of patient care responsibility, long hours, emphasis on write-ups and presentations, call every fourth night, and a paucity of days off, medicine has traditionally been one of the toughest rotations of the third year. It can also be one of the best experiences of the year providing a chance to pick up some practical medical knowledge.

For survival and sanity on the medicine rotations, it pays to be organized and efficient. Your attention to detail balanced by your grasp of the big picture will determine your success. Make time while on call to read up on your patients and to prepare your presentations for the attending. Consult your resident for tips and suggestions on your presentations. As you read through Harrison’s on your patients and as you learn from your interns and residents about your patients, you may come across a particular issue that might warrant a literature search. Whether you distribute copies of the article or simply mention that you read about it, your involvement in the care of your patient will be evident and more importantly you will truly begin to learn about the science of medicine. From time to time, you will be asked to informally present a topic to your team. Seeing this not simply as work to keep you busy, but rather as a chance to develop your fund of knowledge will also get you far!

Preparing for the daily care for patient care may not always overlap with the preparation you do for the test. In fact, through all of the excitement of patient care, it can be easy to neglect until it is too late to prepare for the exam. This is one of the easiest ways to ensure that your excellent clinical grade will be negated by a sub par exam grade. The reality is that you are still a medical student and that the bottom line is not decided by just your clinical performance. You’ll find that a large majority of your performance is made or broken by your written exam, so DO THOSE QUESTIONS!

Now for some practical advice. Be sure that you have enough "work clothes" so that you are not doing laundry every week. Scrubs unlike on other clerkships, should not be your staple on medicine. In fact, only on call should you wear scrubs as even on post call days there is a push to wear professional attire. Most importantly, that pair of comfortable shoes combined with "easy to prepare" food at easy reach will ensure that your focus is one the task at hand.

The Pediatrics Clerkship

Director of Medical Student Education, Pediatrics

Joel Schwab, M.D.

Pediatrics Student Program Coordinator

Evelyn Simpson, for MS IV

Marie Shelton, for MS III

Office of Medical Student Programs, Pediatrics

University of Chicago Children’s Hospital,

Room C-376, 705-4718

The Pediatrics junior clerkship is divided into an inpatient month and an outpatient month. While it might seem that pediatrics is simply internal medicine for little adults, you’ll quickly find that this is not the case. While this rotation is relatively busy, most students, whether or not they are interested in pediatrics as a career, find that the rotation is enjoyable and laid back.

Inpatient Peds

The inpatient month can be done at the University of Chicago Children’s Hospital (UCCH) or La Rabida Children’s Hospital and Research Center ("LaRa"). The outpatient month is held at one of a number of on- and offsite pediatrics clinics run by the UCCH. Throughout the two months, you will also be assigned to a pediatric specialty clinic which meets for one half day a week, as well as to a preceptor group similar in style to that of medicine.

While on the pediatric inpatient service, you will participate as a member of the ward team and assume a prominent role in the management of the patients you admit. Considerable effort is expected on your part to get the most out of this rotation. You will take call q4 but you will generally have at least a weekend day off per week with the exception of one weekend when you take call on Saturday.

A typical inpatient day might be as follows:

7am Preround. Gather information on your

patients and prepare for workrounds.

7:30-9 Team Rounds. Same as above but

with your attending, residents and

interns.

9-10:30 Morning Report.

11am Sit down discussions about various

peds topics

Lunch Intern Conference

1-4pm More floor work / preceptor group

4-5pm Lecture

5-? Finish up floor work, usually home by 6pm.

Outpatient and Specialty Rotations

During the outpatient month of the clerkship, you are exposed to general pediatric clinics and the newborn nursery and you will be able to build a close relationship with your attending. In clinic, you see the walk-in patients first. After taking their history, doing a physical, and formulating an assessment and plan, you present your thoughts to the attending who then sees the patient with you. You’ll often have days where you see almost twenty patients, so it can seem very busy, but by day’s end you won’t believe how much you’ve learned. Typical days are from 8:00 am to 5:30pm, with weekends off!

You will also be assigned to specialty clinics one morning or afternoon each week throughout the two month clerkship. The clinics range from diabetes to chronic care. These clinics allow you to learn in more detail about pediatric sub-specialties with one-on-one attending contact.

Clinical Evaluation

A student’s clinical performance in Pediatrics is evaluated by the residents and faculty at the inpatient and outpatient training sites where the student works. They are asked to evaluate the student in several areas, including the student’s general fund of knowledge, problem-solving ability, written notes, enthusiasm, skill in working with pediatric patients, families, and colleagues, and humanistic qualities. Written evaluations are usually submitted to the departmental Office of Student Programs, and a composite clinical grade is determined from these evaluations.

Examinations

There is a comprehensive, two-and-one-half hour written examination which is supplied by the National Board of Medical Examiners. The exam is administered at UCCH. There is no oral examination for pediatrics.

Final Evaluation

Each student’s clinical and examination performance is discussed and a final grade is determined by the Pediatrics faculty at a joint meeting at the end of the quarter. The composite clinical grade accounts for 70% of the final grade, and the written for 30%. The final grade is designated using the following scale: Honors, High Pass, Pass, Low Pass and Fail. A summary paragraph describing your clinical and exam performance as well as your final grade are sent to the Dean of Students’ Office and to you. As with other clerkships, the grade that appears on the student’s permanent transcript is simply P or F.

Informal Guide to Pediatrics

The atmosphere on the pediatrics rotationis unlike no other during your third year. In general, residents and attendings are much more laid back, simply because their patient population requires it! Generally, you will also have somewhat more time to read. These factors all combine to make it an enjoyable rotation, assuming you can put up with the constant crying and wailing that is like background music for most peds wards. It is also a rotation where it is advisable to carry around small toys to distract the kids while you are trying to examine them. Be sure to have access to an otoscope as well as tongue blades and an immunization schedule. In general, you’ll have to wear white coats on the inpatient service, but many outpatient services do not require white coats and the nursery forbids it, so guys you might have to iron your shirts instead of hiding them beneath your coat on this rotation. The subject exam at the end of the pediatrics rotation is often seen as the most difficult, so be prepared to know those details!

The Obstetrics & Gynecology

Clerkship

Director of Medical Student Education, OB/GYN

Sandra Valaitis, M.D.

OB/GYN Student Program Coordinator

Johnna Bullock

Office of Medical Student Programs, Ob/Gyn

Chicago Lying-In, Room L-251

702-6726

The Obstetrics/Gynecology junior clerkship is conducted at Chicago Lying-In Hospital (CLI), located in the University Medical Center. Students serve three services: (1) Labor and Delivery, (2) Obstetrics Service, and (3) General Gynecology or Gyn/Endocrinology and Gyn/Oncology. On Labor and Delivery, the student functions as a member of the Birth Room team, participating in approximately one week each of 12 hour daytime and nighttime shifts. On the Obstetrics service, the student attends the outpatient clinic at CLI where antepartum and postpartum patients are seen. During the gynecology rotation, you will either be on the general gynecology service where you will attend outpatient clinics and help in the operating room for the gynecological cases. If you are assigned to the Gyn/Onc & Gyn/Endo services you spend your time going to clinic and in the OR. The Gyn/Onc service is generally known to be one of the most rigorous of the year; you will typically begin work rounds at 5:45am so you preround before that. On the other hand Gyn/Endo tends to be very light where you will find yourself starting your day with clinic at 8:30 or 9am.

Another aspect of the clerkship are weekly chairperson’s rounds and weekly obstetric chief’s rounds where you will present at one of each. You will also meet in small groups of two or three with a faculty preceptor where you can review topics in the Student Guide to Obstetrics and Gynecology (which contains a course outline and the oral exam topics) or topics that arise in the course of patient care.

A typical inpatient day might be as follows:

6am Preround. Gather information on your

patients and prepare for workrounds.

6:30-8 Work Rounds. Same as above but

with your, residents and interns.

8-9 Morning Conference.

10am-5pm Scut with attending rounds at various

times for about an hour sometime

during the day.

Clinical Evaluation

Your clinical performance is evaluated and graded by the residents and faculty at Chicago Lying-In, MacNeal and Weiss who work with you on each rotation. Written evaluations are usually submitted to the departmental Office of Student Programs, and a composite clinical grade is determined from these evaluations and from the combined input of the faculty and housestaff.

Examinations

There is a comprehensive multiple-choice two-and-one-half hour CNBME subject exam and an oral exam at the end of the rotation. The half-hour oral exam is conducted by two faculty members and consists of patient management questions using a case format. The oral exam is graded as Honors, High Pass, Pass, Low Pass, or Fail.

Final Evaluation

Each student’s performance is discussed and a final grade determined by the Obstetrics and Gynecology faculty. The composite clinical grade accounts for 50% of the final grade, the written exam for 33%, and the oral exam for the remaining 17%. The final grade is designated using the following scale: Honors, High Pass, Pass, Low Pass, and Fail. If a Low Pass is given, a recommendation for remedial work in the senior year is usually made, and this work counts as a senior "elective." A summary paragraph describing the student’s clinical performance, as well as his/her final grade and grades on the written and oral exams, is sent to you and to the Dean of Students’ Office

Informal Guide to OB/GYN

You will see and do amazing things during this rotation. It’s a time of palpating, prying, pulling, and pushing. You will also find that this can be one of the most trying clerkships of the year, simply because of the massive variety of clinical problems you’ll encounter and the collective attitude that develops amongst your colleagues when everyone is overworked. Tempers can be short, both yours and those of your residents, but be patient and try not to take things personally. But be sure to stand up for yourself if things get out of hand. Remember that your responsibility is to accomplish work for the team and to yourself to learn this important field of medicine. If things are skewed and you aren’t learning while working, speak up. The clerkship director is very understanding and has a sincere interest in making things worthwhile for you. On the bright side, the subject exam at the end of the rotation tends to be the most straightforward.

The Psychiatry Clerkship

Director of Medical Student Education, Psychiatry

Morton M. Silverman, M.D. & Alan Sanders, M.D.

Psychiatry Student Program Coordinator

Pat Lofton

Office of Medical Student Programs, Psychiatry

Billings Hospital, Room B-330. 702-0529

The Psychiatry clerkship is now a six week rotation with weekends off and call about once per week. There are three different sites for the clerkship: University of Chicago, MacNeal Hospital at 3231 S. Euclid in Berwyn, and Tinley Park Mental Health Center in Tinley Park. The Office of Education will ask you for your preferences before the rotation and will attempt to honor them. Students at all sites have experiences in inpatient, outpatient, and emergency psychiatry. At U of C, students are also assigned to a consultation service, working with a resident and attending who see patients on the medical, surgical, and OB/GYN services when psychiatric issues enter into their care. The consultation service is interesting and valuable; it focuses on the types of psychiatric problems non-psychiatric physicians face in their clinical work. Students also hone interviewing skills, performance of the mental status examination, identification and characterization of psychiatric signs and symptoms, and the management of strong feelings which manifest in the medical interview.

Many students experience some anxiety at the prospect of working with patients with psychiatric illness. Psychiatric illnesses are very common; some students will have had experiences with psychiatrically ill friends and relatives, or suffered those illnesses themselves. If memories of such experiences persist such that they may make the rotation difficult, you are encouraged to discuss your concerns with Dr. Sanders. He can help with issues ranging from psychiatric referrals for loved ones to clerkship assignments. He is available before, during, and after the clerkship by appointment.

All students attend a common core lecture series at U of C; all take the same exam. The required texts are available in the university book store, other materials are distributed during the clerkship. Grades are based approximately two-thirds on clinical performance and one-third on the results of the exam. Each member of the housestaff and attending staff who interacts with the student completes a written evaluation of the student. Dr. Sanders synthesizes these evaluations into a summary narrative evaluation at the end of the rotation. A copy of this document is delivered to each student’s mailbox and the Dean of Students’ Office with the final clerkship grade.

Examinations and Evaluation

A student’s clinical performance is evaluated by attending physicians and housestaff. They are asked to evaluate the student in several areas, including the student’s diligence, knowledge base, skill in working with patients and colleagues, and enthusiasm. There is an NBME multiple-choice subject exam at the end of the quarter which is administered at U of C. There is no oral exam. The final clerkship grade is a composite of the written exam and clinical evaluations.

Informal Guide to the Psychiatry

This rotation is often seen as a step above vacation with the main difference being that you have to show up. Not only will this attitude undermine a critical component of your education, but you can easily fail if you do nothing, so don’t write this rotation off! Even if you think you absolutely hate it, you at least have the benefit of examining many patients who have few medical problems. In fact, you will most likely be the only person examining them closely, so take the job seriously. Regardless of what field you decide, "psychopathology is everywhere" so listen up during this rotation! The exam is pretty straight-forward but you need to know the diagnostic criteria reasonably well to differentiate between similar but clearly different patient presentations and diagnoses.

The Family Medicine

Clerkship

Directors of Med Student Education

Wylie McNabb, EdD, and Robert Avina, MD

Family Medicine Student Program Coordinator

Carol Logan, 702-3989

The month-long Family Medicine clerkship is conducted on the MacNeal campus in Berwyn, a nearby west suburb, approximately 25 minutes away by car. It is an outpatient experience in which students will spend two weeks at the MacNeal Family Medicine clinic and two weeks in the office of a Family Physician in the MacNeal community. Students work in a clinical setting four and a half days a week. Wednesday afternoons, students gather at MacNeal for didactic sessions, student presentations, and hands-on skills workshops. Emphasis is placed on outpatient topics that include: prevention and health maintenance, nutrition, substance abuse, sports medicine, and common ambulatory medical and psychosocial problems. Other experiences offered through this rotation include the MacNeal Dependency Treatment Program (MDTC), the Housecalls Program, Berwyn-Cicero Council on Aging (BCCOA, but pronounced "BOCA"), Emergency Medicine and Sports Medicine.

Clinical Evaluation

Students are evaluated by attending physicians (and residents, if applicable) with whom they work in the two clinical settings. Areas of evaluation include clinical skills (history taking, physical examination, diagnostic testing, medical management, patient instruction); communication skills, and professional behavior, including independence and initiative. Midterm feedback is provided by the student’s clinical preceptor for the first two weeks, including areas of the student’s strengths and areas in which the student could benefit from further development. Written evaluations from clinical preceptors for both parts of the rotation are them collated to yield a composite clinical grade.

Examinations

There is an NBME multiple-choice subject exam at the end of the rotation. Material covered is drawn a national bank of questions around commonly seen clinical problems.

Final Evaluation

Components of the final evaluation include the student’s composite clinical grade, performance on the written test, and student presentations in the preceptor group (clinical questions and family systems project). Students will be advised at the outset of the rotation as to the relative weighting of these components.

Informal Guide to Family Medicine

This clerkship is a refreshing and supportive clinical experience. It requires the student to read-up on a broad range of topics, and use almost every physical diagnosis skill taught during the second year. It also may be one of the few opportunities where students are encouraged to explore psychosocial issues and their impact on health, and are required to include health education as a part of each patient encounter. Where you place FM in the course of your year, while not critical, can determine a lot of what you are able to glean. The amount of depth you need to know for the rotation and the final is less than that of the other rotations. On the other hand, the breadth of this rotation literally encompasses the rest of the year. You might imagine that doing this first might be overwhelming because you are asked to learn the basics of every field in one short month. The later you do this rotation in the year, the more experience you will have under your belt. Be sure not to do this one last though if you think you might want to do FP - many such students are unable to form their final opinion on FP as a career until they do it and if you’re one of these people it might help to figure it out earlier!

The Surgery Clerkship

Director of Medical Student Education, Surgery

James McKinsey, M.D. and Kerstin Stenson, M.D.

Surgery Student Program Coordinator

Antonetta Sarro

Office of Medical Student Programs, Surgery

Billings Hospital, Room 0-234, 702-6337

The Surgery clerkship is divided into three phases: four weeks of a General Surgery service, four weeks of subspecialty service (may include two weeks of Anesthesia), and two weeks of outpatient surgery. Student preferences for specific General Surgery and surgical specialty services are solicited prior to the start of the quarter. Every attempt is made to accommodate reasonable requests, but it is unlikely that you will have all of your preferences filled. Requests for changes in the rotation assignments are subject to approval by the Director of Medical Student Education.

At the University of Chicago Hospitals, there are four General Surgery Services and a large number of Surgery Subspecialty Services each with a corresponding inpatient and outpatient rotation. Each of these services handles patients with diseases classically associated with General Surgery or the Surgical Subspecialty area. However, there are various emphases from service to service, and you should familiarize yourself with these subspecialty emphases if you have a particular interest in such areas as breast surgery, transplantation surgery, endocrine surgery, etc. You may also choose to do General Surgery at Weiss Hospital, or MacNeal where the service is more general and students have an opportunity to see a more diverse spectrum of cases.

The Third Year student is considered a part of the team and is encouraged to participate actively in ward rounds, inpatient care, outpatient clinics, and the surgery of patients on his/her service. You are encouraged to do outside reading and to attend the various weekly Surgical Conferences. A Tuesday afternoon lecture series is held at the University of Chicago Hospitals for all students. You also participate in case presentations and surgical pathology sessions at both sites.

Students are evaluated at the end of each rotation by attending faculty and residents on the service. The evaluation forms are then placed in the student’s file which is located in the Surgery Education Office and may be viewed by the student at any time during regular office hours. At the end of the clerkship, students are required to complete both an oral and a written examination. A final composite evaluation form is completed for each student, containing the final grade for the clerkship and narrative comments. The student is encouraged to review his/her progress with the senior resident or attending physician on service. The Director of Medical Student Education is also available to counsel and advise students.

Clinical Evaluation

A student’s clinical performance is evaluated and graded by the residents and faculty who work with the student on each rotation. They are asked to evaluate the student in several areas, including clinical acumen, interpersonal skills, and general knowledge. Written evaluations, usually with an accompanying letter grade or a Pass, are submitted to the departmental Office of Student Programs. A composite clinical grade is determined from these evaluations.

Examinations

There is an NBME Subject Exam (comprehensive multiple-choice) and an oral examination at the end of the quarter. The half-hour oral examination is conducted by an attending at U of C or MacNeal and consists of patient management questions as well as general anatomy and physiology questions pertinent to the study of surgery. The written examination is reported as a percent correct figure and then converted to a letter grade using a standard scale. The oral examination is graded as Honors, High Pass, Pass, or Fail.

Final Evaluation

As in other rotations, the level of a student’s performance in the third year is reflected in the clinical evaluations and the written and oral final examinations. The surgery department is extremely well-organized and will provide you with a printout of compiled evaluations and exam grades at the end of the quarter. A student’s overall performance in Surgery is reviewed by a faculty committee which meets during the Winter Quarter in order to nominate senior students for Graduation with Honors and special awards (see Section on Graduation with Honors, AOA, and Awards). These designations usually reflect significant work in surgical research. In the rare circumstance that a student receives a failing grade, arrangements will be made to have him/her repeat the clerkship.

Informal Guide to Surgery

This rotation has a vague military feel to it. Maybe it’s the crack-of-dawn starts, the emphasis on action, the predominance of men, and the prominence of hierarchy. It is certainly a rotation in which you will work long days and get a good inside look at your fellow human.

Surgery is a "kinder and gentler" rotation than it has been in the past. This is due to the outpatient weeks, where again hours are roughly 9 to 5, Monday through Friday, with no call. A word of warning to those who do Surgery as your first rotation: in past years a significant number of students who did surgery first have done splendidly on the wards but miserably on the final written exam - there is a significant medicine component on the exam, so brush up on your medicine as you go along. Enjoy!

The Perioperative Medicine and Pain Therapy Clerkship

(aka "Anesthesia")

Director of Student Medical Education

Jerome Klafta, M.D. 702-9922

Half of you will take this clerkship during your Surgery Clerkship third year, and half of you will take it during fourth year. You will be able to specify your preference of the two times, and an effort will be made to accommodate your request.

This two week long clerkship is conducted at the University of Chicago and at Weiss Hospitals and will provide exposure to the following: risk assessment, ambulatory cases, emergency cases, local and general anesthetics, sedative, hypnotic and analgesic agents, noninvasive and invasive monitoring, postoperative management, acute and chronic pain evaluation and management, treatment of obstructed airway, treatment of hemodynamic instability, and blood product transfusion. Students will also have the opportunity to observe or perform procedures such as endotracheal intubation, intravenous cannulation, and central line placement.

Most third-year students find the anesthesia rotation to be a pleasant respite from the time spent on the other side of the OR curtain. Most fourth-years on the other hand find this to be a necessary evil and a rude interruption of time that might otherwise have been spent on a beach. Regardless, the anesthesia people love to teach and are thrilled to have students working with them.

Evaluation

You will be evaluated by attending physicians on diagnosis and management in perioperative medicine, including basic risk assessment, interpretation of noninvasive monitors, incorporating pharmacological principles, and explaining treatment goals and strategies. Students will also be evaluated on communication skills and professional behavior.

Some Things to Think About Throughout the Third Year

Residency Application and the Match

The Dean of Students’ Office holds a meeting for all junior students in early May in order to discuss and distribute information concerning the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). All necessary forms, as well as a booklet explaining the NRMP, are distributed at this time. A general timetable for events associated with the NRMP is provided. The schedule is intended to give students a general idea of the timetable and kind of information required.

All students who will be receiving the M.D. degree the following year are strongly advised to enter the NRMP, even if they are uncertain about entering a residency program or are intending to enter the military match. Students should be aware that several specialties have a separate match and an early match date. These specialties are Neurology, Neurological Surgery, Otolaryngology, Ophthalmology, and Urology. Residency programs in the Army, Navy, and Air Force also do not participate in the NRMP. Students should seek advice and information from the Dean of Students’ Office and their faculty advisors about these programs.

NRMP Timetable

End of July--Curriculum Vitae and personal statement for "Dean’s Letter," NRMP agreement and fee due in Washington, DC.

August-September--Applicants request residency materials directly from hospitals. Students request letters of recommendation from faculty. The majority of students will enter the residency application process through ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service). The Dean’s Office obtains a special transcript form and application information is scanned through the Dean’s Office Work Station. The advisor’s paragraph is submitted to the Dean’s Office.

End of September--Final list of hospitals for applications due in Dean of Students’ Office.

Start of November--Dean’s Letter is sent to hospital residency programs. This is the earliest date permissible for the release of the Dean’s Letter.

December-January--Students arrange residency program interviews.

End of February--NRMP must receive final confidential Rank Order List by this date from students and hospitals. The Match begins February 27th.

Mid March--Notification of unmatched applicants on the day prior to Match and....MATCH DAY!!!

Planning for the Year Ahead

The Dean of Students’ Office runs a three part series for third years during which some of the major issues of the fourth year are introduced and discussed. A list of topics and the months in which they will be discussed are listed below.

March General class meeting on the elective system and planning for year four.

April General Class meeting to discuss the Dean’s letter process, curriculum vitae, personal statement, letters of recommendation, and interviews. Also a general class meeting to discuss the National Residency Matching Program and non-NRMP match processes.

Career Counseling and Planning

Also refer to section on this topic in the first part of this book. In addition there are various other opportunities for you to begin planning your career.

Presentation Series on Various Specialties. This presentation series involves formal presentations by representatives from most of the residency programs at the University of Chicago Medical Center about their specialties and the residency application process. Although these presentations are oriented toward sophomore and junior students, they are open to all. Individual notices are sent out to student via mail boxes. The presentation series is usually conducted in the Winter Quarter.

"Career Day" Programs. Another source of information on potential career choices are "Career Day" programs. These programs are usually one- or two-day sessions put on by groups like AMSA, AMWA, and the AMA to help introduce medical students to various medical specialties. Notices about "Career Day" programs are posted in the medical student lounge or sent to students’ mailboxes.

Medical Alumni Association’s Residency Search Guide. The Medical Alumni Association provides current students with a computerized list of alumni and their willingness to provide various sources of information or personal assistance including: whether a student might stay over, willingness to discuss hospital residency locations, and information related to residency and career aspects.

A Few Closing Notes

Call

The meaning of call varies widely from clerkship to clerkship and from institution to institution. In general, call is both exciting and dreaded. It is a wonderful time to learn on your feet if you have a good resident, but it can also be torture when your pager goes off at 3:30 A.M. and you know you won’t be getting any more sleep. During the Medicine clerkship at the U of C, call means staying in the hospital to admit and work-up one to two patients every fourth night. Theoretically, you can go home after two admits, but sometimes you are there for the night. On-call beds are provided for medical students in the student lounge (some students will simply stay up all night and some go home at 4 A.M. and return for morning rounds). Occasionally, it is possible to find a spare bed in the residents’ call rooms.

Inpatient Pediatrics call is similar at all the training sites; you typically remain in-house the entire night. The hospitals will provide you with a bed if you stay the night.

OB/GYN call basically involves hanging out in the hospital or at home hoping that the ER resident will (or will not) page you and sometimes admitting a patient.

Psychiatry call, at all training sites, is usually once or twice a week, and involves seeing and admitting ER patients with the resident on call. At the U of C, you usually stay until 10 pm or midnight.

Surgery call is the most variable. It ranges from none to every sixth night, depending on the service and your interest. You don’t admit many patients; you generally just follow the intern around. At the U of C, your sleeping options include: (1) borrowing a call room key from an intern and trying to find a spare bed, (2) sleeping in the medical student lounge call beds, (3) sleeping in a patient lounge and (4) not sleeping. Sheets and other supplies may be obtained on the ward or at various other clandestine locations, and you can arrange a wake-up call with the page operator.

The Hierarchy

The attending is the big cheese on the team. They call the final shots and they call your final evaluations. Some attending faculty will make a big issue of this, others take a backseat role and allow the residents, especially the senior resident, to lead the team. Other attending faculty don’t recognize your existence. Regardless, blatant brown-nosing is neither necessary nor desirable, but it is worthwhile to be in tune with the attending’s biases. In terms of dealing with the house staff, you sometimes walk a fine line between working for educational purposes and doing pure scut. If you frequently cross that line or feel you are being abused, discuss it with them. It may simply be a misunderstanding. Remember, you aren’t evaluated by interns. Finally, be nice to the nurses and ward secretaries; they can make life harder or easier for you.

Lectures

If nothing else, lectures are a reason to take a break, eat lunch, and socialize. Often, they are good, and some are very helpful for the exams. You can survive with missing a few (or all as some people have done). And if you are sleepy, don’t sit up front unless you want your REM disturbed by an annoyed lecturer.

Student Morale in the Third Year

Third year is an amazing time. You get your first taste of medicine, the hustle and bustle and the excitement of helping the sick. You see life and death first hand and have the opportunity to really make a difference for some patients. At the same time, third year can really get to you at times. Lack of sleep, feeling useless, patients sick and dying and your own usual emotions and difficulties to top it off. When it happens, take a step back and realize that it will pass and that better times are ahead with the next day or next attending or next rotation. Remember H. A. L. T.: Never get too Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired. Reward yourself, even if it means tossing your books for a few hours. Call a friend or relative, go to a movie, go to a bar, exercise, eat a decent meal, or get a good night’s sleep. When it’s all over, you will wonder why you ever worried in the first place. Good luck!

An Informal Guide to the Fourth Year

Introduction

After the hardships of junior year, the senior year will seem like a vacation, or at least, a 9-to-5 job! The senior year classes are mostly electives that you can choose. You can determine your course schedule and the timing of your vacation. Courses are generally two weeks to one month long and require less weekend time than junior year rotations. Also there are no call nights unless you are doing a sub-intemship (which is required). Highlights of this final year include Step II of the USMLE, residency applications and interviews, the Senior Skit, and at long last, graduation!

Preparation for the senior year begins in the Spring Quarter of junior year, or earlier for some exotic / popular electives. This can pose a problem if you have a lot of patient care responsibilities during your last rotation (like medicine or surgery). However, most house staff are pretty understanding of your requirements to attend the planning sessions for the fourth year.

A minimum of twelve course credits (one course credit equals 100 units) is required of each student in order to receive full credit for the year. Of these twelve course credits, all students must complete required senior selective courses (150 inpatient units and 150 basic science units), in addition to 75 units of neurology (two weeks). Beginning in 1998-99, 75 units (two weeks) of perioperative medicine and pain therapy (aka anaesthesia), will be added as a fourth year requirement if this course was not completed in the third year,. Most of the courses are 100 units per month except sub-internships which are 150 units, and some busy clinical consult months which are 125. The remaining course credits may be fulfilled by formal course work, research in clinical or non-clinical areas, or additional clinical electives. All M.D./Ph.D. students, however, must register for a minimum of 6 course credits in clinical electives if they plan to petition for 6 months of research to be credited to the senior year. The Committee on Promotions dictates the courses that must be pursued for these 6 units.

Students are guided in their choice of electives by their chosen advisors, the Dean of Students, and, when necessary, the Committee on Promotions. Clinical rotations usually occur in one month blocks. Most students spend most of the fourth year on clinical electives, but many students also choose a variety of non-clinical electives. Some students use this time to engage in a research project. Some spend from one to three months working in other medical centers. A few work abroad for a part of the year.

Planning Your Senior Year

Most of this planning takes place after the Senior Electives Handbook comes out in early March of your junior year. Senior course options include subinternships (where you assume the duties of an intern for a month), consult services (where you work with a sub-specialty team such as Infectious Diseases), outpatient clinics, reading courses, research, lecture courses, and any course in another Division or professional school of the University that you can convince the Dean of Students you need for your health and happiness as a physician! Talking to seniors will give you an idea of which courses have been popular in the past. Your advisor can also tell you what preparation is most appropriate for your residency plains and long-term goals.

Most students like to schedule one or two rotations in their intended field of specialization during the Summer and Fall Quarters in order to get additional faculty recommendations to support their residency applications. Those who have not chosen a specialty often do additional rotations in the areas they are considering in order to narrow down their choices. Some students also do one or more electives away from the U of C, often at hospitals they are seriously considering for their residencies.

You should apply for off-campus electives at least one quarter ahead of time (February or March would be a good time to start applying for summer off-campus electives). Also, consider doing elective course work abroad. Students have gone to England, Brazil, Africa, India, and other exotic spots in the past.

Vacation during fourth year is up to you. It is required that you schedule 1200 units of credit during your fourth year to maintain full-time status and graduate. Some students accomplish this by working hard without taking much vacation time until late March when they are done with classes. Others like to spread out their time off throughout the fourth year, sometimes planning for residency interviews. It doesn’t matter how you do it as long as you complete 1200 units by June and have fun doing it. Many seniors choose easier electives the Spring Quarter, as they wind down from the prior four years.

Choosing an Advisor

Once you have chosen a specialty, you should choose an advisor in that field. The advisor should be accessible and someone with whom you feel comfortable talking, because you will need to confer with him/ her throughout the year while planning your schedule and residency applications. You must choose one faculty member as your advisor by the end of May of your junior year, even if you haven’t decided on a specialty yet. Remember that you can always change your advisor if you change your career plans. Also, you should be consulting other faculty members for their advice. Be aware that if you are applying to residency programs which require a preliminary year of clinical medicine, you will eventually need an advisor from the Internal Medicine Department.

The Nitty-Gritty of Scheduling and Lottery for Senior Electives

Scheduling of the senior year involves a maze of meetings following distribution of the Senior Elective Bulletin in early March. The Dean’s Office holds three meetings; the initial one in March informs students of the Senior Elective Lottery. Additional meetings are directed toward the residency selection process.

After the initial informational meeting, you have about two months to decide on a tentative course of study. The current seniors will still be around at this time, so remember to seek out their words of wisdom!

A computerized elective registration system (lottery) is used to maximize each student’s chances of getting the selective/elective schedule he/she most desires. The lottery matches Pritzker students with selectives/electives available at the Pritzker School of Medicine for the academic year. Senior students rank order their preferences and enter them into the lottery system.

The process is run in two phases. Phase I matches seniors’ choices with available selectives, neurology, and pain management. Phase II assigns the remaining electives and unfilled selective choices based on students’ preferences.

During the interval between the two phases (about two weeks), students may trade electives on a one-for-one basis with other students if they’re not satisfied with the results of the lottery. The second phase lottery then assigns remaining "hot" courses and all other electives. If the schedule of courses is still not satisfactory at the end of the second phase, remember that many students drop courses during the academic year, which serves to open up more positions. As a general policy, it is better to schedule only courses which you know you want because it is generally more difficult to drop credits (especially in highly desired areas such as ICU and Cardiology) than it is to pick courses up.

Elective assignments can be changed only if a Drop/Add form, signed by the elective course director, is brought to the Dean of Students’ Office. The departments will get a final list of each elective’s enrollees two weeks prior to the elective’s starting time; requests to drop an elective, subsequent to the two week deadline will be scrutinized and approved at the elective director’s discretion. A student may not graduate unless all electives for which a student has enrolled (not officially dropped) are passed, even if the minimum graduation requirements have already been met. An elective will be considered passed only when an evaluation of the student’s performance designating a grade of Pass by the elective’s director or the director’s designate is received in the Registration Coordinator’s Office in BSLC 104.

The Neurology Clerkship

Director of Student Medical Education, Neurology

Avertano Noronha, M.D.

Neurology Student Program Coordinator

Tracy DeMack

702-3815

The Neurology Clerkship is a two week rotation at the University of Chicago Hospitals. Students will spend the first week in either the neurology ward service or the clinic/consult service and then switch service for the second week. During the ward service students will make rounds with residents, followed by morning report and attending rounds. Diagnostic studies, particularly imaging, will be reviewed. The goal of this week is to train students to perform a complete neurological evaluation, to consider a differential diagnosis, and to plan diagnostic tests. Students generally do not take call, but they do write admission notes, and attend conferences.

During the clinic/consult service mornings students will generally spend time in the clinics and afternoons on consult service. The goal of this week is to emphasize the recognition and management of stupor, coma, seizures, and neurological complications of medical diseases. In the specialty clinics students will not be required to independently examine patients but may have the opportunity to do so. For non-specialty clinics students are encouraged to evaluate the patient and present the case to the attending. While on the consult service students will examine patients independently and present them to the attending. Students will also accompany residents to the ER for neurology consults.

Evaluation

Students will be evaluated on diagnosis and management in Neurology, oral and written communication, and professional behavior.

The United States Medical Licensing Exam (Step II) and Senior Examination

Seniors are strongly encouraged to take the USMLE Step II in the late summer of the senior year. Decision to delay until late in senior year requires the student to take a two-day comprehensive in December in order to meet graduation requirements. Step II of the USMLE covers the clinical material of the third year plus Preventive Medicine and Public Health. It is administered in a computerized format at a time chosen by the student in August through November. . Applications are distributed earlier in the year and coordinated by the Dean of Student’s Office. The Step II scores will be available before.

The amount of time students study for Step II usually depends on the competitiveness of their chosen field, and the perceived impact the scores will have on current and future applications to residencies and fellowships. While the minimum passing score for Step II is lower than for Step I (170 vs. 176), more Pritzker Students fail Step II than Step I.

Students often take a lighter rotation during August, or vacation during part of the month to prepare for Step II. They usually employ the same techniques and types of review books used to prepare for Step I. Te best preparation for Step II, however, is the time spent in the hospital during third year rotations.

Step III is administered after the first year of residency for those who have passed Steps I and II, and with the passage of Step III, candidates can obtain licensure in all states after they meet the minimum number of years of residency. Applications are available in the Dean’s Office. The 2000 USMLE registration fee for Steps I & II will be $340 per exam.

Residency Applications

& the Match

Formal information about the residency application process, including a National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) application and a directory of program addresses, is distributed during May of the junior year. By late July you should be writing away for residency applications. Your advisor can help you prepare and whittle down your application list.

You should apply to at least 35 programs if you are applying in a competitive field (e.g., Orthopedic Surgery and Obstetrics and Gynecology), while a minimum of 20 applications should suffice for less competitive fields. While you might be aiming for some top programs, be sure to include some solid backups. A complete application consists of a completed application form , a personal statement, the Dean’s Letter, and a minimum of three letters of recommendation from faculty members (one of which is the Chairperson’s letter). Many students obtain 4-6 letters. ERAS allows four letters per application, but students can designate which letters go to which program. Try to get a letter from a full professor if you are applying to competitive programs.

Also, include a C.V. (curriculum vitae, which is a resume for physicians and academics), even if you don’t have a string of publications, as the C.V. presents important information about you in an easy-to-read format. The Dean’s Letter is written by the Dean of Students. It summarizes your strengths as a candidate, and provides some general background information about you. Even though the Dean’s Letter cannot be mailed until November 1st, you should submit the other components of your application in early September.

It is now possible to apply to some residency programs electronically through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). The Dean of Students’ Office will transmit applications, letters of recommendation, Dean’s Letters, transcripts, and other supporting credentials to residency program directors using the internet from the Dean’s Office Work Station. Students can complete the application on any computer that will run Windows 3.1 or higher. For the 2000 match, ERAS is available for OB/GYN, Diagnostic Radiology, Orthopedic Surgery, Family Practice, Radiology, Emergency Medicine, Internal Medicine, Transitional Year programs, Surgery, Pediatrics, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, all combined medicine programs and all Army positions. Check out the ERAS web site at www.aamc.org/eras.

Once your application (ERAS or regular) is complete, interested residency programs will contact you for an interview. However, you should not fail to be assertive (in a kind manner) to determine whether or not the program will be interviewing you, so call. While you are waiting, organize your application materials well. Prepare two interesting cases to present during your interviews and a list of questions (about 10) to ask your interviewer, such as "How much time do attendings devote to teaching house staff?" or "What types of fellowship and employment opportunities have recent graduates of the residency program been offered?"

Setting up interview trips can be a bit tricky. Call the program as soon as you are offered an interview, as times that you have set aside in your schedule may fill quickly. Remember that many programs interview into February since your Rank Order List is not due until early February. Mondays and Fridays are popular days for interviewing as students can often get Supersaver plane fares if they stay over Saturday night and book the flight three to four weeks in advance. If you are applying to the East Coast, Amtrak service between many cities is convenient and relatively cheap. Also, ask about dormitory accommodations and discount hotel rooms close to the hospitals where you will be interviewing.

Recently, the BSD Alumni Association has been sponsoring a program where alumni host interviewing students around the country. Also, since interviewing now extends into January and February, students should be aware that expenses associated with a job search are tax-deductible, if the expenses are incurred in the year the student gains employment. So keep those receipts.

When you go for your interviews, remember that you are an intelligent person from a top medical school. Be confident and enthusiastic. Be able to state clearly why you have chosen your field, and let your interviewer know what makes you an interesting person. You will be expected to initiate much of the conversation during your interview, so be prepared.

Ask residents (not attendings) about vacation time, salary, and real call schedules. After each interview, take notes; otherwise, all the programs will begin to blur together after a while. The U. of C. tends to have a good reputation at East Coast programs. These programs also usually want some geographical diversity among their house staff. California programs are very popular, and thus, sometimes harder to get into. The greater variety of programs you see, the more you will be able to decide what programs have in common with your subspecialty. It will help you figure out what is important to you, thereby assisting you in submitting a rank list.

Match Day

Match Day, by all accounts, is an assault on the nerves equaled only by D-Day! The Office of the Dean of Students receives a list of matched and unmatched students prior to Match Day. In the past, approximately one to three students per class have not matched initially. These students generally applied in competitive fields without enough safety schools.

The Dean of Students’ Office notifies unmatched students as soon as possible, and is generally able to place them in a residency program by Match Day. The Dean of Students’ Office has been very successful placing unmatched students in good programs, but this is getting harder since the competition for positions has increased dramatically with a larger applicant pool and fewer positions.

The Match Day festivities begin at 10:00 a.m. The Dean of Students first announces statistics detailing how the class has done as a whole. Each student then receives a sealed envelope at 12:00 noon E.S.T. or 11:00 a.m. here, with his/her residency destination inside. A special reception is held in the student lounge after opening ceremonies, sponsored by the Alumni Association.

Pritzker 1999 Class Composite Statistics

Total of 1998 Graduates 112

Total Entering Residency Programs 111

Total Choosing Other Options 1

First Choice 67.0%

Second Choice 13.0%

Third Choice 8.0%

Senior Events

The Senior Skit

The Senior Skit is a lavish production produced annually by the senior class. It is a humorous, sometimes tasteful, satire of life at Pritzker. The Senior Skit usually plays the Wednesday before graduation at Mandel Hall. It is well attended by students, administration, faculty, and house staff, and is followed by a big bash at Ida Noyes Hall.

The student-faculty reception (the weekly TGIF in the medical student lounge) is run by the senior class to raise money for the Senior Skit. The Dean of Students’ Office, many faculty members and various pharmaceutical companies also contribute funds. Enterprising seniors usually take it upon themselves to organize the receptions and other fund raising events.

Organizational meetings for the skit usually start late in Summer Quarter, but the nitty-gritty preparation usually does not begin until April. The meetings are open to all members of the senior class whether or not they have theatrical talent. The more the merrier!

The Senior Banquet

The Senior Banquet takes place the day before graduation. The names of faculty members who have been voted by the graduating class to appear in the Class Composite Photograph, as well as basic science and clinical science professors of the year and resident of the year, are announced at the Banquet. Many faculty and administrative officers, as well as students and family members, attend. Recent banquets have been held at the Drake Hotel. The student may bring one guest for $25 while additional guests are charged $50 per person.

Graduation

Graduation generally falls on a Friday in early June. In the past it had been held at Rockefeller Memorial Chapel. In 1999 the ceremony was outside on the University of Chicago quadrangle. Each student is assigned four tickets, but more tickets can usually be obtained from the Dean of Students’ Office. In 1990, the Division introduced a new Awards Ceremony in which each graduate receives an M.D. hood from the Dean. In addition, all of the prizes and awards for the graduating class are made known at that time. Normally, 1000 people (family and friends of graduates) attend this event in a tent in the Crerar courtyard. There is a luncheon provided for all attendees.

Honors and Awards

Graduation with Honors

Each year, the faculty, through the Honors and Awards Committee, selects a small number of students in the senior class (12 total) to graduate With Honors, the highest distinction that can be bestowed by the University of Chicago. Nominations are made by individual departments and committees. In order to graduate With Honors, a student must have demonstrated leadership qualities, outstanding scholastic performance, and significant research abilities and accomplishments. This can be accomplished with a PhD, a senior authored peer reviewed publication, or presentation at the Senior Scientific Session. The names of the students so honored appear in the Convocation Program, followed by the notation With Honors. This notation also appears on the permanent academic record and on the diplomas of such students. Decisions on graduation With Honors are made during the Spring Quarter of the students’ senior year, but not announced until the awards ceremony.

Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA)

Each year, approximately 18 senior medical students are elected to the Illinois Beta chapter of AOA, the honorary medical society, in recognition of outstanding clinical abilities, leadership and character. Nominations are solicited from each clinical department, based primarily on performance in the required junior clinical clerkships. Students elected to AOA are notified early in the Autumn Quarter of their senior year.

Senior Awards

Each year, a number of awards are made to graduating senior medical students at a Divisional Honors Ceremony, just prior to graduation. These include awards for outstanding ability and performance in the various clinical fields, demonstrated research accomplishments, general academic excellence, and service through extracurricular activities. Nominations are solicited from both clinical and basic science departments and committees.

The Office of Medical Education (OME)

Location: Biological Sciences Learning Center, Suite 104

Address: 924 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637-5416

Telephone: (773) 702-1939

Hours: 7:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M.

http://ome.bsd.uchicago.edu

The Office of Medical Education is your main administrative resource. Just about any problem you have can be handled somewhere in this office.

Some things the OME does:

Counseling for medical and graduate students

Applications and admissions to the BSD

This includes joint degree programs and students applying for MSTP

Financial Aid

Registration

Committee on Promotions

Academic record keeping

Student Programming

• Orientation programs
• Student lotteries (for clerkships, etc.)
• Dean’s Council
• Freshman retreat
• Match day activities
• BSD ceremonies
• Career planning
• Senior advising and Dean’s letters for residency application
• Humanism in medicine conferences
• Summer research programs
• Recruitment activities
• Letters of recommendation for scholarships, awards, away electives, etc.

Important Players on the OME team (with "tip-of-the-iceberg" introductions to how they function in your life as a Pritzker medical student):

• In addition to being the ‘Overseer of the Land’ on all administrative issues related to the OME, she is an accessible resource to everyone because of her open door policy. Oh, and by the way, she’s known for being ‘soft’ on students.

• In addition to being your best connection to a meeting with Dean Wood, she is the third year student travel reimbursement guru and the family medicine clerkship coordinator. In her ‘spare’ time, she coordinates the 4^th year ERAS process. You will get to know her very well by the time you graduate.

• In addition to managing the finances and human resources for the OME, when you spend your own money on an approved student program expense, she is the person to see to get it back. She will also play an important role during your 4^th year on all of your licensing issues. Equally as important, when you want to know what’s ‘really’ going on in the OME, she is the person who can tell you.

Assistant Professor, Anesthesia and Critical Care

• In this new role, Dr. McDade will work to enhance the recruitment and enrollment of minority medical students to Pritzker, to develop programs to assist our students from multicultural backgrounds with identified curricular challenges, to contribute strategies for departmental recruitment of minority house staff and faculty, and to participate at regional and national levels in the development of programs for medical students from diverse cultural backgrounds. And in his spare time, he is an attending in the operating room and enjoys his research on sickle cell disease.

Professor of Clinical Medicine

• In addition to providing advice and counsel for all students, she teaches in three courses in your curriculum, chairs the academic promotions committee, oversees the NRMP and ERAS processes, and authors the Dean’s letter. In her ‘spare’ time she is an attending in the section of pulmonary and critical care and the director of the internal medicine residency program.

• In addition to being our good will ambassador and student advocate, she has the longest institutional memory in student programs and is THE person to whom the rest of us go for advice. She, too, has an open door policy. She works closely with Dr. McDade on minority recruitment and multicultural issues. In her spare time, she oversees every single student program across all four years — from freshman orientation all the way through to graduation.

• In addition to providing support to the deans for student programs and multicultural affairs, she is your primary connection for getting an appointment with Dr. McDade. She coordinates the Summer Research Program and makes sure you receive your stipends. She also responds to the requests for certification of past medical school graduates.

• In addition to making sure you all get registered for the right courses, she makes sure you receive credit for taking them. With Rosita, she coordinates the information for the promotions committee. At the beginning of each quarter, she will help you remember to avoid late fees and restrictions by completing changes to your schedule within the time allotted.

• In addition to providing support to Rosita Ragin and Holly Humphrey, she can help you get an appointment with either of them. Most of you will get to know her well because of her huge involvement with the Dean’s Council and its many student groups of well run activities in which you participate.

• In addition to handling the visiting student program, she assists the Dean’s letter process, proctors NBME subject exams, and handles pager assignments for third and fourth year students. She also compiles and publishes your elective bulletins and the summer research opportunities.

• In addition to her role in managing the curriculum and assisting faculty with their interests in improving the quality of their teaching, she oversees activities related to the Clinical Performance Center where students are evaluated on their clinical skills. In her ‘spare time,’ she is an investigator working in the demonstration and education components of private and federally funded grants in several departments in the Division.

• She coordinates all programs utilizing SP’s for teaching and assessing clinical skills in the Clinical Performance Center. Each of you will come to know her during your Clinical Skills courses in the first two years and then again in the clinical biennium for the end-of-clerkship experience. Where else can you go to meet ‘real’ actors? During your fourth year, you will be invited to participate as ‘actors’ in programs for the first year students.

• In addition to staffing the curriculum committees, she arranges all classrooms, creates your quarterly "week-at-a-glance" schedule for the first two years. She will secure passwords to the hospital computer system when you get to the third year, and she facilitates your critical evaluation of every educational experience you’ll encounter.

• He works behind the scenes to generate reports from the data that has been collected from you to share with the curriculum committees, course directors, and chairman of the teaching departments. He assures that your data is accurately compiled and given to the people who can make a difference in your education.

• He works behind the scenes to create the forms used to rate the faculty and courses and performs the work of scanning all this data and sometimes deciphering which bubble you truly meant to darken. He processes over 30,000 forms between the medical school, the undergraduate, and graduate courses in the Division, as the basis for curricular and teaching improvements.

Financial Aid Office

Location: BSLC Room 104

Hours: 8:30 a.m.-5:00p.m. M-F

Telephone: (773) 702-1938

The Pritzker School of Medicine administers financial assistance to approximately 70% of the enrolled students during the academic year. The office publishes a Financial Aid Handbook for medical students which provides information on policies, procedures, and sources of financial aid. The office also maintains the Financial Aid Resource Guide which lists numerous outside sources of aid. Please consult these publications for details on your responsibilites in the financial aid process.

University Student Loan Center

Location: Above the bookstore (58^th & Ellis) on the fourth floor

Hours: 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. M-F

Telephone: (773)702-6061

This is the main loan distribution office of the University. Certain medical school loan checks are picked up here, and you may also use this office for loan exit interviews, etc.

Bursar’s Office

Location: 101 Administration Building (58^th & Ellis, across from the bookstore)

Hours: 9:00 a.m.-3:00p.m. M-F

Telephone: (773) 702-8000

This is where you will make payments on your tuition account and pick up most of your loan refund checks. You can also cash personal checks here (with UCID) for amounts up to $100. The fee for this service is 40 cents per 50 dollars cashed.

Registrar’s Office

Location: 103 Administration Building (across the hall from the Bursar’s office)

Hours: 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. M-F

Telephone: (773) 702-7891

You will use this office to obtain official transcripts and clear restrictions on your account. Actual registration for medical school classes, however, is taken care of in the Office of Medical Education. The University Registrar’s office also publishes quarterly time schedules of all classes offered in the University. These will come in handy when you plan your elective time. Finally, there are two computers (one in the Registrar’s office, one in the Bursar’s office) where you can look up your own transcript and billing information. Try using these before waiting in line to ask questions.

There are numerous resources available to you, not just as a medical student, but also as a member of the University community. Here we mention a few resources that will be helpful to you as you start this journey.

Your fellow students will probably be the first people you turn to concerning just about anything. Remember, they know your situation intimately and will often understand just what you need.

The Student Counseling and Resource Service is an invaluable resource that provides someone to talk with about the everyday and often overwhelming stresses of medical school. Marriage/couples counseling is also available. Don’t be afraid to tap into this resource; you have paid for it in your student health fee, so take advantage of it! LIST PAGE #!!

The U of C has a number of Libraries, each with its own personality: Harper, Regenstein, D’ Angelo Law, Mathematics, Chemistry, and of course Crerar, the science and medicine library. We recommend that you check them all out in your search for that ideal study spot. Only Crerar library is open 24 hours a day (graduate students in the sciences, including medicine, have 24-hour access). You’ll need to show your hospital ID to get in after hours. Visit http://www.lib.uchicago.edu for details on all University libraries.

Our school is also famous for diverse and exciting Student Activities groups. Get involved in IM sports, Habitat for Humanity, or the University Orchestra. There’s more to Life at Pritzker than medical school!

Of course, your ultimate resource is Yourself-the one who got you this far in the first place. Be sure to make time for yourself and the things that you enjoy -- including your friends from before and outside of medical school, as well as your family. Everyone knows that medical school can be stressful, and most people find that their friends and family can really help relieve stress and anxiety. They offer a sense of continuity during this time of change which can be as disorienting and it is exciting.

We hope This Book serves as a resource too, and if you think it needs improvement, then you can be the one to revise it next year. You’ll all be experts by then. Good Luck.

(As an aside, this book used to contain sections describing third and fourth years. We took them out because we thought you had enough to digest for now. If you’re interested in viewing the contents of these pages, please feel free to contact us.)

Student Health and Support Services

Student Health Service

The University of Chicago student health services has two components, the Student Care Center (SCC) for general medical care and the Student Counseling and Resource Service (SCRS) for services ranging from short term psychotherapy to study skills counseling.

Student Care Center (SCC)

Location: 5841 South Maryland, Suite R100 (just west of Goldblatt Lobby)

Hours: 8 a.m. -4 p.m. M-F (Saturday 8-11 a.m. at DCAM walk-in clinic)

Telephone Numbers:

Physician appointments: (773) 702-4156

Medical advice (student care nurse): (773) 702-1915

Physician-on-call (urgent care*): (773) 702-6840

Health Education: (773) 702-1451

Services:

The University of Chicago Student Care Center (SCC) provides primary health care services to University students. Students are encouraged to choose a primary care doctor when they first arrive on campus. In addition to primary care, the SCC provides several specialty services including nutrition counseling, health education, immunizations, and gynecologic care. Routine dental and eye care are not provided.

Health Eduation:

Gynecology:

Immunizations:

Student Advisory Board:

Payment and Insurance:

All medical visits to the SCC are covered by the student health fee, which is billed as part of the quarterly fee structure (about $110 per quarter). If warranted, SCC physicians will also make referrals to specialty services within the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics. The health fee does not cover specialized and emergency care, laboratory tests, outside referrals, x-rays and hospitalizations. All students are required to carry a health plan beyond the student health fee. Students may choose a student medical plan offered by the University, or they may waive this plan if they are already covered by another policy (i.e. their parents’ or spouse’s policy). You will receive a brochure describing the SCC and its services, the student health fee, and the student medical insurance plan in greater detail. Student insurance is always under construction, so consult these other publications for specific information about rates, plan options, and coverage.

Student Counseling and Resource Service (SCRS)

Location: 5737 South University Avenue

Hours: 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. M-F

For appointments: (773) 702-9800

Therapist-on-call: (773) 702-3625

The Student Counseling and Resource Service (SCRS) provides short-term professional counseling to all University students. All services are covered in full by the Student Health Service fee. Visits are strictly confidential; no information is released to anyone outside SCRS without a student’s written permission, except in life threatening emergencies. Students may seek counseling at SCRS for any problem that causes them distress, including difficulty dealing with academic pressures, burn-out, anxiety, depression, loneliness, and marital difficulties. Many different forms of counseling are offered, such as support groups and counseling for individuals, couples, and families. The clinic can also make referrals to outside resources.

You can call to arrange an intake interview in which you provide information about yourself and your reasons for seeking counseling. Urgent cases are handled immediately. You do not need an appointment during a crisis.

SCRS also offers marital counseling. Spouses of students can be covered at the clinic by paying a separate Student Health Service fee. Counseling for unmarried couples is available if at least one member is a registered student or is covered by the University Health Service. The clinic also offers family counseling. In addition, the Department of Psychiatry provides a range of services for a fee.

Niteline

Telephone: (773) 702-8600

Hours: 7 a.m.-7 p.m. seven days a week

Niteline, a University student volunteer service, is a confidential telephone hotline that you can use for any reason. Its volunteers are trained in reflective listening and provide an empathetic ear to callers in all situations ranging from minor calamities to major breakdowns. In addition to supportive listening, Niteline volunteers provide information and resources for a multitude of issues. Other hotlines available in the city of Chicago include In Touch at 312-996-5535, which is run by UIC from 6 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Student Ombudsperson

Location: Lower Level of the Reynolds Club (RC 008)

Hours: 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. M-F

Telephone 702-8422

The Student Ombudsperson is a salaried, part-time official appointed by the President of the University to one year term in this office. The role of the ombudsperson is to investigate specific grievances brought to the office by both undergraduate and graduate students when other routes of mediation have failed. He or she is expected to determine the facts in each case, to refer complaints to the appropriate departments of the University, to suggest remedial steps in the settlement of a complaint, to work with the student and the administrator or faculty member in seeking a satisfactory solution, and to call attention to injustices or abuses of discretion.

Any information given to the ombudsperson is kept strictly confidential. If the problem is particularly sensitive, permission is obtained from the student before their situation is related to other University officials. If a case suggests a need for changes in university rules, procedures, or policies, the ombudsperson directs his or her recommendation to the appropriate policy-making body.

Security

Contrary to what you’ve probably heard, Hyde Park is NOT as intimidating as its reputation suggests. In fact, it’s actually one of the nicest communitites on the South Side. However, it IS part of a major urban area so security is an important issue. The University and its surroundings are patrolled by the University Police as well as the Chicago Police Department. In addition, your own common sense goes a long way toward living safely in Hyde Park.

University Police

On-campus dial 123, Off-campus dial (773) 702-8181

Location: 5555 South Ellis Avenue

The University Police Department operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, on campus and throughout the Hyde Park-Kenwood neighborhood. The campus police patrol the area within the following borders: Lake Michigan to the east, Cottage Grove Drive to the west, 47th Street to the north, and 61st Street to the south.

Questions, comments, or complaints about the operations of the University Police should be directed to the Watch Commander or supervisor on duty by calling the dispatcher at 123 from campus phones or 702-8181. During business hours, calls may also be directed to the Director or an Assistant Director at 702-8190. Formal complaints may be filed against a member of the University Police by any of the above means or by contacting the Committee on University Security. Complaints may also be initiated by contacting the Office of the Dean of Students in the University or a member of the Dean-on-Call staff.

Emergency phones

More than 135 emergency phones are distributed throughout Hyde Park. These phones, easily identified by their white covers, provide a direct line to the University Police dispatcher who can pinpoint your location and send officers to your aid. In an urgent situation, a car will be on the scene in most cases in less than two minutes. If you are being followed, turn on every white phone in your path so the police can track your movement. The University Police dispatcher can also summon city police, ambulance and fire-fighting assistance. (Note that the University of Chicago does not operate its own EMS service.)

Umbrella Coverage

In addition to daytime campus buses, the extensive evening bus system, and the late night vans, you can request "Umbrella Coverage" from University Police. Do not hesitate to use this service! Whenever you feel uncomfortable walking anywhere within the patrolled area, call the University Police dispatcher at 123 from any campus phone or by dialing 702-8181 from off-campus. You can also phone the police ahead of time if you know that you will be walking in an unsafe area late in the evening. University security will dispatch a car to follow you as you walk to your destination. They do not let you ride in the car in order to avoid becoming a free taxi service.

Whistle-Stop

This is a Hyde Park community program. Many students and residents in the neighborhood carry whistles. If you find yourself in an emergency situation, or you see someone else in such a situation, blow your whistle. Others will hear this and join in (and call campus security), hopefully scaring away any perpetrators. Absolutely do not hesitate to blow your whistle if you feel threatened - it’s better to look foolish than to become a victim! Whistles are available at the University Police Office (56^th & Ellis).

Bicycle Registration

Bicycle theft is one of the more common crimes committed at the University of Chicago. It is difficult to track down a stolen bike, but it is impossible for the campus police to help if you have not registered your bicycle with them. It is a relatively quick process that requires a stop by the campus police station on 56th and Ellis Avenue to provide serial numbers and descriptive data. The University Police will give you a sticker to put on your bike and they will also register your information with the Chicago Police.

Hospital Security

(773) 702-6262

The medical center maintains its own security force which handles situations within the hospital buildings. They can be a handy resource for getting into locked areas of the hospital after-hours (areas to which you are specifically permitted, of course.) You’ll need to show your hospital ID to use this service.

Minority Student Programs

William McDade, MD/PhD, Class of 1990, serves as the faculty advisor to the Pritzker chapter of Student National Medical Association (SNMA). SNMA is an organization interested in the health of minority communities. Its main goal is to educate students and physicians about the problems of minorities, the recruitment and continued support of minority medical students, and service projects which can improve the health status of surrounding minority communities. Dr. McDade is Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, a member of the Medical School Admissions Committee, MSTP Admissions Committee, and the Graduate Affairs Minority Committee. Dr. McDade and other minority faculty, in spite of their busy schedules, are always willing to mentor, advise, and support students.

The Director of Student Programs, Rosita Ragin, is the administrative advisor for SNMA and serves as the medical school’s representative to the Minority Affairs Section of the AAMC and the Thirteen School Consortium. She assists with minority recruitment for the medical school and summer programs by attending recruitment fairs and conferences throughout the year, often with the assistance of minority medical students. She is the program director of the Chicago Summer Science Enrichment Program (CSSEP), which is partially funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Minority Medical Education Program (MMEP).

The CSSEP, guided under a consortium of four medical schools which includes Rush Medical College, Loyola Stritch School of Medicine, and Northwestern School of Medicine, has four years of funded support. The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine is the managing school for the consortiums’ program and the fiscal agent for the Robert Wood Johnson grant. While each medical school’s program has as science-review curriculum, the University typically works with students who are pre-med. The program is designed to strengthen understanding of scientific principles in key areas in preparation for the MCAT, as well as to enhance students’ competitiveness for medical school admission. Major clinical and problem-based learning components are included. The Dean of Students and the Director of Admissions provide numerous admissions and interviewing workshops throughout the program. If you are interested in working on this program, contact Damien Dawson at [email protected].

The National Institutes of Health’s Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NIH/NHLB), the Pritzker School of Medicine and the Division of the Biological Science co-sponsor a program to provide medical students or talented undergraduates with an opportunity to obtain an in-depth experience of independent scientific research in a laboratory setting. Ten of the sixty positions in the Pritzker Summer Research Program are funded by the NIH/NHLB for minority students.

Alumni Association Programs

The Biological Sciences Division and the Medical Alumni Association was established in 1934 to serve students, faculty, and alumni of the medical school and the Division. The Association exists, in part, to promote scientific and cultural relations among its members. The Association, joining the Dean of Students’ Office, begins the academic year with receptions at which faculty and alumni welcome medical and graduate students to campus. "Medicine on the Midway"’ is the quarterly publication of the alumni association. It highlights the activities of graduates of the Biological Sciences Division and current University events.

The BSD and Medical Alumni Association provide support for the annual Senior Scientific Session, a unique program designed to give graduating medical students the opportunity to present the results of research they have conducted during medical school. The Alumni Association is engaged in other key activities for senior students, including providing a lunch on Match Day, providing listings of alumni who are willing to serve as contacts for information about residency locations, and working with the Dean of Students’ Office in sponsoring the Divisional Academic Ceremony.

Resources for Parent Students

This section provides information for parents and parents-to-be. The first part lists students who can share their experiences and knowledge about parenting in medical school. The second section identifies supportive faculty members, and the third section provides information on cay care and child services in Hyde Park.

STUDENT RESOURCES

The following is a short list of parents who are willing to be consulted regarding their choices and experiences as students.

Jon Davison (Class of 2002) and Vicki Sheridon-Davison

--Entered medical school with a 10-month old

--Contact info: [email protected],

Tom Lancaster (Class of 2002)

--Son was born 4 weeks after classes began first year

--Contact info: [email protected].

Alyna Chien (Class of 2001)

--Entered 1st year with a 5 month old; Had 2nd child Aug '97.

--Contact info: [email protected]

Chemen Denny (Class of 2004)

--Entered medical school with a 7-year-old son

--Contact info: [email protected]

FACULTY RESOURCES

The following is another short-list of faculty who are willing to be consulted regarding their choices and experiences as parents with medical careers.

Halina Brukner, M.D., Internal Medicine. Two [email protected].

Deborah Burnet, M.D. Med/Peds. Two children. [email protected].

Lainie Ross, M.D., Ph.D., Peds and Philosophy. Two children. [email protected]…

Kathleen Kelley, M.D., Child Psychiatry. Two children. [email protected]…

John Flaherty, M.D., Infectious Diseases. Five children. [email protected]…

DAY CARE AND CHILD SERVICES

Day Care Centers

Akibna-Schecter Jewish Day School, 5235 S. Cornell Ave., 773-493-8880

Ancona Nursery School, 4770 S. Dorchester Ave., 773-924-2356

Chicago Care Society, 5467 S. University Ave., 773-373-3000

K.A.M. Isaiah Israel Nursery School, 5039 Greenwood Ave., 773-924-1237

Parent Co-op for Early Learning, 5300 S. Shore Dr., 773-684-6363

U of C Laboratory Nursery School, 5750 S. Woodlawn, 773-834-1911

Little People Learning Center, Inc., 5650 S. Woodlawn, 773-955-9942

Williams Day Care Home, 5318 S. Kimbark, 773-324-3737

Tot-Lots

Bixler Park and Playground, 57th and Kenwood Ave: a popular meeting place for University parents and kids.

Hyde Park Neighborhood Club, 5480 S Kenwood, 773-643-4062, (annual fee; open three mornings a week from the Fall through Spring).

Story Hours

57th Street Bookstore. 1301 E. 57th St., (773) 684-1300

Chicago Public Library - Blackstone Branch, 4904 S. Lake Park, (773) 747-0511.

Nursing services

La Leche League

--Contact info: : Betty (773) 775-6092

Medela Breastpump Rentals - Cheryl Renz (also an MD at UCH) — (773) 268-1845.

University Athletic Facilities

For University facilities, you will need to show a valid U of C ID. Temporary lockers are available free of charge (bring your own lock) or you can rent lockers to use on a quarterly basis.

Henry Crown Field House

Location: 5550 S. University Ave.

Telephone: (773) 753-4680

Hours: Mon-Fri, 7am-12 midnight; Sat, 9:30 am-8 pm; Sun, 12 noon -8 pm

Note: These hours change quarterly so call first for details.

Features a 6-lane, 200 meter running track; facilities for tennis and basketball; 7 multi-purpose courts for either handball, racquetball, or squash; an additional 3 courts for stationary bikes; areas for fencing and wrestling for varsity teams only. They also have a multi-purpose room for badminton and other sports. Also, there are free weights, a weight circuit, and cardiovascular machines, including rowing machines, stationary bikes, stairclimbers, and ellipse gliders.

Stagg Field

56th and Cottage Grove

Outdoor 440-yard running track and tennis courts

Ida Noyes Swimming Pool

Location: 1212 East 59^th Street, Lower Level

Telephone: (773) 702-0475

Hours: Vary by quarter. Pick up schedules in Ida Noyes Room 106

This is a small pool (four lanes, 20 yards long) but it works for now until the new athletic complex is completed.

Midway Plaisance

This is the grassy strip just south of 59^th Street where IM sports compete (soccer, football, ultimate frisbee, etc.) It’s also a great place for jogging, home to a new permanent ice skating rink, and I’ve even seen people use it as a driving range.

Clubs and Extracurricular Activities

Pritzker students organize a variety of activities to diversify the experiences of medical students (i.e., to keep us out of the library and remind us all of life outside of the BSLC). Groups are listed in alphabetical order. Take a minute to scan through all of the organizations – you’ll be amazed at the number of opportunities you have! If you don’t see something you’d like to see, start your own group. Also, don’t forget about the wide range of activities sponsored by the University at large (you’ll see flyers advertising these all over campus, or stop by the Student Activities Office, Room 001 on the lower level of the Reynolds Club.)

Community Service:

Adolescent Substance Abuse Program

American Medical Students Association

Association of Latin American Students

Blue Gargoyle Tutoring

Community Health Initiative

The Child Life and Family Education Program

Geriatrics Interest Group

Humanism in Medicine

Ronald McDonald House

Student National Medical Association

Political Action:

American Medical Association

American Medical Students Association

Medical Students For Choice

Medical Students For Life

Physicians for Social Responsibility

Student National Medical Association

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual People in Medicine

Organization of Student Representatives (OSR),

Association of American Medical Colleges

Medical School Republicans

Publications:

The Caduceus

Humanism in Medicine

Synapse

Social Activities:

American Medical Association

American Medical Students Association

Say Ahhh!

Dean’s Council

Education/Discussion Groups:

American Medical Women’s Association

Bioethics Interest Group

Bobs Roberts Pediatric Society

Emergency Medicine Interest Group

Family Medicine Interest Group

Gender Working Group

Gross Issues

Humanism in Medicine

Pritzker Christian Fellowship

Professional/Medical Associations:

Chapters of National Organizations:

American Medical Association

American Medical Students Association

American Medical Women’s Association

Asian Pacific American Medical Student

Association

Association of American Medical Colleges (OSR)

Physicians for Social Responsibility

Local Organizations:

Family Medicine Interest Group

International Medicine Club

Medical Spanish

Association of Latin American Students

Cultural and Religious Focus:

Association of Latin American Students

Asian Pacific American Medical Student

Association

Jewish Medical Student Association

Medical Spanish

Pritzker Christian Fellowship

Student National Medical Association

ALMAS was started in 1997 and has three primary goals. First, we aim to raise awareness of the health care issues facing Chicago’s large Latino community. The second goal is to promote community service activities in the local Latino community. Third, we strive to provide a support group at Pritzker for both students and applicants for admission of Latino descent. Through our active participation in recruiting, we hope to attract more students of Latino descent to our school. If you have any interest in Latino issues and would like to work with us, please let us know.

Contact: Paco Aguilar ([email protected])

ASAP is a community service program in which medical students visit local elementary and middle schools to teach 5th-8th graders about the dangerous effects of substance abuse. Rather than "preaching" to children, the program approaches the material from a scientific, yet personal, perspective. The program usually consists of two to three teaching sessions per school. The ASAP teachers begin with an interactive session during which they introduce the students to normal human organ physiology. The highlight of the program occurs during the second session when real human organs are brought into the classroom. Medical students lead small group discussions during which the normal physiology of the organ, as well as the damage caused by substance abuse, is demonstrated (this is the really fun part.) In the third session, ASAP leaders help kids develop some tools for staying drug-free. This program is a great way to get involved in the local community and have loads of fun.

Contacts: Katie Goodrich ([email protected])

Andrew Booty ([email protected])

The medical student section of the AMA is the largest national organization of medical students with over 33,000 members from 141 accredited U.S. allopathic and osteopathic medical schools across the country. The AMA is the largest lobbying group in the country advocating for doctors and patients. Membership in the AMA gives you a voice to influence health care policy. The AMA medical student chapter at Pritzker provides a wide variety of services and benefits to its members. Programs include JAMA journal clubs and policy discussions.

This year at Pritzker the AMA teamed up with AMSA to sponsor events including a post card drive in support of the Syringe Purchase Act and a panel discussion on the ethics of pharmaceutical gifts to physicians.

For more information, please visit our booth during the orientation week activities fair. You can find out about the benefits associated with joining AMA and sign up!

Contact: Jesse Ehrenfeld ([email protected])

AMSA is a progressive group run by medical students for medical students. On a national level, AMSA is currently active in fighting for legislation to limit residency work hours. On a local level, our chapter has sponsored the following events this year:

This fall AMSA has a lot of cool stuff planned, so join us and get involved!

Contact: Aaron Horne ([email protected])

AMWA at Pritzker is a local chapter of an established national organization. The primary goals of our student chapter are twofold: supporting and advancing the efforts of women in medicine, and promoting discussion and action on health issues, especially those pertaining to women. Ongoing AMWA activities include pairing students with faculty members in the AMWA mentoring program, as well as pot-luck dinners and brown bag lunches with women doctors. Annual AMWA events include a self-defense workshop, a residency panel led by 4th year women who have completed the match process, and a seminar exploring the issues facing women in medicine.

Contacts: Jenny Kreisher ([email protected])

Sarah Bauer ([email protected])

APAMSA is dedicated to spreading awareness about the unique health care needs of the Asian American community, and working towards the abolition of barriers which obstruct the fulfillment of those needs. We do this through education, community service, and creation of a national network of Asian Pacific Americans in health care. Past and future activities include: speaker seminars dealing with issues directly impacting Asian Pacific American health care professionals, regional Asian American health care promotions, a bone marrow drive to increase the pool of minority donors in the national registry, immunization drives and injection training sessions, seminars dealing with the impact of managed care on future doctors, and Asian cuisine socials. We are a young group that is open to new and fresh ideas. All are welcome.

Contact: Suzan Song ([email protected])

BIG was founded in the spring of 1995. Our goals are to foster student discussion and growth regarding the ethical issues that medical students encounter throughout their medical school experience. Unlike the Ethics class offered to first years, we do not see ourselves as a group for teaching the principles and methods of ethics; rather we see our group as offering students a forum to discuss the tough issues and experiences that we face in a nonjudgmental atmosphere. Our issues are student-generated, and the discussions are between the students with facilitation by the ethics fellows. We meet year-round every two to three weeks. The format of discussion varies from case presentations by students about patient care issues that they have faced, to cases brought by the ethics fellows, to discussions about current events, to guest speakers, to watching movies or video clips, to simply talking about what is on our minds at that time. Our group is informal, and we welcome all points of view and all levels of experience.

Contacts: Maya Mehta ([email protected])

Vivien Ho ([email protected])

The Blue Gargoyle Youth Service Center is an outside organization, conveniently located near campus, which is involved in providing volunteer tutors for children from Hyde Park and surrounding areas. Each tutor is matched with a child to work with for the year, and the tutor and tutee arrange times to meet which fit into both of their schedules. The children range in age from early elementary school through high school.

Contact: Call Blue Gargoyle Office at (773) 955-4108

The Bobs Roberts Pediatric Society is an organization unique to Pritzker that is operated and funded by the Department of Pediatrics for the purpose of informing medical students about the field of pediatrics and related areas of child health, development, history, ethics and future career opportunities. It will function through a year-long series of approximately six scheduled meetings open to all medical students. Each session will utilize seminar style discussions led by a faculty member, demonstrations of patients and clinical and/or laboratory facilities, as well as opportunities for socialization with pediatric faculty and house officers. Notices about meetings are usually disseminated via mass email.

Contact: Herbert T. Abelson, M.D., Chairman,

The Caduceus was Pritzker’s student-run newspaper. It sort of died in the last few years, but if you’re interested in journalism and want to get the ball rolling again, this one’s for you. You can find old issues in the student resource room on the third floor of BSLC to see what it was all about.

Contact: Cecilia Sanders ([email protected])

Beyond medical care, the Child Life and Family Education program at The University of Chicago Children’s Hospital helps children and their families deal with the stress and anxiety of being in the hospital. Volunteers are an essential part of the program helping to normalize the environment for the children and brighten their days while in the hospital. Students are required to commit to 4 hours per week for a total of 100 hours of service. Depending on when you can volunteer, there are programs which involve working with children in the large and inviting playroom or being a bedside volunteer. Programs run daily from 9:30-11:45 M-Sa, 2-4:15 M-F and 5:30-7:30 M-TH evenings. Whether you are interested in pediatrics or not, volunteering is a wonderful opportunity to learn about helping children cope with chronic illnesses and lengthy hospital stays. " A Happy Child Heals Faster"

Contact: Karen Peck

([email protected])

CHI’s mission is to address the health care needs of under-served populations. To this end, we strive to provide direct care, education, and referrals to patients as well as to increase awareness of medical needs of the under-served among health professionals. We run two free health clinics in the area: the Maria Shelter Clinic and the Washington Park Children’s Free Clinic. The Maria Shelter houses as many as 50 women and children who temporarily need a safe place to stay. We run the clinic at the shelter once a week. It is staffed by volunteer physicians who give the physical exams and students who take the medical histories. The Washington Park Clinic, entirely founded and created by Pritzker medical students, is a walk-up free clinic for children. It operates every Thursday night and is staffed by volunteer physicians, medial students, and students from the U of C School of Social Service Administration (SSA).

Contact: For Maria Shelter: Olivia Bailey ([email protected])

For Washington Park: Joyce Tang ([email protected])

Chris Rhee ([email protected])

The Dean’s Council meets monthly. It functions as a mechanism by which students can present, through their representatives, matters of concern ranging from medical school activities to hospital policies. Minutes are kept and information is disseminated to all students via e-mail. In addition, the Council handles the appropriation of medical student funds to various student organizations and functions. Any medical student organization or student-run activity desiring funding must apply through the Council. Applications can be obtained from the Director of Student Programs. Elections for the Dean’s Council are held annually by each class.

Contact: Class of 2004 Dean’s Council representatives:

Ijeoma Azodo ([email protected])

Pat Basu ([email protected])

Eric Weil ([email protected])

The EMIG sponsors a series of meetings pertaining to topics in Emergency Medicine, including various residency, sub-internship and practice options. EMIG also covers teaching intubation, suturing, and EKG reading techniques. EMIG has an active mentoring program, where students can come into the ER and observe physicians at work. Also, a series of interactive case study presentations are given by an ER physician as part of a lunch series designed to take medical students through the process of diagnosing and treating interesting cases and diseases. The goals of this group include:

1. Increase exposure of medical students to EM faculty and residents,

2. Facilitating student learning in EM residency and career opportunities,

3. Allow students to explore the intricacies of EM.

Contact: Jonathan Kohler ([email protected])

FMIG focuses on building interest in family practice as a career choice for students here at Pritzker. We are affiliated with the Illinois Academy of Family Physicians. Several meetings are held each quarter that are designed to inform students of the range of possibilities open to family physicians, to help interested students access resources (i.e. family practice externships and clerkships), and to learn how to secure a residency in family medicine. This year FMIG sponsored suturing and injection workshops among other activities.

Contact: Susan Halbach ([email protected])

This newly-founded group is working on a plan to help strengthen Pritzker’s treatment of gender-related issues in medicine. As wonderful as our institution is, it handles these subjects notoriously poorly (there have been studies done on this stuff.) We have lots of work to do, so please join us!

Contact: Julie Chor ([email protected])

The Geriatrics Interest Group (GIG) serves as a resource to Pritzker students who want to learn more about caring for older patients. A quickly growing demographic group, older people will constitute a large proportion of almost every future physician’s patient population. Through GIG, Pritzker students can learn more about the field of geriatrics by attending quarterly lectures on topics ranging from advances in the basic science of aging to geriatric psychiatry, ethics and public policy. GIG officers can also help interested students find appropriate faculty mentors, research positions, and scholarships.

Contact: Kate Thompson ([email protected])

Anatomy was strange. Different people had very different reactions. So we formed a group to talk about what we thought about it all, since most of anatomy consists of other people talking at YOU. Gross Issues sponsored milk & cookie breaks and discussion groups surrounding especially difficult labs, like the hands, pelvis, and face. We also sponsored general discussions about the ethics of dissection and other topics facilitated by Kyle Nash. If you’re interested in sponsoring a group for your class, contact us.

Contacts: Ari Bernstein ([email protected])

Hosts panel discussions on economic and policy issues in medicine, as well as regular discussion and reading groups.

Contact: Nirav Shah ([email protected])

Humanism in Medicine (www.humanism-in-medicine.org) aims to support medical students as they provide respect, compassion and generosity to others within medical settings. The group is sponsored by the Arnold P. Gold Foundation, a national organization committed to fostering humanism in medicine. Future plans of the Pritzker Humanism in Medicine group include:

Contact: Ari Bernstein ([email protected])

IMG is made up of a group of medical students interested in global health issues. Many of us participate in international medical externships during the summer between our first and second years. Fourth year medical students also have the opportunity to experience health care delivery abroad. IMG compiles info about volunteering opportunities, externships and summer programs for people interested in learning about health care delivery in other countries. During the school year, IMG invites guest speakers to discuss global health issues and also does fundraising to help support the students who want to go abroad. The major activity of IMG is an annual trip to Cuba to deliver medical supplies and learn about the Cuban medical system.

Contact: Sue Kim ([email protected])

Contact: Campus Sports Office (773) 702-9557

or visit www.uchicago.edu/students/athletics

JMSA sponsors social events for Jewish medical students, often in conjunction with other programs at the U of C as well as the Graduate Professional Division of the Hillels of Illinois. We also organize educational events, including speakers, debates, and seminars on topics involving Judaism and medicine.

Contact: Anna Meyerson ([email protected])

This vibrant Pritzker organization is an official subgroup of the American Medical Students Association. We provide a supportive environment for gay and bisexual medical students, and we network with the greater Chicago les-bi-gay medical community. In addition, we are committed to organizing educational seminars at Pritzker on les-bi-gay medical issues and sponsoring other educational and social events.

Contact: Suzanne Baumwell ([email protected])

You guessed it - this is the organization is for Republicans.

Contact: Jesse Ehrenfeld ([email protected])

Hola amigos! The Medical Spanish Club at Pritzker wishes you bienvenidos and invites you to join us in our effort. Medical Spanish works to improve our abilities to communicate with patients in Spanish in order to create linguistically and culturally more flexible physicians. Come join us for Spanish-speaking patient interviews in the hospital and other Spanish-oriented activities. All levels are encouraged to participate.

Contact: Freddy Ceballos ([email protected])

Eric Weil ([email protected])

MSFC is a national organization that was founded in response to the shortage of abortion practitioners, the lack of abortion education in medical schools, and the escalating violence against abortion providers. The Pritzker chapter of MSFC was founded during the 97-98 school year and is actively works to increase awareness and educational opportunities for medical students regarding abortion and reproductive health. This year we sponsored mentor programs and physician shadowing at reproductive health clinics. This is a great way to see and learn about things that they don’t teach you in medical school, but should.

Contact: Julie Chor ([email protected])

Jennufer Gnerlich ([email protected])

Rachel Gianfortune ([email protected])

Pritzker really does have it all. This group aims to educate medical professionals on reproductive alternatives to abortion.

Contact: Ali Javaheri ([email protected])

This is our student representation to the American Association of Medical Colleges. OSR gives input on the experience of medical education and serves as a student advocacy group.

Contact: Jesse Ehrenfeld ([email protected])

The PIG people are involved with many different activities for pediatricians-to-be. We invite students to attend pediatric rounds, sponsor a mentor matching program, organize volunteer opportunities to cuddle little ones in the NICU, and host brown bag lunches and discussions with faculty to educate ourselves on pediatric issues ranging from child abuse to pediatric cancer.

Contacts: Venita Chandra ([email protected])

Cathy Humikowski ([email protected])

Brian Kono ([email protected])

PSR aims to reduce violence in society and speaks out against other social and environmental ills. The University of Chicago Chapter has not been active in recent years, but this is an awesome organization looking for a new champion!

Contact: Rosita Ragin in the OME

visit www.psr.org

The purpose of PCF is to provide a network of support, fellowship and accountability during the rigors of our medical school years. Through relationships with fellow Pritzker students as well as Christian doctors and faculty at the University of Chicago, we try to foster an environment where Christian medical students can discuss freely how their beliefs relate to medicine. We would also like to help any student find a home church. It is our hope that PCF can facilitate the personal and spiritual growth that medical school induces and sometimes demands, while at the same time encourage perspective and balance.

Contact: Jimmy Lu ([email protected])

The Ronald McDonald House, established in 1986, is a beautiful facility which provides housing for the families of children undergoing major medical procedures. The goals of our volunteering are two-fold: (1) to provide the families with emotional support while they stay at the Ronald McDonald House, and (2) to provide the volunteers with a unique opportunity to witness the impact illness can have on a family as a whole. This year, we have sponsored many activities and events for families staying at the RMH. We always welcome new volunteers.

Contact: Jen Gnerlich ([email protected])

Do you sing? Say Ahhh is the newly-founded Pritzker A Capella group. We’ve performed at the Freshman Retreat talent show, Liver Rounds, and other hospital events. Practice is once a week and we have tons of fun. (Editor’s note: they sound as good as they look.)

Contacts: Ben Freed ([email protected])

Rekha Vij ([email protected])

Student National Medical Association (SNMA) is an organization interested in the health of communities of minorities. We are affiliated with the National Medical Association (NMA) which is the professional division. Our membership is open to all students with an interest in the affairs of minority communities. SNMA’s main goals are to educate students and physicians about the challenges facing minority communities, the recruitment and continued support of minority medical students, and service projects which can improve the health status of surrounding minority communities.

Contact: Akara Forsythe ([email protected])

Danielle Ware ([email protected])

Synapse is (will be) an art and literary magazine displaying the hidden creative talents of medical students. Sponsored in part by AMSA, we have already started collecting submissions and hope to publish the first edition Fall 2001. We are seeking interested students, with or without experience, to get involved in layout, design, or just to submit creative photography, drawings, paintings, poetry, or prose.

Contact: Cathy Humikowski ([email protected])