Clinical Education
Professional Practice in Clinical Settings
Real-life clinical experience is a fundamental aspect of an osteopathic medical student’s education. As an IllinoisCOM student, your clinical rotations take on even greater importance as you train to redefine patient care through integrated medicine. Our trusted partnerships with first-rate physicians, hospitals, and clinical systems around the nation ensure that you will receive comprehensive, practical, and enriching clinical training.
Clinical Rotations
Clinical rotations, also referred to as externships, or clinical experiences, are dynamic and fully integrated experiential training opportunities.
During clinical rotations, IllinoisCOM students focus on gaining vital clinical experience, expanding foundational knowledge, providing high-quality and compassionate care, and developing professional and clinical competence that is critical to a successful medical career.
Third-Year Curriculum
Third-year IllinoisCOM students must complete six core rotations, one required rotation in radiology and one elective rotation. Individual rotations last for at least four weeks and are closely monitored by one or more attending physicians, known as preceptors. These four-week rotations blend direct patient care with didactic learning, emphasizing IllinoisCOM’s distinct integrated health approach. Throughout the third year, students benefit from structured licensure preparation programming, including:
- Dedicated study time
- Specialty-specific review materials aligned with rotation content
- Regular practice assessments
- Personalized guidance
This approach to clinical training ensures our students develop the clinical reasoning skills, medical knowledge, and professional competencies necessary for success in fourth-year sub-internships and the residency application process.
Fourth-Year Curriculum
Fourth-year students must complete one core rotation, one additional required rotation in behavioral health, four electives, and three rotations at the level of sub-internship. Fourth-year rotations further expand a student’s clinical responsibilities while focusing on their individual specialty and sub-specialty interests.
Sub-internships are designed for students to function at a near-resident level with greater autonomy and responsibility for managing multiple patients simultaneously with appropriate supervision. These rotations also provide opportunities for students to be evaluated by potential residency programs. Electives offer students the chance to explore their professional interests with customized sequences based on their career goals.
Expansive Clinical Education Opportunities*
IllinoisCOM’s urban hub-based training model provides hundreds of diverse patient care experiences in popular metropolitan areas around the U.S.
Illinois
Texas
California
Washington, d.c.
metro area
* Clinical education opportunities per region may vary.
Clinical Curriculum
Third-Year Rotations
- Family Medicine
- Internal Medicine
- Obstetrics/Gynecology
- Pediatrics
- Psychiatry
- Radiology
- General Surgery
- Elective Rotations
Fourth-Year Curriculum
- Behavioral Health Rotation
- Emergency Medicine Core Rotation
- Patient Centered Osteopathic Practice VII
- Patient Centered Osteopathic Practice VIII
- Elective 1
- Elective 2
- Elective 3
- Elective 4
- Sub-internship 1
- Sub-internship 2
- Sub-internship 3
Become a Preceptor at IllinoisCOM
Through their guidance and training, IllinoisCOM preceptors make a direct impact on osteopathic medical students and the future of integrated medicine. Interested in guiding the next generation of healthcare professionals? Apply to become an IllinoisCOM preceptor.