Clerkships in Urology

Juniors | Seniors | Conferences | Contact Information

Third Year Surgery Clerkship

The goal of the M3 clerkship is to introduce the medical student to the basic concepts of urology, enable him/her to evaluate patients with urologic diseases and to interpret laboratory and radiological tests used to evaluate urologic conditions. Urology is an exciting specialty which offers a mixture of medical and surgical practices. The clerkship includes time working with faculty members and residents in the outpatient clinical setting, wards, and operating rooms.

Two service rotations (academic and private) are available at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Furthermore, students on the Chicago campus can choose between a less intensive (two half-days per week) outpatient rotation and a more intensive (full-time) inpatient rotation. Two chief and two first year residents staff the NMH academic service and the private service is staffed by an intermediate year resident.The following is a suggested plan for students who desire a career in urology:

Clerkships: sufficient exposure to urology, pediatric urology, general surgery and gynecology to assure the validity of career interest. Usually this can be accomplished in one quarter. Two quarters general medicine and specialty medicine including endocrinology and metabolism, immunology, cardiology, infectious disease, nephrology or applied clinical pharmacology. Alternatives to these suggestions include ambulatory medicine, pathology, radiology, pediatrics, and pediatric surgery.

Research: serious consideration should be given to an individual study effort for one quarter.

Didactic: participation in formal didactic exercises can assist the student by providing a framework for his/her clinical or investigative endeavors. Examples of courses the student might consider are:

• biochemical differentiation of disease;

• clinical pathology correlation in human disease;

• molecular basis of disease and diagnosis; or

• pathophysiology of renal disease.

For additional information on the M3 clerkship, please visit the Department of Surgery's page on medical education and click on the link for "M3 Clerkship." Alternatively, you may contact the Department of Urology Education Coordinator, Kelly Ross, via the contact information listed at the bottom of this page.

Senior Elective: Adult Urology Clerkship

Preceptors include Drs. Brannigan, Kielb, Gonzalez, Kozlowski, McVary, Nadler, Schaeffer and Smith. For more information, see faculty. Please note that although this clerkship is open to both Northwestern and visiting students, first priority is given to students at the Feinberg School of Medicine. 

Visiting students, please click here for more application information.The student will be made an integral part of the adult urology service, including both inpatient and outpatient activities, under the direction of the above physicians. He or she will be expected to take part in diagnostic and therapeutic endeavors under staff direction.

Attendance at teaching rounds is mandatory. Students will be given the opportunity to take advantage of variable teaching exercises of the Department of Urology that are being carried out during the clerkship. Under selected circumstances, the student will be permitted to assume an intern role. This clerkship is intended for students interested in family practice, internal medicine, neurology, obstetrics, gynecology, surgery, urology and those who are still undecided. Completion of a junior surgery clerkship is prerequisite.

• Duration: 4 weeks

• Credits: 1

• Five students per month maximum in summer months; two students per month maximum other months

• Summer months are limited to students studying at U.S. medical schools

• There are a maximum of ten slots (per academic year) available to students from outside the U.S.

Diversifying your service rotations at Northwestern allows you to develop a better understanding of the different services at Northwestern and their functions. During the 4 week urology senior elective, each senior student will spend 1 week on each of the academic urology services (red and green ), 1 week on the private practice service (blue), and 1 week at Jesse Brown Veterans' Administration Hospital. In addition to prepared reading, clinical experience and scheduled conferences, seniors will meet with Dr. McVary each Friday afternoon at 3:00 pm in Galter 20-194, the urology clinic conference room. The meetings will consist of weekly Socratic-style discussions and 5 minute case presentations given by each senior. Questions regarding the elective rotation and/or information included in the reading may also be addressed at that time. Your grade will be based on these small group discussions (40%) and your clinical evaluation(s) (60%).

Pediatric Urology Clerkship

Drs. Cheng, Chaviano, Kaplan, Maizels, Yerkes and Children's Memorial Hospital staff

The student electing a clerkship in pediatric urology takes part in all the activities of the service based at Children's Memorial Hospital. The student learns the principles of endoscopic and open surgery and is expected to evaluate patients in the clinic both upon and after admission and to participate in the patients' care in the operating room. Under the direction of the faculty, the student may participate in kidney preservation activities and in transplantation. The student attends the daily teaching ward rounds and the weekly surgical and medical/surgical conferences at Children's Memorial Hospital and Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Personal contact with members of the staff is emphasized. This clerkship is intended for students with interest in family practice, pediatrics, surgery or urology. Completion of a junior surgery clerkship is prerequisite.

• Site: Children's Memorial Hospital

• Duration: 2, 4 or 6 weeks

• Credits: 0.5, 1 and 1.5, respectively

• Two students per month maximum
  

Application Procedures

Applications for senior externships at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine are processed through the Office of Medical Education. You may contact Visiting Student Programs by email at visitingstudents@northwestern.edu, or by phone at (312) 503-1392 to request the necessary application materials. Urology externship applications will be reviewed on a first come, first served basis and will be closed once the available positions are filled, so you are encouraged to apply early if interested. Please note that in addition to the standard application materials, the Department of Urology requires that you also submit a current curriculum vitae with your application.

Once your application is processed through the Office of Medical Education, it will be sent to the Department of Urology. If your application is approved, you will be notified in a letter regarding the administrative details of your externship and sent a copy of the required reading materials.

Conference Schedule

Please note that the following schedule does not refer to the pediatric urology clerkship.  Students selecting the pediatric rotation will receive a detailed schedule upon acceptance.

Contact Information

Kelly Ross, Education Coordinator
(312) 503-3238
k-ross@northwestern.edu