Rotations

Fieldwork experience is integral to the overall graduate training in genetic counseling. Students in the Graduate Program in Genetic Medicine become involved in fieldwork early in their training so that they gain as much experience as possible during the program. We pride ourselves on the breadth and diversity of our fieldwork rotation sites, in terms of clinical and non-clinical specialties and patient population. For those who wish to develop fluency in medical Spanish, emphasis can be placed on clinical rotations where Spanish is the predominant language.

Over the summer, students have the opportunity to complete full-time fieldwork rotations in or outside of the Chicagoland area, and several students even have had summer fieldwork rotations abroad. In the past, some students have completed fieldwork rotations in Switzerland, London, and Singapore.

The first quarter of the program focuses on preparing students for fieldwork rotations through classes, observation of journal club androleplaying. Beginning in the second quarter, students participate in a 5-week observation period, which then leads into five 5-week long fieldwork rotations during the academic year, and two 6-week long fieldwork rotations over the summer. Fieldwork rotations can beat hospitals and other sites in the Chicagoland area. All students will have one to two rotations in each of the following areas: cancer, prenatal, and pediatrics.

In addition to the fieldwork rotations, each student will have the opportunity to participate in one or more specialty genetics sites. Some examples are cardiology, neurology, psychiatry, public health, advocacy, and others.