Tutoring
The Office of Medical Education (OME), in collaboration with preclinical course directors, sponsors a supplemental, peer tutorial program primarily for the benefit of medical students experiencing academic difficulty in their coursework. Other students may participate under special circumstances, such as illness or death in the family.
The program's main goals are:
- To enhance student learning
- To facilitate student adaptation to challenging coursework
- To promote retention-to-graduation
The program is free. The amount of tutoring provided is based upon individual differences and may vary from short-term assistance in one subject to long-term assistance across numerous subjects. The tutors are advanced medical students with an interest in helping fellow students, who have also demonstrated a high level of competency in the course(s) to be tutored.
Tutoring Options
Tutoring is provided in two forms:
- Large-group reviews
- Formal, small-group sessions
Large-group reviews are open to the class-at-large and provided on a limited, strategic basis. Invitations are sent via email to notify students of upcoming group reviews.
Small-group tutorials are open only to students at risk who have been invited to attend. Typically, formal small-group tutorials begin immediately following the posting of grades from the first exam in most basic science courses. In some circumstances, for example, when a student is required to repeat a school year, tutoring may commence as soon as a course begins.
While participation is voluntary, students are expected to:
- Assume responsibility for making contact with their assigned tutor(s)
- Not use tutoring as substitute for class attendance
- Not use tutoring as substitute for consulting with course faculty