Orthopedic Surgery Senior Medical Student Elective

NYU Langone’s Department of Orthopedic Surgery offers senior medical students an elective course designed to provide a thorough and extensive exposure to academic orthopedic surgery to adequately prepare them for residency training. Eligible students must complete their core medicine and surgery clerkships before taking this fourth-year elective.

The course consists of a four-week rotation on one of the specialty teams within our department. Rotating students gain exposure to operating room procedures, diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal pathology in the emergency room setting, and the evaluation and care of both orthopedic surgery inpatients and outpatients. Rotating students participate in all of the educational and didactic programs of the department. Each rotating student is paired with a faculty preceptor during their month-long educational experience.

Elective Objectives

The course is geared toward medical students interested in pursuing residency training and a career in orthopedic surgery. Our elective rotation has four main objectives:

to provide students with an in-depth understanding of the various types of injuries and conditions treated by orthopedic surgeons both operatively and nonoperatively
to teach students the principles behind the evaluation and treatment of patients with musculoskeletal pathology
to give students exposure and experience in the operating room, working on developing basic surgical skills
to teach students how to access and critically evaluate the orthopedic surgery literature through participation in journal clubs and a formal end-of-rotation presentation on a topic of their choice

Clinical Training

Students are assigned to a specific orthopedic team at NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital and to one of the following divisions:

Rotating medical students become vital members of their team, participating in rounds and providing clinical care in the emergency department, outpatient clinic, and operating rooms. During the rotation, you are required to spend one night a week plus one weekend day on call in the emergency department at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue, where you assist the orthopedic residents in the evaluation and management of acute orthopedic injuries.

Didactic Program

Each student is assigned a preceptor who is a full-time faculty member within the Department of Orthopedic Surgery. You meet with your preceptor weekly throughout the rotation. Rotating medical students are active participants in the department’s didactic program, including our weekly Wednesday morning academic conference and division-specific lectures, conferences, and journal clubs.

You are expected to be prepared for conferences and ready to answer questions tailored to your training level and knowledge base. Additionally, during the four-week rotation, you participate in resident-led education and skill development sessions including a splinting and casting workshop, sawbones fracture fixation module, and lessons on interpreting musculoskeletal imaging.

As a requirement of the senior medical student elective, each rotating student develops and presents a didactic talk on a topic of interest at the end of the rotation.

Method of Evaluation

Rotating students are evaluated by the chief resident assigned to their service and also by their faculty preceptor. The evaluation is based on performance during the rotation, including level of knowledge demonstrated during conference and in the operating room, the ability to work as part of the clinical care team, and quality of interactions with patients and peers. In addition, at the conclusion of the rotations, participating students are required to submit an evaluation of the experience.

Elective Schedule

The four-week elective is offered from June 1 to November 30. Please refer to the academic calendars and elective block dates for more information. There are 18 rotating student slots per rotation. In the case of overflow, we make every effort to accommodate all qualified students. This may mean a comparable service at one of our other clinical sites.

How to Apply

We will begin accepting applications for the 2024–25 academic year on April 1, 2024.

Acceptance to an in-person visiting elective is provisional pending our institution's final decision on receiving outside students for such rotations.

Learn more about information for visiting MD students, including the application process and how to access the rotation application. The course code for the Introduction to Orthopedic Surgery elective is 09-01.

If you have questions, please contact Randie Godette, MS, senior residency program coordinator, at 212-598-6509 or randie.godette@nyulangone.org.

Diversity Funding Opportunities

The Department of Orthopedic Surgery is committed to increasing diversity in our field and encourages women and members of underrepresented minority groups to rotate for one month in our department before applying to our residency training program. Through the generosity of J. Serge and May Parisien, we offer scholarships to defray the cost of travel and lodging during your time in New York City. An independent committee selects award recipients based on merit, scholarship, and need.

The deadline to submit your application is June 1, 2023.

Orthopedic Surgery Senior Medical Student Elective | NYU Langone Health