Application overview: Please Read

Currently the UNC School of Medicine accepts a limited number international students per year. Our electives are four weeks in length and visiting students are allowed to participate in one or more electives, if they perform satisfactorily in their initial elective. To participate in electives at UNC School of Medicine, you must have a passing score on the USMLE Step 1 examination or Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (a passing score on the German 'Physikum' exam is also acceptable).  An evaluation from a clinical elective at another US institution may be accepted as a substitute for a USMLE score in some instances.  Official TOEFL scores are required for all students from medical schools where English is not the language of instruction. Minimum acceptable TOEFL scores are 590 for the Paper-based Test and 100 for the Internet-based Test. TOEFL scores may also be required for any applicant.  You must also adhere to all the requirements listed on the following page. We charge a $2000 per elective fee in addition to the non-refundable $100 application fee.

You must be in your final year of medical school upon arrival at UNC for your elective if you are accepted. You must be in good standing at your home institution and have completed an criminal background check and/or have no criminal violations.  Since UNC students have priority for registration, it is not possible to guarantee that you will be able to take the particular elective for which you apply; however, we are usually able to place visiting students in one of their choices.  Please note that some departments (like ANES) are completely full with our own UNC students for certain months, but you can always ask us about availability before applying. No electives are available for the July period.  You are expected to attend the elective every day unless you have received authorization from the course director to be absent. Failure to comply may result in immediate termination of your participation in the elective.

The grade for student performance in an elective will be given as “Fail,” “Pass,” “High Pass” and “Honors” on an evaluation form, which may also contain comments.  You will receive the same evaluation form as our UNC medical students, and this is the only evaluation that you will receive in our program.

If you intend to apply for an elective in the department of Dermatology (DERM 401, 402) email Cherie Ezuka at Cherie_Ezuka@med.unc.edu for pre-approval before submitting your application materials to our office.
If you intend to apply for pediatric (PEDS) electives, you must have received high marks in your core rotations in pediatrics and internal medicine, and these grades must appear on your transcript or a letter from your school must provide this information.
If you intend to apply for family medicine (FMME) electives, please note that FMME 417 is only available for blocks 7-12.

***Please note that UNC charges a $2000 per elective fee in addition to the non-refundable $100 application fee. You do not need to pay the elective fee unless you are accepted for electives at UNC. All checks must be valid for deposit in a U.S. bank and include bar encoding on the lower portion of the check. Checks must be made payable to the ‘UNC School of Medicine.’

This fee does not include housing. Each student is responsible for arranging his or her housing, though we send a list of potential housing contacts to all students accepted into our program.

If your application is approved by the Admissions Committee, we will then work on confirming your specific elective course from the list of your preference. ***Please note that the electives you list on your application are for scheduling purposes only and are not used to determine admission.  If you are accepted and your preferred electives are unavailable, we will contact you for additional preferences.  When your elective is confirmed you will receive a Course Confirmation notice that lists your elective course title and course dates.  If you cannot attend a scheduled elective, please notify the Office of International Activities (international@med.unc.edu) immediately.  If you fail to notify the Office of International Activities of your cancellation at least 8 weeks prior to the start of your elective, UNC will withdraw you from any future scheduled electives and your school will be notified.

Rotations are available for all times of the year except the month of July, which is Elective Period 1. Applications are accepted year-round, and most students apply 3-6 months in advance.  You may apply at any time and students are usually notified of admission or rejection within 3-4 weeks.  However, we cannot begin confirming specific elective course until early June (for Periods 2-6) and early October (for Periods 7-12).  We confirm specific electives in the order of accepted applications.

2012-2013 Academic Year Elective Calendar
Period 2   (July 30 - August 24)
Period 3   (August 27 - September 21)
Period 4   (September 24 - October 19)
Period 5   (October 22 - November 16)
Period 6   (November 19 - December 14)
Period 7   (January 2 - January 25)
Period 8   (January 28 - February 22)
Period 9   (February 25 - March 22)
Period 10 (March 25 - April 19)
Period 11 (April 29 - May 24) *dates may be flexible
Period 12 (May 27 - June 21) *dates may be flexible

2013-2014 Academic Year Elective Calendar
Period 2   (July 29 - August 23)
Period 3   (August 26 - September 20)
Period 4   (September 23 - October 18)
Period 5   (October 21 - November 15)
Period 6   (November 18 - December 13)
Period 7   (January 36 - January 31)
Period 8   (February 3 - February 28)
Period 9   (March 3 - March 28)
Period 10 (March 31 - April 25)
Period 11 (April 29 - May 24) *dates may be flexible
Period 12 (May 28 - June 21) *dates may be flexible

Course descriptions are listed at http://clipper.med.unc.edu/electivesbook.

If you have any questions, contact international@med.unc.edu.  You can also reach our office by phone 919-962-6195 and on Skype (unc_med_international)

Application

If you have read and understood the information above, please proceed to the online international visiting students application.  After completing the initial application form, please log back in to upload the required documents in electronic format.