The Offices of Medical Student Education (OMSE) seeks a Director of the Application Phase. The Application Phase is the core clinical experience for third year medical students. The Phase Director will oversee the educational objectives of the phase. This position reports to the Assistant Dean of Clinical Curriculum on behalf of the Associate Dean for Curriculum and Senior Associate Dean for Medical Student Education.
Phase leaders are expected to create an educational environment that is respectful of all identities and effective for medical student learning. Individuals must demonstrate a commitment to professional service, adherence to ethical principles, and sensitivity to patients and students.
OMSE support for these roles is at will. Support will be reassessed annually but can be withdrawn at any time without cause or if expectations are not met.
Responsibility of the phase leaders resides within the following domains of the curriculum: curricular oversight and management, horizontal integration between courses within your phase, vertical integration across phases, continuous quality improvement including LCME preparation, and course evaluation.
Curriculum oversight and management (including horizontal and vertical integration within phase courses):
- Assure that curricular content, instructional methods, and assessment strategies in the respective phase and across the curriculum meet the SOM educational program objectives (competencies).
- Ensure Phase Leader representation at each course review of the respective phase
- Assure that SOM educational policies are reviewed, updated, and enforced within the phase e.g. formative feedback, narrative assessment, grade timeliness, supervision, duty hours, absences, etc.
- Chair specific Phase Committee meetings and work with coordinators to create agendas for those meetings and ensure materials necessary for those meetings are distributed in advance for participant review.
- Attend and serve as a VOTING member on the Education Committee
- Oversee professional development for faculty
- Participate in Campus Leadership retreats
- Accreditation: Actively participate in ensuring we remain well prepared for the next LCME accreditation visit including application, reviews, etc.
- Monitor and respond to emerging trends in medical education (e.g., interprofessional education, AI, digital health) and integrate as appropriate within the phase.
- Collaborate with instructional design and technology teams to enhance the delivery of the curriculum through innovative tools.
- Ensure alignment with Competency-Based Assessment where applicable.
- Oversee remediation strategies for struggling students in coordination with Student Affairs and course directors.
Faculty Leadership & Development
- Mentor new course/clerkship directors or coordinators to maintain continuity and quality.
- Review faculty teaching evaluations and assist in faculty development plans, especially for those with lower scores.
Course Evaluation:
- Ensure Phase Leader representation at each course review of the respective phase
- Review course evaluations independently, meet with course leadership to review evaluations in advance of phase committee meetings, and help craft specific concrete changes that will be made in subsequent years based on course reviews, course evaluations, and student performance.
- Lead course review discussions at Phase Committee and Education Committee meetings.
- Lead discussions around review end of semester/phase evaluations with specific phase committees and Education Committee.
Vertical and Horizontal Integration:
- Attend monthly phase leadership meetings with curricular deans focusing on policies, procedures, and curricular changes.
- Meet at least biannually with all phase leaders (separate from above meetings) to specifically discuss ways to improve a hand off between phases and design and implement specific methods to improve the handoffs.
- Participate in TAP and TIP course teaching.
- Work with course and coil directors to integrate 5 societal issues into all three phases of SOM curriculum
- Competency Based Education and Assessment (CBAE): Work with the Senior Director of Curricular Affairs and the CBAE Task force to develop and help implement competency-based education and assessment across the phases and across campuses.
Responsibilities specific to Application Phase
- Assess clinical capacity needs across courses and develop plans to meet that capacity.
- Responsible for planning and running Transition to Application Phase with the Assistant Director of Curricular Affairs for Application Phase including the ongoing development and implementation of the Conclusion of Application Phase (CAP) course.
- Review shelf exam and OSCE performance with course leaders and work together to identify areas for improvement to address areas of underperformance.
- Collaborate with Student Affairs college advisors to assure we have a smooth process to ensure all our students are creating schedules in a timely manner and that allow them to meet their graduation requirements.
- Work with Curricular Deans, Senior Director for Curricular Affairs, course directors, and campus directors to recruit and retain sufficient clinical sites for all clinical courses to achieve the educational objectives of the phases
- Visit each campus a minimum of every 4 years (on a rotating basis) or more often as asked or needed. These visits will be coordinated with curricular deans.
Candidates may come from any department. Preference will be given to those who have experience with content related to Application Phase or have taught in substantial ways in one of the phases (Foundation, Application Phase or Individualization Phase). The Director will receive 20% salary support up to the UNC Educational salary cap on an annual basis.
Nominations and applications (including a CV and letter of interest.) will be accepted by Catherine Coe, Assistant Dean for Clinical Curriculum (Catherine_Coe@med.unc.edu) until October 17, 2025. By submitting an application, candidates agree to a review of relevant teaching evaluations and review of good standing in primary department
Statements of support from division chief/chairs will be solicited from select candidates after an initial review.