Medical Students

The Acute Care Surgery and Surgical Critical Care (ACS) division has a strong commitment to education. As part of their surgical clerkship, 12 to 14 third-year Keck School medical students rotate through the four ACS teams (A, B, C and D) each month. In addition, several fourth-year medical students rotate monthly, as part of their elective rotation schedule. These positions are highly sought-after and fill early in the academic year.

The volume of patients, wide range of pathology and abundance of educational opportunities make the trauma rotation one of the most highly requested elective rotations. The educational curriculum includes bedside tutorials, teaching rounds, lectures, hands-on workshops and problem-based learning sessions.

Each faculty member of the ACS division is actively involved in teaching medical students. According to medical student evaluations, the Department of Surgery ranks No. 1 for teaching excellence among the six departments offering core clerkships, and the ACS division ranks No. 1 among the nine divisions of surgery. There is a strong interest in educational research, and several ACS faculty members mentor students and residents with research projects.