Medical education in the United States

Medical education in the United States includes educational activities involved in the education and training of physicians (D.O. or M.D.) in the United States, from entry-level training through to continuing education of qualified specialists.

A typical outline of the medical education pathway is presented below; however, medicine is a diverse profession with many options available. For example, some physicians work in pharmaceutical research, occupational medicine (within a company), public health medicine (working for the general health of a population in an area), or join the armed forces.

In the United States a medical school is an institution with the purpose of educating physicians in the United States in the field of medicine. Admission into medical school may not technically require completion of a previous degree; however, applicants are usually required to complete at least 3 years of "pre-med" courses at the university level because in the US medical degrees are classified as Second entry degrees. Once enrolled in a medical school the four years progressive study is divided into two roughly equal components: pre-clinical (consisting of didactic courses in the basic sciences) and clinical (clerkships consisting of rotations through different wards of a teaching hospital). The degree granted at the conclusion of the next four years of study is Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) or, less commonly, Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) depending on the medical school; both degrees allow the holder to practice medicine after completing an accredited residency program.

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