Medical Student Clerkship Application
Clerkship opportunities are offered all-year round, with the heaviest months of rotation being June through November. All clerkships process through the CC Medical Student Education Office.
For more information regarding requirements, etc., please visit the elective program site.
Once accepted for an orthopaedic clerkship, specific questions pertaining to your rotation can be directed to Christine Orlinski, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Education Coordinator via email (orlinsc@ccf.org) or phone (216.445.7570).
Medical Student Clerkship Experience
Once accepted into an orthopaedic clerkship spot, students will spend one week each on four busy orthopaedic sub-specialty services at Cleveland Clinic. Students will be placed on services with residents and/or staff on the selection committee. Most popularly, students will have opportunity to rotate on the Adult Reconstruction, Pediatrics and Shoulder services. Students typically take Q4 to Q5 call and will spend time on call with different residents to broaden exposure. Students are invited to participate in all didactic, cadaver, and journal club sessions.
For those students rotating from a distant location, Cleveland Clinic offers housing in the TT-building, in a dormitory style setting, for a fee. Personal transportation is beneficial as it will provide students the freedom to easily rotate to various satellite locations, however, this is not a requirement as rides can be arranged with various service residents for those that do not have personal transportation.
At the end of the rotation (usually week 4), each student will be asked to give a brief (10 min.) case presentation regarding an interesting case that was seen on call, in clinic or in the OR. This is fairly informal, though does require an oral presentation with PowerPoint. Residents are happy to help with educational guidance concerning presentation content and format.
During each month, the program typically puts together an evening outing so that the rotators have an opportunity to spend time with the residents outside the hospital. This is informal and a good way to get a feel of the program “DNA” outside the context of work.
An elective clerkship within the department is the best way for an applicant to understand the unique aspects of the training characteristic of Cleveland Clinic. Each rotator, however, will be considered for interview invitation on an individual basis. A 4-week clerkship within the department does not guarantee a future interview invitation.
