Objectives

The Focused Clinical Multidisciplinary ISP (FCM-ISP) is a focused, multidisciplinary experience in a clinical setting that shares the major objectives of traditional Independent Study Projects (ISP). Similar to the traditional ISP, the FCM-ISP adds to the elective curriculum at the UCSD School of Medicine in the following ways:

 

• The FCM-ISP allows the student to exercise independence in a significant part of his or her education. The FCM-ISP fosters the active, self-directed thought and problem solving ability necessary for the practice of modern medicine, thus complementing the core and elective courses.
• The FCM-ISP emphasizes both process and outcome. Medical education is a lifelong process; the FCM-ISP provides opportunities for the development of self-directed learning habits that will benefit the student in his or her career as a physician.
• The FCM-ISP provides the opportunity to design a course of study that will allow the students to pursue their own interests in a clinically oriented project that satisfies the same basic educational goals of a traditional ISP. Unlike a traditional ISP, this will not be a hypothesis driven project or experiment. Similar to the traditional ISP, it provides an experience not available in the core curriculum.
• Requiring the use of methods, resources, and/or experiences found in two or more medical disciplines, the FCM-ISP provides the student with an opportunity to approach a specific topic in depth, in contrast to the core curriculum, which emphasizes learning in breadth.
• Because the FCM-ISP is a period of concentrated study, it requires the student to develop rapport and/or close relationships with faculty members. The FCM-ISP provides the opportunity for a student to work closely with the three faculty members he/she chooses to serve on the ISP Committee.