MD Technical Standards
The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health has established technical standards for admission to, continued enrollment, in and graduation from the MD program.
Conferral of a medical degree certifies that the recipient has demonstrated all the requisite abilities and skills to become a practicing physician. This demonstration encompasses a variety of attributes critical to the provision of quality medical care, including the physical, cognitive, and emotional strengths necessary to complete the rigorous requirements of the medical school curriculum, as well as the social and behavioral skills expected of a competent health care provider.
Technical Standards and Disclosure of Disabilities During the Admission Process
Admission to the UW MD program is based primarily on each applicant’s previous academic and personal experience, as well as that student’s attestation that they are capable of meeting technical standards. Admission also reflects the judgment of the Admissions Committee that the admitted applicant possesses the required attributes to become a practicing physician.
The UW School of Medicine and Public Health is committed to disability inclusion and welcomes qualified applicants with disabilities. The MD Program is in full compliance with state and federal regulations, including the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended. Applicants who anticipate they will need reasonable accommodations in order to meet the technical standards are encouraged to contact the McBurney Disability Resource Center or the Technical Standards Director to discuss their accommodations needs.
Technical Standards and Disclosure of Disabilities for Enrolled Students
Annually, enrolled students in the School of Medicine and Public Health are required to attest that they meet the technical standards either with, or without, reasonable accommodations.
Technical Standards for Admission and Graduation
The practice of medicine requires a broad combination of cognitive, emotional, physical, interpersonal, and technical skills and attributes in order to provide highly effective patient care. To perform satisfactorily in School of Medicine and Public Health courses, and to serve as practicing physicians after graduation, all students who enroll must meet minimum standards that the school has identified.
These standards must be met throughout medical school in order for students to make satisfactory progress and graduate.
Observational Skills
The functional ability to observe in the lecture hall and virtual settings, required demonstrations and experiments, anatomic dissection, microscopic studies, instructional and clinical laboratories, standardized patient demonstrations, the clinic and the patient’s bedside is required. Observational skills in the healthcare field necessitate the functional ability to detect, determine, convey, and exchange information, both in person and in virtual settings.
Communication Skills
Candidates for admission must show evidence of effective communication skills. Students must be able to communicate effectively, sensitively and efficiently with patients, their families and all members of the health care team in a way that promotes and facilitates appropriate and timely patient care.
Motor Function
Students must have sufficient motor function to carry out basic laboratory techniques; elicit information from patients by diagnostic and therapeutic maneuvers; and to participate in dissection of a human cadaver. During clinical activities, students must be able to perform a complete physical examination, to perform diagnostic and laboratory procedures, and to provide general care and emergency treatment to patients.
Such actions require some coordination of gross and fine motor skills as well as equilibrium.
Intellectual, Conceptual, Integrative, and Quantitative Abilities
Candidates must be able to measure, calculate, organize, retrieve, sequence, reason, analyze, and synthesize. Students must have the ability to synthesize data obtained in a clinical setting, perform clinical reasoning, and solve problems efficiently and effectively. Problem solving and clinical reasoning, the critical skills demanded of physicians, require all of these intellectual abilities. In order to complete the requirements for the MD degree, students must be able to demonstrate mastery of these skills and the ability to use them together in a timely fashion in medical problem solving and patient care.
Behavioral and Social Attributes
Candidates and students must possess the emotional health required to fully utilize all intellectual abilities, such as exercising good judgment, completing responsibilities promptly, and developing mature, sensitive, and effective relationships with patients and their family members, staff and colleagues. Students must be able to function effectively under stress, adapt to changing environments, display flexibility and adjust to the uncertainties inherent in inpatient care. All students must be able to work effectively as a member of a health care team. Additional attributes required for medical practitioners include compassion, integrity, effective interpersonal skills and motivation, ethical behavior and professional conduct.
Accommodation Request Process and Implementation
Applicants who require reasonable accommodations to meet the technical standards should complete the McBurney Connect Online Student Application, noting on the form that they are prospective medical students. Because accommodations can take time to implement, applicants are encouraged to disclose early, as accommodations are not retroactive.
When a request for accommodation is received, the McBurney Disability Resource Center reviews the request and the supporting documentation and, in consultation with the Technical Standards and Access to Accommodations Committee in the School of Medicine and Public Health, determines whether reasonable accommodations can be provided. It is within the scope of the Technical Standards and Access to Accommodations Committee to involve individuals who are knowledgeable and/or professional in reviewing, analyzing and assessing the implementation of the requested accommodations.
Upon completion of the interactive process, UW School of Medicine and Public Health will evaluate each applicant on a case-by-case basis. Admission to the UW MD program is conditional upon whether the applicant can meet the technical standards, with reasonable accommodations if necessary. Accommodations are not considered reasonable if they would result in a fundamental alteration to the technical standards or would compromise patient care or the safety of the prospective and/or currently enrolled students.
Interactive Education
Successful entry to medical school is accomplished through an interactive process between the individual student and UW staff, faculty and Student Services. This interactive process provides the opportunity for a student to achieve a medical degree with reasonable accommodations, when appropriate.