This exploration of the field of medicine will encourage deep learning and practical application of the technical and personal skills necessary to succeed as a medical professional. Action-based simulations led by experts will expose students to the daily work life of a medical professional, including suturing, dissection, trauma response, and clinical diagnostic simulations, case studies, and lively class discussions. Features will include visits to simulation labs, medical research institutes, and panelists in various stages of healthcare careers. This interactive approach to learning encourages teamwork, teaches leadership, and targets higher-order learning that students can apply to a future career in medicine and beyond.
Who should take this course?
This course is suitable for students who want to discover if a career in medicine is right for them or develop a better understanding of the different paths that can lead them to medical school.
Program Highlights
Take your education beyond the classroom! Through these immersive experiences, students will learn the essential discipline-specific knowledge and develop the technical skills necessary to become future leaders in the medical field.
Experiential learning activities include:
You’ll learn from an incredible instructional team of medical professionals and students who are involved closely in classroom instruction throughout the program. You'll also engage directly with practicing professionals through exclusive guest speaker career panels, designed to give students exposure to different directions they can take on their educational and professional path to a career in medicine.
These guest speaker and career exploration experiences will show students how to develop the flexibility and determination required to succeed in medicine:
Apply NowWe believe that the next generation of doctors needs to hone their durable skills including critical thinking, leadership, and adaptability to meet the challenges of the medical field in the 21st century.
The innovative Career Accelerator curriculum is centered on hands-on, project-based learning that enhances the development of 21st century durable skills such as:
Samuel Merritt Joint Medical Program
Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland
Medical simulation lab
Our Career Accelerators are taught by world-class instructors. Check-out our Medicine & Health Sciences instructor at UC Berkeley!
Dr. Amin Azzam completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Rochester, medical school at the Medical College of Virginia, and psychiatry residency at the University of California, San Francisco Department of Psychiatry. He then enrolled in a two-year research fellowship in psychiatric genetics, before discovering that his true passion was in medical education. Deciding that 27 years of formal education just wasn’t enough, he went back to school for a masters’ degree in education, at the University of California, Berkeley, focusing on quantitative methods and evaluation. He has dedicated his career to innovations in health professional schools, including Problem Based Learning (PBL), Simulation Based Learning (SBL), and Open Educational Pedagogy (OEP). He remains clinically active—running long-term psychotherapy groups for patients with chronic illnesses.