Registration & Records
The UW SOM Registration and Records team is here to help you schedule your courses and keep you on track to meet your degree requirements.
Please see below for information on specific topics.
Have questions? Ask us! somreg@uw.edu
Coming soon!
NEW! ELECTIVE SCHEDULING DURING THE PATIENT CARE PHASE
Almost all students in the Patient Care Phase will have a period of six weeks in which they will not have a required clerkship scheduled. This timeframe is for your personal use. You may take the time off for personal activities, family time, or wellness, or you may decide to engage in research, community service, and/or career exploration. Although not required, you may decide that you’d like to take an elective. Elective courses can contribute towards elective course requirements for graduation.
Elective course scheduling begins on Friday 2/3/2023 at 9 AM PST.
You will receive an email with the subject line “ELECTIVE SCHEDULING HAS BEGUN” from SOM Registration (somreg@uw.edu) at the time listed above. Inside will be a link to the Clinical Schedule Change Request Form. You must use this form to add or drop an elective from your schedule.
You are not required to take an elective during the Patient Care Phase of your curriculum. Enrolling in an elective during PCP is optional. Elective courses can contribute towards elective course requirements for graduation.
Interested in an elective? Click HERE for important details.
NEW! SWAP/TRADE
Make changes to your EVOS-generated schedule through a process called Swap/Trade.
Swap/Trade requests for Patient Care courses will be accepted by SOM Registration beginning on Monday 1/30/2023 at 9 AM PST.
You will receive an email with the subject line “SWAP/TRADE REQUESTS NOW BEING ACCEPTED” from SOM Registration (somreg@uw.edu) at the time listed above. Inside will be a link to the PCP Swap/Trade Request Form. You must use that form to request any Patient Care schedule changes.
Note: Spring clerkships at Madigan or the VA cannot be swapped/traded due to their credentialing timelines.
Swap/Trade requests for Patient Care courses will close at 5PM PST on Wednesday, February 8, 2023.
Important details about Swap/Trade are here.
Goals and Process
The six required Patient Care clerkships are scheduled via an automated system which uses student preferences and course availability to create the best possible schedules both for you individually and for your class overall.
Our goals are (1) to create complete schedules that result in unimpeded progress toward students’ MD degrees, and (2) to do so using an equitable process that takes student preferences into account.
To meet these goals we use an automated program called EVOS – eValue Optimization Scheduling. EVOS considers all student preferences simultaneously to produce schedules.
The Outcome: Your Schedule
Your schedule will look very different from your Foundations schedule.
- Order: Foundations courses are taught in the same order for everyone, but there’s no set order for Patient Care. The order of your schedule will be different from the order of many of your classmates.
- Location: Unlike having a single Foundations site, you’ll get to travel, learn, and help patients across the WWAMI region. More info about traveling in the Patient Care phase is here.
The Good News + An Important Caveat
Good news: You’ll end up with a Patient Care schedule that gives you unimpeded progress toward your degree.
The Caveat: It’s not possible for you and every one of your classmates to get everything you want at the time and location and in the order you want it. Your classmates also have preferences and sites don’t have unlimited availability, and your schedule is impacted by both. You may get more of your preferences than other students or you may get fewer – it all depends on what you entered, the priority you gave it, and what everybody else entered and prioritized. Rest assured, though, that the scheduling algorithm considers all of this simultaneously and equitably.
The bottom line: Your schedule will be the best result possible based on your preferences, the preferences of your classmates, and availability limits.
Patient Care Scheduling Timeline
When do students make preferences? When do you get a schedule? Find the timeline for 2022-23 here.
All About EVOS
What is EVOS? How does it work? What should you expect out of this process? Answers to these (and more) are here.
Preparing to use EVOS
Most of your work with EVOS will actually be done before you even log in, so follow these Steps to Prepare.
Strategies for Preferencing
We’ve been told over and over (and over) by both the eValue team (they run the EVOS process) and other schools who use it is that the best thing you can do when you enter your preferences is to enter what is important to you. Period.
A preference, including a top preference, is not a guarantee that you will be assigned that preference. A preference is an input into the optimizer and is used to create the best possible schedule for you and your classmates. Other inputs considered by the optimizer include your classmates’ preferences (considered equally and simultaneously with yours) and site availability/enrollment maximums. Because you can’t predict what other students will preference it is almost impossible to strategize beyond entering what is important to you.
There are some things you can do to increase the chances you’ll get some of your preferences, but we wouldn’t call them strategies. Here are a few suggestions.
How do I use EVOS?
Are there instructions on how to use EVOS? Yes? Can I change my preferences? Absolutely…up to a point.
Click for the EVOS User Guide.
FAQs
Answers to all sorts of questions will be posted here, so keep checking (and keep sending us questions!)
NEW! OPEN SCHEDULING
When E&F scheduling appointments with SOM Registration end, you can still adjust your E&F schedule by adding or dropping courses. This process is called Open Scheduling.
Find out how Open Scheduling works here.
E&F Scheduling Appointments and Timeline
E&F scheduling is done via a series of four Zoom appointments with our team. Find the 2022-23 specifics here.
Preparing for your appointments
Appointments are short so preparation is key. Follow these Steps to Prepare.
Important: To schedule permission-only clerkships, you must have permission from the departmental clerkship administrator prior to your appointment. Forward emails granting permission to somreg@uw.edu.
A must read: Permission-only courses
More to read: Thinking of a residency in Emergency Medicine? Important scheduling requirements are here.
What happens during my appointment?
During an appointment you’ll talk via Zoom with a Registration Specialist who will schedule you for a portion of your E&F courses.
Important details for each appointment are here.
Terms to know
What’s an APC? Sub-i? Why should I care about credits? Speak the scheduling language and know what these terms mean.
Guardrails (AKA Other Really, Really Important Requirements to Graduate)
In addition to your course requirements there are also other very (very) important requirements surrounding your courses. You need to know these to make your schedule one that meets all of your graduation requirements.
Scheduling Policies
Clinical Elective Clerkships Add/Drop Policies (see last paragraph)
FAQs
How much time should you take off to study for Step 2 CK? What about time off for residency interviews? How did we determine your appointment times? What if you need to reschedule an E&F appointment?
Find answers to all this and much more here.
Resources & Links
Find what you need fast. Coming soon!
What is an away rotation? Who can take these?
Away rotations — also called away electives, aways, or visiting electives — are short-term courses typically offered at teaching hospitals that are either an AAMC-member institution or have at least one Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) or American Osteopathic Association (AOA)-accredited program.
Students who have completed their required Patient Care clerkships may take away rotations.
Should I take an away rotation?
This decision is based on a variety of factors, including your desired specialty, your level of certainty about that specialty, personal factors, etc. Your Specialty Career Advisor can help you determine the best answer for your situation, while your UWSOM Career Advisor can answer general questions about Away rotations. For more information about Aways in the context of specialty exploration and residency application, visit the UWSOM Career Advising Away page.
Am I required to take an away elective?
No. Away electives are not required to graduate.
Can away rotations count toward graduation requirements?
Yes! Away rotations may count for up to four weeks of elective credit toward graduation requirements.
How do I find and apply for an away rotation?
Use the AAMC’s Visiting Student Learning Opportunities (VSLO) Program
Many – perhaps most – US medical schools, teaching hospitals, and health systems use a centralized application service called the Visiting Student Learning Opportunities Program (VSLO) Visiting Student Learning Opportunities Program (VSLO).
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- Find participating institutions – also called host institutions – here.
- Away electives being offered by participating institutions are listed here.
- A student guide to VSLO along with a link to training videos can be found here, and FAQs may be found You can also sign into VSLO from either page.
- For VSLO assistance: call (202) 478-9878 or contact them online.
Apply Directly to Non-VSLO Programs
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- If a medical school, teaching hospital, or health system does not use VSLO, go to the institution’s website to research visiting elective opportunities and to find application instructions.
- You may also find the Extramural Electives Compendium (EEC) helpful for locating non-VSLO programs.
How Do I Get Credit for an Away Elective?
THIS IS IMPORTANT:
Your acceptance of a visiting elective does not automatically add it to your schedule or enroll you in it for credit at UW SOM. You are responsible for making sure any away elective (VSLO, non-VSLO, military, international) gets added to your schedule.
We do not permit retroactive scheduling. If you forget to begin or complete the entire process outlined below prior to the start of the visiting elective you will not receive credit for it.
THE DETAILS OF HOW TO RECEIVE CREDIT FOR AN AWAY ROTATION ARE HERE. Read and follow directions carefully.
A summary of steps is here.
Visiting Institution Requirements
Host institutions vary in their requirements for visiting students. You may be asked for some, all, or one of the following:
| REQUIREMENT | HOW TO MEET REQUIREMENT |
|---|---|
| Compliance Requirements: Background Check Basic Life Support (BLS) Drug Testing HIPAA Training Mask Fit OSHA Training | Some institutions request compliance documents be uploaded directly by UWSOM. We get these requests directly and will upload on your behalf. Some institutions request that you upload your own compliance documents. If so, go to your E*Value Personal Record to locate these documents and upload. Questions? somcompl@uw.edu |
| Curriculum Vitae (CV) | Review the Career Advising CV resources and make updates using the template provided. Touch base with Career Advisors at a CV Group Review Session. Sign up here. |
| Immunizations | If you need to upload your immunization record: Follow the instructions here. See the FAQ section under "Immunization Records are required for my clinical site/employer/provider. How do I obtain a copy?" Communicate with the Health Sciences Immunization Program (HSIP) at myshots@uw.edu if you need to update any records in your CastleBranch accounts. If you need us to sign a form: Fill out your names/clerkship info on the form, then email the PDF to somcompl@uw.edu. SOM Compliance will verify by accessing your CastleBranch account, sign the form, and return the form to you. |
| Letter of Good Standing (LOGS) | For LOGS requests from a VSLO institution: for SOM to upload: We are usually automatically notified of the need for this in VSLO and will upload as requested. For LOGS you upload -or- LOGS for nonVSLO programs: Email somreg@uw.edu with the addressee name, title, physical address, and email. |
| Letter of Recommendation (LOR) | Complete a Request for Letter of Recommendation and send it to your letter writer. We will upload once we receive the LOR from your writer. |
| Personal Health Insurance | Since UWSOM does not require personal health insurance, you will need to provide that proof if requested by a host institution. |
| Personal Statement/Statement of Interest | Review Career Advising's personal statement resources for assistance. |
| Transcript Note: Want us to upload an updated transcript? Follow the same steps. | Order an electronic official transcript. Once logged in to Parchment (the service that provides UW transcripts), set the Delivery Destination as follows: 1. Click "I'm sending to myself or another individual" 2. Select the icon for "Electronic: Delivered by Email" 3. Enter recipient information as follows: >>>> UWSOM >>>> somreg@uw.edu >>>> somreg@uw.edu 4. Click continue. SOM Registration will upload your transcript once we receive it. IMPORTANT: Do not order a printed and mailed transcript as these cannot be legibly uploaded. Tip: Check your unofficial transcript unofficial transcript FIRST to ensure it is accurate and up to date. |
| USMLE Step Score Report | Some programs will accept the score report that you received from the NBME. If they require an official score report transcript from the NBME, visit the USMLE website for instructions. Note: We are prohibited by the NBME from reporting/releasing scores. |