Student Rotations and Observerships

Boston Children’s Hospital

Students interested in doing electives in pediatrics or pediatric subspecialties at Boston Children’s Hospital should contact the Exchange Clerkship Program in the  Registrar’s Office at Harvard Medical School. Electives are available to international students, but only from a small number of approved international medical schools.

Phone: (617) 432-1515
Email: exclerks@hms.harvard.edu

Students can select up to 3 rotation month blocks and specify up to 15 course selections. The Registrar gives priority to Harvard Medical students, so outside students sometimes won’t know their elective until a 4-6 weeks before it begins. If all their choices are full, the Registrar will check if there are any vacancies in the less popular electives.

Boston Medical Center

Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine welcomes US medical students for clinical elective opportunities.  International students are not eligible for elective rotations at BU.  Students interested in doing rotations at Boston Medical Center should contact the Visting Student Elective Program in the Registrar’s office at BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine.

Minority Recruitment

Harvard Medical School’s  Office of Cultural and Community Engagement and Boston Medical Center Subsidized Visiting Elective Program have a well-established minority recruitment programs. In some cases they provide housing and financial assistance for travel.

Observerships

Neither Children’s Hospital nor Boston Medical Center encourage rotations where students function simply as observers. However, some divisions and departments at Children’s Hospital offer observership opportunities.