Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine

The Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine (CCLCM) was established in 2004 through a collaboration of the Cleveland Clinic and Case Western Reserve University.

CCLCM is a 5-year program with the goal of training physician-scientists. The 3rd or 4th year is spent doing full-time research and a thesis is required for graduation. In 2007, five students received prestigious Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellowships.

Innovative Curriculum

 * Each year only 32 students are accepted.


 * PBL curriculum. Unlike traditional teaching methods that use a faculty-driven lecture format, PBL is student-centered and student-driven with active participation from each student in a PBL group, which includes eight medical students and one faculty facilitator.


 * Clinical experience. Students are paired with a primary care physician during the first two years. First years have biweekly clinic and second years weekly clinic.  Before starting on the wards in the 3rd years students will have already conducted over 100 patient interviews and physical exams.


 * Portfolio assessments. There are no grades or comprehensive examinations. Rather students utilize feedback as evidence of their progress in educational portfolios.  This feedback comes from both peer and faculty, allowing students to identify their own strengths and weaknesses as compared to defined performance standards.  There are weekly content assessments which consist of multiple choice and essay questions, but these are not assigned formal grades.