INTRODUCTION

PHILOSOPHY OF THE PROGRAM. To graduate from LSU School of Medicine, a fourth-year student must satisfactorily complete at least four electives, one of which must be in ambulatory care. This elective time gives the student an opportunity, after appropriate consultation with faculty advisors of the student's own choosing, to tailor a program of study to meet the student's needs as an individual. These programs are designed to provide:

1. A more appropriate foundation for the graduate medical education program in the student's chosen field or
   
   
2. In-depth clinical experiences in medical areas that are not usually included in the graduate medical programs of a chosen specialty, or
   
   
3. A broad base of clinical experiences applicable to most specialties in medicine when a student is uncertain as to any plans for specialty training, or
   
   
4. An opportunity for the student to demonstrate potential to the staff of a high-priority graduate medical program.

Elective courses that make up the custom-designed program of study may be taken at LSUMS and/or its affiliated hospitals or at any accredited medical school or teaching hospital in the United States or Canada. Elective courses at foreign institutions will be evaluated individually and must be discussed with the Dean of Student Affairs. All electives will be valued at 38 hrs. per week. Scheduling of electives should be made at the times designated as senior blocks in the school calendar.

Two types of electives are available to fourth-year students at LSU:

1. Scheduled electives, such as those listed in this catalog or a similar official document of an approved medical or affiliated teaching facility. In the LSUMS system, a random draw will determine which students can enroll in a scheduled elective chosen by a number of students greater than the elective can accommodate.
   
   
2. Free-planned elective, is designed by the student with the aid and approval of the potential preceptor. Free-planned electives taken at LSUMS and all electives taken outside the LSUMS system are listed under catalog number 499 in the department that must approve the elective for credit purposes. Special application forms for all 499 electives are available in the Student Affairs Office. These forms must be completed and approved before the deadline for development of next year's senior course schedule.

SCHEDULING FOR LSU STUDENTS. Schedule requests are due in the Student Affairs Office by February 10. The Senior Schedule Committee will oversee the process of developing the schedule, consulting with students concerning alternatives avail­able and reviewing any appeals from students with special problems. A preliminary schedule will be posted on or before June 1 to permit students to identify any problems that need consideration before final assignment. A final schedule will be posted prior to registration.

Changes in the schedule are strongly discouraged after this time. If unusual circumstances make consideration of such changes warranted, requests must be approved by the Senior Schedule Committee with subsequent approval by the depart­ments involved. All requests of this type must be fully approved at least four weeks before the beginning of the block affected by the change. Before beginning any elective within or outside LSU, the student must pick up two evaluation forms from the Student Affairs Office, one the preceptor uses to evaluate the student and one the student uses to evaluate the elective. Both of these forms must be returned to the Student Affairs Office within two weeks after completion of the elective in order for the student to receive credit for the course. The Student Affairs Office will send copies of the completed evaluation forms to the LSU department responsible for issuing the grade.

VISITING STUDENTS. A student in good standing at any AAMC approved medical school, including Canadian schools, may be accepted for any elective listed in the LSU catalog. To be eligible, the student must have had training equivalent to that of LSU students who have completed the third-year clinical clerkships: Obstetrics & Gynecology, Pediatrics, Medicine, Surgery, Family Medicine, Neurology and Psychiatry. Visiting students may be accepted for no more than eight weeks of electives. LSU will give no credit to visiting students. An evaluation of the student's performance will be forwarded to the student's medical school on complet­ion of the elective. Unless otherwise requested, the evaluation will be the same as that used by the department at LSU and will indicate a recommended grade of Honors, High-Pass, Pass, or Fail.

PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING AS A VISITING STUDENT:

1. Request application form from Office of Student Affairs or download from our website  for each elective desired.
   
   
2. Contact the department offering the desired elective if information not included in the catalog is needed.
   
   
3. Complete Parts I and II, as indicated on the application.
   
   
4. Send the application to the Office of Student Affairs, address at top of application form.

The student will be notified regarding the status of the application after completion of the LSU Senior Schedule in May, as LSU students are given preference in assignment to elective programs.

All students accepted are required to have professional liability insurance coverage of at least $500,000.  If this is not provided by the student's medical school, a policy must be obtained and proof of coverage is required before beginning the elective.

The student will need to make arrangements for housing and meals. LSU and its affiliated hospitals cannot guarantee such arrangements or provide information and advice on available apartments.

Students accepted for electives to New Orleans sites will most likely need a temporary I.D. card.  Please contact the department that you are doing the elective in approximately two weeks before the rotation begins to provide information needed to begin the process of obtaining this temporary I.D.   When visiting student arrives they will be able to get their I.D.