MD Accelerated Programs
Family Medicine 3+3 Pathway
Family Medicine 3+3
Penn State Family Medicine Accelerated Pathway (FM-APPS) is a 3+3 pathway where students complete medical school in three years, followed by a three-year or in State College.
Pathway Overview
Family Medicine 3+3 Accelerated MD Pathway students from the class of 2024 at an emerging leadership seminar.
To address the increased need for family medicine physicians, Penn State College of Medicine, partnering with the Department of Family and Community Medicine, has developed a three-year accelerated pathway with the following goals:
Accelerate training, allowing students to earn a medical degree in three years.
Integrate learning by offering longitudinal integrated clerkship (LIC) in the place of traditional block clerkships.
Advance national healthcare initiatives by supporting student interest in family medicine.
By blending a three-year program with the LIC in an innovative curriculum, we anticipate graduates will be patient-centered, empathetic physicians who are well prepared to practice in the changing healthcare environment. Through curricular innovation and exceptional mentoring, we have developed a learning environment tailored to a career in family medicine, hence addressing the shortage of primary care physicians. Students have the opportunity to save one year of tuition and enter practice one year earlier.
Prominent organizations including the Council on Graduate Medical Education, Macy Foundation and the American Association of Medical Colleges have called for better alignment between medical training and the healthcare needs of our nation. Studies have established that the health of the population is improved when the nation's medical workforce consists of at least 50 percent primary care physicians.
The pathway is a member of the Consortium of Accelerated Medical Pathway Programs, initially funded by the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation.
Application Process
Students may apply for entry into the FM-APPS pathway at two points – after acceptance into the at Penn State College of Medicine and before matriculation, or in the fall of their first year of study.
Once accepted, students may submit a secondary application to the specific pathway of interest to them.
Qualified students in good academic standing will be invited for interviews. A second call for applications, depending on the availability of positions, will occur in the fall of the first year of medical school.
The ideal candidate is a self-directed learner with a strong academic background who possesses good organizational skills, the ability to multitask, and a strong interest in family medicine as a career. A selection committee will make the final selection.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis concurrent with the Penn State College of Medicine application process.
Once a commitment has been made to attend Penn State College of Medicine, a secondary application to FM-APPS will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The final selection will occur in April by the FM-APPS selection committee.
If you are a prospective Penn State College of Medicine medical student with an interest in the family medicine accelerated pathway, email FMAPPS@pennstatehealth.psu.edu.
Curriculum
The Family Medicine Accelerated Pathway at Penn State (FM-APPS) curriculum isn’t just accelerated, it’s designed to maximize efficiency through learning that is built on prior knowledge and skills.
As an FM-APPS student, you’ll be expected to meet all educational objectives and graduation requirements of the . The methods for assessment are the same as those for traditional medical students. However, because it is an accelerated pathway, vacations are reduced.
How the Curriculum is Different
The FM-APPS curriculum differs from the "regular" four-year curriculum in the following areas:
Phase I
Beginning in the spring of the first year, students start acceleration by enrolling in the medical home longitudinal elective. During the summer, you will complete the underserved medicine clerkship, radiology elective and work on the Medical Student Research project. In the fall of the second year, you’ll complete the Family Medicine Clerkship in a longitudinal format.
Phase II
Designed with proven best practices, Phase II will be in a longitudinal integrated clerkship (LIC) format instead of block clerkships. Integration is highlighted across three years of medical school and into residency training. Curriculum features include the following guiding principles:
Continuity of relationships with patients
Continuity with faculty preceptors
Continuity of setting
A longitudinal developmental pedagogy
Frequently Asked Questions
The ability to complete medical school in three years instead of four.
The opportunity to save one year of tuition, housing and fees.
Learning in an innovative curriculum aimed to be time-efficient while also providing longitudinal experiences and active participation.
A continuum of undergraduate medical school and graduate residency training.
Direct progression into the in Hershey or the in State College.
Access to mentors in the Department of Family and Community Medicine.
Students matriculate with the incoming medical school class in the summer. The 3+3 programming begins in the fall of the first year of medical school, with an early introduction of clinical rotations.
In order to complete the graduation requirements in a compressed time frame, students in the 3+3 program do not get an eight-week summer break after the first year. Students are enrolled in a combination of rotations during this time and continue to work on their medical student research project.
Students will be expected to take and pass USMLE Step 1 and Step 2, a Penn State College of Medicine requirement before graduation. Students will have preparation time in the third year to successfully complete these requirements.
Students will participate in commencement from medical school in May of their third year. Participating 3+3 students will begin three years of residency training in June, at what would be the start of their fourth year in a traditional MD pathway.
Yes. The Penn State Health Family Medicine Residency can accept students through the match only. Therefore, you must enter the NRMP matching process.
Upon meeting the academic and professional standards for graduation from medical school, students are ranked to match into a Penn State Health residency program through the National Resident Matching Program. Should students choose to rank Penn State, they would match into a Family Medicine residency position at Penn State Health.
Your three-year family medicine residency training at Penn State will not differ in curriculum from that of a non-FM-APPS student. However, you will have established a panel of patients in a continuity clinic that will continue to grow during your six years of training. You will have gotten to know faculty and staff in the practice site, easing your transition to residency.
You would revert back to the traditional four-year program and enter the match as usual. Any scholarship granted will convert to a loan. Credits for partial courses may not carry over to the four-year program. For this reason, it’s important that you are certain about pursuing a career in family medicine before you apply to the pathway.
If you have academic difficulties or fail to progress as expected, you would revert to the traditional four-year program and enter the match as usual.
If you complete the FM-APPS pathway as designed, you will receive a scholarship equal to one year of tuition. Thus, you’ll pay the equivalent of three years’ tuition, saving on a full year tuition. If you revert out of the FM-APPS pathway for any reason, any scholarship funds provided as a part of the pathway would convert to a loan.
Pathway Leadership and Faculty
Director: Shou Ling Leong, MD
Assistant Dean for Pathways Innovation
Director of FM-APPS
Professor of Family and Community Medicine
Additional Faculty
Dennis Gingrich, MD
Contact Us
Shou Ling Leong, MD, director
Phone: 717-531-8187
Email: FMAPPS@pennstatehealth.psu.edu
Ashley Chorney, program coordinator
Phone: 717-531-8187
Email: FMAPPS@pennstatehealth.psu.edu