Visiting Medical Students
Application Process
Applications for research and clinical electives are accepted no more than six months prior to the elective start date, and must be submitted at least six weeks prior to the start date of the elective. Visiting medical students registered for virtual electives are not permitted to enter School of Medicine research or clinical facilities.
Questions?
Direct questions about the application process to our visiting student coordinator at [email protected].
Elective Application
A limited number of clinical electives are available to final year medical students who are attending either LCME or COCA accredited schools, or schools with which Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine has a formal affiliation. If you are uncertain if your school has a formal affiliation with JHUSOM, check with an official at your home medical school before submitting your application.
Research experiences are offered on a space available basis to U.S. and internationally trained medical students.
To apply, please submit an application through our online VISMED Application portal. Please note that the VISMED application page is titled “Summer, High School, and Non-Degree Programs”
Frequently Asked Questions
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Applications are accepted on a rolling basis and students are encouraged to apply up to 6 months before the start of the elective.
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An official transcript is a transcript generated by your school for use by our institution to support your application. Electronic transcripts sent to us directly from your home school are strongly encouraged and should be sent to [email protected] as the recipient address when ordering.
We recommend that you submit a cover sheet with your transcript to assist in matching it to your application. The cover sheet should indicate your name and applicant ID number.
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Applications are ONLY accepted via our online portal: VISMED Application (Slate)
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Clinical electives are typically scheduled for 4 - 4 1/2 weeks with a maximum of two allowed per academic year. Research electives are typically scheduled for 9 weeks.
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All visiting medical students applying for clinical electives at JHU are expected to adhere to the JHUSOM academic calendar. Requests for alternative elective dates must be approved by the department prior to the submission of an application.
Elective applications for research electives accepted for any time-period, that period cannot be longer than 9 weeks in duration.
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Core clerkship courses at JHUSOM are only offered to our medical students due to space limitations.
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Not all electives are available to visiting medical students, Not all electives are available to visiting medical students, click here for eligible electives and their descriptions. Electives not available to visiting medical students are indicated in the general electives book. Visiting medical students will only be placed in electives that take place at Johns Hopkins Hospital, the Bayview Medical Center or Johns Hopkins Greenspring because those locations are serviced by the Johns Hopkins transportation system. Some electives are offered at other hospital locations, but are not available to visiting medical students due to transportation constraints. for eligible electives and their descriptions. Electives not available to visiting medical students are indicated in the general electives book. Visiting medical students will only be placed in electives that take place at Johns Hopkins Hospital, the Bayview Medical Center or Johns Hopkins Greenspring because those locations are serviced by the Johns Hopkins transportation system. Some electives are offered at other hospital locations, but are not available to visiting medical students due to transportation constraints.
The entire JHUSOM Electives Book is available for review.
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Some electives have prerequisites; do not apply for electives for which prerequisites have not yet been met. Your application will not be considered unless your official transcript contains proof of completion of the prerequisite courses.
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A determination cannot be made until your completed application is received. Acceptance of your application for an elective is made jointly between the Office of the Registrar and the course director in the department in which the elective takes place.
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Having had communication with a faculty member does not guarantee acceptance for an elective. All scheduling is done on a space-available basis and processing is the same for all students. You may include a letter of support from the faculty member with your application. However, all application processing initiates with the Visiting Student Coordinator in the Registrar's Office and offers of acceptance can only be extended by the Office of the Registrar in conjunction with the course director.
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Visiting students are placed only after JHUSOM students are scheduled. Summer months, in particular, are extremely full. To maximize placement, you may include 3 elective choices on your application.
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You can apply for a maximum of 3 electives per application and we will accept one application per semester. If we are unable to place you for an elective, you will be notified by email. If you choose to do so, you can reapply with a new completed application for another semester.
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You will receive e-mail confirmation from [email protected] once your application has been submitted. Once submitted, your application is reviewed and forwarded to department. You will not receive any further correspondence until the department has completed their review.
Please do not contact the office for an update.
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Completed applications are sent to departments for review in the order they were received. The department will receive automated daily reminders until they have reviewed your application and rendered a decision. Once a decision has been made, you will be notified via email.
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The Visiting Student Coordinator will notify you by email regarding the following:
- once your application has been submitted
- once your application is accepted or denied
The University Health Service (UHS) Office will notify you if there are any outstanding requirements for immunization based on the immunization record form submitted with your application.
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Please allow a minimum of 30-60 days for your application review by the department(s) to which you applied. Please do not call the Visiting Student Office to check your application status. You may contact the office at [email protected] no earlier than 30 days after receiving email notification that your application has been submitted to inquire about its status. DO NOT contact course directors, coordinators or faculty regarding the status of your application.
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The Visiting Student Office will not discuss applications with anyone but the applicant; please do not have friends, parents or siblings inquire on your behalf.
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All students accepted for an elective are required to complete the Johns Hopkins HIPAA training courses. In addition, students accepted for clinical electives are required to obtain or show proof of training in blood borne pathogens and universal precautions. Instructions for these requirements are provided at time of acceptance.
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Visiting medical students are expected to arrange their own housing. No on-campus housing is available at the East Baltimore campus.
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All documents become the property of the Office the Registrar. Copies cannot be given nor can materials be returned.