 | The University of Virginia record April 15, 1936 |  |
FACILITIES FOR AND METHODS OF INSTRUCTION
The new Medical Building completed in 1929 contains modern well-equipped
laboratories for the accommodation of the medical sciences. This
building is connected by corridors and bridges with the hospital, thus bringing
all departments of the Medical School into close physical association.
The new arrangement necessitated extensive changes in certain portions of
the hospital, involving especially the surgical suite, the X-ray suite and the
out-patient quarters. It required also the erection of an enlarged laundry,
a new power plant, and dining halls for hospital staff and nurses. The
Medical School Building consists of two wings connected by an inside
pavilion, all five floors in height. The south wing houses on four successive
floors the departments of biochemistry, pharmacology and materia medica,
physiology, and histology and embryology. On the top floor are the experimental
laboratories, quarters for experimental animals and a fire-proof
storage room for X-ray plates. The north wing gives accommodations on
the ground floor for autopsy rooms, an embalming room, a media room,
refrigeration, incineration and storage. The first floor houses half of the
Out-patient Department and the receiving room. On the second floor are the
offices of administration, the museum and the library. On the third floor
are the department of pathology and bacteriology, and two classrooms. The
fourth floor contains a laboratory for neuro-anatomy. The connecting
pavilion, or west wing, contains on the ground floor four student locker
rooms, the electrical power room, a record storage room, and an amphitheatre.
The latter is two floors in height and extends eastward into the open court
between the north and south wings. On the first floor are a lecture room, a
staff room, a record room, a drug room, and examining and sterilizing rooms.
On the second floor are housed the department of clinical pathology and a
cardiac laboratory. The third floor has three laboratories for gross anatomy,
a study room, a number of offices, and quarters for surgical pathology. On
the top floor are accommodations for the department of public health and
hygiene.
These laboratories are all presided over by trained teachers, to whom
teaching and investigation are primary considerations. The number of hours
assigned to laboratory subjects is quite large and affords ample time for
thorough study by the best methods. The student is brought into close contact
with teachers who are both willing and able to guide him; he gains a
very large part of his knowledge at first hand and by his own exertions,
and thus acquires the habit of working out things for himself; he becomes
Trained in this manner, he acquires an understanding of the medical sciences
and the ability to apply the facts of these sciences to the subsequent study of
disease. For these reasons the great fundamental sciences receive the utmost
consideration, constituting a large part of the work of the first two years.
The methods of clinical instruction are based upon the belief that no
clinical teaching is efficient which is not governed by essentially the same
principles as those which govern the best laboratory teaching. This instruction
is accordingly designed to enforce with the individual student a careful,
thorough, face-to-face study of disease and its management. The facilities
afforded by the University Hospital and Out-Patient Department are
described on a subsequent page. In the Out-Patient Department and in the
Hospital the student learns the methods of examining patients, of diagnosing
their diseases, and of instituting rational treatment; and he learns these
things in much the same way as he studied in the laboratory, that is to say,
by doing them himself under the direction and criticism of the instructors.
This practical training is accompanied by a systematic study of the various
subjects by means of lectures, textbooks, and recitations. The student
conducts a complete examination, records his observations in a scientific
manner, makes a diagnosis, states his view as to the treatment indicated,
and keeps a complete record of the case, all under the advice and criticism
of the physician or surgeon in charge. He is expected to keep himself
informed of the progress of the case throughout its course. If it is one requiring
surgical treatment, he assists at the operation, and thus is able to
follow all the procedures of the operator at close range. In addition, students
make frequent visits to the wards with the attending physicians and surgeons,
during which visits the nature, treatment, and progress of various
cases are gone over in detail. The patients of the Blue Ridge Sanatorium
afford additional material for clinical instruction. Since the number of students
in each class is relatively small, it is clear that the department offers
capable young men clinical advantages which are distinctly exceptional.
At the meetings of the Medical Society of the University of Virginia reviews
of important articles, clinical cases and results of original research are
presented by the instructors and by invited guests.
Graduate Instruction in the Department of Medicine is administered under
the Department of Graduate Studies of the University. The courses of
the regular medical curriculum are credited as C courses; elective, special
research and seminar courses are evaluated as D courses. Recent revision
of the medical curriculum, involving chiefly reductions in the number of
session-hours of required work and the establishment of elective and research
courses in each of the major departments, makes possible an enlarged scope
of graduate instruction.
Registrar's Records of Student's Work.—The results of the work of each
student are recorded in the Registrar's office in such manner as to show (1)
the grade received on each course, (2) whether the student has or has not
absolved the course and, if not, what is necessary to obtain a clear record
and admit to dependent subjects, and (3) a valuation in "honor points" of
the results of the work for each session.
1. The grade received on each course. These grades with their percentage
equivalents are as follows:
| 1 + = | 95-100 per cent |
| 1 = | 90- 94 per cent |
| 2 = | 85- 89 per cent |
| 3 = | 80- 84 per cent |
| 4 = | 70- 79 per cent |
| 5 = | below 70 per cent |
The passing grade is 3. A grade of 4 entitles the student to a condition,
as explained below. A grade of 5 means a failure for the course.
No passing grades are reported to the Registrar's office on didactic work
unless the laboratory or clinical part of the course is completed in a satisfactory
manner; nor are any grades reported when the student is deficient
until the deficiency has been made up.
2. Whether the student has or has not absolved the course, and, if not,
what is required to obtain a clear record and admit to dependent subjects.
This is indicated in the following terms:
Passed (P) indicates the satisfactory completion of the course and admits
to all dependent subjects.
Conditioned (C) means that to obtain a clear record on the course the
student must pass a special examination. Failure to take or to pass this
examination is equivalent to a record of "failed." The record "conditioned"
is not given in fourth-year subjects, except in case of illness or other equivalent
cause approved by the faculty.
A student may be conditioned on any examination because of failure
to maintain a reasonable standard of English composition.
Deficient (D) indicates that part of the required laboratory or clinical
work of the course has not been completed. Upon the satisfactory completion
of this work within the time and in the manner prescribed by the
professor in charge, the student receives the record "passed"; otherwise the
record is "failed" on the entire course.
Failed (F) indicates that the course must be repeated; except that when
the laboratory or other practical work has been satisfactorily performed, the
professor in charge may, at his discretion, excuse the student from repeating
the same; and, by special vote of the faculty, the student may be granted
optional attendance upon the course, in whole or in part. In general, a
student who is repeating a course will be required to attend all the exercises
of the course, and will not be excused from any exercise thereof because
of schedule conflicts with more advanced work.
Absence from a regular examination, when excused because of illness
or equivalent cause gives a record of conditioned; if not excused, a record of
failed.
3. A valuation of the general results of the work on each course and
of the student's work for the entire session. Honor points and Deficiency
points.
The term point is employed as an index of the extent of departure from
the passing grade of 3. No points are given for a mere passing grade; but
for grades above 3 they are designated as honor points (or +) and for
those below 3 as deficiency points (or -)
An honor point may be defined as the value of one-half session-hour of
a course on which a grade of 2 has been received; this value is increased
to 2 when a grade of 1 has been received; and to 2½ when a grade of 1+
has been received.
A deficiency point is the value of 1/3 session-hour of a course on which
a grade of 4 has been received; this becomes 1 1/3 when a grade of 5 has
been received. Deficiency points, once incurred, cannot be expunged. The
1 deficiency point of a grade requiring a conditioned examination becomes
1 1/3 deficiency points if a passing grade is not made on the re-examination,
since the record becomes a failure.
Each course is valued in the usual manner in terms of session-hours.
Then the student's honor and deficiency points are determined by multiplying
the number of session-hours involved by the point value of the grade
earned. The following table gives the values in points for one session-hour
of work for the various grades:
| Grade | Point value per session-hour |
| 1+ (95-100%) | 5 honor points (+5) |
| 1 (90-94.9%) | 4 honor points (+4) |
| 2 (85-89.9%) | 2 honor points (+2) |
| 3 (80-84.9%) | 0 honor points (None) |
| 4 (70-79.9%) | 3 deficiency points (-3) |
| 5 (Under 70%) | 4 deficiency points (-4) |
The value in points of a session's work is the difference between the
honor points received and the deficiency points. If there is an excess of
the former, this is indicated by placing a plus (+) sign before the numeral;
if vice versa, a minus (-); if they balance one another, no sign or numeral
is employed, which is also the case where the grade is 3 on all subjects.
Honor points will not be given for grades received on conditioned examinations
or on courses in which repetition was required on account of
poor scholarship. On the other hand, deficiency points will be given in accordance
with the above table. Furthermore, deficiency points shall be
cumulative. A student, having incurred deficiency points in June, shall have
these added to such as he may incur on repeating a course on re-examination
and the sum shall be used in determining his relative rank in his class.
Students, whose excess of honor points over deficiency points amounts
to 50 on the entire curriculum of medical study of any one year, or its
equivalent, are designated as "honor" or "distinguished" students and have
the privilege of optional attendance on the didactic work of the next session.
Special Rules Governing Advancement and Registration.
I. At the close of the University in June the records of the past session
will be reviewed and the students will be classified as follows: (a) Promoted;
(b) Required to Withdraw; (c) Provisionally Promoted; and (d) Required to
Repeat.
(a) Promoted. This group shall be composed of all students who have
satisfactorily completed the entire work of the year.
(b) Required to Withdraw. This group shall include such students as
are not deemed competent to continue their training in this school. The
record requiring withdrawal, reckoned in deficiency points and in session-hours,
is as follows:
For first-year class—36 deficiency points regardless of honor points, or
the equivalent in session-hours: (1) Failures in 9 session-hours; (2) failures
in 6 hours plus conditions in 4 hours; (3) conditions in 12 hours.
For second-year class—36 deficiency points regardless of honor points,
or the equivalent in session-hours: (1) Failures in 9 hours; (2) failures in
6 hours plus conditions in 4 hours; (3) conditions in 12 hours.
For third-year class—26 deficiency points regardless of honor points, or
the equivalent in session-hours: (1) Failures in 6.5 hours; (2) failures in
4 hours plus conditions in 3.3 hours; (3) conditions in 8.6 hours.
(c) Provisionally Promoted. This group shall include the students who
have incurred only such deficiencies as can with reasonable expectation be
removed by the opening of the next session. The record entitling provisional
promotion, reckoned in deficiency points and in session-hours, must
not be worse than the following:
For first-year class—28 deficiency points regardless of honor points,
or the equivalent in session-hours: (1) Failures in 7 hours; (2) failures
in 4 hours plus conditions in 4 hours; (3) conditions in 9.3 hours.
For second-year class—18 deficiency points regardless of honor points, or
the equivalent in session-hours: (1) Failures in 7 hours; (2) failures in 4
hours plus conditions in 4 hours; (3) conditions in 9.3 hours.
For third-year class—18 deficiency points regardless of honor points,
or the equivalent in session-hours: (1) Failures in 4.5 hours; (2) failures
in 3 hours plus conditions in 2 hours; (3) conditions in 6 hours.
(d) Required to Repeat. This group shall include all students not placed
in groups a, b, and c; that is, those who have incurred (1) in the first or
second year between 28.1 and 35.9 deficiency points, and (2) in the third
between 18.1 and 25.9. A student who is repeating a session's work must
attend all the exercises of the year, or courses, and pass all the examinations,
regardless of the grades previously made.
II. Students, classified in June as "Required to Withdraw" or "Required
to Repeat," shall not change their status by passing summer courses and (or)
special examinations.
III. At the opening of the session in September, the status of the students,
who were classified in June as Provisionally Promoted, will be revised
and they will be re-classified as follows: (a) Promoted; (b) Required
to Withdraw; (c) Required to Repeat.
(a) Promoted. This group shall be composed of such students as were
provisionally promoted in June and have now, by summer's work and reexamination,
satisfactorily completed the entire work of the year; i. e., have
not added to their deficiency points.
(b) Required to Withdraw. This group shall be composed of such students
as have failed to make up their deficiencies to such an extent as to
points, or the equivalent in failures of more than 6 session-hours of work, and
(2) in the third year more than 16 additional deficiency points, or its equivalent
in failures of more than 4 session-hours of work.
(c) Required to Repeat. This group shall be composed of such students
as were not placed in a and b, above; i. e., in the first and second years they
have not more than 24 additional deficiency points; and in the third, not more
than 16 additional.
IV. A student who has been permitted to repeat a year, or prescribed
courses, shall not be granted the privilege for a second time, i. e., he shall not
spend more than five years in completing the requirements for graduation.
V. A student may not take any course, either in whole or in part (as
explained under the above definition of failed) more than twice. A second
record of failed on the same course involves withdrawal from the Department
of Medicine.
VI. A clear record at the opening of the session in September on all
subjects of the preceding year is required for advancement to the third and
fourth years.
VII. Summer courses taken for the removal of deficiencies must be
approved by the professor in whose subjects the deficiencies were incurred;
but it shall be the duty of the student concerned to provide the information
on which to base the decision as to acceptability of courses; he must absolve
the summer work and have an official record mailed directly from the institution
to the professor at the University in charge of the subjects; and in
addition he must report for the special examination at this University and
make a passing grade therein.
VIII. Any student, who makes a grade below passing on any term's
work or is in any way derelict in his duties, shall be warned, warned and
placed on probation, or dismissed, according to the merits of the case.
The value in session-hours of the courses of the first three years:—
| First Year | Second Year | Third Year | |||
| Anatomy 1 | 6 | Physiology | 5 | Clinical Diagnosis | 2.5 |
| Anatomy 2 | 2 | Pathology | 6 | Medicine | 4.0 |
| Histology | 4 | Pharmacology | 2 | Surgery | 4.0 |
| Embryology | 2 | Materia Medica | 3 | Obstetrics | 2.5 |
| Biochemistry | 4 | Physical Diagnosis | 1 | Orthopedics | 1.5 |
| Bacteriology | 3 | Medicine | 2 | Pediatrics | 2.0 |
| Surgery | 1 | Urology | 1.0 | ||
| Ophthalmology | 1.0 | ||||
| Otolaryngology | 1.0 | ||||
| Totals | 21 | Totals | 20 | Totals | 19.5 |
Similar rules are enforced at practically all medical schools. It is exceedingly
difficult for a student who has been dropped or not advanced at
one school to secure admission to another. Compulsory withdrawal may
therefore terminate a medical career.
Candidates for the degree of Doctor of Medicine, who have less than
one full year's work to complete, may be required to take such additional
work and to pass such additional examinations as the Medical Faculty may
prescribe. This additional work may be selected from any of the courses
given in the Department of Medicine, even when such prescribed courses
have previously been taken and passed by the candidate in question.
Certificates of Attendance.—Students who attend the whole regular course
of one or more of the four years are entitled to an official statement under
the seal of the University, showing all courses for which the student was
registered each year as a medical student and the record (see above under
"Regulations") with the grade received on each course for which he was
registered. These statements will also contain any special faculty votes affecting
the student's registration in this school.
In no case will the University give an official certificate of the completion
of a part of a course. The professor in charge may, at his discretion, make
a personal statement by letter to the head of the same department in another
medical school of the work done by the student in his course; but he must
at the same time clearly state that this letter does not imply credit in this
medical school.
Requirements for Graduation.—The degree of Doctor of Medicine is conferred
by the University of Virginia upon candidates who have complied with
the entrance requirements of this department; attended a regular medical
course of four years of at least eight months each, the last two of which
years must have been at this institution; and have satisfactorily completed
a thesis and all of the subjects included in the medical course.
Examinations.—These are in writing, accompanied in many subjects by
individual practical examinations. Examinations may be held only during the
regular examination periods at the end of each term or during the vacation
periods. No examinations may be given while regular class work is in progress;
provided this rule is not to be interpreted to prohibit unannounced
written tests or regular daily or weekly tests which count on the class standing
of students. The regular examinations are held at stated periods during
the session. In addition, examinations are held each year during the week
immediately preceding the beginning of lectures. To the latter are admitted:
1. Students of the previous session, who, from illness or other equivalent
cause approved by the faculty, were unable to present themselves for examination
in any particular subject at the regular time.
2. Students who at the regular examination in any first-, second-, or
third-year subject of the preceding session have attained a grade less than 80
per cent., but as much as 70 per cent., on one or more subjects, as explained
in a preceding paragraph. This does not apply to students who have been
required to withdraw, or required to repeat, under the Special Rules Governing
Advancement (pp. 389-391).
3. Certain applicants for advanced standing who are required to take
examinations by the Committee on Advanced Standing.
The usual period for special or conditioned examinations is in September
during the week of registration; but such examinations may be scheduled, at
class work is not in progress and also provided all students entitled to
take examinations agree to the change of date. For a special or conditioned
examination held at any other time than that assigned for all students entitled
thereto a fee of five dollars is charged. This fee must be paid to the
Bursar before the examination is held.
In all courses in which there is practical work, either in the laboratory
or in the outpatient department or wards of the hospital, two records are
returned to the Registrar's office for each student; one of these records is for
the practical laboratory or clinical work in which the record is P(assed),
D(eficient), or F(ailed), the other record is for the didactic work, including
the final examinations—in which case the record is P(assed), C(onditioned),
D(eficient), or F(ailed), with the approximate percentage grade. To obtain
a clear record on the course a student must have a record of P(assed)
both on practical and on didactic work; at the discretion of the professor in
charge these grades may be averaged to determine the final standing of the
student. No record whatever is given on didactic work unless there is a
record of P(assed) on practical work nor will any record be given on practical
work until a clear record is obtained on didactic work; failure on practical
work gives a record of F(ailed) on the entire course.
The Fall Examinations for 1936-37 begin September 14 and close September
19. Students entitled to admission to these examinations will be
informed of the date of examination by the Dean.
Expenses.—The fees for instruction are 1, the tuition fee; 2, the University
fee which entitles the student to the use of the Library, Gymnasium, to
medical attention, etc.; 3, the athletic fee; 4, the Topics fee; 5, special laboratory
fees, as specified in following table.
| First Year |
Second Year |
Third Year |
Fourth Year |
|
| Tuition (Virginians) | $250 00 | $250 00 | $250 00 | $250 00 |
| (Non-Virginians) | 300 00 | 300 00 | 300 00 | 300 00 |
| University fee | 60 00 | 60 00 | 60 00 | 60 00 |
| Athletic fee | 15 00 | 15 00 | 15 00 | 15 00 |
| College Topics fee | 1 50 | 1 50 | 1 50 | 1 50 |
| Laboratory Fees: | ||||
| Biochemistry | 10 00 | |||
| Deposit in Biochemistry | 10 00 | |||
| Anatomy 1 and 2 | 17 50 | |||
| Histology and Embryology | 7 50 | |||
| Physiology | 10 00 | |||
| Bacteriology | 7 50 | |||
| Pathology | 5 00 | |||
| Pharmacology | 5 00 | |||
| Clinical Diagnosis | 5 00 | 5 00 | ||
| Materia Medica | 5 00 | |||
| Total (Virginians) | $379 00 | $356 50 | $331 50 | $326 50 |
| (Non-Virginians) | 429 00 | 406 50 | 381 50 | 376 50 |
The minimum for necessary living expenses, including room, heat, light,
furniture, service, board, books, and laundry, is estimated at $400.
In the course in Biochemistry, a deposit of $10 is required to cover cost
of breakage.
A fee of $3.00 is required of all women students for the upkeep of the
"Women Students' Association Room."
Each student in the Department of Medicine is required to provide himself
with a satisfactory microscope.
Voluntary Withdrawal from the University requires the written consent
of the Dean of the University and the Dean of the Department in which the
student is registered. When a permit is granted upon the University Physician's
certificate that withdrawal is necessary on account of ill health, which
must not be due to dissolute conduct, the fees are returned pro rata. Under
no other circumstances will there be a return of fees.
Combined Degrees in Arts (or Science) and Medicine.—Students who
have credit for the 48 session-hours of the group electives required in this
University for the cultural beccalaureate degrees in arts and science may
substitute for 12 session-hours of Electives-at-Large the first-year course in
the Department of Medicine and receive the degree of Bachelor of Arts or
Bachelor of Science at the end of the year.
The University offers also the degree of Bachelor of Science in Medicine.
This degree has been placed in charge of the Medical Faculty. It is awarded
on the recommendation of the Medical Faculty after the completion of the
second year of the medical curriculum to students who (1) present 33 session
hours of acceptable work in premedical college subjects (whether taken
in the University or elsewhere) as specified below; (2) complete the first two
years of the medical course in this University with grades in general higher
than the lowest passing grade; and (3) demonstrate by examination a reading
knowledge of medical French and German.
(1) Premedical College Subjects.—These must include:
| Session-hours | |
| One year of English | 3 |
| Algebra, Solid Geometry, Plane Trigonometry | 3 |
| Physics, Chemistry, and Biology | 24 |
| With minimum requirements in each subject as follows: | |
| (a) General Chemistry (including in this term Analytical or Physical Chemistry) |
6 |
| (b) Organic Chemistry | 3 |
| (c) General Physics | 4 |
| (d) Biological Science | 6 |
| Elective in subjects other than Physics, Chemistry and Biology |
3 |
(2) First two years of the Medical Curriculum, completed with a record
of 30 honor points on first-year subjects and 40 honor points on second-year
subjects.
(3) Reading knowledge of Medical French and German.—This will be
tested by examination consisting of the translation of passages from textbooks
of Anatomy and Histology, Biochemistry, Physiology, and Pathology.
No specific college work is required although the equivalent of 3 session-hour
college courses in each of these languages is desirable. The vocabulary
of medical French and German may best be acquired by using foreign textbooks,
etc., in the above medical sciences as parallel reading, or as summer
reading after the completion of the above subjects in the regular medical
course.
| The University of Virginia record April 15, 1936 | |