The Educational Program at the CUNY School of Medicine/Sophie Davis Biomedical Education (CUNY Medicine) is designed as an integrated curriculum in medical studies. During the first three years of the Program, students fulfill all requirements for the BS degree in Biomedical Sciences. After receiving the BS degree, students will be eligible for admission to the MD portion of the program, upon completion of which they will be granted the MD degree. The City College of New York confers both degrees.
CUNY Medicine students have been carefully selected for their ability to meet the demands of this challenging program. They are expected to satisfy not only the academic requirements of CUNY Medicine but also the additional requirements of the City College of New York. These requirements are designed to ensure that students receive the broad-based education that will prepare them to meet the constantly changing demands of the medical profession in accordance with the highest ethical standards and the goals of CUNY Medicine.
The City College Bulletin of Undergraduate Programs contains course descriptions for all required courses at: https://www.ccny.cuny.edu/registrar/bulletins
CCNY regulations apply to registration for all courses in the BS portion of the curriculum. Students must register on time for all courses required under the prescribed curriculum to maintain their enrollment in the Sophie Davis Biomedical Education Program. A student who fails to register or registers for non-required courses instead of the prescribed curriculum during the registration period allowed by the College will be considered to have resigned from the Sophie Davis Biomedical Education Program unless there is prior written approval from the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.
Students must follow the prescribed Sophie Davis Biomedical Education Program curriculum as scheduled, taking each course (including electives) no later than the semester and year in which it is scheduled to be taken. It is especially important that students take MED courses at the prescribed time, completing each one in sequence as scheduled. A student who wishes to postpone or drop any course, or take any course out of order must first obtain the written permission from the CUNY Medicine/SBE Program Associate Dean for Student Affairs.
In general, a student will not be permitted to postpone or drop a required MED course except under the most unusual, compelling circumstances.
A student will not be permitted to drop a course which the student is repeating, except under unusual circumstances and only after consultation with the CUNY Medicine/SBE Program Associate Dean for Student Affairs. A student who drops any required course (including a course needed to fulfill the electives requirement) or who does not take a course by the time it is scheduled to be taken, risks jeopardizing his or her academic progress and standing. If a student does not take a course at the proper time, it is usually difficult, and sometimes impossible, to schedule the course later in the curriculum. Since many courses are prerequisites for subsequent courses, not taking a course at the prescribed time may lead to problems in scheduling later courses as well.
Each student must successfully complete all courses required for graduation to be eligible to receive the BS degree (see “Requirements for the Awarding of the Baccalaureate degree,” below).
After the registration period, a student may drop a course during the time allowed by the City College. To drop a course without an academic penalty, the student must drop the course early in the semester. If the student drops the course during the first three weeks of the semester, tuition for the course(s) will be calculated based on the CCNY Tuition Refund Policy. https://www.ccny.cuny.edu/bursar/refund-policy.
A student who drops a course during the fourth through approximately the tenth week of the semester and obtains the written approval of both the course instructor and the CUNY Medicine/SBE Associate Dean for Student Affairs will receive the non-penalty grade of “W” [withdrawal without penalty] in the course; although this grade will appear on the student’s transcript, it will not be counted when the student’s GPA is calculated. Instructors cannot assign the grade of “W” [withdrawal without penalty]. Students should consult the official college academic calendar for the exact dates of drop deadlines (https://www.ccny.cuny.edu/registrar/academic-calendar).
A student who does not complete the formal drop procedure and stops attending the course without notifying their instructor will be assigned a grade of “WU” [withdrew unofficially – withdrawal without approval], which will appear on the student’s transcript. The “WU” [withdrew unofficially] grade is treated as an “F” [failure] and is assigned zero points when the student’s GPA is calculated.
Dropping courses–even if the non-penalty grade of “W” is assigned–can have serious negative consequences. City College regulations stipulate that a student who drops 12 credits or more within two academic years, be placed on academic warning. A student who drops 18 or more credits may be subject to dismissal. Dropping courses may also cause a student to become ineligible for financial aid since many financial aid programs require that recipients meet specific academic progress guidelines.
Students are required to successfully complete a total of 21 credits in free elective courses for the BS program. Of these, at least 2 credits must be fulfilled with courses designated as Regular Liberal Arts and Sciences courses in order to complete the Liberal Arts and Sciences requirement. Eligibility as Regular Liberal Arts and Sciences courses is determined in accordance with the NYS Education Department definition: “The Liberal Arts and Sciences comprise the disciplines of the humanities, natural sciences and mathematics, and social sciences. Therefore, a student may take as an elective any course in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences that meets this requirement.
Students are strongly advised to fulfill the electives requirement as prescribed in the curriculum of the Program, by no later than the Fall semester of the third year, since the demands of the remainder of the curriculum make it extremely difficult, and often impossible, to take electives.
Students may apply up to eight credits in “Independent Study” (see the following section) toward the free electives requirement; a student can register for a maximum of four credits of Independent Study in any one semester.
Students may also receive free elective credit for Advanced Placement examinations and International Baccalaureate coursework taken in high school (see “Advanced Placement Credit,” below, for exceptions) and for college courses taken at other institutions (see “Transfer College Credit” and “e-Permit Courses,” below).
For a course to be counted in fulfilling the curriculum electives requirement, a student must take the course on a letter grade basis and earn a grade of “C” or better (a grade of “B-” or better or a grade of “Pass” in “Independent Study”) depending on the way in which the course is graded and what our equivalent course grade requirements are.
The free elective credits required for graduation may come from any combination of credits transferred at the time of admission, including CCNY courses in any division, e-Permit courses taken at other CUNY institutions, or credits transferred from work at other colleges.
Students may pursue a program of Independent Study under the direction of a CUNY Medicine/SBE faculty member.
To set up an Independent Study project, a student should first meet with the faculty member who teaches or conducts research in the area of the student’s interest to discuss the project. Together they should determine the topic of the project and write up a brief, but thorough, description of it.
The faculty member and student should also decide upon the number of hours per week the student will devote to the Independent Study project, the number of credits (between one and four) the student will receive, and the way in which the project will be graded, i.e., on a letter grade “A”[A+, A, A-], “B”[B+, B, B-] or “Pass/Fail” basis.
The student must submit this information on the Independent Study Form to the CUNY Medicine/SBE Program Associate Dean for Student Affairs for final approval. If approval is granted, the student then submits the approved Independent Study paperwork to the Office of Academic Records/Registrar in order to be registered in the course.
On occasion, a student may have an opportunity to conduct an Independent Study project with a physician or scientist from another institution, such as a teaching hospital. In such cases, the project must be co-sponsored and co-supervised by a member of the CUNY Medicine/SBE faculty.
Students may apply up to eight credits of Independent Study, whether taken on a letter grade or “Pass/Fail” basis, to fulfill the electives requirement for graduation.
Students who completed Advanced Placement (AP) programs in high school and took Advanced Placement examinations may receive college credit. Generally, for scores 3, 4, or 5, City College will award course credit. For a complete list of AP equivalencies Guidelines:
AP credit in Physics 1, B or C, Psychology, English Literature, and Composition or World History, U.S. History or Government & Politics US (or any other elective credit designated as fulfilling the World Culture & Global Issue or US Experience in Its Diversity requirements) fulfill general education curriculum requirements. AP credit in subjects other than the above-mentioned may be applied to fulfill the electives requirement.
Students should request that the College Board, Advanced Placement Program, (609) 771- 7300 or (888) 225-5427; http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/exgrd_rep.html send their scores on Advanced Placement examinations taken in high school to:
The City College of New York (code 2083)
Office of Transfer Evaluations Services
Administration Building, Room 101
160 Convent Avenue
New York, NY 10031
Students who have taken college courses prior to enrolling in CUNY Medicine/SBE may receive credit for these courses, with the following stipulations:
A student who, before entering CUNY Medicine/SBE, has taken a course at a college or University other than CUNY, should arrange to have an official transcript sent to:
The City College of New York
Office of Transfer Evaluations Services
Administration Building, Room 101
160 Convent Avenue New York, NY 10031
A student who plans to take college courses at a CUNY college other than City College after enrolling in CUNY Medicine/SBE must apply for an e-Permit. E-Permit facilitates the process of obtaining permission to register at other CUNY colleges. E-Permit courses may fulfill general education requirements for graduation, but they cannot substitute for any required MED courses.
For an e-Permit course to be counted in fulfilling requirements for graduation, a student must take the course on a letter grade basis (not Pass/Fail) and earn a grade of “C” or better.
If a student plans to take a course at another CUNY college, the student should first meet with the CUNY Medicine/SBE Program Associate Dean for Student Affairs for academic advisement and program approval and then file for an e-Permit, following the College’s guidelines: https://www.ccny.cuny.edu/registrar/e-permit-information.
E-Permit course grades are recorded on the official transcript and are included in calculating the student’s City College GPA.