M4 Add/Drop and Schedule Change

Authorizing Body:

Office of Admissions & Enrollment Management

Date Issued:

Sept. 17, 2018

Last Update:

October 20, 2025

Rationale:

To set up a mechanism for the scheduling and approval of M4 clerkships and electives, allowing flexibility while ensuring that students meet graduation requirements and broad educational preparation for the next phase of training as residents. Please refer to the Graduation Requirements guideline.

Scope and Applicability:

Standard Practice Guidelines:

1. Initial enrollment into courses occurs during the scheduled “lottery”.
2. After the initial scheduling is finalized (typically in March), any subsequent course changes must be requested by submitting an Add/Drop form to Medical Education and Records and Registration ([email protected]) at least 30 days prior to the start of the clerkship or elective(s). Requests for changes with fewer than 30 days' notice will be considered on a case-by-case basis and only considered if there are significant and compelling reasons for the late request.
   1. • All Add/Drop requests must allow a student to remain enrolled in sufficient courses to ensure graduation as planned in their program of study. Add/Drop requests for required courses necessitate “paired requests”: dropping a course while adding it elsewhere on the schedule to maintain an appropriate plan of study that allows a student to meet graduation requirements. For example, dropping a required clerkship, such as Emergency Medicine, requires the addition of that clerkship elsewhere in the schedule. Such requests for these dependent changes in a student’s schedule should be made as one request/form.
      • Add/Drop requests for DICE, DIRE, and other non-required electives may not necessarily need a “paired request”. Students should confirm with Medical Education that any add/drops continue to meet the program of study graduation requirements.
      • All Away Electives must be approved through the Approving Away Electives policy, which has its own guidelines and procedures. 
      • If a course, clerkship, elective, DIRE, DICE, DINCE, etc., does not appear on a student’s schedule before the start of the elective, it will not count towards OUWB graduation credit.

Procedures:

1. Students should consult OASIS to confirm an opening is available for all courses they intend to add. Students cannot be enrolled (added) to a course if capacity has already been filled without approval by the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Clinical Education or their designee.
2. Students will submit an Add/Drop form for any course changes they desire after their initial enrollment into courses via the lottery.
   1. • In the event a required course rotation is at full capacity, students may request to be added to the waitlist, indicating a desire to enroll should capacity become available. If capacity becomes available, the Office of Records and Registration will verify with the first student on the waitlist that the change is still desired and request the student submit an updated Add/Drop form.
      • No required courses are dropped until the requested required course is available to be added.
      • Online electives do not require approval to be added or dropped; however, an Add/Drop form must still be used for any changes.
3. The Associate Dean for Undergraduate Clinical Education or designee will review the Add/Drop form and notify the student if the selected changes or electives do not meet program of study requirements.
4. After the initial review of the change request is completed by the associate dean or their designee, additional requirements may be necessary to approve or finalize enrollment, including, but not limited to, confirmation with the host site or faculty member and verification of affiliation agreements. All criteria must be met before enrollment is finalized.
5. Students are responsible for confirming that their elective is present in their OASIS official schedule seven days after filing the Add/Drop form. If the elective is not listed, the student should contact [email protected].
6. Students wishing to add an away elective (domestic or international) should refer to the M4 Away Elective policy.

Definitions:

N/A

Related Policies and Forms:

Directed Independent Electives
Graduation Requirements
Modified M4 Year Schedules for Students with Academic Difficulties
OUWB Religious Observance
M4 Elective Requirements
Directed Independent Electives
M4 Away Elective
Drop/Add Form