program's very nature, built-in social
disadvantages that are unavoidable in a com-
bined-degree program.
Critics of the MSTP do not deny its
attractiveness in providing candidates with full
funding and making them potentially very
marketable. They argue that MD's can and do
learn how to do sophisticated research, although
the start-up time may be longer. With
the dual-degree program perhaps being subjected
to fiscal pressure, future candidates
can anticipate a lower threshold of
support.
Interdisciplinary Programs
This arrangement permits a combination medical
degree program with a degree in
another field such as engineering, statistics,
law, physics, chemistry, administration,
dentistry, or agriculture. Schools offering
such programs are identified in the special
features section of their profiles in Chapter
7.
The vast majority of dual degree programs are
obviously linked with the biomedical
sciences. There are a small number of
prospective physician-scholars who set their goal
to secure a doctorate in one of the humanities
of social sciences. For such individuals,
there are a very limited number of formal
programs available. The biggest is probably
the Illinois Medical Scholars program at the
University of Illinois College of Medicine
at Urbana-Champaign. It offers PhDs not only in
the biomedical and physical sciences
but also in subjects ranging from anthropology
to philosophy. Similarly, the program in
Medicine, Arts, and Social Sciences at the
University of Chicago attracts medical stu-
dents from around the country who pursue PhD's
in a wide range of subjects. A third
program of note is the Clinical Scholars
program at the University of Michigan.
The most popular of the nonscience dual
programs, relatively speaking, is the
MD-JD program. There are presently at least six
medical schools that offer opportuni-
ties for interested students who wish to secure
a law degree along with an MD. These
schools include Chicago-Pritzker, Duke,
University of Pennsylvania, University of
Illinois Urbana–Champaign, and Yale. Many
graduates with this dual degree enter the
field of medical malpractice or health policy
work. Finally, it may be noted, a mas-
ter's degree in Public Health is offered by
Tufts University School of Medicine.
Primary Care Training Programs
You may be interested in specializing in
primary care after graduation from medical
school; there are a number of schools whose aim
is to train specialists in this area.
Shown below are a list of medical schools from
whose recent graduating classes more
than 60% entered primary care
residencies.
Brown University
Case Western Reserve University
East Tennessee State University
Meharry Medical College
Mercer University
Michigan State University
Morehouse School of Medicine
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
University of Arkansas
University of Hawaii
University of Illinois--Rockford
University of Kansas
University of Missouri--Kansas
City
University of Nebraska
User Comments Add a comment…