Visiting Medical Students

Wake Forest University School of Medicine and Atrium Health are considering applications for visiting 4th-year medical student clinical opportunities for both Charlotte, NC, and Winston-Salem, NC, locations.

Visiting MD and DO applications through VSLO^® (Visiting Student Learning Opportunities) will open March 14, 2025 and will be coordinated through Wake Forest University School of Medicine’s Comprehensive Learner Management Office.

Wake Forest University School of Medicine is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion. We provide confidential and specialized disability support and are committed to excellence in accessibility; we encourage students with disabilities to disclose and seek reasonable accommodations when needed to meet the Technical Standards or engage in the curriculum. For more information about requesting accommodations please contact the Center for Learning, Access, and Student Success (CLASS) at class@wfu.edu or call 336-758-5929. More information can be found at class.wfu.edu.

The School of Medicine requires an approved affiliation agreement with your home institution to allow for participation in the Visiting Student Program. The approved agreement must be in place at least 30 days prior to the start date of your rotation.

All requests to establish affiliation agreements must be submitted by an appropriate home school representative only, via email to affiliationagreement@wakehealth.edu.

The request should include:

• Official name of the institution or school of medicine
• Location of institution or school of medicine
• Type of program (i.e., MD, DO)
• Length of program
• Compelling educational reason to establish agreement
• Home representative or institution contact information

All students who apply to the Visiting Student Program must have the following information in their VSLO^® application before it will be reviewed:

• Curriculum vitae
• Academic transcript
• Photo
• Copy of General and Professional Liability Certificate of Coverage (minimum of $1 million per instance, and $3 million in total).
• School's evaluation form
• School attestation that the student applicant has successfully completed their 3rd year and is in good academic standing
• Attestation that student has passed USMLE Step 1 or COMLEX Level 1
• Confirmation that the student is taking electives for credit and will pay tuition at their home school during the period indicated

Some programs may require the submission of additional requirements such as:

• Letter(s) of recommendation from a faculty member with whom the student has worked in a clinical setting. The letter should address the clinical skills and abilities of the student. 
• Student's personal statement.
• Student letter of interest.
• Copy of USMLE or COMLEX board scores.

There will be additional compliance and onboarding requirements when you accept an elective rotation. More information will be provided at that time by email.

Students must be aware of the following requirements that impact the consideration of their application for a rotation:

• Accepted students may be displaced and their rotation canceled if the health system has a shortage of PPE, a surge in patients which impacts services within the health system, and/or other unforeseen conditions. 

All visiting student fees and payments are non-refundable and non-transferable. Cancellation or withdraw must be made 5 weeks prior to the clinical rotation start date. Medical students must withdraw their application in VSLO^®. Visiting students must comply with WFUSM program specific attendance policies and requirements.

All visiting students must adhere to the Wake Forest attendance policy, maximum of 2 full day absences (course leaders maintain course specific information). Our catalog becomes visible in VSLO^® on March 1 with the ability to apply to electives on March 15 until September 1. All approved visiting students must adhere to the School of Medicine Year 4 rotation schedule start dates

Visiting Medical Students who wish to rotate on the Charlotte Campus of Wake Forest University School of Medicine are also eligible for scholarships specific to the Charlotte campus.

The Atrium Health "For All" Scholarship Program is funded by the Atrium Health Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and individual departments with ACGME accredited residency programs. The residency programs at Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center  (CMC) is committed to ensuring all qualified 4th-year medical students who wish to experience a rotation at CMC, can do so.

To help support students who may have special circumstances that would traditionally limit participation in away rotations, we offer a limited number of scholarships to visiting 4th year medical students who are rotating in a department at Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center or Atrium Health Cabarrus that has an associated ACGME Residency Program. These programs currently include:

• Emergency medicine
• Family medicine
• Internal medicine
• Neurosurgery
• Pediatrics
• Psychiatry
• Physical medicine & rehabilitation
• Obstetrics and gynecology
• Orthopedics
• Surgery
• Urology

The program will provide opportunities to network with faculty, residents and students in addition to an excellent clinical learning experience.

Applicants must be 4th-year, U.S. medical school students in good standing at a medical school accredited by the Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME) or the Education Department of the American Osteopathic Association.

Applicants may be eligible to complete up to one four-week elective with rotation periods typically starting in June. Students from groups traditionally underrepresented in medicine or from economically disadvantaged backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Accepted students will receive a stipend to assist with housing and travel expenses. The amount awarded will be based on the distance of the student’s home institution from CMC.

Interested students must submit the visiting student application through Visiting Student Learning Opportunities (VSLO) in addition to the Charlotte specific scholarship application. The scholarship application is a separate application and will only be reviewed after you have been accepted for a visiting rotation. Submission of an application does not guarantee an award, and if selected for an award, funds will be requested 3-4 weeks ahead of the start of a rotation.

Since medical students from Wake Forest University School of Medicine (WFUSM) and domestic visiting medical students have priority to take electives that are open to visiting international medical students, opportunities for visiting final year medical students who are enrolled in programs outside of the United States, are very limited and only scheduled during a specified time annually (August 2024-February 2025). A current affiliation agreement must be in place. In addition, the application process includes a $100 non-refundable processing fee. Following selection, applicant student will be required to submit a $2,500 administrative fee for the August 2025-February 2026 (4) week rotation at WFUSM. If interested, please contact Global Health for an application.

• Will adhere to current institutional policies on masking and social distancing. 
• Adhere to institutional, CDC and North Carolina state guidelines.
• Self-monitor for illness symptoms.
• Provide information as soon as possible about exposures that may affect patients, other students, faculty or staff at clinical facilities.
• Proceed as noted below for any suspected exposures.

If a learner has a suspected illness or exposure:

• Learners will need to report potential workplace exposures and illness to our Employee Health Portal and will follow the guidance of the Student and Teammate Health staff from that point forward.

If a learner is symptomatic:

• They must not report to the clinical area
• They should notify their preceptor
• They should report symptoms through the Employee Health Portal and follow the guidance of the Student and Teammate Health staff from that point forward.