MSIH

Unofficial
Curriculum
Guide
_____________________________
Compiled by Dov Rosenbaum (’17) with help from the Class of 2017. Revised by Reva
Frankel (’17), Yoni Taylor (’18), Chase Neff (’18), Howie Freeman (’19), Aaron
Hochman-Zimmerman (’19), Jonathan Mosery (‘20) and Rose Bayer (‘20), Yocheved
Aronovitz (21) Joe Keefe (21)
How to use this guide:

Welcome to MSIH. This guide is meant to explain how we, as students, experienced our classes. We wrote
this guide so that the classes that you will be taking are laid out in front of you before you start school. We
hope that this can ease your transition to medical school in a foreign country. This is different than the
information you can find on the MSIH website, as it was written by students. This guide was created by
the class of 2017 and continued by Classes of 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021, so the experiences are a
culmination of these classes. We hope that this guide will continue to evolve and develop through your
contributions as classes and the curriculum change.

It is important to realize that the curriculum at MSIH is dynamic. The school listens to student feedback
and adjusts courses accordingly. The role of the curriculum committee is to facilitate this dialogue
between the student body and the administration. The information in this guide is NOT to be taken as
MSIH policy or official stance. Included are simply the opinions of the previous classes on the curriculum.

Each class is divided into multiple sections. First we list the professor(s). If there were many, we listed the
course coordinator. If your professor is not the one we listed, you know to expect the class to be different
from what we describe below.

We also want you to know what to expect as far as studying for the course. We list the professor
recommended textbook and the exam style. Knowing the exam style will help you figure out the best study
method for you. We often used other books instead of the recommended books, and we used various
resources depending on the exam type. If you are unsure of which resources to use, ask around and see
what other students recommend and look at the Resources Slideshow we have prepared for you.
Remember, everyone studies differently, and it is important for you to figure out the best resources for
you.

When the students were surveyed and answered that they used a textbook, this means any textbook, not
just the recommended one. The student survey is from the Class of 2017, but it was found to be consistent
with the Class of 2018, so mostly the same resources are listed. We also listed recommended resources
that were used by the class to study, regardless of their ability to help people pass. On this note, please
don’t buy every textbook and resource listed. That would be very expensive. You will likely have to get
used to studying for medical school. During this process you will find the resources that work best for you.
Once you figure that out then you should go ahead and find the books that you will use.

We highly recommend NOT bringing books from the US. We have a fully stocked bookroom provided by
the MSIH AMSA chapter, with more than enough books in every subject for sale at highly reduced prices.
The medical library also has almost any textbook that you may need throughout medical school. Take
advantage of these books, which you can borrow for various amounts of time. That being said, if you own
a book that you want to bring, and you have space in your luggage, that is your decision. We also have a
compilation of e-books or pdfs for most required books, plus many more. Again, not every textbook is
needed, use your own discretion when deciding which ones to use.

The way we try to describe the format is to compare it to the USMLE. There are certain things that are
skipped over in one class but are filled in later in various classes throughout the year. The idea is not to
panic! Most, if not all, of the information you need for the USMLE is taught during your preclinical years
at MSIH. The gold standard review book for the USMLE is ​First Aid​. It is a yearly publication, edited by
medical students, that serves as an outline of the highest yield topics for the USMLE. Be aware that First
Aid is not comprehensive, but a good place to start to familiarize yourself with a topic as well as a good
review before exams. We used this book and Firecracker, a question bank based on this book, to
determine if we were being taught material for the USMLE.

There are other parts of the curriculum that are not directly tested in the USMLE, but are, nonetheless,
important to your career as physicians, especially physicians in global health. We recommend
experiencing classes for this purpose. Our professors are often involved in some aspect of global health, as
you will soon discover.

Above all, relax, have fun, travel, study, and enjoy your time at MSIH.

For any questions pertaining to information in this guide please email Chevi (aronovit@post.bgu.ac.il) or
Joe (keefej@post.bgu.ac.il).

A few clarifications:

Exam types:

- OSCE (Objective Structural Clinical Exam) – clinical, practical or skills based: can be either
interviewing skills, techniques or a physical exam
- Practical – viewing and identification of a specimen
- “American Style” Multiple Choice – multiple choice exam written by the professor
- Long Answer – problem solving questions, partial credit available

- “NBME” exam – professor chooses the questions from an NBME question bank Shelf exam –
standardized exam, written by the NBME

For NBME exams administered at MSIH, you will typically receive 1.5 minutes/question.

Grading:

Passing score is generally between 55 - 65. The passing score is calculated as 1.5 standard deviations
below the class average. Barely pass, is a score within 5 points of the passing score, it is recorded as a pass
on the transcript. It exists to let you know that you may need to work on learning the material. Honor, is a
score that is above 1 standard deviation above the class average. The minimum grade to honor is usually
between 85 & 90. Failing is a score below the passing score. If a student fails an exam, they are given an
opportunity to retake the exam,a ​mo’ed bet ​(second time), which is an opportunity to take a similar exam
on the subject again. This grade is the one that is considered your final grade. The ​mo’ed b ​ et is usually also
an NBME exam, however could also be a professor written exam, even if the original exam was not. Note
that the pass results mentioned are for passing exams on the first try.
The school does NOT give you your graded percentage. Instead you receive a coded score
- 130; Honor, 85/90% and higher
- 400; Pass score 55/65-85/90
 - 399; Barely passed 55-60/60-65
- 500; Failed

Important Resources for First Year

Book series:

First Aid series

BRS series
High Yield series

Not every book in a given series is as helpful as the next. For example BRS physiology is one of the most
popular books in medical school, BRS Microbiology & Immunology is not as popular. Research the
books, and ask around before spending money on them.

Question Banks:

UWorld
USMLE Rx
Kaplan
Pretest

Highly recommended to do practice questions in preparation for exams.​ With that being
said, don’t necessarily rush into buying a Q bank until you are ready to start using it. There are also
some available pdf files of UWorld and Pretest questions for various courses.

Other study resources:

Kaplan videos/books
Dr. Najeeb videos
Firecracker
Pathoma
Sketchy Micro/Sketchy Pharm Picmonic

Many of these resources (e.g. Kaplan, Pathoma, etc.) can be obtained from other students. Subscriptions
to Sketchy and Picmonic can be shared between students. Ask around before buying these resources.
Often they are not really needed in September, but become helpful as the year progresses. Don’t waste
money on resources if you won’t end up using them or needing them. Use referral programs and offers
to get discounted subscriptions.
 Courses

Orientation
Emergency Medicine:

Taught by: Israeli TAs, frequently medical students or from similar fields, with emergency experience in
either Magen David Adom or military
Textbook: Provided
Class format: During orientation, you will have Hebrew in the mornings and EM in the afternoons. This
class is similar to an EMT class. It includes lectures along with demonstrations and practical drills.
Students learn basics of emergency response, including: CPR, treatment of choking victim, cardiac
emergencies, head/neck/back/limb trauma, hemorrhage, etc. This material is not covered on the USMLE,
but these skills are useful to have.

Grading: OSCE & Written exam

Exam format: Multiple choice professor written exam and OSCE
Exam Pass Rate: 100%
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Class presentations with workbook provided, practicing for
emergency situations that will be tested on the OSCE
 Full Year

Hebrew:
NB: THIS CLASS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE NEXT YEAR AND MAY BE DIFFERENT FROM
PREVIOUS YEARS.
Taught by: Hebrew instructors from BGU ulpan
Textbook: Ivrit min HaHatkhela (aleph) or Ivrit L’Refuah (ask upperclassmen if they have it from
previous years)
Class format: The course begins during orientation and lasts throughout the entire academic​ ​year. Classes
are broken up by baseline level of Hebrew. It may not be in your favor to place higher than your actual
skill. You can always move up later. Reading and writing, in addition to speaking, is very important in this
course. Hebrew course during the semester is a continuation of what started over the summer. Some of
the teachers may be different and the focus may change from grammar to medical terminology, but the
structure is essentially the same. These classes meet twice a week, for 2 hours. The groups remain more or
less the same throughout the year, but it isn’t unheard of for people to switch, with the teacher’
permission, based on improvements in their skills. Each group has their own evaluation, with quizzes and
oral presentations being the most common methods. At the end of each semester there is a final exam.
Students learn through workbook exercises, in-class dialogues and tests.

Grading: Class participation, presentations, tests

Pass Rate: 100%
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Pimsleur, Anki, Rosetta Stone, Hebrew for Dummies, meet people
& speak to them! You will not learn the language unless you prioritize it and make time for it everyday. It
is very difficult to do, but it will pay off in the hospital setting 3​rd ​year.

Clinical Medicine:
NB: THIS CLASS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE NEXT YEAR AND MAY BE DIFFERENT FROM
PREVIOUS YEARS.
Taught by: Various Lecturers depending on the topic
Textbook: None
Class format: This class occurs in both semesters around once per week. All meetings are mandatory and
missing any will result in a required repeat the following year. During the first semester there were frontal
lectures from a childhood psychologist about basic, and mainly childhood, psychology. There are also
introductory discussions to the art of clinical practice. The class examines themes including, but not
limited to, the hurdles of the medical system and challenges that students face on the path to becoming a
doctor e.g. burnout or the importance of compassion in the patient-doctor interaction. Some of the topics
include some history of the Bedouin Arabs in the Negev, adult psychology, and an introduction to
geriatrics. Second semester you begin meeting in groups 2-4 times per month, in various wards of the
hospital to practice patient interviews. Each group is led by a physician, nurse, social worker or medical
professional in the ward you are placed. There is no homework. The course is intended to cover the
behavioral sciences section of the USMLE. There is more information required for the USMLE than is
covered.
Global Health and Medicine:

Taught by: Dr. Anat Rosenthal, Dr. Mark Katz

Textbook: None
Class format: The course format underwent extensive (mostly positive) change for the Class of 2020.

First semester classes were held once per week. The lectures discussed topics such as Social determinants
of Health, Careers in Global Health and Disaster management, social capital, the Bedouin communities,
anthropology and field note taking. You will also read and discuss in small groups, a related case study
each week. Throughout the semester, each student is required to give a 10 minute presentation on a
global health related topic of his or her choice. Each week 2-3 students present. The presentation includes
a powerpoint and some group questions for discussion. Second semester, there was a group project (4-5
students per group) called The Big Pitch. Each group was given a budget and asked to create, plan and
hypothetically implement a global health program that focused on an existing need or problem in an
assigned country. The groups had to “pitch” the idea to an “advisory committee”, (composed of MSIH
faculty, global health specialists) of the importance of your program on both a rational and an emotional
level.

Global Health Shuk: This is an exciting time when the 4​th ​year students are back from their Global Health
rotations and share their experiences. 4​th ​year students each organization had a table and students are free
to walk around and have their own conversations with them to find out more about each place. Later
students from MSIH presented past or previous research in Global Health, before a keynote speaker who
has experience in Global Health gave a very nice presentation.

Grading: Attendance, Participation, Presentations, Final Project - ‘Big Pitch’

Pass Rate: 100%
Recommended Resources for general reading (not necessary for c​ourse): Global Health 101
(recommended by school), Death Without Weeping (Nancy Sheper Hughes), Reimagining Global Health
(Paul Farmer, Arthur Kleinman, Jim Yong Kim, Matthew Basilico), anything by Paul Famer or Arthur
Kleinman.

Note: please don’t buy all these books, they are listed as readings that our class felt was either what
drove them to global health, or found them to be good resources explaining issues in global health.

Microbiology:

Course coordinator: Dr. Yael Yagel

Textbook: Medical Microbiology, Murray

1​st ​semester: Bacteriology

Taught by: A variety of professors including Dr. Yagel, Dr Fuchs, Prof. P. Yagupsky, Dr. L. Nesher
Class format: 1​st ​year bacteriology at MSIH was ostensibly conceived as a survey of important bugs taught
by their respective experts within the BGU faculty. Each professor teaches anywhere from 2-4 lectures
with varying amounts of detail and varying areas of concentration (e.g. sometimes focused extensively on
the physical mechanisms of bacterial toxins or antibiotics while others perhaps focus on bacterial
genetics). Quiz questions vary from very general to more specific. The answers to all quiz questions can be
found in the relevant textbook chapter. As you will be told on the first day of class, ​the list of bacteria
taught in class is not as comprehensive as that of the USMLE.​ Which is to say, self study is very
important in order to master all bacteria one will need for the USMLE Step 1. If there is one course you
cannot cram for it’s Micro, so try to knock off several bugs each week. (Use a resource such as First Aid or
Sketchy as a guide to know which bugs you need to know.) The class occurs consistently 1-2 times/week
throughout the semester. There are some sporadic lab sessions throughout the year, but they are a small
part of the course and do not count toward your grade.

Grading: 8 Quizzes (20%)

Bacteriology Quiz pass rate; 34/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, ​Sketchy Micro​, Picmonic (Many students used
either Sketchy Micro or Picmonic, but not both since they accomplish the same thing), Clinical
Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple, Micro flash cards. Medical Microbacteria by Murray (any
edition) is a good textbook.

2​nd ​semester: Virology, Mycology, Parasitology

Taught by: NEW LECTURER (Virology & Mycology), Dr. S. Ben-Shimol (Parasitology)
Class format: Microbiology in the spring is split into two testable chunks: virology and
parasitology/mycology.

Virology will have a new lecturer in 2018/2019. Many medically-relevant fungi appear in
immunocompromised states (HIV, cancer, organ transplantation), making the topic very relevant for
global health today and in the future. Parasitology was very well attended, with clinically-relevant
lectures. All of the high-yield USMLE bugs taught are covered in sufficient detail. In addition, many “low-
yield” bugs (in the eyes of the USMLE) with enormous impacts on global morbidity are taught as well.

Grad​ing: 1 Virology quiz/exam (20%), 1 Parasitology & Mycology quiz (20%), aka all quizzes worth 60%,
final exam (40%)
Exam Format: NBME exam on entire year course, ~ 125 questions, 2.5 hours
The class meets 2-3 times per week.
Virology Quiz Pass Rate: 34/35
Mycology/Parisitology Quiz Pass Rate: 21/35
Exam Pass Rate: 35/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, ​Sketchy Micro​, Picmonic, Clinical Microbiology
Made Ridiculously Simple, Micro flash cards. Medical Microbiology by Murray covers these topics but was
not recommended by Virology professor.
 1​st ​Semester

Biostatistics:

Taught by: Dr. Orr Goren

Textbook: none
Class format: Lectures and computer based training cover statistical techniques used in medical literature.
The course includes basic descriptive statistics, distributions, central limit theorem, hypothesis testing
(z-score, t-test, chi squared), regressions, sampling, and probabilities. Each of the weekly exercises closely
mirrored the sections of the exam. One of the eight homework problems can be skipped. The homework is
not graded, but will be helpful to understand what is expected on the exam. Furthermore, the review
session at the end of the course was very helpful in clarifying important concepts needed for the exam.
There are topics that may appear on the USMLE that were not covered in this course. Many of them are
addressed in Epidemiology second semester, but some are not covered at all. The material that was not
covered is easily self-studied. There was discussion at length of restructuring this course for the coming
year, so there may be changes.

Grading: final exam (100%)

Exam format: Professor written, computer based, 3 hours
Exam Pass Rate: 33/34
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, homework problems, class presentations. Reviewing
the class material, handouts, HW and in-class problems are more than sufficient to do well.

Histology:

Taught by: Prof. Michal Herschfinkel, computer lab TAs

Textbook: MH Ross, LJ Romrell, GI Kaye. Histology – A Textbook and Atlas, Junquierra, Basic Histology

Class format: The course consists of frontal lectures and labs, each once per week. Each class lecture
covers a system of the body, focusing on the tissues associated with that particular organ. The topics
covered in class include: lab techniques, general principles of cellular organization, blood, epithelium
tissue, connective tissue, bone, cartilage, striated muscle, smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, nervous system,
gastrointestinal system, kidney, liver, pancreas, and respiratory system. The labs are the practical
component of the course, which give students the time to visualize the different organ systems and the
tissues and cells associated with each of them. There are weekly quizzes on the lecture and lab material
that is given at the beginning of each lab. Usually each quiz had two conceptual, multiple-choice questions
and three visual recognition questions based on the slides from the previous lecture. The final is
composed of both lecture and lab material. It is important to grasp the concepts in class as well as be able
to identify an organ, specific tissue, or cell when shown a slide that is not labeled. The course provides the
necessary tools and knowledge needed for understanding the histology and pathology of the organ
systems which will be tested on the USMLE. Many questions on the USMLE provide pictures of tissues
and it is important to be able to identify them. Review slides and computer-based presentations are
available on Moodle.

Grading: Weekly lab quizzes on concepts and visual identification of sample slides (20%), final exam
(80%)
Exam format: Professor written - half on concepts to include some aspects of histology and physiology,
practical half on identification of sample slides, ~40 questions for each half, 2 hours
Exam Pass Rate: 34/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Class presentations and lab slides on moodle, Blue histology,
Shotgun histology

Immunology:

Taught by: Prof. Eli Lewis

Textbook: How the Immune System Works by Lauren Sompayrac, Cellular and molecular immunology by
Abul K. Abbas

Class format: The course covers the fundamentals of basic immunology, including: innate and adaptive
immunity, inflammatory processes, cells of the immune system, host responses to different types of
pathogens, immune deficiencies, autoimmune disorders, etc. The course covers most of the information
needed for the USMLE. Simple textbooks can be a good starting point to build an understanding of the
subject. Quizzes are good preparation for the final exam.

Grading: 3 quizzes (10%), final exam (90%)

Exam format: NBME, ~ 60 questions, 1.5 hours
Exam Pass Rate: 32/34
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, Class presentations, How the Immune System
Works, Najeeb, Kaplan videos. Abbas textbook is very in-depth is perhaps best used after initial study of
material.

Biochemistry:

Taught by: Nava Bashan, TA

Textbook: provided, Clinical Biochemistry

Class format: This comprehensive course covers most of the material needed for the USMLE. Notable
exceptions are vitamins and nutrition, which are briefly addressed in later courses. There are weekly
lectures and tutorial discussions of medical cases, which illustrate pertinent concepts with a focus on
regulatory steps. Human metabolism and metabolic diseases were the main focus. Topics include:
glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, TCA cycle, oxidative phosphorylation, lipids, signal transduction, ketogenesis,
protein synthesis and degradation, urea cycle, and glycogen and lysosomal storage diseases.) Those who
attended class tended to be better prepared come the end of the semester. There is a shift from frontal
lectures to problem-based learning where clinical cases are give that relate to a certain subject. Class is
broken into groups to discuss clinical case which is then reviewed as a class. Come prepared to the PBL’s
after having reviewed the material to make best use of it.

Grading: Final exam (100%)

Exam format: NBME, ~ 80 questions, 2 hours
Exam Pass Rate: 34/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, Class presentations, Kaplan videos. Lippincott has a
comprehensive review book which is more in depth then needed. Lehninger is way overboard and not
recommended.
Cell & Molecular Biology:

Taught by: NEW LECTURER, Prof. Jacob Golpas

Textbook: The Cell: A Molecular Approach, Cooper 9th Ed Molecular Cell Biology, Lodish 5th Ed.

Class format: Cell biology is taught primarily as frontal lectures. The cell course covers: membrane
properties and theory, membrane transport, mitochondria, endocytosis, cytoskeleton, protein
degradation, DNA repair, cell death, and cellular cancer biology. The molecular part covers: genome
geography, DNA replication and recombination, transcription, translation, and regulation. All topics are
covered for both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. The class also covered molecular techniques, such as: PCR,
sequencing, blotting, FISH, ELISA, and genetic engineering. There are individual and group assignments
that aren’t counted towards your grade.
Prof Gopas gives some proffessor written questions,

Grading: Final exam (100%)

Exam format: 90% NBME, ~ 60 questions, 1.5 hours, professor written, ~ 10 questions
Exam Pass Rate: 35/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, Kaplan videos, Essential Cell Biology, Molecular class
website
 2nd Semester

Genetics:

Taught by: Prof. Ohad Birk, TA

Textbook: Medical Genetics, Jorde

Class Format: This class is only about a month and a half long. Lectures are not mandatory and occur
once or twice a week with PowerPoint. If you took genetics in undergrad, much of the material will be
familiar. The class goes over the cell cycle, chromosomal translocation, Mendelian genetics, pedigrees,
different types of disorders (x-linked, autosomal dominant, etc.), genetic mapping, multifactorial
inheritance, cancer genetics, and prenatal diagnosis. Specific diseases are discussed. There is mandatory
homework due at the end of each week prior to tutorial. In the tutorials, we went through new questions,
reviewed some of the week’s material and any questions people had on the homework. The textbook was a
thin but useful textbook for the class. The textbook included more detail than we needed, but it presented
the information simply. The exam was about 40 multiple choice questions representative of what was
taught in lectures. It was a paper exam written by the professor. The course covered most of what is
needed for the USMLE. There are more diseases mentioned (in First Aid) than were covered in class but
the ones with more detail were covered.

Grading: Homework (10%), Exam (90%)

Exam Format: NBME
Exam Pass Rate: 35/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, Class presentations, Kaplan videos

Physiology:

Taught by: Dr Haramati, Dr Ben-Arie

Textbook: Guyton & Hall Physiology, BRS Physiology
Class Format: This is an overview course of physiology, which will be covered in depth starting with the
systems at the end of first year. The course covers an overview of systems physiology, specifically:
Homeostasis and Osmosis, Endocrine, GI, Nervous System, Cardiovascular System, Respiratory System,
and Nephrology. Reproductive physiology was assigned as self-study units. Each system is taught as a
systematic review of the basic physiology. The unit on homeostasis is taught as a mix between frontal
lecture and problem solving workshops. The rest of the lectures are entirely frontal-style. The class is
lecture-heavy but many students found lectures helpful and attended. We had physiology lectures 2-3
days per week during second semester. Studying for this class can be done with USMLE materials, but
keep in mind that the USMLE goes much further in depth than we do in this class. The in depth
physiology is covered throughout systems in second year. The course is very detail-oriented as you will see
in the quizzes.

Grading: Exam 90%, 4 Quizzes (10%)

Exam Format: NBME, ~ 40 questions, 1 hour
Quiz Pass Rate: 32/34
Exam Pass Rate: 32/34
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, Class presentations, BRS Physiology, Boards and
Beyond. Physiology by Costanzo is great as is Guyton and Hall albeit very in depth.

Pharmacology:

Taught by: Dr David Stepensky and 1-2 guest lecturers

Textbook: Lippincotts Pharmacology,

Class format: Classes are twice a week for 2 hours. The lectures are recorded by Dr. Stepensky and posted
on Moodle (there are recordings from past years on Moodle as well). Tutorials are given approximately
once every two weeks that review the material covered during the previous classes. There are also review
questions to help further the understanding of the material. There are three quizzes given throughout the
course that are part of the component of the grade. The course is meant to be a basic overview of
pharmacology. The course begins with pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics and then goes into
drugs that affect the autonomic nervous system, chemotherapeutic agents, immunosuppressants,
antibiotics, some central nervous system drugs, toxicology, and anti-inflammatory drugs. It covers the
basic pharmacology for the USMLE and some systems pharmacology as well. The rest of the
pharmacology that isn’t covered will be covered in systems during second year. Be aware that material not
directly touched upon in lectures but that is found within the relevant chapters in Lippincotts might still
be tested. Every year there is a list of highlighted drugs that are supposedly on the exam and there are
always drugs on the exam that weren’t necessarily highlighted. It only benefits you in the long run for the
USMLE to study all the topics on the syllabus and in class.
Information on the USMLE: Pharmacologic agents including ANS & CNS drugs, immunosuppressants,
antimicrobials, chemotherapeutic drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs, toxicology (Alcohol Metabolism,
CYP450 Interactions, and other toxicities), pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics, elimination &
metabolism, signal transduction & receptors, neurotransmitter production.

Grading: Exam 60%, 4 Quizzes (40%)

Exam Format: NBME, ~ 60 questions, 1.5 hours
Quiz Pass Rate: 33/35
Exam Pass Rate: 35/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, Lippincott pharmacology, Pharm flash cards, Sketchy
Pharm, ​PreTest practice questions

Pathology:

Taught by: Dr Ben-Ezra, Dr Bentzi and TA’s for Labs

Textbook: Robbins Basic Pathology

Class format: This is an introduction to pathology course that generally met once a week for the second
half of the semester. Since we go into pathology during each system, this is an introductory and not
comprehensive course as far as what we need to know for the USMLE. There was some overlap with
previous courses (like microbiology and genetics) although this course approaches them from a different
perspective. The class included cell injury/inflammation, tissue repair, neoplasia, genetic diseases,
infectious diseases, and environmental pathology. There are also labs once a week, which opened with a
quiz and then went into the macro and micro pathology. The labs were interesting but usually did not
correlate with the material covered in class.
Grading: Exam 90%, 10 Quizzes (10%)
Exam Format: NBME, ~ 60 questions, 1.5 hours
Exam Pass Rate: 33/34
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Firecracker, ​Pathoma​, Robbins Review of Pathology, Rapid
Review (Goljan), BRS Pathology

Epidemiology:

Taught by: Dr. Ronit Ratzon, TA Tal

Textbook: Epidemiology, Gordis

Class format: Lectures are long and adequately cover the appropriate material for the written final exam.
The mandatory tutorials go in-depth into some of the more complicated methods. Problem sets are
graded for completion only and are very helpful. Lectures cover the basic components of disease
transmission, measures of morbidity such as incidence and prevalence and the various ways of measuring
mortality, including survival analysis. The principles of diagnostic and screening tests are also taught. The
second part of the course deals primarily with study design, from randomized clinical trials to
observational studies such as cohort, case-control, cross sectional and ecological studies. The textbook is a
good resource, although more in-depth than the course material. Attending lectures and reviewing slides
should be sufficient for the final exam. The review session at the end of the course was very helpful in
clarifying important concepts needed for the exam. At the end of the day, this is not an especially
extensive topic on the USMLE, but you should become familiar with the basic concepts of epidemiology.

Grading: Exam 90%, Homework assignments 10%

Exam Format: Professor written combination of multiple choice and long answers, 3 hours Exam Pass
Rate: 35/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Class presentations, textbook, reviewed the homework/tutorials,
 Systems

Oncology:

Course Coordinator: Dr. Geffen

Textbook: None

Class format: This is a three day survey of clinical oncology. Class meets every day from 8-4, with each day
being broken up into two parts. Attendance is mandatory. The class is pass/fail, with no grades and no
exams. Missing more than two sections will require you to present research articles to the professor.
While we cover the oncology that is needed for the USMLE in other classes, this class is meant to
introduce you to oncology as a clinical science. We do not spend a lot of time on mechanisms of cancer as
it is expected that we know this. Topics covered included surgical oncology, the psychological stresses of
oncology, palliative medicine, chemotherapy drugs, radiation therapy and radio-oncology.

Grading: Mandatory Attendance

Exam: None

Endocrinology:

Course Coordinator: Dr. Arbelle

Textbook: Williams Endocrinology, Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine

Class format: This is the “first” system that we learn. The class is around a month long, meeting daily from
around 8-3, but the timing can vary. The class covers most of what is expected in endocrinology for the
USMLE. We do not cover the anatomy. We learn clinical situations related to the thyroid, adrenal,
parathyroid, diabetes, and the hypothalamic pituitary axis. Each unit reviews the physiology of the gland,
before learning the pathology. Pharmacology is covered while discussing clinical options for the disease.
Histology is covered while learning the physiology and in a mandatory histology lab. There are 2
mandatory classes: an integrative “thyroid clinic” and an “adrenal clinic” where students are given clinical
cases to diagnose and present to the class.

Grading: 100% Final Exam

Exam Format: NBME, ~ 60 questions, 1.5 hours
Exam Pass Rate: 32/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Boards and Beyond, Firecracker, Pathoma, Najeeb, Kaplan
videos, BRS Physiology, First Aid Organ Systems

Hematology:

Course Coordinator: Dr. Anat Rabinovich

Textbook: Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine

Class format: This is the last course of the first year. The course covers the clinical issues of blood and
blood disorders. The course covers: normal hematopoiesis, physiology of the blood and the blood
components, pathologies related to hematopoiesis, hemostasis and hemostatic disorders, leukemias and
lymphomas, and transfusion medicine. Whereas other systems might focus more on underlying
physiology, this unit is heavily focused on pathology. The class is primarily composed of mandatory
problem-based learning sessions. These are divided into PBL preparation sessions, in which students
meet in smaller groups with a doctor and discuss real hematology cases, and presentations of these PBL
cases. There are 1-2 frontal lecture each day, but due to the nature of the PBLs much of this course is
mainly self-study. The course, including the subjects to be covered in self-study, covers what is needed for
the USMLE.

Grading: 100% Exam

Exam Format: NBME, ~ 60 questions, 1.5 Hours
Exam Pass Rate: 32/35
Popular Study Methods and Resources: Boards and Beyond, FireCracker, Pathoma, Robbins Review of
Pathology, Essential Hematology, Hematology for Medical Students