Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
MD Program

Visiting Clerkship and Mentorship Program

The Visiting Clerkship Program encompasses numerous opportunities for 4th year medical students, and seeks to address some of the obstacles that can limit access to medical training. Students are invited to explore rotations at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), Penn Presbyterian Hospital (Presby), and Pennsylvania Hospital (PAH). The clerkship includes both sub-internship and elective experiences in top-ranked residency programs. Students not only have the opportunity to spend time learning first-hand what it is like to be a resident at these institutions, but they are paired with resident and/or faculty mentors and meet with Residency Program Leadership to aid in their recruitment and preparation for the interview season and Match process. Stipends are included. 

Program Highlights

Each student is paired with a Faculty and/or Resident mentor in an area of their interest.

Each student will be given the opportunity to have a personal meeting with a Residency Program Leader in the specialty of their interest.

Stipends of $2000 to cover travel and housing.

Opportunity to interact with current residents, fellows, and faculty at social events.

Current Programs

We offer sub-internships (acting internships) and elective courses with outpatient and consult clinical exposure in the following specialties:

Anesthesiology Otorhinolaryngology
Dermatology Pathology
Emergency Medicine Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
Family Medicine Plastic Surgery
General Surgery Pediatrics
Internal Medicine Psychiatry
Neurology Radiology
Neurosurgery Radiation Oncology
Obstetrics & Gynecology Urology
Ophthalmology Vascular Surgery

Application Process

The application for our Clerkship opens in February and is available through the Perelman School of Medicine’s VLSO application. Search “Perelman School of Medicine” under the Elective Catalogue. Then you can find the specific application by looking up the specialty of your choice and selecting “Visiting Clerkship Program.”

Additional information for visiting student opportunities can be found on the Perelman School of Medicine Visiting Student Website.

VSLO Application Requirements

2025 applications have closed

All applicants must be rising 4th year (or final year if additional degrees or program longer than 4 years) medical students and should apply for the clerkship program that correlates to the subspecialty they are pursing in the Match.

The application deadline is May 9th – however, some programs will have ongoing reviews and acceptances. Refer to VSLO for required documentation for your selected course; all requirements must be provided when your application is submitted.

Contact

For general questions or inquiries, please contact the Office of the Registrar.

Frequently Asked Questions

General visiting student rotations are available through the Perelman School of Medicine’s (PSOM) Registrar’s Office. If you are interested in rotating at Penn regardless of acceptance to our program, then you may want to move forward and apply for a general rotation slot now.

More Information Here

Non-US Medical Schools do not usually have agreements with Perelman School of Medicine to cover visiting students’ necessary insurance for a visiting rotation and, as such, are not eligible for this program. Medical students who attend schools in US territories (such as Puerto Rico) are eligible. Otherwise please look for opportunities through Penn’s Center for Global Health.

Given the desire to communicate earlier with students, some specialty programs (General Surgery, Otolaryngology, Pediatrics, Radiation Oncology, Radiology, Urology) will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis and sending acceptances along the way until their spots are full. If you have a particular need to know earlier than a program’s deadline, please contact the appropriate Clerkship Coordinator or reach out to the Office of the Registrar.

We know that the PSOM rotation dates do not always line up with the rotation dates for visiting students’ medical school schedules. We sometimes have flexibility with this and would encourage you to still apply. If accepted, we do our best to adjust the dates to accommodate your medical school schedule.

That is no problem at all, but we still need you to complete the specific PSOM VSLO application for this program (sometimes there are a few additional items required, and often a different selection committee). If you are accepted for the Visiting Clerkship Program, then we’ll take care of things internally to switch you over.

Students are encouraged to have an attending physician in the specialty to which they are pursuing complete the letter. We also know that some students have not yet rotated in a specific field or may not have connected with a faculty member who can write a letter by the time of the application deadline. If that is the case, then please have an attending who knows you and who can speak in strong support of you write the letter.

Interview selection is separate from participation in this program. Some of our participating specialties will invite all students accepted to the Visiting Clerkship Program to interview.

All students accepted into the program will receive a $2,000 stipend. Students must complete the rotation, after which a stipend (please note that stipends are taxed) is sent. Documentation such as a W9, spending receipts, and possible additional forms will be collected by each Program Coordinator by the last week/week after the rotation is completed.

We do not have direct housing provision through this program. Students are encouraged to utilize resources on the PSOM Registrar’s website for Visiting Students (scroll down to “Short-term Housing Opportunities"). Past program participants have also utilized multi-week Airbnb reservations or gotten in touch with members of student interest groups at the Perelman School of Medicine who may have space available. Once students are accepted, we also share potential housing options from faculty and trainees.