The College of Medicine of the University of South Florida (USF) and Stetson University College of Law (Stetson) have entered into an agreement under which Stetson will issue a Juris Doctor degree (J.D.) and USF will issue a Doctor of Medicine degree (M.D.) for students satisfying specified requirements at both institutions. This program will admit students beginning in fall 2007. Both institutions are accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), and are approved to award the M.D. and J.D. degrees respectively.
Program Description
USF and Stetson have negotiated a dual J.D./M.D. program under which any student may earn both degrees together in less time than it would take to earn both degrees separately. Under the program, a student can earn both a M.D. awarded from USF and a J.D. degree from Stetson in six and one-half years.
A chart is attached that outlines the content of the program, and the sequence in which students will take both law and medical courses.
The program can be summarized as follows, as it relates to its effect on earning a Stetson J.D. degree.
- A dual-degree student must earn 88 hours of law school academic credit to earn a Stetson J.D.. This is the same as a law student who is not in the dual-degree program.
- Twelve of the 88 credit hours will be from specially designed courses, approved by both Stetson University College of Law's Curriculum Committee and the Curriculum Committee at USF's medical school. These courses will be taught, supervised, or administered by faculty from both professional schools. Each course would carry three hours of academic credit. These special courses are titled "An Introduction to Law and Medicine," "Law and Medicine Seminar/Practicum I," "Law and Medicine Seminar/Practicum II," and "Law and Medicine Seminar/Practicum III."
- The "Introduction to Law and Medicine" course is an introduction to the disciplines of law and medicine. The medical school refers to the course as a "focus" course that will permit the student to focus on both disciplines and the interrelation between the two early in the student's progress. The seminars and practica are intended to introduce dual-degree students to the concept of experiential education. The types of experiences discussed include interning for the local medical regulatory board, a law firm that specializes in medical malpractice, a state or federal judge, a public health department, or an insurance company. Each student will be required to select at least one law-related placement and one medical-related placement.
USF will cross-credit the equivalent of eighteen credit-hours of Stetson law courses with medical themes; this credit is comparable to three months of medical-school elective credit in year six of the M.D. curriculum.
Program Goals and Intended Audience
The program's goal is to educate a physician with unique insights into the legal profession, and to provide attorneys unique insights into the medical profession. We also anticipate that program graduates will have unique and broadened career opportunities that would not be available to students who graduate from only one of the two programs. Students enrolled in the dual-degree program will be able to integrate their studies so that candidates will have a foundation in both disciplines before completing study in either. The program envisions a student applying for both programs at the same time, before entering either law or medical schools. However, currently admitted USF medical students and Stetson law students may apply.