Table of Contents

Overview 

Time Considerations  

Financial Considerations  

Transfer of Credits 

Courseload During the MBE Year 

Planning Your Actual Schedule  

Overview

Agreement: Currently Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Montefiore-Einstein Center for Bioethics have agreed on a pathway that encourages students to complement the MD with the MBE, allowing them to take an additional year dedicated to course and thesis work for the MBE, with the option to transfer several credits from the MD curriculum. Students who follow this path will be able to complete requirements for both degrees in five years, at significantly reduced course load and tuition during the fifth MBE year. During the prior MD years, students may increase the bioethics coursework they do in anticipation of having some of those credits transferred as they enter the MBE program.

Time Considerations

Standard Timeline: Completing requirements for both degrees will take a total of five years: four (4) years for the MD and a fifth full year for the MBE. Currently, Einstein does not approve any adjustments to the 4+1 structure, nor does it allow students to be registered in both the MD and MBE program simultaneously.

When to Apply: MD students apply to the MBE program the year before they wish to attend, typically in the preceding spring semester, when the application for MBE admission is due. It is strongly advised that a potential applicant meet early with the Einstein Registrar, Einstein Dean of Students and a Center for Bioethics advisor to discuss and approve the academic plan.

Students should keep in mind that the completion of the MD and MBE degrees in a timely fashion is dependent on a student's success at both maximizing opportunities to do transferable bioethics coursework during the MD years, and benefiting from course, faculty and research opportunities during the MBE year.

Financial Considerations

Reduced Tuition Agreement (2013-2014): Einstein students will pay a reduced tuition of $20,000 for the MBE year, which compares favorably to an estimated $35,000 for the stand-alone MBE. Students interested in the MD+MBE should contact Einstein's financial aid office very early, as certain decisions can impact their packages both negatively and positively.

Transfer of Credits

What and How to Transfer: A given student can apply to transfer a maximum of 10 credits toward the MBE, consisting of bioethics-focused studies satisfactorily completed while in the MD program. A list of applicable courses can be found in the Range of Courses section of this website. Instructions on submitting transfer credit applications can be found in the relevant Procedures section of the Program Handbook.

Courseload During MBE Year

Standard Loan: The remaining number of credits (typically 22) will be completed during the MBE year. These credits include four (4) dedicated to the Capstone/Thesis project. So a student should expect to take eighteen (18) credits of coursework over the year, which makes for an average of nine (9) credits of coursework for each of the two semesters.

Planning Your Actual Schedule

Guiding Example: Below is an example of what a student's courseload during the total five years could look like. Bioethics courses may be looked up in the Range of Courses section of this website for their content, instructors, credits awarded and the curricular contexts in which they are offered. Einstein MD students will have to discuss, revise and submit their own equivalent plans soon after acceptance into the MBE program, upon meeting with their faculty advisors.