Tufts University School of Medicine

End-of-Core-Clerkship Objective Structured Clinical Examination

The End-of-Core-Clerkship Objective Structured Clinical Examination (EoCC OSCE) is a high-stakes evaluation that each student takes as they complete their Core Clerkships. The evaluation consists of 7-8 encounters with standardized patients (SPs) that present with various medical concerns. Clinical encounters are selected to span specialties, from Pediatrics to Surgery to Psychiatry; a student may encounter a SP with, for example, headache, abdominal pain, amenorrhea, or anxiety.

Students must demonstrate that they can take a complete yet concise medical history, perform a competent physical exam appropriate for the clinical concern, communicate effectively with the patient, and generate a reasonable differential diagnosis and management plan. Passing the EoCC OSCE is a graduation requirement for TUSM students.

Each student-SP is video recorded. Faculty for the EoCC OSCE watch student videos remotely and assess students’ competence in domains of history-taking, physical exam, and communication skills. Faculty are asked to provide general feedback for the student about their performance. Faculty also review the student’s write-up and assess clinical reasoning for the encounter. Faculty are expected to review only 2 scenarios – for example, the headache and abdominal pain scenarios – and for a minimum of 4 students. This translates to a minimum of 120 minutes (2 hours) of video encounters per year per EoCC OSCE faculty. Faculty are welcome and encouraged to review for more than 4 students, however, and can choose how many students they choose to review each year.

EoCC OSCEs are conducted every spring, March through June, over approximately 20 dates. Faculty will be notified in advance of the window when they can expect to conduct their reviews; faculty are expected to return scoring sheets within 7-10 days of receiving the materials. Faculty can request dates to avoid, in order to account for vacations, conferences, and other times that are less ideal.

Time Commitment

  • Minimum of 2 hours per year, typically in spring.
  • Review of the videos is flexible within a 10-day timeframe and completed remotely

Contacts