MD Electives (Year Four)

You must complete three disciplines as defined by the PGY1 entry level list before you graduate. These can be accomplished using both elective and TTR/selective blocks.

Even if you do not think you are interested in family medicine as a career choice, completing an elective in family medicine may be a good choice as it will provide a wide range of experiences and as such may be relevant to other specialties. 

There are a wide range of family medicine experiences listed in the online electives catalogue. You will need to contact the supervisor directly to make arrangements to do an elective with them. You may also arrange an elective with a supervisor not listed in the catalogue. If you have a specific area of interest within family medicine, such as women’s health or ER, you can use the profiles of the preceptors listed in the electives catalogue to help identify a supervisor who includes this scope of practice in their work. 

Due to confidentiality concerns, you do not have access to student elective evaluations. Electives in family medicine are subject to periodic site visit reviews by the Family Medicine Electives Coordinator to ensure that they meet minimum standards and provide students with an optimal experience. 

You do not have to travel to do a family medicine elective but you may wish to do so in order to broaden your experience. ROMP offers opportunities across Ontario. You may also apply to other universities in Canada through the AFMC portal. The MedSIS catalogue covers a wide variety of electives in the GTA and surrounding areas.

No. In fact, it will be looked upon favorably if you have a wide range of family medicine experiences which may include community and rural electives.

There is no exact number of electives that you need to apply for family medicine. There should be enough to demonstrate that you have a keen interest in the field but a wide range of experiences is also looked upon favorably. Ideally, having at least one family medicine elective is important if you are applying for family medicine in the CaRMS match. 

Yes. Within a two week elective you can make a positive impression on your supervisor that will allow them to write you a strong and supportive reference letter. 

There is no specific number of letters they are expecting. You should have at least one strong reference letter from a family physician.

International and domestic visiting elective students must apply through the AFMC Portal for official elective experiences through the University of Toronto. There you will find a comprehensive policy and information on visiting electives.

The University of Toronto does not accept students for core clinical clerkship experiences from outside universities, given the large number of learners that we already accommodate in our system.

Claire Murphy MD CCFP M.Med FCFP
Undergraduate Electives Coordinator 
claire.murphy@wchospital.ca

Undergraduate Program Assistant
familymed.undergrad@utoronto.ca