FIRST 100 WEEKS
The Surgical Skills Course for Second-Year Students
At the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine, second-year students step into the operating room mindset two years sooner than most of their peers — through a fully accredited surgical skills course taught by Northwell Health’s most active surgeons.
Sample CourseAccredited by the American College of Surgeons. Limited to 16 students per cohort. Built on the same training framework used for first-year surgery residents.
SURGICAL SKILLS
A Residency-Caliber Course, Designed for MS2s
Built in partnership with the American College of Surgery, the Association for Surgical Education, and the Association of Program Directors in Surgery, this course delivers the same foundational training given to first-year surgery residents nationwide. What began as a pilot is now in its fourth iteration and remains one of the most sought-after electives in the curriculum.
To protect the quality of the experience, enrollment is capped at sixteen students per cohort with a 2:1 student-to-instructor ratio in every lab.
Hands-On From Day One
Each week pairs a one-hour Socratic didactic session with a 90-minute lab. Students rotate through suturing, laparoscopy, endoscopy, and robotics — practicing the same techniques they’ll see attendings perform on rotation.
Every student takes home a full kit: laparoscopic instruments, a practice box, suturing tools, pads, and sutures. By the end of seven weeks, evaluated skill levels match those of fourth-year students entering the Surgery Match.
By the Numbers
16
Students per cohort
2:1
Student-to-instructor ratio
7
Weekly didactic and lab pairings
4
ore skill domains: suturing, laparoscopy, endoscopy, robotics
1
Full day in the OR with a Northwell surgeon
Contact Us
Brian Pinard, MD, MBA
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Structure Educator
Science Education
Room W219
Through early clinical experiences, case-based learning, and a curriculum built around critical thinking and self-direction, we prepare you for the medicine of today and tomorrow.