Personal and Professional Development (PPD)

PPD is a 4-year course that gives medical students structured time within the formal curriculum to build the skills, habits, and professional identity needed for lifelong learning, effective teamwork, and sustained well‑being in clinical practice. 

The curriculum is organized around four major curricular content areas: 

  1. Learning, metacognition, and coaching: Students learn about evidence‑based strategies for long‑term retention, goal setting, self‑regulated learning, and continuous improvement. Each student works with a coach to reflect on progress, set individualized learning goals, and develop habits that support ongoing growth and effective lifelong learning. 
  2. Teams and teamwork: Because medicine is practiced in teams, students receive deliberate training in team skills. Sessions emphasize clear communication, negotiation and conflict resolution, giving and receiving feedback, and recognizing and addressing implicit bias in themselves and others. Practical, team‑based exercises help students translate these skills into clinical settings. 
  3. Personal and professional growth and wellness: The course teaches skills essential for thriving as a student and a physician, including professionalism, resilience, self‑care, emotional regulation, and strategies for recognizing and responding to burnout. Students practice coping strategies and develop personalized plans to maintain wellbeing while navigating the stresses of training and patient care. 
  4. Career development and leadership skills: Students need to engage in career exploration and receive advising along the way . The curriculum also cultivates leadership skills that prepare students to take on future roles in clinical teams, education, and health systems. 

Throughout PPD, students engage in reflective exercises, experiential activities, and skill‑building workshops. Faculty coaches and content experts provide mentorship, feedback, and individualized goal‑setting. By the end of the course, students will have developed a toolkit of learning strategies, teamwork and leadership skills, and wellness practices that support their growth as competent, compassionate, and resilient physicians. 

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