Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine is a top-tier institution that combines cutting-edge research, innovative education, and a strong commitment to clinical excellence. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, Case Western provides students with unparalleled opportunities to engage in groundbreaking medical discoveries while working closely with diverse patient populations in one of the nation’s largest healthcare hubs. The school is known for its emphasis on interdisciplinary learning, fostering collaboration across medical, engineering, and scientific fields to address some of the most pressing healthcare challenges of our time. Learn how to get into Case Western medical school. Keep reading to explore Case Western’s admissions process, curriculum, student life, and more!
Dr. Rachel Rizal and Dr. Rishi Mediratta from Cracking Med School Admissions can offer personalized guidance to help you get into Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. Many of our Cracking Med School Admissions mentees receive partial or full tuition scholarships at Case Western Medical School each year! If you are not yet applying, plan your premed journey through our premed advising packages. If you are applying to medical school, then definitely work with us through our medical school application packages!
Why Choose Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine – MD University Program?
- Clinical rotations in diverse health systems and opportunity to work with different communities
- Residential neighborhoods nearby campus
- Receive regular individualized feedback on progress from medical professionals while working with small groups
Applications
CWRU has a separate secondary application than Cleveland Clinic Lerner. Make sure not to confuse the two!
For both the Cleveland Clinic Medical School secondary application and the Case Western Reserve University Medical School secondary application, be sure to emphasize 1) Research and 2) Commitment to gain strong clinical skills.
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Secondary Application Essay Prompts:
- Greatest Challenge: The Admissions Committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience, how you handled the uncertainty or stress, and what you learned about yourself as a result. (2,000 character limit)
- Personal Growth: Based on your current maturity and wisdom, reflect upon an experience from the past few years that you would handle differently today. (1,000 character limit)
- Cultural Awareness: Many have been reckoning with the impact of systemic injustices on social environments and healthcare equity. Describe a personal experience that has deepened your cultural awareness and humility, and the impact of that learning on how you look at health and healthcare. (1,500 character limit)
- Gap Year(s) if applicable: If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us why you made this decision and what you will be doing or have done during this gap. (1,000 character limit)
- Optional – Research/Scholarly Work:
- One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve2 Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a prerequisite requirement for the University Program, if you have participated in research or other scholarly project (capstone project, honors thesis, etc.), please reflect on the experience, including how you learned from it, what challenged you, and how it may have impacted you educationally and professionally. If you have not completed research or scholarly project, please indicate that in the text box below. (2,500 character limit)
- If the details of your project are included elsewhere in your application no need to repeat them here. We are interested in learning what you took away from the experience(s).
- If you are applying to both the University Program and the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Program, the research response will default to the CCL Program required response.
- Optional – Additional Information Response: Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee that may not be captured in the rest of your application? (2,000 character limit)
Case Western MSTP Secondary Essay Prompts
- The most successful medical students at our school are generally those who are intrinsically motivated, self-directed learners. Think of a time when you had to pursue a goal without clear external direction. Describe your approach and any new knowledge, perspectives, or skills that you acquired. (1,000 character limit)
- Based on your current maturity and wisdom, reflect upon an experience from the past few years that you would handle differently today. (1,000 character limit)
- PhD Advisor: What do you look for in a PhD advisor, and who at CWRU would interest you? (800 character limit)
- Area of Interest: What is your specific interest in the MSTP at CWRU? (800 character limit)
- Gap Year(s) if applicable: If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us why you made this decision and what you will be doing or have done during this gap time. (1,000 character limit)
Need Help With Your Case Western Medical School Secondary Essays?
Get the Cracking Med School Admissions team’s expertise through our secondary essay editing packages. If you have questions, email us at info@crackingmedadmissions.com or contact us.
CWRU School of Medicine
Interview Format
Be prepared to be grilled about research on your Cleveland Clinic Medical School interview!
To ace your traditional interview, you need to know how to answer common medical school interview questions. It’s important to practice, practice, practice.
Cracking Med Resources for Interviews:
- How to answer “Tell me about yourself” Medical School Interview Question
- How to answer “Why this Medical School?”
- 43 Questions To Ask Your Medical School Interviewers
- Download our Cracking Med School Admissions interview guide below
Contact us if you want to schedule a mock interview with our Cracking Med School Admissions team! Take a look at our interview packages.
download your interview guide
If you are prepared, the interview gives you the perfect opportunity to standout and shine by sharing with people what you are passionate about.
Case Western Medical School
Acceptance Rate
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Admissions Statistics:
- Case Western Medical School Average GPA: 3.89
- Case Western Medical School Average MCAT: 518
How Did Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Students Do On Their USMLE Step Exams?
- CWRU School of Medicine USMLE Step 1 Percentage Passing Rate: 95%
- Average CWRU School of Medicine USMLE Step 2 Score: 247
Source: US News
Your medical school application Coaches, Mentors, & Cheerleaders
We Personally Advise Every Student We Work With
Rachel Rizal, M.D.
Changing the trajectory of people's lives
Undergraduate
Princeton University
Medical School
Stanford School of Medicine
Residency
Harvard, Emergency Medicine
Awards & Scholarships
Fulbright Scholar
USA Today Academic First Team
Tylenol Scholarship
Rishi Mediratta, M.D., M.Sc., M.A.
Advising students to attend their dream schools
Undergraduate
Johns Hopkins University
Medical School
Stanford School of Medicine
Residency
Stanford, Pediatrics
Awards & Scholarships
Marshall Scholar
Tylenol Scholarship
Global Health Scholar
Each year, the Cracking Med School Admissions team
helps students get accepted to top medical schools.
We can help you get accepted!
Contact us today.
The Insider's View on CWRU's Pre-clinical years
How to Get Into Case Western Medical School – Know the Curriculum:
Curriculum Overview:
Case Western Medical School’s curriculum is designed to produce physician-scientists and clinicians who excel in evidence-based medicine and compassionate patient care. Its unique Western Reserve2 curriculum emphasizes research, leadership, and the social and behavioral determinants of health, ensuring graduates are well-prepared to drive change in a rapidly evolving healthcare landscape. For those seeking to gain admission to Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, demonstrating academic excellence, leadership potential, and a commitment to advancing medical knowledge and patient care will help set your application apart.
As a Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine student, your first year and bulk of your second year are spent in Foundations of Health and Medicine, divided into 5 blocks based on health concept or organ system. Then, you take USMLE Step 1. You spend your third year in core clinical rotations before taking the USMLE Step 2CK. Afterwards, students participate in two acting internships.
Pre-clinical Years:
The first two years at Case Western Medical School are pre-clinical years, divided into six different blocks. Another two blocks take place longitudinally throughout this time. Besides lectures, students gain clinical skills through clinical preceptorships and simulated clinical experiences.
The first two years consist of the following blocks:
- Becoming a Doctor (5 weeks)
- The Human Blueprint (11 weeks)
- Food to Fuel (10 weeks)
- Homeostasis (14 weeks, includes a clinical immersion week)
- Host Defense and Host Response (14 weeks)
- Cognition, Sensation, and Movement (13 weeks)
The following blocks take place longitudinally across the pre-clinical years:
- Structure: Gross Anatomy, Radiology, and Living Anatomy (GARLA) and Histopathology
- Foundations of Clinical Medicine
The Becoming a Doctor block is a five-week introductory program that focuses on population health and the physician’s role in society. Unlike the traditional approach, where students dive into molecular-level basic science without understanding its practical relevance, this block emphasizes how physicians can advocate for patients, address social and environmental health factors, and appreciate the importance of population health. Students engage in experiential and longitudinal learning activities that cover topics like epidemiology, biostatistics, community assessment, health risk behaviors, and the social determinants of health.
The subsequent five blocks, part of the Foundations of Medicine and Health, combine basic science education with early clinical exposure through preceptorships and simulated experiences. The curriculum integrates subjects across biological systems, allowing faculty from various disciplines to collaborate and teach interconnected concepts efficiently.
Tip – How to Get Into Case Western Medical School – Have ideas about what professors you want to research with and what type of research you want to do. Show that you are an independent researcher who wants to move medicine forward!
Grades:
- Grades for pre-clerkship years are Satisfactory/unsatisfactory
- Grades for clerkship years are Honors/Commendable/Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory
Unique highlights about pre-clinical years:
- Students engage in small groups with a faculty facilitator three times a week to discuss cases and get to develop their own learning objectives. Each session ends with a chance for self-reflection and peer feedback, allowing students to hone critical thinking skills and teamwork.
- During the Structure block, students participate in a two-week dissection boot camp and dissect a body cavity in groups of four before presenting the material to their peers.
- In their first year, students will go through the Research and Scholarship curriculum to prepare for a 12-week research project in the summer before their second year. They will then write an MD thesis in their second year.
Learn more about CWRU School of Medicine:
Check out the video below for a quick tour of the CWRU School of Medicine:
What students are saying about
CWRU School of Medicine
The Insider's View on CWRU's clinical years
Clinical Years:
CWRU School of Medicine students begin their core clerkship rotations in their third year. They have the option to participate in either traditional core clerkship rotations, the Cleveland Clinic Longitudinal Clerkship (CCLC), or the MetroHealth-CWRU Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (MetroLIC). There is little time for students to travel during this time, unless they choose to take school-approved electives outside of CWRU (in the domestic U.S/abroad).
The traditional core clinical rotations consists of:
- Core 1: Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, and Aging (12 weeks)
- Core 2: Pediatrics and OB/Gyn (12 weeks)
- Core 3: Neuroscience and Psychiatry (8 weeks)
- Core 4: Surgery and Emergency Medicine (8 weeks)
Main Clinical Rotation Sites:
- Cleveland Clinic
- University Hospitals of Cleveland
- MetroHealth Medical Center
- Louis Stokes VA Medical Center
The Cleveland Clinic Longitudinal Clerkship (CCLC) curriculum consists of:
- Longitudinal Ambulatory Block (12 weeks)
- Team-Based Care 1 – Inpatient Internal Medicine/Surgery (12 weeks)
- Team-Based Care 2 – OB, Inpatient Gynecology, Inpatient Pediatrics + electives (8 weeks + 4 weeks electives)
- Team-Based Care 3 – Neurology/Psychiatry + electives (8 weeks + 4 weeks electives)
All 40 weeks of clerkship rotations will be completed within the Cleveland Clinic Health System.
The 8 weeks of electives can be taken at other hospitals in the Cleveland area/as a visiting student at other institutions.
The MetroHealth-CWRU Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (MetroLIC) curriculum consists of:
- Clerkship rotations within the MetroHealth System + electives (40 weeks + 8 weeks electives)
- Inpatient bursts – internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, surgical, neurology, and psychiatry services (2-3 weeks each, spread across 4-week intervals )
All 40 weeks of clerkship rotations will be completed within the MetroHealth System.
The 8 weeks of electives can be taken at other hospitals in the Cleveland area/as a visiting student at other institutions.
Tip – How to Get Into Case Western Medical School – Be able to discuss clinical opportunities you want to pursue at CWRU. Know the difference of Cleveland Clinic vs. Metro Health. We’ve outlined it here!
Cleveland Clinic vs. Metro Health
Metro Health System
- Focus on Public and Community Health:
MetroHealth is a public health system affiliated with Case Western Reserve University. It focuses heavily on providing care to underserved and diverse patient populations, often including low-income, uninsured, or Medicaid patients. - Broad Range of Cases:
Students may encounter a wide variety of medical conditions, often influenced by social determinants of health. This setting offers valuable experience in addressing health disparities and understanding population health dynamics. - Trauma and Emergency Medicine:
MetroHealth is a Level I Trauma Center, so students rotating here often gain extensive exposure to trauma and emergency care scenarios. - Hands-On Learning:
With its mission to serve vulnerable communities, students may experience a more hands-on approach to patient care and a strong emphasis on community engagement.
Cleveland Clinic Health System
- World-Class Specialty Care and Research:
Cleveland Clinic is a globally renowned, high-profile health system known for its cutting-edge treatments, advanced technologies, and top-ranked specialty care (e.g., cardiology, oncology, neurology). - Tertiary and Quaternary Care:
Rotations here often involve highly complex cases, with a focus on specialized and procedural medicine. Students may observe and learn from experts handling rare and advanced conditions. - Prestige and Resources:
The Cleveland Clinic provides access to state-of-the-art facilities, groundbreaking research, and a vast network of specialists. This environment offers opportunities to participate in high-level academic medicine and multidisciplinary teamwork. - Patient Population:
The Cleveland Clinic tends to serve a more insured and affluent patient population, including international patients seeking specialized care. However, students are still exposed to diverse backgrounds through its extensive network.
The fourth year of CWRU School of Medicine consists of two required acting internships. One must be in the CWRU system at a Cleveland affiliate site.
To check out more details about the CWRU School of Medicine Curriculum:
Unique highlights about clinical years:
- CWRU offers Science and Art of Medicine, Integrated (SAMI) throughout the clerkship year to encourage collaboration between students as they solve a patient case in small groups at the simulation center. Students receive individual feedback on history and physical exam skills as they are facilitated by a clinician.
- Students have the opportunity to either serve at multiple different hospitals or in the same system throughout their clinical period.
- Electives are flexible and can be taken within the CWRU system or at any other clinical site.
What students are saying about clinical rotations at CWRU School of Medicine
Housing & Social
Where do students live?
- CWRU does not offer on-campus housing to School of Medicine students but it is close to safe residential neighborhoods where students often house together.
- Housing for students at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine offers a variety of convenient and affordable options near the campus in Cleveland. Many students live in neighborhoods like Little Italy, University Circle, or Coventry Village, which are close to campus and offer a mix of apartments, townhomes, and rental houses. These areas provide easy access to restaurants, coffee shops, and local amenities, creating a comfortable living environment.
- For those seeking more space or a quieter setting, nearby suburbs such as Shaker Heights or Cleveland Heights are popular choices, offering a short commute to campus. The diverse housing options ensure that students can find accommodations to suit their preferences and budget while staying connected to the vibrant Cleveland community.
Getting around:
- For neighborhoods close to campus, many students live in walking or biking distance. RTA buses also run between the campus area and these neighborhoods. Public transportation, like the RTA Mass Rapid Transit, is accessible. However, a car may make it easier to get to some clinical rotation sites.
Social Life:
- Many medical school students at Case do research throughout their time in medical school. Additionally, Cleveland’s lively culture adds to the experience, with students enjoying the city’s renowned dining scene, the Cleveland Orchestra, and attractions like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
- Outdoor enthusiasts often explore the Cleveland Metroparks or kayak on Lake Erie. The combination of campus activities and the vibrant Cleveland setting ensures students have a fulfilling social life alongside their rigorous medical education.
Tip – How to Get Into Case Western Medical School – During your interview, talk about specific aspects of the social life and medical school’s culture that you are excited about!
financing
Many of our Cracking Med School Admissions mentees receive partial or full tuition scholarships at Case Western Medical School each year! If you are not yet applying, plan your premed journey through our premed advising packages. If you are applying to medical school, then definitely work with us through our medical school application packages!
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine offers need based scholarships and has an outside scholarships inventory on their website.
- CWRU School of Medicine tuition and fees: ~$69,712 (in-state) and ~$69,712 (out-of-state)
- Average indebtedness of CWRU School of Medicine graduates: ~$236,289
Source: U.S. News
Cracking Med School Admissions Resources
Here are useful Cracking Med School Admissions resources:
- How To Write A Personal Statement For Medical School
- Download Cracking Med School Admission’s FREE AMCAS Activities Workbook
- Premed Timeline: Planning For Medical School Applications
Read our other popular school blogs here: