Joint Medical Program | UC Berkeley Public Health

The UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program (JMP) advances health equity and social justice by educating a workforce of physicians who practice at the intersection of medicine, public health and community health. The JMP provides a unique integrated medical and research curriculum that develops outstanding physicians and collaborative changemakers with the skills to solve public health and health equity challenges and improve the wellbeing of patients and communities.

A Five-Year Graduate and Medical Degree Program

The UC Berkeley–UCSF Joint Medical Program (JMP) is a five-year graduate/medical degree program. Students spend their pre-clerkship years at UC Berkeley engaging in a unique medical curriculum centered around student-led inquiry while simultaneously earning a master’s degree (MS) in the Health and Medical Sciences at Berkeley Public Health. After two and a half years, students move across the Bay to UCSF to finish their medical education and receive their medical doctorate (MD).

The Master’s Program and Innovative Curriculum

The JMP attracts students who are dedicated to improving the world’s health through scholarly self-directed yet collaborative inquiry. The Master’s program in Health and Medical Sciences (HMS MS) supports the JMP curriculum’s vision by adding to the traditional scientific education a framework of critical inquiry and humanism that affords students the intellectual, practical, and ethical skills to promote and lead change processes aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities.

Concurrently, students participate in an innovative student-led, faculty-supported Foundational Sciences curriculum through small group learning strategies like Problem-Based Learning (PBL) and Team-Based Learning (TBL), as well as a Clinical Skills curriculum, which integrates a structural and systems approach to patient care.

Program Roadmap and Academic Milestones

• Years 1 – 2.5 (UC Berkeley): Pre-clerkship years focused on student-led inquiry and completion of the Master’s degree (MS) in the Health and Medical Sciences.
• Years 2.5 – 5 (UCSF): Completion of medical education and receipt of the medical doctorate (MD).
• Community: Each class of 16 students is supported by a multidisciplinary, close-knit, and inter-professional team of faculty and staff.

Professional Outcomes and Skills

Upon completion of the five-year program, JMP physicians are strong clinical thinkers, able to engage in understanding the broader issues surrounding medicine through inquiry. They have the skills to:

1. Conduct and interpret research;
2. Work well in multi-disciplinary teams;
3. Teach;
4. Challenge and change assumptions for how we think about, contextualize and practice medicine within larger systems.

Support and Funding

Help us to train outstanding physicians committed to health equity and social justice through a variety of funds, including:

• The JMP Diversity Fund;
• The JMP Student Services Fund;
• The Kevin Mack Medical Education Leadership Support fund.