Electives in the MBBS curriculum: Designing and implementation

Objectives: To enhance the relevance of Indian Medical Graduate globally, the National Medical Commission (NMC), India, introduced Competency-based Medical Education (CBME) curriculum, which includes mandatory elective module. Electives aim to foster self-directed learning and provide exposure to students’ area of interest, beyond traditional curriculum. An elective enables students to explore career options beyond the confines of examinations, encouraging them to think creatively and critically. It also helps establish the groundwork for future professional pursuits by allowing students to align their ambitions with the practical realities of their desired field. The elective module introduces pre/para-clinical (Block 1) and clinical (Block 2) rotations to provide diverse learning opportunities in areas aligned with learners’ interests. Its effective implementation, allocation, and execution at the institutional level are imperative for its success. The objective of the study was: to develop a system for conducting electives to establish a mechanism for elective allocation and implementation Materials and Methods: The allocation process had five steps: sensitization of faculty, Sensitisation of students, elective topic preparation, student choice submission, and allotment. Electives were then executed. Students were divided into two groups (A and B) of about 75 each. Each block lasted 2 weeks, with group A in Block 1 and group B in Block 2, followed by a crossover. Results: Each pre/para and clinical department prepared list of elective based on resources and logistics available. Block 1 had 28 electives, and Block 2 had 46. Despite minor challenges, most students were allotted electives of their choice. Conclusion: Through the implementation of electives, we provided students with the opportunity to diversify their learning and develop self-directed learning skills.