The overarching commitment of the Professional Development course Flex Week program is to provide dedicated time for students to deepen existing skills, discover new strengths, and build the experiential capabilities that will propel them forward in their medical career progression. Students have the opportunity to choose from structured activities or to create their own customized experiences spanning professional enrichment, research, shadowing, academic remediation, and wellbeing.
There are 6 dedicated flex weeks spaced throughout Foundations phase:
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MS2 (Class of 2029)
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Week
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Start Date (Mon)
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End Date (Fri)
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59
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9/14/26
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9/18/26
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69
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11/24/26 (T), 11/25/26 (W) & 11/30/26 (M)
3 days only, flanks Thanksgiving
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MS1 (Class of 2030)
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|---|---|---|
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Week
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Start Date (Mon)
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End Date (Fri)
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6
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8/31/26
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9/4/26
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13
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10/20/26 (T)
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10/23/26
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28
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2/1/27
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2/5/27
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33
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3/1/27
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3/5/27
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Create a Flex Week Experience
Anyone—students, staff, faculty, community members—can create an experience. See last year’s experiences here.
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Deadline to submit for a Flex Week running in Fall 2026 is Mon June 22nd
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Deadline to submit for a Flex Week running in Spring 2027 is Mon Oct 26th
Guidelines, averaged over the week as a whole: A daily average of 2 hour of synchronous activity (scheduled with other people at a set time occurring in person or remote) and 5 hours of total activity.
If you are interested in submitting a proposal for a flex week for 2026-2027, please fill out this FORM and submit to Dr. Lisa Borghesi, borghesi@pitt.edu, who can also answer questions about the program. See last year’s Flex Week Experiences brochure here.
Experience Director Responsibilities
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Add your chosen flex week dates to your calendar - block this time and assume you will have enrolled students
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If you need to cancel your flex week - please do so no later than 1 month prior to start date, notifying ddowns@pitt.edu and borghesi@pitt.edu
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Course organizers are responsible for pulling student rosters from the portal ahead of each flex week
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Contact your students ~1 week prior to start date to introduce yourself and confirm day 1 meetup location
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Do a final roster check the Friday prior to the start of your experience for any last minute add/drops
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ATTENDANCE: please observe student attendance during the flex week, attendance by registered students is required. Punctuality expectations, a matter of professionalism, apply.
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If you are a Professional Enrichment Course (PEC) organizer - provide certificate link to all students who successfully completed on the last day of your course