At Roseman University, we strive to do what works, which is not necessarily the same as what other more traditional universities are doing. Our block curriculum is one of the things that sets Roseman apart, and is one of the reasons our graduates are well prepared for careers in the health sciences field.
Traditional Curriculum
At a traditional college or university, the curriculum is delivered in semesters or quarters, and you might take three or four classes at a time. You would have to divide your attention between these classes, and have major assignments in all four at once. For example, a nursing major at a traditional university might enroll in chemistry, physiology, anatomy and microbiology in a given semester. Each of these courses is intense, and each one is important, but if you have a chemistry test on the same day as an anatomy test, you will have to choose which class is more important and devote more study time to that course, shortchanging the other. Then the two courses in which you don’t have tests will probably be forgotten entirely until the tests are finished. While this system has been in place for many years at universities throughout the world, Roseman University co-founders Dr. Rosenberg and Dr. Coffman thought there might be a better way to learn.
Block Curriculum
When it opened in 1999, Roseman University (then the Nevada College of Pharmacy) introduced a new way to deliver curriculum, called the block curriculum. Instead of dividing the course work up into little bits and then taking short intervals of several classes at a time, at Roseman, you take only one class at a time. You study only one subject , and you attend class six hours a day, five days a week. This allows more complete focus and deeper understanding of that singular subject. Every two weeks, professors give an assessment to gauge how well you learned that material. Roseman doesn’t have a typical A-F letter grade system, either. Instead, every block is pass or no-pass. If you make a 90%, you pass. If you earn below a 90%, you must study and try again to master the content that gave you trouble.
Why it Works
While you can still learn a great deal from traditional curriculum models, some of that might just be a surface understanding, since you are juggling many subjects at once. Roseman’s block curriculum instead encourages a deeper understanding of only one subject. Once that subject is mastered, you move on to the next vital block of information you will need to be a nurse, dentist or pharmacist. By achieving 90% or higher on every test and in every block you take, you give yourself an edge when it comes to your career in healthcare; you have mastered every subject you have studied. Having a cursory knowledge cannot compete with true mastery.
Roseman’s block curriculum sets us apart from the crowd of traditional universities. By graduating from Roseman, you will set yourself apart with exceptional knowledge and deep understanding of your healthcare field.