MD students, including medical students and physician residents, at the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science’s, College of Medicine (CDU COM) are currently struggling to find consistent and true quiet spaces to prepare for STEP, shelf exams, and other major examinations. This makes it challenging for MD students to complete uninterrupted practice exams or maintain a focused study environment without relying on noise canceling headphones or other measures to block out distractions. It especially adds another barrier to succeeding for neurodivergent students and those who require studying accommodations.

At CDU, there are currently only two established open access quiet spaces on campus open to all CDU students, including the quiet space on the 4th floor of the Health Professions Education Building (HPEB), that houses CDU COM as of July 2026, and the CDU Library located in the Cobb building, which is the former home of CDU COM. Unfortunately, these spaces are not consistently quiet or free from distractions, particularly due to CDU students outside of the MD programs who do not respect the visible quiet signs posted throughout the space. Although CDU COM offers proctored practice testing on Fridays, this provides students with only one day per week with temporary access to a consistent and silent practice exam environment. Additionally, as of August 10, 2026, MD students no longer have access to reserve the CDU Testing Center for proctored practice exams due to limited space. As a result, students preparing for major examinations often have to move between different locations, both on and off campus to find a silent space. This makes it difficult to establish a consistent study routine and find a reliable location where students can complete practice exams in testing conditions without interruptions or the use of items not allowed during actual test day.

Under the current study space reservation system at HPEB, all CDU students are only allowed to make a same day 4 hour reservation, while at the Cobb building, students are only allowed to hold one 4 hour reservations at a time. Though these limitations are in place to promote fair access and equal use of the study spaces, they make it difficult for MD students to plan ahead and maintain a consistent study schedule, particularly during dedicated periods of exam preparation that requires prolonged and intense studying.

According to a 2024 study, 44.6% of medical students reported studying 9- 11 hours per day during their dedicated STEP 1 preparation period. This substantially exceeds the current 4-hour daily reservation limit and highlights the need for students to have more consistent access to a silent dedicated study environment (Source: Wang, 2024).

Additionally, a 2018 study examining the impact of a new medical school building on student experiences emphasized the importance of considering how physical space can influence and shape students’ learning experiences and professional identity development. The authors highlighted that these considerations are particularly important when planning new medical school learning spaces or modifying existing ones (Source: Hawick, 2018).

In 2025, when the CDU COM program was located at Cobb and quiet study spaces on campus were limited to the CDU Library, Cobb Workrooms A- D were made exclusively available to the Class of 2027 during their STEP 1 dedicated period. These silent spaces were available as drop in study areas and did not require individual reservations. Although this arrangement was not made for the Class of 2028, it demonstrates that CDU has previously provided MD students with consistent and accessible silent study spaces during periods of intensive examination preparation. One possible adaptation of this system would be to allow multiple MD students to reserve the same space for an entire study day of approximately 9- 11 hours, or alternatively, to designate an exclusive room for students who are actively preparing for an examination rather than using the space for general studying.

After speaking with CDU physician residents and MD peers at other medical schools across the U.S., we learned that some medical study spaces require visitors to present an MD student ID for entry, creating study environments specifically designated for medical students and physician residents. This demonstrates that dedicated study spaces for medical students and residents are already implemented at other institutions.

Given that the MD program has the highest annual tuition at CDU, at $69,000 per year for approximately 240 students, as well as the highest number of national board examinations required for graduation among CDU’s health programs, the CDU COM Classes of 2027- 2030 are requesting the establishment of a dedicated “CDU COM Exam Prep Room” in HPEB. This space would be available to MD students, both medical students and physician residents, who are actively preparing for or scheduled to take STEP, a shelf exam, or another major examination. Establishing this space would not require any additional cost unless CDU chooses to add an official sign, similar to the existing LA Care room. The space would give MD students a consistent, quiet, and distraction free environment where they can study for extended periods, complete non proctored practice examinations, and adequately prepare to pass their exams on the first attempt.

Thank you,

The CDU COM classes of 2027- 2030

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