The preliminary year is designed to offer those interested in pursuing residency training in a field which requires a prior internship the opportunity for a comprehensive experience in all aspects of internal medicine. The year's schedule follows the first year of the categorical track schedule (see curriculum), and includes rotations through general medical wards and intensive care units at both University Hospital and DVAMC. Thus the trainee encounters a variety of inpatient medicine and all its subspecialties, and is afforded the opportunity to care for patients with different acuity of illness. Teaching on these inpatient services is of prime importance, and the closed system at Stony Brook (one attending for both teaching and patient care) enhances greatly the quality of education on the wards.

Ambulatory experience is chiefly gained in the continuity clinic at the DVAMC. Here, the trainee develops a sense of what an ambulatory practice in general internal medicine is like as he or she cares for a group of patients over the course of the year. Further ambulatory experience is gained in the Student Health rotation, and elective time if so desired by the individual trainee.

The resident in the preliminary track is expected to attend all conferences, through which the"Core Curriculum" is taught. This comprises all aspects of internal medicine, related subspecialties, and also addresses the scientific underpinnings of medicine: pathophysiology, molecular and cellular biology, and epidemiology. The series includes a section on study design, biostatistics and epidemiology. Additionally, much emphasis is placed in the program on the principles of evidence-based medicine, a tool which allows the trainees to utilize and critically appraise new medical information in whatever field they choose.