The overall educational goal is to provide the medical student with an introductory exposure to the evaluation and compassionate care of patients with general thoracic surgical disease.

Specific educational goals include: application of focused history and physical exam skills, formulation of relevant differential diagnoses, familiarity with basic thoracic surgical anatomy, comprehension of thoracic surgical goals and expected outcomes, and application of evidence-based guidelines as they relate to all aspects of general thoracic surgery.