['We developed a novel curriculum teaching 20 open surgical skills in 5 general domains (instrument handling, knot tying, simple wound closure, advanced wound closure, and hemostasis). The curriculum includes online didactics, skills practice, and defined performance metrics, but is entirely self-guided with no expert oversight or teaching.', 'Subjects included first- and second-year medical students (n = 9). Subjects first viewed a demonstration video depicting proper technique. The pretest was video-recorded performance of each skill. Subjects then completed the self-guided skills curriculum at their own pace, returning for posttesting once they met defined self-assessment criteria. Performance was evaluated through both self-assessment and blinded video review by 2 expert reviewers using previously validated scales.', 'After completion of the curriculum, performance improved significantly by both self-assessment (3,754 ± 1,742 to 6,496 ± 1,337; P < .01, Wilcoxon signed ranks) and expert assessment (10.1 ± 2.6 to 14.6 ± 2.7; P = .015). When analyzed by the 5 general domains, performance was significantly better for all domains by self-assessment (P < .05 for all domains) and in 4 domains by expert assessment (P < .04 for all domains other than instrument handling).'] Does a structured self-directed basic skills curriculum result in improved technical performance in the absence of expert faculty teaching?