<p>I am fully aware that almost all medical schools are intense. But since some medical schools have the true pass-fail system, some medical schools must be somewhat easier than others.</p>
<p>I am not talking about how easy to get in a school, since almost all of 126 (or 125?) schools are difficult to get in. What I am interested in is: once you get in, which one would not “eat up your life” as much as some other more intense medical schools would? A related question is which medical schools are famous for being extremely intense?</p>
<p>I hope this will not be a politically incorrect question, as most medical students will not like to hear that their schools are easier. Maybe I should use the word “more humane” rather than “easy” here. I believe there must be some students out there who are interested in going to one of these “more humane” (but still rigorous enough to enable their students to pass Step 1 and 2) medical schools.</p>
<p>There is one school in Texas , more so than any other I have heard of anywhere, that has both a good rep (and great Step 1 scores) and a “less intense” even “laid-back” atmosphere. UTMB (Galveston). And then there’s the beach. My D was much more impressed with it than she expected to be. </p>
<p>And she loved the curriculum.</p>
<p>On the less “laid-back” but still “happy” level : Baylor , Dartmouth, and UVa from her list also have the “happy students” rep from what I can tell.</p>
<p>I go to a P/F (for the first two years) school. I think it’s a mild advantage to go to a school with P/F grading since you are not quite so stressed about individual tests. But, the students here are still INSANE in their studying/dedication. I’m not sure I would be studying any more or less had I gone to a school with a traditional grading system, perhaps slightly more stressed. In the end, everyone has to learn the same thing in order to score well (not just pass) on the USMLE.</p>
<p>Agree with norcal, its the lack of stress in working hard rather than working less hard. I also go to a P/F unranked school (pre-clinicals) and our averages are still 85-90. Columbia and Yale are both known for their laid back atmosphere.</p>
<p>I feel privileged that three VERY knowledgeable CCers (MS2, MS1 and MS0’s Dad :)) answer my questions. Thanks!</p>
<p>I think I should have (but didn’t) used the word “happy students” instead of “easy”.
All medical students have had a proven record that they have the well-above-average intellectual capacity and work ethics. So I think there is definitely a virtue to go to a school (if s/he has a choice of course) which tries to do something to help relieve some pressure off student’s shoulder. The pressure to do well enough on USMLE is already heavy enough. It takes much more than 4 years to become an experienced doctor any way.</p>
<p>I do not know much about the differences among UT medical schools. I have the impression that the curriculum at UTMB is different from other UT public medical schools (Is it called PBL instead of traditional?) Also, I heard from a friend (who has a relative studying at UTSW many years ago) that UTSW is more intense than other UT medical schools, but I do not know whether this statement is still true as of today – I learned recently that all classes in the first semester there are P/F now.</p>
<p>UTSW has instituted changes designed to make the experience less intense but…the reputation still persists. My D will be attending a second-look in February and I can assure you that she will be investigating the “life-style” issues above all else.</p>
<p>I am a parent whose S is a premed. So medicine is definitely not for an old folk like me. </p>
<p>But the question you raised (i.e., whether medicine is the right profession for him) has been in my mind for several years. Although whether or not he will go into this field should be ultimately up to him, it is our experience that our thinking/opinions may still influence his decision to some extent. The influence could not be completely avoided. Therefore, I find a need to come to this board to educate myself so that I myself will not have a false illusion about it. A potential nightmare for parents of a premed is: What if he finds out medicine is not for him too late, for example, after two or even three years into a medical school? To back out from that career path so late will cost him dearly.</p>
<p>Granted, there are other premeds who work harder than him. But he is not totally foreign to the intense competition required of premeds, considering the fact that he has been getting above-average grades in almost all of the pre-req classes. I heard that even some TA-led session (e,g., immuno last semester) could be very mentally draining because almost every student would spend tons of hours on it before each TA session. The environment is such that it automatically forces you to spend a lot of study time on it as everybody’s goal there is to get that precious A. (He did manage to get an A on this one.)</p>
<p>But occasionally, when his mode is not so spirited, he may wonder when this seemingly never-ending hard work will end. I think he now understands that it will definitely not end in medical school. (He has several friends at his school whose brother or sister is in medical school now.) I think it is good for him to know this before he gets into this path. This is because, if he knows it and still decides to go into it (assuming he could get into a medical school in the end), it means he is committed to it.</p>
<p>My son was a relatively laid back pre-med. He worked very hard, but made sure he had a good social life. If he put an appropriate amount of work into a course and got a B+, he was comfortable. He simply would not study on Friday and Saturday nights. </p>
<p>He’s now in his secon year of medical school, and guess what, he’s pretty much the same. He works very hard (med school requires more work than undergraduate, at least for him), but he has a serious girl friend and a good social life. Once again, he gets mostly As (actually Honors under his system), but if gets some Bs, and as long as he’s put in the work he things reasonable, he doesn’t sweat it. I’m sure many of his class mates freak out over grades. </p>
<p>Bottom line: its the person, and who he or she chooses to hang out with, more than the school, that largely determines your anxiety level.</p>
<p>I think a discussion of “intensity” level among the admittedly intense options is more than appropriate. Some students may wonder if their study habits are up to snuff, as in “will I survive?”. For others , it is “will I thrive academically?”. Still for others (like mine) it’s “can I thrive academically while still having a moderate social life without completely imploding?” I’m sure there are plenty of other versions of the question, too.</p>
<p>Nobody is doubting the difficulty and commitment required for medical school, as far as I can tell. They are just asking if some schools have happier , maybe even better adjusted, students than others - and maybe as a follow-up, why is this so? Is it curriculum, the student body as selected, grading, test schedules, any student helpful hand-holding modalities in place, streaming lectures, class attendance policies, …?</p>
<p>Between schools on my D’s list, there are schools with no grades, no required tests, no rankings for the clinical years, all the way to pretty traditional grading, from block testing, or everybody tests all classes at once. From all PBL to mostly lecture.</p>
<p>Lots of differences that most undergrads haven’t faced before and they are having to make a wag as to what suits them best. So they, and they through us, ask stupid questions or questions that seem to imply to some posters that they are slackards looking for The Happy-Time Medical School of Fun.</p>
<p>I’m going to disagree with BDM here and say that it’s hard to make any conclusions on the student body based on your interview day. When I interviewed, I looked for things like how happy the students seemed, how stressed they were, how many came to talk to us, etc. But, now that I’m in med school, I have a much different perspective. </p>
<p>The # of students that come visit and talk to the interviewees is not necessarily reflective of the enthusiasm of the students for the school. I know on some days we have anatomy lab or extra lectures in the 10AM-12AM time slot that we typically go to chat with interviewees. On those days, it’s just not possible to get many M1’s to go the admissions office. </p>
<p>The other thing is that the entire mood of the student body absolutely changes when a test is upcoming. I used to get annoyed when student hosts would turn me down because they have a test later that week. I figured that I would just stay out of their way. What’s the big deal? During test week, every hour is a big deal. Hence, if you are interviewing at the school during testing time, it’s just natural the students will be under high stress or will be studying instead of chatting with you. I’m sure there are qualitative differences b/w the student bodies at different schools but I’m not sure how you can necessarily gauge that from the 20 minutes you spend talking to the students on interview day.</p>
<p>I think if you want to gauge how social or fun a class is, ask the students what kind of student interest groups they have, how many intramural sports, do they put on any comedy or cultural shows, do they have med school formals/prom, how many EC’s each student typically takes on, how competitive it is to volunteer at the free clinics, etc.</p>
<p>^ Maybe with the exception of the last two (medical school formals and free clinics), most others may be equivalent to the following: How much is the social life there like what you would see in a “buzzing” college (with the exception of some tech schools like Harvey Mudd, Caltech, engineering part of MIT)? LOL.</p>
<p>This reminds me that PrincessND once said on an online chat (that she helped organize) that her college experience is a blast. If I remember correctly, she might have said that she chose her medical school in the midwest mostly due to the atmosphere there.</p>
<p>hey, mcat2. Don’t forget that 80+% male HMC is directly next door to all female Scripps. When my D went to visit on a scholarship week-end the Mudders were holding their own , party-wise, with couches set up on the lawn and quite a bit of foolishness. D said they were quite a hoot (but she certainly didn’t say “hoot”. She said some other word, maybe even something from this century ;)).</p>
<p>curm, Many years ago, DS was admitted to Pomona, but did not have a chance to visit its campus. (He received a big fat zero financial-aid.) A funny thing was that he had the most fun interview with the interviewer from that school. They talked to each other like two and a half hours. (I remember one topic they talked about was Bloody Valentine. I have no idea what it is. Is it some old music in our generation?) I think it has something to do with the fact that both of them are music lovers and both of them are very laid-back. (That alumni finally decided to enter a law school 5 or 6 years after having been graduated from Pomona. He seems to be contented to be a TA for that many years.) He might be the most laid-back person he has ever met. Wait…DS met another even more laid-back person. One of his suitemates decided to skip the final just because he felt that having a little bit more sleep is more important than taking the final. DS had no choice but physically pull him out of his bed, as he would feel worse than his friend would if his friend let go of a credit just like that. I think his friend does not give it a d*** about what grade any professor gives him. (He is very very good reader, writer and thinker.)</p>