Ask questions to current 1T6's

[ACHQ]

Re: learning useless basic science content

 

In first year, it's easy to see why you might find some of the information "useless". I certainly did during first year. In second year, it becomes apparent how USEFUL that information is, nay, sometimes even important, and you will be thankful for having been taught the whole picture.

 

Yeah I think I overestimated the number at 5%. It's probably more like 1-2% at most.

 

In my comment I didn't mean to say that I feel a lot of the stuff we learn is "useless", I meant that we DO learn a FEW things that are probably not very useful (but again that is relative to whatever field you go into, since medicine is extremely vast).

 

But like you said, as a first year its hard to tell. But the lectures I'm talking are in the extreme minority (and I still feel they're somewhat useless haha, I'm glad to hear they will come in handy though).

[MD2015:)]

Re: basic science

 

In first year I thought that embryology and histology were pretty blehhh and maybe not too useful, but they have come up over and over in second year. Embryology came up in ASCM and shadowing a few times this week actually....they come up a lot in pediatrics & obs/gyn in particular. Looking at histology slides right now of the kidney that are useful for diagnosing kidney disease and i'd rather have been exposed to it in first year so I at least understand all the terminology on pathology reports

 

When the basic science stuff comes up, you just try to take it in, try to figure out what is more relevant to you as a doc and just learn that, and know where to look up the rest of it. I've found it helpful being exposed to tons of information so that it's familiar....they dont expect you to retain most of the information in detail the first time you're exposed to it. You learn basic human anat & physiology first year, cover it all again in 2nd year but focus on diagnosis and treatment, and see it again in 3rd & 4th year with real patients...so you dont have to worry about trying to retain everything right away. Doing anatomy right off the bat in first year was a pain at the time but makes everything else easier to grasp.

[ACHQ]

Re: basic science

 

In first year I thought that embryology and histology were pretty blehhh and maybe not too useful, but they have come up over and over in second year. Embryology came up in ASCM and shadowing a few times this week actually....they come up a lot in pediatrics & obs/gyn in particular. Looking at histology slides right now of the kidney that are useful for diagnosing kidney disease and i'd rather have been exposed to it in first year so I at least understand all the terminology on pathology reports

 

Yeah I figured histo and and embryo would be like that. Those are ones I can see being useful later on for sure (but maybe not right away). But I was referring to other (in between) lectures and not those larger subjects.

 

Re: basic science

 

When the basic science stuff comes up, you just try to take it in, try to figure out what is more relevant to you as a doc and just learn that, and know where to look up the rest of it. I've found it helpful being exposed to tons of information so that it's familiar....they dont expect you to retain most of the information in detail the first time you're exposed to it. You learn basic human anat & physiology first year, cover it all again in 2nd year but focus on diagnosis and treatment, and see it again in 3rd & 4th year with real patients...so you dont have to worry about trying to retain everything right away. Doing anatomy right off the bat in first year was a pain at the time but makes everything else easier to grasp.

 

I agree, as a first year (at any school), you're always worried about whether you'll remember everything (or anything!). It's good to know things keep coming up (that even happens a bit in first year).

[quackster]

I think people are over estimating the "basic science" volume at UofT. If anything it's just not always presented in the context of pathology at first.

[JTJ]

Did anyone in your class *not* feel so great after their interview??

[Guest Fresh_Underwear]

Did anyone in your class *not* feel so great after their interview??

I felt terrible after interview. Mine didn't start off right, so I choked up on the very first question. But I've mentioned in a previous post. It doesn't matter how you feel about your interview, it's about how the interviewer feels about your interview. So don't try to over-analyze, not worth your time or concentration.

[mew2alakazam]

Students at other schools say that you folks are extremely busy with lectures and curricular activities. They say that you have less time for extracurriculars, shadowing, athletics, and so forth, especially compared to Mac. They say that your class is nowhere near as close-knit as Western/Queen's.

 

Is there any truth to these worries?

 

A: I honestly don't have information to compare/contrast. However, I still keep up with the things I love to do from undergrad/grad. I have even more time to exercise and be more physically fit. Bottom line is, if you can make it to U of T med, you will be able to find time to do the things you really want to do.

 

Roughly what proportion of you live on residence and how many of you simply stay at home because you live nearby?

 

Thanks for the detailed reply ACHQ!

 

1. Do you need a car if you live downtown? How reasonable are your travel times in first/second year? I like to be everywhere in-person.

A1: I'm at MAM, but I've lived in downtown for undergrad/grad so going from that, I would say no.

 

2. How has it been finding a place to live? Everything's so expensive downtown. How close are you to your classes and the places where you need to be?

A2: Very easy. I'm at MAM rez. Guaranteed housing. Yes it can be expensive anywhere, but it's not exactly about how much you make, but about how you spend it. Focus on the small, daily purchases that you do, like asking yourself whether you really need that cup of Starbucks. Also, dt Chinatown and supermarkets around MAM has really cheap groceries.

 

3. Can you shadow in Mississauga?

A3: ditto previous response. OF COURSE YOU CAN! You are not limited to shadowing within your on academy.

 

4. Do you get a nifty lab coat like Mac?

A4: ditto previous response. No, but I think the stethoscope ceremony is more meaningful. It's about listening to your patients.

 

5. How are your professors? Are they likeable? Friendly to students? Do they take on active mentorship roles in training the doctors of tomorrow? (Or are they disengaged like some undergrad U of T profs?)

A5: Generally likeable, almost all friendly. I believe you would find profs like that at any university, though..............

 

6. What's your least favourite thing about U of T med?

A6: That we may have reputations about being so busy with our workload that we have very little time for extra-curricular activities when actually we're not?

 

7. What's your favourite thing about U of T med?

A7: So far, being able to learn such great material while living at MAM. The endorphins and the starry night skies has really helped me at times.

 

8. Did the U of T name have anything to do with your acceptance there? Did you consider other schools?

A8: Nope

 

9. Where would you go if U of T was not an option? Why?

A9: UBC, because that's my only other choice.

 

10. If you were a dinosaur, which dinosaur would you be? Why? What if you could only be friends with other dinosaurs of that type?

A10: Raptor, because that's what's commonly associated with Toronto. What if I could only be friends with other raptors? Fine by me.

 

1. Do you need a car if you live downtown? How reasonable are your travel times in first/second year? I like to be everywhere in-person.

 

2. How has it been finding a place to live? Everything's so expensive downtown. How close are you to your classes and the places where you need to be?

 

3. Can you shadow in Mississauga?

 

4. Do you get a nifty lab coat like Mac?

 

5. How are your professors? Are they likeable? Friendly to students? Do they take on active mentorship roles in training the doctors of tomorrow? (Or are they disengaged like some undergrad U of T profs?)

 

6. What's your least favourite thing about U of T med?

 

7. What's your favourite thing about U of T med?

 

8. Did the U of T name have anything to do with your acceptance there? Did you consider other schools?

 

9. Where would you go if U of T was not an option? Why?

 

10. If you were a dinosaur, which dinosaur would you be? Why? What if you could only be friends with other dinosaurs of that type?

[futuredoctors]

Wait so how much choice do we actually have in picking our academy and downtown v.s mam? it's a lot easier for me to be at mam if i get in as my family is here. is this something that can be arranged?

[mew2alakazam]

Wait so how much choice do we actually have in picking our academy and downtown v.s mam? it's a lot easier for me to be at mam if i get in as my family is here. is this something that can be arranged?

 

This is just according to last year's trends.

1) If you are accepted today and

a. you picked either "MAM" or "no preference", it's quite likely you will get MAM.

b. you picked St.George, they do a lottery to decide who fill up the rest of the MAM spots

 

2) If you are accepted from the waitlist, it can go either way. Depends on which of the successful applicants refuse U of T.

 

Then again, this was last year. Only about half of the MAMers actually put MAM or no preference.

P.S. I'm one of the ones that put St.George as my first choice, but I'm actually glad I got MAM instead.

[RevSphere18]

Wait so how much choice do we actually have in picking our academy and downtown v.s mam? it's a lot easier for me to be at mam if i get in as my family is here. is this something that can be arranged?

 

Hey,

 

If you get Downtown then you decide between PB/WB/Fitz. They do their best to get you one of your top 2 choices, but essentially you rank these 3 in order of preference.

[collaborate1discover]

Are those on the waitlist still eligible for the admission bursaries?

[nino]

do we need to wait until they send out an email about choosing academy first before we actually choose? in the URL they provided with the offer email there's actually a link to surveymonkey where we can choose the academy, should we do that asap or wait until they send out notification first?

[ACHQ]

When do they send out the academy choice emails? What if you get off the waitlist later - do you still get to select which academy you'd prefer?

 

I just check my previous emails and they were set on May 25 (and then again for some reason on May 31st) of last year. So I would say give it about 2 weeks or so.

 

If they provided a link then I guess you can fill it out. I would wait a bit though just so your acceptance stuff gets put through. Maybe ask them?

[blindsight]

do we need to wait until they send out an email about choosing academy first before we actually choose? in the URL they provided with the offer email there's actually a link to surveymonkey where we can choose the academy, should we do that asap or wait until they send out notification first?

 

I'm not sure! It would be good to know if filling it out sooner was beneficial. My hunch would be that it doesn't matter though. The deadline is June 5th and the academy tours are on May 25th. They probably did this so that we can get a better sense of which academies we like if we were still unsure before the June 5th deadline. Since the program is made to maximize 1st choices and minimize 3rd choices, it would make sense to have everyone's responses in before running the algorithm.

 

That being said, it's always safest to check!

[thehumanmacbook]

I'm leaning really hard towards U of T (St. George). I just have a couple of questions that hopefully some current U of T students can help me out with so that I can finalize my decision?

 

1) my UG program really focused a lot on self-directed learning and PBL. With the more "traditional" focus was it hard to keep up with the volume of lectures and material? For people from a PBL background, how long was it before you achieved the "paradigm shift?"

 

2) Is there a place (probably the facebook page, but just in case) that we can find a list of equipment and material that we would need for first year?

 

3) When should we start looking for condos to rent? Is it better to find a place closer to MSB or the academy that you're assigned to?

 

4) I'm feeling a little scared that I won't be able to survive the volume of material...maybe because I avoided going to U of T in UG because of its reputation. Anyone have any relaxing words ?

[ACHQ]

I'm leaning really hard towards U of T (St. George). I just have a couple of questions that hopefully some current U of T students can help me out with so that I can finalize my decision?

 

1) my UG program really focused a lot on self-directed learning and PBL. With the more "traditional" focus was it hard to keep up with the volume of lectures and material? For people from a PBL background, how long was it before you achieved the "paradigm shift?"

 

I came from a more traditional program so I can't really comment on how hard the "shift" was. However I was removed from Undergrad for about 3 years before starting medical school (and didn't do any courses or anything), so I was at first worried about how I could make the adjustment back to school, especially with UofT's "reputation". I definitely think the adjustment was pretty easy if you are able to plan a bit. There will be times where you definitely are studying a lot more, and other times where you are studying very little. Make sure to be able to take breaks (e.g. days off). STF is probably busier than any other part of 1st year, after that it gets much better. So I don't believe the adjustment will be that difficult for you, and remember all you need to do is pass, which I think is pretty simple to do as long as you put in SOME effort.

 

2) Is there a place (probably the facebook page, but just in case) that we can find a list of equipment and material that we would need for first year?

 

 

The main equipment needed is a stethoscope, tuning forks, reflex hammer, vision card, pen light, and BP cuffs (kinda). I really only used these things. There is a sale at the beginning of the school year which they hold to sell these items, so I wouldn't worry too much about it!

 

 

3) When should we start looking for condos to rent? Is it better to find a place closer to MSB or the academy that you're assigned to?

 

 

I would say look for a place closer to MSB. The majority of your time will be there. In terms of academy assignments, regardless of where you are I would be downtown because you can get from downtown to all the places with ease. I'm at PB and live downtown (right now), and get to SBK via the shuttle (which is a ~2 min walk from MSB)

 

 

4) I'm feeling a little scared that I won't be able to survive the volume of material...maybe because I avoided going to U of T in UG because of its reputation. Anyone have any relaxing words ?

 

I think this is a natural feeling, unfortunately the feeling probably wont go away, and will exist whichever med school you end up going to. I think the volume of material is going to be insane anywhere. I think the way its presented is definitely different. Regardless if you end up learning via traditional or self study methods, there will be A LOT to go though. But it is definitely manageable. Also, you can't learn/remember everything. The great thing about medical school is the concept of "spiral" learning, where you learn things over and over and over and over again, and this is how you become proficient (hopefully). Remember you got in for a reason, they believe you have the capacity to handle the workload and become successful, which is why you were accepted! Have faith in that (and the system).

 

I hope this helps!

[distortion]

does anyone know when/how we will receive our student ID#? I had originally assumed that this might not take place until O-week, but the immunization forms ask for us to list it. Thanks!

[ACHQ]

does anyone know when/how we will receive our student ID#? I had originally assumed that this might not take place until O-week, but the immunization forms ask for us to list it. Thanks!

 

Leave it empty its fine.

[RevSphere18]

The biggest change I think people will need to make coming from undergraduate into medicine is that there is no need to over-study every little detail and try to get 95s on every exam. The pass mark is at 70 usually for UofT and the trick is to be able to study/do enough work to pass, but to also make enough time to do things such as clinical shadowing, extracurriculars, and other activities that help you improve as a person and clinician.

[123izme]

I am trying to decide between UofT and Mac and one major thing that concerns me is the environment. I work/study the best in the company of others... and I had small classes sizes in my undergrad that allowed me to get to know a lot of people that I could study with or around/ask for help/discuss things with. I know a lot of people attending Mac next year but I do not know anyone attending UofT. Is the learning environment at UofT conducive to meeting people that you could become good friends with/study with? Sorry, it sounds like a very basic question. However, I think that the class environment will be a fairly important factor in my decision-making process.

 

Another thing I am concerned about is that I don't have a very solid background in the basic sciences. How difficult will I find pre-clerkship? Will I still have time to do other things? What does a typical week in pre-clerkship look like? Would it be reasonable to go home (45 mins from Toronto) and stay there on some weekends?

 

I was also wondering about how helpful the Med office staff/counselors are?

 

Lastly, I don't think anyone will be able to tell me for sure but do you think that UofT's reputation helps during CaRMS matching (esp for more competitive specialties)?

[Noodle]

I am trying to decide between UofT and Mac and one major thing that concerns me is the environment. I work/study the best in the company of others... and I had small classes sizes in my undergrad that allowed me to get to know a lot of people that I could study with or around/ask for help/discuss things with. I know a lot of people attending Mac next year but I do not know anyone attending UofT. Is the learning environment at UofT conducive to meeting people that you could become good friends with/study with? Sorry, it sounds like a very basic question. However, I think that the class environment will be a fairly important factor in my decision-making process.

 

Another thing I am concerned about is that I don't have a very solid background in the basic sciences. How difficult will I find pre-clerkship? Will I still have time to do other things? What does a typical week in pre-clerkship look like? Would it be reasonable to go home (45 mins from Toronto) and stay there on some weekends?

 

I was also wondering about how helpful the Med office staff/counselors are?

 

Lastly, I don't think anyone will be able to tell me for sure but do you think that UofT's reputation helps during CaRMS matching (esp for more competitive specialties)?

 

 

Quick response to a few things:

 

1) MAC/UT debate: Think about what format would work for you. Do you like having a mix of lectures/PBL/seminars or would you rather have a stronger PBL component to it. Don't just go where your friends go, go where you feel you will learn the best. There are lots of activities at U of T and everyone I've spoken to has been really happy with their decision to go there. You will have small dissection groups, small determinants of community of health groups, etc. so it isn't like you are going to be spending your time in one massive class.

 

2) Pre-clerkship is a hard slog for me, but it is also fun. I come from a non-trad background (ecology) but if I can do it, so can you!

 

3) Totally reasonable to go home on weekends. My parents live 45 mins away too and I pretty much go home EVERY weekend. Sometimes even during the weekdays.

 

 

 

Okay, gotta sleep now.

[juliusc]

123izme it seems to me that you are mainly interested in Toronto because I think you believe it has a better "reputation" then Mac. There is nothing wrong with that but in all honesty I think you would be better fitted for Mac based on what you have said about yourself (small groups, more intimate, some people you know, etc) therefore you would have a better experience overall. If I have this great dilemma next year (UoT vs Mac) I would choose mac because I have very similar inclinations as you.

 

P.S. Just make a pros and cons list of Mac and Toronto that'll clear things up for you I think.

[macaroons123]

I have a few questions and I would really appreciate it any of the current UofT students could help me out!

 

1). How doable do you think it is to commute from Mississauga to St. George? I was thinking of getting a parking pass at UTM and then using the shuttle. Or would you suggest that I live on campus?

 

2). In the case that I do decide to commute from Mississauga, which academy would you suggest I choose?

 

3). Are most of the rotations during clerkship done at the academy you choose? Or are the academies only really significant during the first two years because of ASCM? Basically I'm trying to figure out how much the academy you choose ends up affecting your med school experience at UofT. Will I end up getting most of my clinical experience at the hospital of the academy I choose? If you could clarify this for me I would really appreciate it.

 

4). How competitive is the LEADS program? Are the summer placements paid positions?

 

5). Is it possible to do both the LEADS and the CREMS program?

[mew2alakazam]

I have a few questions and I would really appreciate it any of the current UofT students could help me out!

 

1). How doable do you think it is to commute from Mississauga to St. George? I was thinking of getting a parking pass at UTM and then using the shuttle. Or would you suggest that I live on campus?

 

2). In the case that I do decide to commute from Mississauga, which academy would you suggest I choose?

 

3). Are most of the rotations during clerkship done at the academy you choose? Or are the academies only really significant during the first two years because of ASCM? Basically I'm trying to figure out how much the academy you choose ends up affecting your med school experience at UofT. Will I end up getting most of my clinical experience at the hospital of the academy I choose? If you could clarify this for me I would really appreciate it.

 

4). How competitive is the LEADS program? Are the summer placements paid positions?

 

5). Is it possible to do both the LEADS and the CREMS program?

 

First of all, you may want to post on FB. A lot more responses will come your way.

 

1) Not really a good idea to park + shuttle, as the parking passes may cost you quite a lot (Perhaps like $1200?) Plus, you may not want to go to lectures all the time. You can visit these pages and look for youself:

http://www.utm.utoronto.ca/parking/permits/rates

http://www.utm.utoronto.ca/shuttle/fares-boarding-policy/shuttle-bus-pass-information

 

2) Probably WB or Fitz, since many of their academies sites are actually downtown

 

3) For third year yes, you will get to do rotations mainly at the hospitals that your academy is affiliated with. As far as I know, the most significant effect with regards to clinical experience is that different sites will affect the patient population that you see. However, in my opinion, ALL sites will give you parallel experience. You will see bread-and-butter cases in ALL acedemies, as well as rare cases. In pre-clerkship years, you can choose to shadow ANYWHERE, you are NOT academy-restricted.

 

4/5) No idea. I am not interested in research atm.

[ACHQ]

I have a few questions and I would really appreciate it any of the current UofT students could help me out!

 

1). How doable do you think it is to commute from Mississauga to St. George? I was thinking of getting a parking pass at UTM and then using the shuttle. Or would you suggest that I live on campus?

 

2). In the case that I do decide to commute from Mississauga, which academy would you suggest I choose?

 

3). Are most of the rotations during clerkship done at the academy you choose? Or are the academies only really significant during the first two years because of ASCM? Basically I'm trying to figure out how much the academy you choose ends up affecting your med school experience at UofT. Will I end up getting most of my clinical experience at the hospital of the academy I choose? If you could clarify this for me I would really appreciate it.

 

4). How competitive is the LEADS program? Are the summer placements paid positions?

 

5). Is it possible to do both the LEADS and the CREMS program?

 

with regards to

 

4) LEADS takes about ~8-10 people, don't know how many people apply though

 

5) No you cannot do LEADS and CREMS at the same time.