Looking for uOttawa Feedback from Current Students

[Psych]

It was a very difficult choice, but I will be accepting my uOttawa offer over Mac. Thanks to everyone who gave me advice! 

[Left Line]

https://www.macleans.ca/education/university-rankings-2020-canadas-top-medical-doctoral-schools/

[Jumpman]

Thats strange, why does Uottawa have the lowest rating in ontario?

[dopamineislife]

Do many first year students get involved in campus activities, or is it recommended they take this time to transition? Can any upper year students chime in? 

[m_jacob_45]

1 hour ago, dopamineislife said:

Do many first year students get involved in campus activities, or is it recommended they take this time to transition? Can any upper year students chime in? 

Many do get involved with activities in first year and there are a lot of opportunities to get involved with different things. Definitely take some time to transition if you feel you need to, but it’s very doable to get involved since there are so many half days. The most involved group is probably the second year students. In third and fourth year, there is a lot less time for outside activities so that’s when most people start to be a bit less involved in my experience.

 

[pixieMD]

***

[Psych]

5 hours ago, Jumpman said:

Thats strange, why does Uottawa have the lowest rating in ontario?

One other thing about the rankings- the category is "medical and doctoral" so I'm pretty sure it includes all PhD programs as well, and likely doesn't just reflect on the med school. The dozens of people I've talked to have said that all medical schools in Canada give a comparable education, so I wouldn't take these rankings as meaning anything

 

[DocBrown9]

6 hours ago, Jumpman said:

Thats strange, why does Uottawa have the lowest rating in ontario?

That ranking is comparing all universities with medical and doctorate programs against each other. It is not comparing medical schools. It uses the presence of a medical school to suggest that universities are comparable (ie comparing McMaster to Trent would not be a fair comparison) Ottawa medical school basically functions as a separate entity from UOttawa.  So unless you are trying to decide on a grad program or undergrad, the ranking is useless  A lot of the ground breaking clinical work and research is done through CHEO or OHRI (wells score, Ottawa emerg rules) and people tend to not throw uottawa onto every poster/paper. In terms of medical school ranking, all tend to be similar. I know for a fact that uottawa traditionally places in the top for match rates (this year it was 99% would tons of competitive specialties). All the other rankings are hidden behind the AFMC black box (probably to prevent the stupid act of having students try to rank medical schools)

[Neuroresearch]

In the same boat as @Psych and looking for some advice.

Would anyone be able to provide a weekly schedule such as the one they used as an example in the interview informational session?  Would be very much appreciated!

Additionally, is there any information on how available bursaries/scholarships are? Obviously uOttawa is a lot more of a financial burden than a 3 year program but just trying to see if its something that's financially workable.

Thanks guys!!

[S123]

For uO clerkship students - I was NOT expecting to get in, and I tentatively have my wedding booked for fall of 2022 (the fall when I'll be starting clerkship). Is it even remotely a possibility to consider getting married right when clerkship is starting or should I go ahead and postpone that now?

[m_jacob_45]

4 hours ago, Neuroresearch said:

In the same boat as @Psych and looking for some advice.

Would anyone be able to provide a weekly schedule such as the one they used as an example in the interview informational session?  Would be very much appreciated!

Additionally, is there any information on how available bursaries/scholarships are? Obviously uOttawa is a lot more of a financial burden than a 3 year program but just trying to see if its something that's financially workable.

Thanks guys!!

The first year schedule is essentially the following though I may have some days switched since this is a few years ago for me:

Mon- lectures 8:30-12:30

Tues- CBL 8:30-10:30, lectures 10:30 to 12:30

Wed- 8:00- 12:30 Anatomy/pathology/radiology (usually two of the 3 on Wednesday’s). 1:00-4:00 physician skillls development (physical exam skills)

Thurs- lectures 8:30-10:30, social medicine lectures (SIM) 10:30 to 12:30

Friday- CBL 8:30-11:30, review lecture 11:30-12:30. 

In second semester, there is also community preceptor and community service learning which is scheduled differently for everyone, so expect to be busy 2 afternoons per week. 

 

In regard to scholarships and bursaries, there is a financial questionnaire to help you get bursaries that mostly don’t require any additional application and a big list of scholarships that you can also apply for. 

 

[m_jacob_45]

3 hours ago, S123 said:

For uO clerkship students - I was NOT expecting to get in, and I tentatively have my wedding booked for fall of 2022 (the fall when I'll be starting clerkship). Is it even remotely a possibility to consider getting married right when clerkship is starting or should I go ahead and postpone that now?

Clerkship starts in mid August with link block (intro to clerkship) which is all mandatory and it sounds like your wedding would be during your first or second rotations? 3rd year clinical rotations start approx Sept 1st and are 6 weeks long each, so it could be doable to have your wedding then if it’s a lighter rotation, especially if it’s not too close to an exam. You are allowed to take a limited number of days off for personal events such as your wedding, and I think the school would make every effort to accommodate you.

[dopamineislife]

14 hours ago, S123 said:

For uO clerkship students - I was NOT expecting to get in, and I tentatively have my wedding booked for fall of 2022 (the fall when I'll be starting clerkship). Is it even remotely a possibility to consider getting married right when clerkship is starting or should I go ahead and postpone that now?

I am in the same situation as this and I am likely having my wedding in the summer. I'm still not sure if that's a good idea given it will be a big change for me, followed by what I presume to be a stressful time (clerkship). I know it's a personal decision that only my partner and I can make, but any outside opinion would be appreciated as you may bring up a point that I really never considered. I am thinking mid-June so it gives us time to settle in before mid-August clerkship. 

[deedee908]

Would any current uottawa med students be able to comment on whether there are any gym facilities near Roger Guindon Hall?

 

Thanks!

[HappyAndHopeful]

2 hours ago, deedee908 said:

Would any current uottawa med students be able to comment on whether there are any gym facilities near Roger Guindon Hall?

 

Thanks!

There are!  There is a Good Life gym for hospital employees in the basement of the General, which med students can use too.  There is also a Movati in the Trainyards (5-10 minute drive from RGN).

[sweaterweather]

I was wondering where med students typically live? I’ve heard there’s a mix between downtown vs near the med school but I was hoping someone could elaborate a bit more. Specifically  pros and cons for living near the campus vs downtown and the different areas you recommend.

I have also read about a shuttle that goes to the medical school and I was wondering where that picks people up from?

 

thank you! 

[deedee908]

2 hours ago, HappyAndHopeful said:

There are!  There is a Good Life gym for hospital employees in the basement of the General, which med students can use too.  There is also a Movati in the Trainyards (5-10 minute drive from RGN).

Ah great thank you! Do you happen to know the membership fee for the goodlife gym?

[HappyAndHopeful]

7 minutes ago, deedee908 said:

Ah great thank you! Do you happen to know the membership fee for the goodlife gym?

I don't have a membership, but if I recall correctly I think it's about $17 every two weeks.  Hopefully someone else can confirm!

 

[HappyAndHopeful]

2 hours ago, cantstopwontstop said:

I was wondering where med students typically live? I’ve heard there’s a mix between downtown vs near the med school but I was hoping someone could elaborate a bit more. Specifically  pros and cons for living near the campus vs downtown and the different areas you recommend.

I have also read about a shuttle that goes to the medical school and I was wondering where that picks people up from?

 

thank you! 

That's correct - it's a mix between downtown, close to the Civic, and near RGN/General.  There's a neighbourhood with a lot of townhouses called Freedom Private that's essentially right beside the school, and a lot of students live there.  The ones that live farther generally drive to the med school (parking is about $700 from Sept. to April), take the bus, or take one of the shuttles - there is a uOttawa shuttle that runs between main campus and RGN (also stops at the Lees campus), and an Ottawa Hospital shuttle that runs between the General, Riverside, and Civic.  I think the biggest pro to being close to RGN is just the ease of getting there every day.  However, it's mostly a residential area and there aren't very many stores/restaurants in close walking distance.  So conversely, I know a lot of people love living closer to downtown or in a different area because of being so close to parks, restaurants, etc.  It depends on what you prefer! 

[m_jacob_45]

45 minutes ago, HappyAndHopeful said:

I don't have a membership, but if I recall correctly I think it's about $17 every two weeks.  Hopefully someone else can confirm!

 

Yes this is the group rate that my class president got for us in first year.