easier medschools

[Guest drEvil]

Hey everyone,

I wanna know which medschools are the easier ones in terms of workload in Canada or US. I am not interested in going to UofT or any top tier medschools in the US. I just wanna pass with the least amount of work possible. Is it hard to hit that 60% at Queens or Ottawa? Or does it take more work than in an undergraduate course to hit that 60%?

Evil

[Guest summervirus]

Your question scares me. :|

[Guest Lurkergonepublic]

Yeah, be sure to mention that in an interview as your reason for picking their school. :smokin

[Guest drEvil]

Hey ppl,

Sorry, I don't mean the least amount of work possible. I just wanna study less than I have in undergrad. I want to balance my life better. I've heard nothing but complaints from my friends at UofT. I have taken their suggestions into account and yes I do not plan to attend a school like UofT. You can ask many pre-meders and they will say the exact same thing. UofT is known for their rigorous program and many ppl regret going there. I do not want to remember my medschool experience like they have. Is UofT a better medschool than McMaster because of their rigorous curriculum? Not necessarily! Some people are more suited to PBL and would make better doctors being trained from McMaster. So please answer my question instead of being all sarcastic about it.

Evil

[Guest satsumargirl]

I don`t think that any medical school is going to be easy!

Though the challenge as I see it is the volume of information that is presented in a very short amount of time.

 

I have found it possible at Ottawa to do well and have a fairly balanced life...until the week or 2 before the block exam anyway. That being said, there are students who fail the block exams.

 

Your experience in med school will depend on so many things. The city you live in, your motivation for becoming a physician, friends, time management skills, involvement in extracurriculars etc.. you cannot base how you will experience med school based on other people's perception of how easy their experience was.

[Guest Ollie]

Skimming by with a barely-pass will earn you a cozy little chat with the Dean at ANY medical school. All med school curricula are challenging. It's MED SCHOOL! However they also all offer the opportunity to balance school and life. I have had no problem finding balance (and I go to UofT).

[Guest patentforamenovale]

oxy.mo·ron ( P ) Pronunciation Key (ks-môrn, -mr-)

n. pl. ox·y·mo·ra (-môr, -mr) or ox·y·mo·rons

A rhetorical figure in which incongruous or contradictory terms are combined, as in a deafening silence and a mournful optimist.

 

yeah, i think "easy medschool" qualifies

[Guest heho]

I understand what you are saying.

 

You don't want to spend too much time studying for some test, but you still want to learn?

 

I'd guess MAC would be best for that. I mean, I'm certain it is difficult, and you are sure to learn plenty, but I assume you won't find yourself studying what you feel the dean/profs want you to know for the coming test...

 

I agree, I'd like to not worry about tests once I hit med school. I still intend on trying hard, but I want to learn MY WAY, and not studying certain details, as one often has to d in undergrad.

[Guest pappy mckeys]

Hi,

 

Even though Mac is PBL based, from what I hear there are still block or "foundation exams", as well as a biannual comprehensive exams. I'm sure someone from the program could comment better than me. I also hear what you're saying, you want a school that will let lead a relatively balanced life. I've read things in the forums that lead me to believe this can be accomplished at any of the Canadian schools, provided you're motivated, organized, and able to prioritize on an ongoing basis. Cheers

[Guest MDHopefully2005]

To dispell the myth, yes Mac has "tests", though they don't call them tests here. We have them after each unit (short answer), a multiple choice test 3 times a year, and we have our first clinical skills OSCE tomorrow....If you are a self-starter, who is very self motivated then Mac may be for you. But DO NOT expect to sit back and sail through, we do work our butts off as well and put in just as many hours, we just do it in a different way. It becomes very clear very quickly in a tutorial who has put the effort in and who hasn't, and there's nothing like a good healthy dose of guilt to light the fire under your butt again! Like many have said, find the teaching style that best suits you, choose the campus you like best, if you're happy where you are you will find the time to add in the other things you enjoy.

[Guest ploughboy]

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You might want to consider Hollywood Upstairs Medical College, or perhaps Club Medschool...

 

Any "real" medical school needs to be accredited by LCME and/or the MCC. That accreditation is based on, among other things, the academic rigour of the program. Or, as others have pointed out - it's freakin' med school! It's gonna be a lot of work no matter where you go.

 

Of course, having said that I should add that I probably am not working as hard in first year meds as in undergrad. There's just too much other (fun) stuff to do. I'm getting into pre-exam mode now, though. I don't want to be the first person in the history of my school to have my poor grades discussed by the Progress, Awards and Appeals Committee *while* I'm sitting on the committee. That would just be embarrassing.

 

pb

 

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[Guest GundamDX]

"I just wanna pass with the least amount of work possible"

 

sarcastic response? you started with a surreal comment first my friend. I don't want to sound all "political incorrect" or whatnot but that statement really upset me in many ways that coming from someone who wants to become a physician? Why did you want to be a doctor in the first place? Being a doctor is a life-long committment to knowledge and caring for others, isn't it? You'd be constantly learning years AFTER you "pass with the least amount of work possible" ... I really wonder if you're serious about applying. but that's just my 2 cents... I apologize for offending anyone

[Guest TimmyMax]

Hey,

 

You could always NOT go to med school- I heard that's pretty easy, too! :lol

 

Best of luck!

Timmy

[Guest desiguy8179]

I think people here are being unfair to this guy.How is it different when medical students want lifestyle friendly specialities to have balance in life....politically correct words but means same thing....DONT want to work tooo hard.

 

how come all these dedicated and hard working med students shun neurosurgery but form a bee line for dermatology ...is it love for the rashes or just plain laziness!

[Guest xylem33]

To the OP, if you were able to balance life during undergrad then you should be able to balance life during med school - if you had troubles during undergrad then you might have some troubles during med school (but there's still a chance to change that). However, ask any doctor and they will tell you that med school isn't easier than undergrad - why should it be? You get more stress and more work in med school, more work and more stress when you graduate, and probably more work and more stress when you're finished your residency.

 

Man, I am with the other posters - if we're interpreting your post correctly - someone who wants to get by with the least amount of effort, who wants to work less than they did in undergrad - shouldn't be in a position where someone else's life is in their hands.

 

But to give u the benefit of the doubt, I think the answer to your question is that any large medical school like ubc, toronto, mcgill will likely be heavier than usual in first year (i've heard toronto isn't that bad in 2nd year). I've read that Queens is pretty laid back...again tho, all med schools are pretty much the same but if you want to go by ur friends opinions, then don't choose toronto - ask ppl from other schools what they think and the ones who love their school a lot, choose that one.

[Guest hoping]

desiguy's point of view is good, we should not be too harsh on the original poster. i also agree with xylem's advice. and ultimately, it is up to the individual how hard s/he wants to work/study once one is already in med school since most are on the pass/fail system. the pressure to get those As (to qualify for med school) hopefully will be replaced with the desire to learn as much as possible so one can be a good doctor.

[Guest drEvil]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for your responses. I love learning about the human body, but I also love other aspects of life which I feel I have sacrificed to obtain high grades. This is because grades are first priority and sometimes one has to sacrifice a party, or special girl to optimize studying. My ambition is to become a general practitioner, not a brain surgeon! These professions have vast differences in life style. Surgeons usually work many more hours than GPs. It suits a certain personality. Similarly, not all medical students work as intense as others. It does not mean that they will be unable to contribute in the medical field. The medical field encompasses a broad range of professions and personalities.

You might say that 'one gets the most out of themselves, when they balance their life.' Now, this is untrue. Many pre-meders have trouble in relationships and would love to spend more time with their girlfriend/boyfriend, but their workload prevents them. People often gain weight throughout a semester. Is this balance? People have to make the sacrifices to get higher grades. In med, I realize that getting the high grades will mean the same sacrifices. So, my solution is to spend less time studying and spend more time with other things that life has to offer.

Yes, of course, it is hard work in medschool. There is no such thing as an 'easy medschool'. But yes, there are differences.

By the way, do medschools in the US have pass/fail system? Are there cheaper tuition medschools in US? In Canada, I know that tuition can vary alot. Yes, I am interested in accredited medschools. thx

Evil

[Guest heho]

CHOKINGGGGGG

 

Don't assume Family Practitioners don't work MANY, MANY hours.

 

Those hours on their office doors are the tip of the iceberg. Then there is paperwork, hospital duty, FP group meetings, conferences, possibly house calls...

 

Can anyone verify if, in fact, FPs work less hours than surgeons? I'd be surprised, especially with the shortage.

[Guest ploughboy]

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One of my favourite bosses once told me "Find a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life." I think that's a pretty good philosophy. Some of the neatest people I know in meds are the ones who are up to their eyebrows in extracurriculars, have active social lives and still manage to put in enough study time to show the rest of us up when the profs ask questions.

 

While FM certainly has a rep of being more life-style friendly than surgery, due in no small part to the flexibility of FM, that flexibility also means that you can work insane, surgeon-style hours if you want to or if you have to. I'm from a fairly rural area and intend to return there to practice as a family doc, and even with the advent of health networks and call groups I expect that I will be putting in a lot of hours simply because the need is so great.

 

Dunno if there are pass/fail curricula in the States, but I suspect there might be. The med schools with the cheapest tuitions in the States are state schools, but they tend to cater almost exclusively to applicants from their state, so unless you have an American citizenship and a bona fide connection to a specific state, you're sol there. Private American schools are more flexible on who they take, but they're also more expensive.

 

 

 

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[Guest atworknow]

Hey, to the original genius who posts this question (dr.evil?) ,

 

if you want to go to the easier medical school, why don't you consider kindergarden? I guess you can earn your Doctor title of your "dr. evil" there.

 

Also, feel free to ask your interviewer this question during your med school interview, but I doubt if you will get one with this altitude.

[Guest leviathan]

CHOKINGGGGGG

 

Don't assume Family Practitioners don't work MANY, MANY hours.

 

Those hours on their office doors are the tip of the iceberg. Then there is paperwork, hospital duty, FP group meetings, conferences, possibly house calls...

 

Can anyone verify if, in fact, FPs work less hours than surgeons? I'd be surprised, especially with the shortage.

FPs set their own hours. I know an FP that only works 20 hours/week.

[Guest kellyl20]

Also, restricted by being paid fully for max # of patients per day as anything else after that will be paid 1/2 price for the patients over the max; in BC that is.

[Guest citrinez]

This forum should be a free space where a person can ask a sincere question without ppl jumping down their throats. Just bc the OP was willing to write out a question that perhaps other ppl just keep in their heads doesnt make him/her a bad person or a potentially bad doctor. I work in a doctors office and I see the attitudes that some Doctors have, but despite hating having to see infants as one doctor at our practice hates doing, he is still a competent doctor. Im pretty sure he wouldnt have told them in his med school interview that he doesnt like children, but despite that , he is a really great doctor.

[Guest riffraff]

Hey,

 

Since each med school structures their curriculum differently, I think that the one you would find easiest for yourself is the one whose curriculum and emphasized style of learning is most compatible to yours. This takes a bit of research, but I would go to their websites, ask people already in the school, directly contact the schools, etc. for you to discover which schools seem most appealing to you in realizing which ones will be most suitable to your success while maintaining a balance between academics and non academics.

 

And the rest of those that respond with sarcastic comments & insults need to open your minds and try to fully understand what the OP is trying to get at. I don't want a physician that is arrogant enough to jump to conclusions if I ask a question that I deem as being reasonable.

[Guest TheChosenOneDDS]

yeah go tot he carribbean lol