Life as a Medical Student in Australia

[Turtle27]

Just thought I'd start a thread that can provide some insight for others taking on their medical education in Australia. I have a few questions myself on Aussie life in general:

1. Do students typically take out a secondary health plan (beyond their OSHC) to cover things like dental, massage, etc.?
2. What is your work-life balance like?
3. Is there any time for mental down-time?
4. How much time do you spend in the books studying beyond class contact time?
5. What are your major sources of supplementary content that help you study / learn material?

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[sean80439]

Just thought I'd start a thread that can provide some insight for others taking on their medical education in Australia. I have a few questions myself on Aussie life in general:

1. Do students typically take out a secondary health plan (beyond their OSHC) to cover things like dental, massage, etc.?
2. What is your work-life balance like?
3. Is there any time for mental down-time?
4. How much time do you spend in the books studying beyond class contact time?
5. What are your major sources of supplementary content that help you study / learn material?

1. I didn't and I don't think most do.
2. I didn't work while I was down here.
3. Depends on a number of factors. I would say there are breaks, especially after you get into the rhythm of things, however, second year if you are taking the USMLE tends to be way more limited. I usually do at least something every day.
4. I probably spend at least 3ish hours per day on my own time doing study.
5. I use Firecracker, I had a 6mo sub to USMLERX that I used about 65% of, and I have a subscription to Becker. I also have all of the Kaplan videos, Sketchy Micro, and google tends to work really well in general actually once you get a basic understanding of most things.

 

[Running Godzilla]

Hello all,

I just got preliminarily accepted to study medicine in Melbourne, but I am not too familiar with some logistics of moving over. (I'm an international student from south east asia).

Was wondering if anybody can help/ have advice especially on:

1. How much time would be best to arrive before school starts? I was wondering if 2-3 weeks lead time is enough to settle down.
2. Do you find a place to stay before going over, or is it better to do so when over there (then i'd gotta go over earlier).
3. Does staying on campus make more economical sense in general? (I know this is quite dependent, but wanna hear from people who's done either before deciding).
4. Does staying on campus allow more time to study?

I'm trying to keep the budget as low as possible. Would appreciate any seniors giving your opinions please. Thank you so much!

 

[bluefish18]

Just thought I'd start a thread that can provide some insight for others taking on their medical education in Australia. I have a few questions myself on Aussie life in general:

1. Do students typically take out a secondary health plan (beyond their OSHC) to cover things like dental, massage, etc.?
2. What is your work-life balance like?
3. Is there any time for mental down-time?
4. How much time do you spend in the books studying beyond class contact time?
5. What are your major sources of supplementary content that help you study / learn material?

1. Nope. Unheard of.
2. The program is very chill, at least the first year. Do note that I'm in an undergraduate program.
3. Definitely.
4. About half of class time, at the very least. If you wanna do well, then two hour of self study per class hour.
5. Recommended textbooks should help you do fine for school exams. Definitely not enough for USMLE though.

 

[bluefish18]

Hello all,

I just got preliminarily accepted to study medicine in Melbourne, but I am not too familiar with some logistics of moving over. (I'm an international student from south east asia).

Was wondering if anybody can help/ have advice especially on:

1. How much time would be best to arrive before school starts? I was wondering if 2-3 weeks lead time is enough to settle down.
2. Do you find a place to stay before going over, or is it better to do so when over there (then i'd gotta go over earlier).
3. Does staying on campus make more economical sense in general? (I know this is quite dependent, but wanna hear from people who's done either before deciding).
4. Does staying on campus allow more time to study?

I'm trying to keep the budget as low as possible. Would appreciate any seniors giving your opinions please. Thank you so much!

1. One week is ample.
2. I stayed on campus first year. You will find it very hard to rent an apartment without being there.
3. On campus can be cheaper, because you pay rent for 9 months/year instead of a 12 month contract. But not always.
4. That depends on how much time you spend commuting. An apartment right next to school would give you ample time to study.