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- Jan 4, 2006
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11. Is there a mentor/advisor system? Who are the advisorsfaculty members, other students, or both?
1st year students are assigned 2nd year mentors. I stayed in touch with both my mentor and my mentee through all years of medical school. Once you pick out a field of medicine that you want to match into, most departments will link you up with a mentor (if you ask) to help you through the process. This is department dependent though.
12. How diverse is the student body? Are there support services or organizations for ethnic minorities and women? Not having attended other medical schools, it is tough for me to say how we match up. I would say our mix of minorities and women match the surrounding community as a whole. There are interest groups for people of all colors and genders. There also seem to be very generous scholarships and some sort of pre-medical school prep course for minorities/underprivileged students at our school. Not sure if this is still something that is offered or not.
Facilities
13. Tell me about the library and extracurricular facilities (i.e., housing and athletic/recreational facilities).
Library is excellent. Tons of online textbooks and other resources. Pretty much unlimited printing in the library for medical students (they give you a generous credit when you start school). There are various study rooms all over the school. We have an onsite athletic center (albeit small, it does have circuit training, treadmills, bikes, some free weights, wet sauna, etc. Along with a variety of fitness classes offered). We are very active in the extramural program through the main campus and have class reps that put together teams in all sorts of sports to compete against all the other graduate schools. Housing is pretty much on your own. Lots of people rent in the neighborhoods adjacent to the school. Some people commute. In general housing is very affordable here and few people commute more than 10 minutes to the hospital each day.
14. Are there computer facilities available to students? Are they integrated into the curriculum/learning?
Yes. Each student is given a laptop during first year with full computer support throughout the 4 years in school. Lecture slides and audio are published on our online portal ewake. My portal shows my personalized schedule for all 4 years. I can go back at any time to review old lecture material, etc. We are also given quizzes online during class, for which the results are automatically displayed in graph format in the front of the class for the lecturer to discuss. These quizzes make up a small part of our grade, but it is a fun way to keep people engaged and paying attending.
15. What type of clinical sitesambulatory, private preceptors, private hospitals, rural settingsare available or required for clerkships? Does this school allow for students to do rotations at other institutions or internationally?
One of the great things about our school is that nearly all of the clinical rotations are completed at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, with the exception of 2 weeks of OB and a few days here and there in downtown clinics, hospice, and time with private preceptors during 1st and 2nd year. By and large though, we seem to do better than average at keeping you from running all over the place for clinical rotations. Away rotations are allowed during 4th year as are international rotations.
At some point in the future they are talking about building a new medical school building away from the hospital for 1st and 2nd year classes. This is a terrible idea and hopefully someone crushes it before it comes into fruition. But it shouldn't impact anyone starting school for the next few years. It is great taking classes right next to the hospital and being able to get involved early on in clinical activities. Wake does a great job of this.
16. Is a car necessary for clinical rotations? Is parking a problem?
A car is necessary for clinical rotations (although you probably need it for less than 10% of your clinic duties). Parking is not a problem.
Financial Aid
17. What is the current tuition and fees? Is this expected to increase yearly? If so, at what rate?
About 40,000 for tuition. We were in the top ten least expensive private medical schools in the 2011 US News and World Report. They do not charge you extra for your computer, Step 1 or Step 2 (the school reimburses you for the Step 1 and 2 exams after you register for them). Students are required to have insurance either private or through the school. Most textbooks are available online through the library so you only have to buy what you want to buy. It seems like tuition goes up every year, but that holds true just about everywhere. Our financial aid people are excellent! They work hard for the students who want extra help and provide a lot of great educational material.
18. Are there stable levels of federal financial aid and substantial amounts of university/medical school endowment aid available to students?
Yes.
19. Are there students who have an "unmet need" factor in their budget? If so, where do these students come up with the extra funds?
Our financial aid office is awesome. http://www.wakehealth.edu/School/Financial-Aid/MD-Program.htm Probably best to search there if you have specific questions. I try to stay within my budget and most of the other students dont seem to have a problem doing so since the costs of living here are low.
20. Are spouses and dependents/children covered in a student's budget?
Yes. This is a very family friendly school. There is a very active "better halves" group of spouses.
1st year students are assigned 2nd year mentors. I stayed in touch with both my mentor and my mentee through all years of medical school. Once you pick out a field of medicine that you want to match into, most departments will link you up with a mentor (if you ask) to help you through the process. This is department dependent though.
12. How diverse is the student body? Are there support services or organizations for ethnic minorities and women? Not having attended other medical schools, it is tough for me to say how we match up. I would say our mix of minorities and women match the surrounding community as a whole. There are interest groups for people of all colors and genders. There also seem to be very generous scholarships and some sort of pre-medical school prep course for minorities/underprivileged students at our school. Not sure if this is still something that is offered or not.
Facilities
13. Tell me about the library and extracurricular facilities (i.e., housing and athletic/recreational facilities).
Library is excellent. Tons of online textbooks and other resources. Pretty much unlimited printing in the library for medical students (they give you a generous credit when you start school). There are various study rooms all over the school. We have an onsite athletic center (albeit small, it does have circuit training, treadmills, bikes, some free weights, wet sauna, etc. Along with a variety of fitness classes offered). We are very active in the extramural program through the main campus and have class reps that put together teams in all sorts of sports to compete against all the other graduate schools. Housing is pretty much on your own. Lots of people rent in the neighborhoods adjacent to the school. Some people commute. In general housing is very affordable here and few people commute more than 10 minutes to the hospital each day.
14. Are there computer facilities available to students? Are they integrated into the curriculum/learning?
Yes. Each student is given a laptop during first year with full computer support throughout the 4 years in school. Lecture slides and audio are published on our online portal ewake. My portal shows my personalized schedule for all 4 years. I can go back at any time to review old lecture material, etc. We are also given quizzes online during class, for which the results are automatically displayed in graph format in the front of the class for the lecturer to discuss. These quizzes make up a small part of our grade, but it is a fun way to keep people engaged and paying attending.
15. What type of clinical sitesambulatory, private preceptors, private hospitals, rural settingsare available or required for clerkships? Does this school allow for students to do rotations at other institutions or internationally?
One of the great things about our school is that nearly all of the clinical rotations are completed at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, with the exception of 2 weeks of OB and a few days here and there in downtown clinics, hospice, and time with private preceptors during 1st and 2nd year. By and large though, we seem to do better than average at keeping you from running all over the place for clinical rotations. Away rotations are allowed during 4th year as are international rotations.
At some point in the future they are talking about building a new medical school building away from the hospital for 1st and 2nd year classes. This is a terrible idea and hopefully someone crushes it before it comes into fruition. But it shouldn't impact anyone starting school for the next few years. It is great taking classes right next to the hospital and being able to get involved early on in clinical activities. Wake does a great job of this.
16. Is a car necessary for clinical rotations? Is parking a problem?
A car is necessary for clinical rotations (although you probably need it for less than 10% of your clinic duties). Parking is not a problem.
Financial Aid
17. What is the current tuition and fees? Is this expected to increase yearly? If so, at what rate?
About 40,000 for tuition. We were in the top ten least expensive private medical schools in the 2011 US News and World Report. They do not charge you extra for your computer, Step 1 or Step 2 (the school reimburses you for the Step 1 and 2 exams after you register for them). Students are required to have insurance either private or through the school. Most textbooks are available online through the library so you only have to buy what you want to buy. It seems like tuition goes up every year, but that holds true just about everywhere. Our financial aid people are excellent! They work hard for the students who want extra help and provide a lot of great educational material.
18. Are there stable levels of federal financial aid and substantial amounts of university/medical school endowment aid available to students?
Yes.
19. Are there students who have an "unmet need" factor in their budget? If so, where do these students come up with the extra funds?
Our financial aid office is awesome. http://www.wakehealth.edu/School/Financial-Aid/MD-Program.htm Probably best to search there if you have specific questions. I try to stay within my budget and most of the other students dont seem to have a problem doing so since the costs of living here are low.
20. Are spouses and dependents/children covered in a student's budget?
Yes. This is a very family friendly school. There is a very active "better halves" group of spouses.
