They actually won’t all be separate this year! First years will be moving more toward integrated so it will look vastly different than past years but great changes being made!
is this a good thing lol? are the changes being made positive? thank you for clarifying!
the goal is to eventually move towards systems based learning in a more collaborative and less "large group of students in a lecture hall being taught by one professor"-ish. it is not a true PBL curriculum but I imagine from the rumors that have been going around that it will have more of that flavor.
while the content may have a different delivery style, it will still be the same content. whether you have a professor teach it or a flying parrot sing it, there's know way getting around learning first year medical school biochem hahaha
😉
and as far as it being positive or not, i think it will remain to be seen! the reality is no current student, including myself, knows exactly what the changes will be and how they will impact the incoming first years, and that's mostly because admin is still working out the kinks in getting things ready for you all! but no current students, first or second year, have experienced the curriculum you will experience in the style you will receive it, so i think it would be unfair for any of us to really say for sure!
from my opinion however, i know one of the hardest things for me first year was having exams almost every week, and sometimes 2-3 exams in a week or 5-6 exams in a 8 day period. it was brutal. and i've gotten the vibe that hopefully the first year curriculum changes will help with some of that by moving towards a more system based curriculum like the current second year curriculum is.
the other thing that was hard for me first year was trying to learn cardio histo, at the same time as renal physio, at the same time as msk in gross anatomy. it just felt very disjointed. so i hope integrating the first year curriculum will help your learning process feel a little bit more cohesive! but thats just my opinion!
i just really encourage everyone to remain open to learning and adjusting on the fly, because that will definitely be necessary for first and second years alike in the upcoming school year!