Attending the APA conference as a medical student

[toros102]

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I'm an MS4 going into psychiatry who might be able to get limited funding from my school to go to the APA conference in April. Is it worth going?

Some of the courses seem neat, but I found a page that makes it sound like they're $200+ each? Is it possible that they're free/discounted for students/residents?

Thanks!

 

[Monocles]

Free for med students!

If you can get some school funding for the cost of the trip/lodging even better.

EDIT: my bad I meant the conference is free but there are some paid workshops. I feel like you get plenty of free content at conferences like APA and AACAP. Most of the paid workshops are very niche and typically geared towards attendings who can shell out $$$

 

[clozareal]

You don't have to go to the paid sessions, even though the ones that are usually paid are usually the best. From my experience, the highest yield ones are the ones geared specifically toward medical students and residents if you are an MS4.

I would get a map of the conference center and look for the biggest rooms. Try to go to the ones that are free, centrally located on the map, and have the largest seating room - those are usually the most popular (and typically best) sessions.

 

[NickNaylor]

The paid courses generally tend to be more clinically-oriented. As a medical student, I don't think that these would be worth it for the price.

If you're interested in psychiatry and want to check out a conference, the APA is a good place to start. Personally I haven't enjoyed the two APA meetings that I've been to: there's far too much going on, I get annoyed with the ridiculous amount of pharma advertising, and I didn't find the quality of the sessions that I went to all that impressive. On the plus side, the Scientology protests are always amusing. I think it would be worth checking out as a medical student since the registration is free, but I don't intend to pay to go to the APA meeting anymore. I think there are better conferences with more educational value (which is what I want to get out of a conference anyway) that I would rather spend the money to attend.

 

[SourceOfDenial]

Big conferences are great when you’re a learner, it’s exciting, you learn stuff—and then in a few years you’ll realize conference presentations seem a few years behind the leading edge and they just become a place to network and connect with folks.

 

[ArdorAyurveda]

Would it be overkill for a first-year medical student to go to the conference? Assume that flights, lodging, and food are all covered.

 

[Monocles]

Would it be overkill for a first-year medical student to go to the conference? Assume that flights, lodging, and food are all covered.

Nope! Always network early especially if you might be considering psychiatry. At last year's AACAP I met an M1 who expressed extraordinary enthusiasm in a similar field of research as me, so I've been forwarding them projects, committees, med student awards that they can get involved in, etc.