Hi,
I'm a first year here at Stanford. Congrats on your acceptance! First of all, you should really come to Stanford's admit weekend at the beginning of May to meet current and prospective students, and to get a better feel for the school. Personally, Stanford is a great place for me. The curriculum will be changing quite a bit next year, so it's a little hard for me to comment on. Currently, our classes run the gamut from excellent to, well, could use some work. They're really trying to streamline things for next year, and I think overall the changes should be a good thing. Apparently you'll be spending less time in lecture than we do currently, which is one of my few complaints about our current system. Many of our classes go way beyond what is needed for the boards, and have somewhat of a research bent to them, which is great if you're interested in the particular subject though can sometimes make for some overwhelming finals. The P/F system is a huge plus in my opinion, since it makes for a coorporative atmosphere and greatly reduced stress come finals time. Most of the faculty are extremely approachable and really enjoy teaching. It's a small school, so many of them get to know students. There are a lot of chances to TA classes here, which is great both from the perspective of getting some money toward tuition, and in getting teaching experience if you're considering academic medicine. The research opportunities here are fantastic - through the med scholars program you can get ample funding for projects in basic or clinical sciences, arts and humanities, and international research. It's generally easy to find a faculty sponsor, and most grants get approved. Overall the school has a bent toward producing academic physicians, though many of my classmates do plan to enter primary care. You can definitely get out in 4 years if you want, though more than half stick around for 5 or more, usually to fit in research and teaching. Feel free to PM me if you have any other questions, and good luck with your decision.
