Breaks during Medical School

[MCATSTUDYY]

how do medical school go about breaks and time off? Are there summers? If so how long? Do they have winter breaks, spring break in med schools like undergrad?

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[bananafish94]

You get a break between M1 and M2 and then you work for the rest of your life until you die.

 

[68PGunner]

how do medical school go about breaks and time off? Are there summers? If so how long? Do they have winter breaks, spring break in med schools like undergrad?

During Year 1 and Year 2, you will get about 2 weeks vacation for winter break and 1 week vacation for spring break
6-8 Weeks of summer vacation between Year 1 and Year 2
4 Weeks of vacation during Year 3
20 Weeks of vacation during Year 4

 

[redferrari]

My M1 year had 2 weeks for winter holiday, 1 week for spring break, and 3 weeks for summer. In M2, we have 2 weeks for winter, 2 for spring break (after Step 1), and then 4 weeks during our clerkships.

 

[Goro]

how do medical school go about breaks and time off? Are there summers? If so how long? Do they have winter breaks, spring break in med schools like undergrad?

Why is it so hard for some SDNers to simply go to a medical school's website and look for the curricular calendar?
Here's one I found in about ten seconds:
Year 1

 

[ciestar]

My school:
Two weeks for winter break
1 week for spring break
We got two months for summer between ms1/ms2.

We have from April 30th until June 18th to study for/take step 1. But...that's it really. Fourth year is a new game though.

Summer break seems to be most school dependent, check individual school websites for that information.

 

[wholeheartedly]

Why is it so hard for some SDNers to simply go to a medical school's website and look for the curricular calendar?
Here's one I found in about ten seconds:
Year 1

there are generally two reasons why someone doesn't do something (1) that would be too easy (2) that would actually make sense.

anyway, not all schools are great about posting nice calendars like that or at least not always in the easiest places to find. however, a lot of them do and anyone who has looked at a few can pretty quickly tell you there's pretty wide variation between schools on how breaks are handled.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

We get Christmas breaks the first two years and a summer break after M1. Then you get to be a grownup and work summers until you retire.

 

[MCATSTUDYY]

The fact we have breaks in college for like thanksgiving break, winter break, spring, and summer breaks is nice. Without those breaks and if school was continuous without break than in general that could lead to a feeling of being overworked and burnt out which is not good. Just wondered if there were adequate and necessary breaks and time off from school during medical school.

 

[longhaul3]

The fact we have breaks in college for like thanksgiving break, winter break, spring, and summer breaks is nice. Without those breaks and if school was continuous without break than in general that could lead to a feeling of being overworked and burnt out which is not good. Just wondered if there were adequate and necessary breaks and time off from school during medical school.

There are adequate and necessary breaks...it's just that your idea of what's adequate and necessary will change

 

[LizzyM]

It varies from school to school and from year to year within a school. Most schools do have a break between Christmas and New Year and at least 4 days at Thanksgiving including the weekend for everyone.

 

[MCATSTUDYY]

It varies from school to school and from year to year within a school. Most schools do have a break between Christmas and New Year and at least 4 days at Thanksgiving including the weekend for everyone.

Do they have those breaks like every year while in medical school? I see!

 

[MCATSTUDYY]

During Year 1 and Year 2, you will get about 2 weeks vacation for winter break and 1 week vacation for spring break
6-8 Weeks of summer vacation between Year 1 and Year 2
4 Weeks of vacation during Year 3
20 Weeks of vacation during Year 4

So usually during all those breaks and vacations do students usually go back home?

 

[68PGunner]

So usually during all those breaks and vacations do students usually go back home?

Can't speak for others but I UFAP hard during those breaks.

 

[deleted804295]

We get Christmas breaks the first two years and a summer break after M1. Then you get to be a grownup and work summers until you retire.

That's depressing. I think I'll still take summers off if I live long enough to become a doctor.

 

[TelemarketingEnigma]

That's depressing. I think I'll still take summers off if I live long enough to become a doctor.

You get used to not having summers pretty quickly. I started my current job less than two weeks after graduating college (most of which was spent apartment hunting and moving) and haven't had a summer break for the past two years. It feels pretty normal now. Kinda depressing, sure, but sometimes I'm also thankful for being paid to sit in a heavily air conditioned building on the hottest days of summer...

 

[MCATSTUDYY]

You get used to not having summers pretty quickly. I started my current job less than two weeks after graduating college (most of which was spent apartment hunting and moving) and haven't had a summer break for the past two years. It feels pretty normal now. Kinda depressing, sure, but sometimes I'm also thankful for being paid to sit in a heavily air conditioned building on the hottest days of summer...

U take Gap years after graduating?

 

[LizzyM]

So usually during all those breaks and vacations do students usually go back home?

Some of that time is preparing for board exams. Some people will go home; some will find it easier to study in their usual environment. (Particularly if you are renting a place and paying rent anyway.) Summer between first and second year, some people will go home, some will find something (typically research) to do either on campus or elsewhere. Fourth year, I think much of that "vacation" is spent interviewing for residency positions and getting ready to move to the residency/relax before residency begins.

 

[TelemarketingEnigma]

U take Gap years after graduating?

yep, I'll be two years out by the time I matriculate. so I've spent the past two summers working

 

[mcatjelly]

Man, I feel super lucky in terms of breaks. M1: 2 weeks winter break, 1 week spring break, 12 weeks of summer. M2: 3 weeks winter break, 1 week spring break, 3+ weeks of summer (depending on when you take STEP). Love my school.