I think that the case-based style of learning definitely gets easier as you have more experience with it, but whether or not that translates to greater enjoyment of the style I think probably depends on the person. By the end of block 1 I think I had the "system" figured out pretty well that it wasn't taking me as long to do what I needed to do, which was nice, but I didn't like it any more than I did on the first day. But some of my classmates started out skeptical and really liked it by the end, while others seemed pretty gung ho on PBL in the beginning and eventually became jaded. It's really a personal thing, I think. Either way, I wouldn't let it worry you too much - Mereafterthough and I are living proof that you can get through it with your sanity intact even if you don't love it, and no one (at least in our class) has dropped out because they didn't like/couldn't handle the PBL system. Who knows, it may really grow on me this spring during block 3. I'll let you know if that happens. ;-)
When I was trying to decide where to go to vet school PBL was a huge road block for me because although I was fairly certain I would be able to succeed in the system (which I have so far), I was also fairly certain that it would be a huge pain in my @$$ (which, honestly, it has been so far). In the end my decision came down to money, and even though I'm not PBL's biggest fan, no regrets here. I will reiterate that plenty of people (maybe even the majority) really really enjoy the case-based style at Cornell, and you very well may be one of those people some day! I don't want anyone reading this to be scared off, because Cornell is a great place with great professors and clinicians, even if you don't love PBL. Do feel free to continue to ask any questions you have about PBL or Cornell in general. Compared to some other schools there aren't many of us Cornell folks on SDN, and when I was in your shoes last year I really wished there were.
). in general there is at least 1 (sometimes 2) case per body region (thorax, neck, head, abdomen, pelvis, pelvic limb, thoracic limb), and there is limited over lap between them. there are some moments of "oh yeah, that's kinda of like xyz in the last case!" but for the most part the cases are pretty self-contained. what helps to unite the cases into a big picture is anatomy lab, which is "synched up" with the cases (the week you do the case about the thorax, you'll be dissecting the thorax in lab). somehow all of the cases do come together to form a big picture, although i don't know if it's possible to really explain/put my finger on exactly how this happens. again, i think this is really thanks to your cadaver - because the cases you study are about all different animals (various breeds of dog, some cats, some horses) which can feel disjointed at times, but you're dissecting everything on a dog which somehow unites them. does that make any sense?
I'm very excited, but nervous too!
. Cornell is my IS and I was really skeptical of getting in, so I've been dancing for joy for the past couple hours and celebrating with my family. Crossing my fingers for everyone else!!!! 
