Gross anatomy in the summer?!?!

[rwessinger23]

The school I've been accepted to offers anatomy in the summer. Anyone out there thinking about taking such an offer, or has taken it in the past? I don't know what to do!

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[jochi1543]

Do you not have to take it during the year then? If so, I think I'd probably do it...to make life easier during M1.

But I think it also depends on what you are doing before school starts. If you are really busy now, 2-3 months off before med school starts might serve you well. Don't go there already tired and overworked.

 

[nka1985]

The school I've been accepted to offers anatomy in the summer. Anyone out there thinking about taking such an offer, or has taken it in the past? I don't know what to do!

ENJOY your summer. Anatomy is not easy, and takes over your life for a while, so kick back, enjoy your last summer and start off med school feeling relaxed and refreshed.

And congrats on your acceptance.

 

[Jolie South]

I'm thinking about doing it. I don't really like my job and would love to have the extra time to get used to the new city and set up my apt.

Plus, you do have that extra free time in the fall.

 

[Isoprop]

i would just so that when i fail, i won't have to take it the summer afterwards.

 

[WoodyInvincible]

From all the M1s I've heard from they say don't take it during summer. Fewer ppl take the summer class and anatomy is a good time to meet and bond with your fellow classmates.

 

[Isoprop]

From all the M1s I've heard from they say don't take it during summer. Fewer ppl take the summer class and anatomy is a good time to meet and bond with your fellow classmates.

plus it sounds like all the gunners will be in this class.

 

[Cranial Gavage]

MUSC offers a gross anatomy as a 10-week summer course to a small group of matriculants (30). These students become teaching assistants for the fall section. Here's my list of pros and cons from a discussion on another thread:

Pros
-Studying gross without having to multitask with other courses
-Being able to be a TA
-Having a lighter course load in the fall

Cons
-Gross is compressed into 10 weeks rather than 15+ weeks.
-Extra expense ($6,000)
-Your fall tuition remains the same, so you pay for gross twice.
-No margin for error in a compressed summer course
-If you give yourself an easy fall semester, maybe you won't be as prepared for time management issues in the spring
-Being a TA (at MUSC) takes a lot of time: you have to go to lectures and attend the 3 labs per week (4 hrs each) plus the pinnings (every Sunday at 3pm for 2 hrs)
-Anatomy is a beast. A sixteen week anatomy course is intense. A ten week anatomy course is brutal.

 

[Writer1985]

Oh man. Taking anatomy in 10 weeks is terrible. At our school, we take almost three times that long, and it's intense enough.

 

[Cranial Gavage]

Oh, I just noticed you were the OP, rwessinger23. You've seen my pro/con list already, but I'll leave it up in case anyone else is interested.

 

[nlax30]

Oh man. Taking anatomy in 10 weeks is terrible. At our school, we take almost three times that long, and it's intense enough.

Yeah, we do gross anatomy in 10 weeks as well (supposed to be more "survey" course-like since it's integrated into the curriculum over 1st two years) and it was intense.

I know FSU is an early start school where they do gross anatomy over the summer, but there's no choice, that's the curriculum there. But I guess it is nice to only focus on anatomy during that time and get it out of the way.

I enjoyed my summer though.....

 

[Non-TradTulsa]

plus it sounds like all the gunners will be in this class.

Not necessarily. There are only a few medical schools that offer gross in the summer and MS-I's who failed gross will travel all over the country to attend those summer courses. They're in a strange city and stressed as h*ll because, if they pass, they move on to MS-II; if not, it's do the whole year over. I'm not saying these people are dumb - things happen in medical school, trust me. But I wouldn't try to take gross in a compressed timeframe and wouldn't put myself in that situation if I had any choice.

 

[jochi1543]

-Extra expense ($6,000)
-Your fall tuition remains the same, so you pay for gross twice.
.

That's all I'd ever need to know...unless the TA job is paid and compensates for the tuition difference.

 

[swooptheeagle]

More than anything, I wouldn't take gross anatomy in such a short time. It's hard enough to do it in the regular time, and it's such an important foundation for being a doctor; you really make sure you want to know what you learn, not just cram it for short term memory. Plus, you really want to enjoy your time before med school b/c u'll have little free time once you start, and may even be burned out from an intense 10 wk. course even if u have a lighter fall course w/o anatomy.

 

[nka1985]

Jeez, some schools take anatomy over 16 weeks? We take it in 8. Sure, we only have two classes right now, but this is no survey/overview course, it's very, very detailed. No wonder I'm so tired tonight.

 

[Dendrite]

Yeah, we do gross anatomy in 10 weeks as well (supposed to be more "survey" course-like since it's integrated into the curriculum over 1st two years) and it was intense.

I know FSU is an early start school where they do gross anatomy over the summer, but there's no choice, that's the curriculum there. But I guess it is nice to only focus on anatomy during that time and get it out of the way.

I enjoyed my summer though.....

I also learned more about FSU's summer Gross class. It seemed like a good idea. The classes aren't early (more like mid-day), and you get out at 5PM and can enjoy the rest of the day. From the students who went through it, I had the impression that it eases you into the med school curriculum, but then again, it is a requirement for their early start program. With respect to FSU, it did not seem bad at all.

 

[Crazy4F1]

two things...


i know someone who took the MUSC summer gross course and i dont think she sounded like she'd reccommend it. i suppose the experience probably could be similar other places.


and second, from my own experience, anatomy is as much about the dissecting and learning as it is bonding with your classmates. you will regret not being a part of the group when the rest of your class does it. the only reason you should be taking anatomy in the summer is if you fail it during the fall

 

[lilTXcatMD]

We do comprehensive the anatomy course and full dissection in 8 weeks.. it hasn't killed anyone yet

 

[0Complications]

We do comprehensive the anatomy course and full dissection in 8 weeks.. it hasn't killed anyone yet

That's true, but apparently 30 people died to get in. (sorry, couldn't help the corny joke).


As far as what the other posters are saying about the summer session being too condensed and not learning enough, it sounds like a number of other schools offer it in an even shorter period of time and they do fine, plus in every TA experience I've had I always learn so much more when I'm actually TAing than when I took the class. So, if they are TAing the class in the Fall as well, I would have to guess that their anatomy knowledge will be > than that of the students just taking it during the fall.

 

[WiscDoc]

MUSC offers a gross anatomy as a 10-week summer course to a small group of matriculants (30). These students become teaching assistants for the fall section. Here's my list of pros and cons from a discussion on another thread:

Pros
-Studying gross without having to multitask with other courses
-Being able to be a TA
-Having a lighter course load in the fall

Cons
-Gross is compressed into 10 weeks rather than 15+ weeks.
-Extra expense ($6,000)
-Your fall tuition remains the same, so you pay for gross twice.
-No margin for error in a compressed summer course
-If you give yourself an easy fall semester, maybe you won't be as prepared for time management issues in the spring
-Being a TA (at MUSC) takes a lot of time: you have to go to lectures and attend the 3 labs per week (4 hrs each) plus the pinnings (every Sunday at 3pm for 2 hrs)
-Anatomy is a beast. A sixteen week anatomy course is intense. A ten week anatomy course is brutal.

My school offers anatomy in the summer and I took it. I agree with all the pros, but disagree with most of the cons.
1- I am a TA now and it is a great way to get to know your classmates.
2-My school offers it as part of the fall semester tuition, so I did not have to pay summer tuition.
3- Being a TA is NOT time consuming, and is really fun. (4-8 hrs a week). It is a great way to review your anatomy with low stress.
4-While our summer course was 7 weeks (if you take out holidays) it is better than having it in the fall (16 weeks) with 3 other courses. Plus, if you couldn't handle it in the summer, you had another shot at it in the fall (without being delayed a year).
5- Since the course was ony 8 weeks (with holidays included), we had 2 weeks off before gross started, and we had 3 weeks before the fall (after summer gross).
6- EVERYBODY who took summer gross were glad they did (no one regrets it), but many students who did NOT take summer gross wish they had. I guess spending your summer getting wasted doesn't feel as good anymore after messing up on a few tests.

MY ADVICE: ask students who have taken the course at your school. Figure out the time committment, load, the doability, and their recommendation. It seems like the details vary from school to school. Good luck.

 

[Cranial Gavage]

My school offers anatomy in the summer and I took it. I agree with all the pros, but disagree with most of the cons.
1- I am a TA now and it is a great way to get to know your classmates.
2-My school offers it as part of the fall semester tuition, so I did not have to pay summer tuition.
3- Being a TA is NOT time consuming, and is really fun. (4-8 hrs a week). It is a great way to review your anatomy with low stress.
4-While our summer course was 7 weeks (if you take out holidays) it is better than having it in the fall (16 weeks) with 3 other courses. Plus, if you couldn't handle it in the summer, you had another shot at it in the fall (without being delayed a year).
5- Since the course was ony 8 weeks (with holidays included), we had 2 weeks off before gross started, and we had 3 weeks before the fall (after summer gross).
6- EVERYBODY who took summer gross were glad they did (no one regrets it), but many students who did NOT take summer gross wish they had. I guess spending your summer getting wasted doesn't feel as good anymore after messing up on a few tests.

MY ADVICE: ask students who have taken the course at your school. Figure out the time committment, load, the doability, and their recommendation. It seems like the details vary from school to school. Good luck.

Thanks for highlighting the positives of summer gross. As you say, I really need to talk with someone who has actually taken the course at MUSC.

Any MUSC students out there who have taken summer gross?