How does studying medicine in Ireland compare to studying in the U.S. ?

[mcat_taker]

Just wondering about the similarities and differences: i.e. class time, exam difficulty, material covered, how is material tested (type of exams), frequency of exams, do most attend class, how is faculty support, administrative support etc, any tutorials? Are students engaged, asking questions? that kind of thing and how it compares.

for example: I have a friend from the U.S. studying medicine in Australia (and looking to eventually do residency back here) and she has mentioned to me how she mostly has to teach herself, that it is pretty low stress compared to the U.S., and that some of the Australian students even have part time jobs which would be unheard of in the U.S.

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[DKZ]

Well I haven't studied in America, so I can't comment on how it compares. The course in UCD however is very relaxed in the early years. You only have maybe 2-3 lectures a day, 1 or 2 labs/tutorials a week. The exams are easy to pass, but difficult to get a high grade. It definitely was a lot more relaxed than I was expecting. Attending lectures is pretty optional, you can catch up pretty easily on your own. I think by the sounds of it, we have it much easier than the Americans.

 

[deleted158872]

Well I haven't studied in America, so I can't comment on how it compares. The course in UCD however is very relaxed in the early years. You only have maybe 2-3 lectures a day, 1 or 2 labs/tutorials a week. The exams are easy to pass, but difficult to get a high grade. It definitely was a lot more relaxed than I was expecting. Attending lectures is pretty optional, you can catch up pretty easily on your own. I think by the sounds of it, we have it much easier than the Americans.

are you in 5-, 6- or 4-year program?

 

[DKZ]

are you in 5-, 6- or 4-year program?

The 6 year programme. The first year is very, very laid-back. That suited me but probably doesn't suit those who want to get their degree ASAP.

 

[deleted716403]

Interesting. Wonder if people in 4-year GEM programs have to 'teach themselves', too..

 

[RCSI student]

Interesting. Wonder if people in 4-year GEM programs have to 'teach themselves', too..

The GEM programs are more intense because we do in 2 years what the 5 and 6 year programs do in 3 and 4 years respectively. There will always be an element of "teaching yourself" in Irish medical school. One reason is because there isn't 100% overlap in our curriculum and USMLE / MCCEE content. Secondly; world class teachers can now make awesome videos and make them available on the internet for a fee which will be often be better than your current lecturer because the videos have been refined with feedback from users.

Clinical teaching in Ireland focuses heavily on History, Physical Exam and Differential Dx with an emphasis on management in the final year. My U.S. clinical electives had more emphasis on preparing patient updates for rounds, coming up with management plans and doing jobs around the hospital (responding to pages, writing notes, discussing management options with patients, ordering tests, getting patients ready for discharge, family meetings etc.). All of my clinical electives were classified as Sub-Is which I've been told by American students are more intense than a typical rotation.

 

[deleted390966]

The GEM programs are more intense because we do in 2 years what the 5 and 6 year programs do in 3 and 4 years respectively. There will always be an element of "teaching yourself" in Irish medical school. One reason is because there isn't 100% overlap in our curriculum and USMLE / MCCEE content. Secondly; world class teachers can now make awesome videos and make them available on the internet for a fee which will be often be better than your current lecturer because the videos have been refined with feedback from users.

Clinical teaching in Ireland focuses heavily on History, Physical Exam and Differential Dx with an emphasis on management in the final year. My U.S. clinical electives had more emphasis on preparing patient updates for rounds, coming up with management plans and doing jobs around the hospital (responding to pages, writing notes, discussing management options with patients, ordering tests, getting patients ready for discharge, family meetings etc.). All of my clinical electives were classified as Sub-Is which I've been told by American students are more intense than a typical rotation.

How big would you say the gap is between Irish curriculum and USMLE?

 

[RCSI student]

How big would you say the gap is between Irish curriculum and USMLE?

Hard to say exactly but, I think 70-80% overlap is probably a reasonable guess. Obviously, anatomy and physiology teaching will be the same regardless of where you do medical school. The main difference is on the emphasis of country specific disease and drugs. For example: Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever are common USMLE topics and since there are no tics in Ireland its not really covered there. Genetic disease also have a different emphasis. The USMLEs are the hardest exams you will take and even American medical school students have to use their summer time to prepare just like the Irish students.