Med school=hell?

[Iownhonda]

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How much free time do you have once you enter a medical school? Do you even have time to eat and sleep? How much sleep should you expect for yourself per day? How busy exactly is a life of a med student? Is it more or less the same as undergrad?

 

[JonnyG]

you have plenty of time to do what you want you just study any other time you don't have something to do. SO in a way you never have free time, but you still do what you like.

 

[SpeedRacer]

How much free time do you have once you enter a medical school?

None

Do you even have time to eat and sleep?

No

How much sleep should you expect for yourself per day?

6 hours

How busy exactly is a life of a med student? Is it more or less the same as undergrad?

No

Just kidding I've never been in med school. But I sure am crying myself to sleep thinkin about it

 

[Scottish Chap]

How much free time do you have once you enter a medical school? Do you even have time to eat and sleep? How much sleep should you expect for yourself per day? How busy exactly is a life of a med student? Is it more or less the same as undergrad?

Don't worry, and don't pay attention to people who try to scare you! That's the worst thing you can do. To say medical school is easy would be misleading. Some people will tell you it's the worst experience of their life while others will tell you it's the most expensive vacation they've ever had. Most people, like myself, find it to be somewhere between those two extremes. If you have a roof over your head and three meals per day, how bad can it be......

 

[Ypo.]

No= to hell. law school=hell. In medical school they bend over backwards to keep you in. Most places allow you to do an extended program, in which case the stress will go down and free time will go up. So rely on that reassuring thought as your safety net.

Also, it depends on how much you let yourself stress out (ie-how much of a perfectionist or control freak you are). 😉

 

[dr.kicia]

ok i do not know how the med school is but i was an architecture student and if someone is considering 6 hr of sleep/day bad...arch students would kill for 6 hr of sleep, because that is how much we would get in a given week....no exaggeration
and i was only a first year studio undergrad....sometimes i didn't even sleep in two days...and i know people in master's program who would have pillows and sleeping bags under their descks in studio...they basicly lived there sleeping when they remebered and eating food from the vending machines... just my insight on time 🙂

 

[njbmd]

How much free time do you have once you enter a medical school? Do you even have time to eat and sleep? How much sleep should you expect for yourself per day? How busy exactly is a life of a med student? Is it more or less the same as undergrad?

Hi there,
You have free time as you schedule it once you enter medical school. You have a large amount of information to digest and memorize which requires a good deal of daily study. I thought my brain was going to explode during first year but when I got to second year, I realized how much more free time I had during first year.

You set a study schedule and adjust up or down depending on how long it takes you to master the material. There is enough time to eat and sleep if you are a disciplined student. I did get very used to studying on little or no sleep if I had to which has served me well in residency.

There is no set number of hours of sleep that you can expect to get. Some of my classmates never attended class and slept well. Some attended every class and slept less. Some slept in class (me during biostats and epidemiology) . 😴

The volume of information that you must master is far greater than anything that you will have encountered in undergraduate school. Most medical students make it through without difficulty and adjust their study schedule up or down.

Contrary to popular belief, you CAN fail out of medical school. This happens when the student is not able to put in the time that the curriculum demands. While failing out is rare, it DOES happen. The material is not difficult but there is a huge amount. Fortunately, there is the weekend to catch up or get ahead.

I did very well and had plenty of time to work out, hang out with me mates and stay in a relationship.

njbmd 🙂

 

[ChuckRock]

If you have a roof over your head and three meals per day, how bad can it be......

That's gotta be the best damn advice I've seen on these forums.

 

[UCDavisdude]

just remember...."love is a battlefield"

 

[Ignacio]

It's not about how much you know, or how hard you study, but really how smart you study and how much of what they want you to know that you actually know. For example, a certain school takes questions exactly out of the book that one of the profs authors (Stanford) while another one is more theoretical for anatomy (Sinai). It is way easier to smoke one school over the other. So, this will vary from school to school, but a safe rule of thumb is to by God, get old exams -they provide blue prints into the minds of the exam authors - like perfect silver bullets, so do not screw this up. Otherwise, you will be studying a course blindly without even knowing what is relevant for boards, or for the exam you will take in a few weeks time.

You have plenty of time in medical school but you will figur e this out. If you have grades, you may study more. In clinics, you have no free time. Who takes out your trash? You're always in the hospital. As a resident, you don't even get those breaks between rotations that you got asa a clinical student, so it gets worse and worse, and worse.

Find good people who give good advice and stick to them.

Find the people who announce they don't study, mark a big red X on their foreheads, and avoid them. They will only bring you down.

Study in groups, it really helps.

Realize that each class draws upon different studying techniques - pharm is great with flashcards. Anatomy, too. BUt path, that works well with pictures, questions, and researching emedicine or uptodate for some vital pathophys and working in groups. It varies. So, you must too.

Med school is like a military operation - shock and awe your profs. You do this by gathering intelligence. So, look up 2nd years, and talk to them. Get old exams, get the book/s the profs recommend. Do it smart and you will have plenty of time to do what means most to you.

 

[SoCuteMD]

No= to hell. law school=hell. In medical school they bend over backwards to keep you in. Most places allow you to do an extended program, in which case the stress will go down and free time will go up. So rely on that reassuring thought as your safety net.

Also, it depends on how much you let yourself stress out (ie-how much of a perfectionist or control freak you are). 😉

Dude(tte?), don't even try the "law school=hell" thing. My best friend is a third year law student and her schedule was such that spent 2 days away from school (not studying!) every week this entire fall semester. The first year of law school is tough, but according to her, both I and her hometown best friend (a med student) were far busier than she was even first year.

 

[bluenebula83]

well i think the biggest difference between undergrad and graduate school (be it law school, med school or grad school) is that your perception changes. well, atleast it does for me. i'm assuming in graduate school you no longer study just for the grades. more than that, you study to be a good professional and that sorta shapes your entire study habit. you can fly through law school or med school or you can study really hard depending on your own personal goals and agenda.

 

[bbas]

I think that it depends on individual goals and expectations. A person gunning to be at the top of the class and receive all honors will obviously have to put in more time than the person who is just looking to pass, so this will effect how much free time you have depending on which one of these people you want to be.

 

[Pewl]

I'm sure glad I went to grad school first. That trained me a bit for med school, mentality and all.

 

[Depakote]

Think purgatory.

not great, not terrible, but at the end you're a doctor.

 

[Dr Trek 1]

Medical school, like anything else, is what you make of it. If you go in expecting to work hard but still enjoy it- and do so- it will actually be quite enjoyable.

When stressed, just think about the incredible priviledge it is to practice medicine and the difference you are going to make in this world.

 

[Daichi Katase]

It is going to be the best four years of your life. If you make them to be.


I am bad at saying cheesy things. But that statement is true.

 

[71263]

In a word, yes.

 

[Iwy Em Hotep]

Please...med students have at least an hour a day to whine about how much work they have and how hard things are. 🙂

 

[gary5]

The answer depends on how good your memory is and how long your school's curriculum is. If you have an excellent memory and a 15 hr/wk curriculum, you'll have lots of extra time. If you have an less-than-excellent memory and a 40 hr/wk curriculum, you won't have an extra minute.

 

[Pewl]

Go to grad school first. It trains you to be independent and inquisitive. =P

 

[oldman]

during 1st two years, i had time to go lift about 2 hours/day every day.

during wards the time for outside activities drops, but you have fun in the hospital.

 

[Law2Doc]

Dude(tte?), don't even try the "law school=hell" thing. My best friend is a third year law student and her schedule was such that spent 2 days away from school (not studying!) every week this entire fall semester. The first year of law school is tough, but according to her, both I and her hometown best friend (a med student) were far busier than she was even first year.

I agree. Law school was different as you had to be prepared to be put on the spot every day (thanks to the socratic method), but on a relatively finite amount of information. And at some places you only have one, all encompassing exam at the end of the semester (per course), which perplexes some. Med school involves far more material, with an attention to detail quite different from law school. You have a LOT more free time in law school, which I felt was more comparable to undergrad, except during the week leading up to exams.
I agree with most of the prior posts -- your free time in med school will depend on how well you manage it. Most people seem to sleep in the ballpark of 6 hours per night if they attend classes. Most people find time to work out or do something fun periodically. But it is not comparable to undergrad, and folks who don't make the adjustment get themselves into trouble.
As with anything in life, you learn to adapt to survive.

 

[tigress]

ok i do not know how the med school is but i was an architecture student and if someone is considering 6 hr of sleep/day bad...arch students would kill for 6 hr of sleep, because that is how much we would get in a given week....no exaggeration
and i was only a first year studio undergrad....sometimes i didn't even sleep in two days...and i know people in master's program who would have pillows and sleeping bags under their descks in studio...they basicly lived there sleeping when they remebered and eating food from the vending machines... just my insight on time 🙂

That's really funny. I was talking to an architecture student (she's in grad school, so I guess a masters?) who said that school was incredibly busy. I hadn't given it any thought before, but I guess I can back this post up from hearsay 😛

Anyway, I've known med students who stress out all the time and do nothing but study, and I've known med students who are always out and never seem to study, and both somehow do well. Most are in the middle somewhere. I really think it depends on the person, not even the curriculum so much, because I've known some of these same times at the same schools (and at different schools). It's partially how much time you personally need to study to learn the material, plus how well you're trying to do (top of the class? somehwere in the middle? etc.), plus how anxious/strung out you tend to get in stressful situations. The latter will hopefully improve over time, as I've seen it do in a good friend who's in her first year.

 

[Law2Doc]

It's partially how much time you personally need to study to learn the material, plus how well you're trying to do (top of the class? somehwere in the middle? etc.), plus how anxious/strung out you tend to get in stressful situations. The latter will hopefully improve over time, as I've seen it do in a good friend who's in her first year.

No matter what type you are, you will generally find it more work than undergrad (for most even just to pass). I've found that even those folks who say they don't study or seem to have free time are packing the info in somehow, albeit perhaps more efficiently than most. A realistic expectation is that you will have to bust your hump studying every day just to be above the mean, and study more than undergrad just to stay shy of it. If you study the same as most did in undergrad, you may be flirting with having to retake things, unless you are atypically blessed with a fantastic mind and memory. Probably varies based on the school, but definitely don't assume that you only have to go nuts studying if you want honors.

 

[gujuDoc]

Last semester, a good friend and former MCAT instructor of mine came in to talk about what his 1.5 years in med school have been like thus far. Additionally, he brought his classmate in as well, so that we could get two perspectives from medical students.

Both students said that regardless of whether you go to class or study on your own and watch lectures through video streaming, you will spend 12-14 hours on average doing something medical school related whether it is studying, attending class, or so forth. He also said that you spend at least 6-8 hours on weekends doing the same. Yet, you are able to find a little time as you schedule it in your schedule to do some of the things you enjoy like working out.

In my friend's case, he does not attend class but when others are in class he is studying from the powerpoints and from the text and video streamlined lectures, etc.

His roommate, however, is the kind that needs to attend lecture and then study.

 

[Law2Doc]

Last semester, a good friend and former MCAT instructor of mine came in to talk about what his 1.5 years in med school have been like thus far. Additionally, he brought his classmate in as well, so that we could get two perspectives from medical students.

Both students said that regardless of whether you go to class or study on your own and watch lectures through video streaming, you will spend 12-14 hours on average doing something medical school related whether it is studying, attending class, or so forth. He also said that you spend at least 6-8 hours on weekends doing the same. Yet, you are able to find a little time as you schedule it in your schedule to do some of the things you enjoy like working out.

In my friend's case, he does not attend class but when others are in class he is studying from the powerpoints and from the text and video streamlined lectures, etc.

His roommate, however, is the kind that needs to attend lecture and then study.

Sounds about right, although I would lower the week hours a tiny bit and raise the weekend hours up except on weekends immediately after tests.

 

[Dr Trek 1]

At my med school, we can chose our curriculum (lecture-based, problem-based, or independent study). I chose independent study. I have not started med school yet but I hear independent study is awesome since you have no lecture and study on your own or in groups. This also gives you much more free time.

Regardless of the med school, many med students seem to have plenty of time to post on SDN daily;-)

 

[Law2Doc]

Regardless of the med school, many med students seem to have plenty of time to post on SDN daily;-)

Except that that also means that they are chained to their computer studying daily. 🙂

 

[Dr Trek 1]

Except that that also means that they are chained to their computer studying daily. 🙂

Indeed. But still- if the internet didn't exist I am convinced I'd have about 50% more time to study than I do now. All during undergrad I always got sidetracked by AIM, SDN, and lots of other websites. Ah well, I guess the time isn't completely badly spent;-)

 

[21JumpStreet]

ok i do not know how the med school is but i was an architecture student and if someone is considering 6 hr of sleep/day bad...arch students would kill for 6 hr of sleep, because that is how much we would get in a given week....no exaggeration
and i was only a first year studio undergrad....sometimes i didn't even sleep in two days...and i know people in master's program who would have pillows and sleeping bags under their descks in studio...they basicly lived there sleeping when they remebered and eating food from the vending machines... just my insight on time 🙂

I think this is a great post! It really depends on what one studied as an ugrad. Many on here are generalizing by simply saying that med school is much harder than ugrad. We can't say that. I've known computer science majors that are always up until wee hours (4:00 AM) of the morning in a lab working on a project.

 

[gujuDoc]

I think this is a great post! It really depends on what one studied as an ugrad. Many on here are generalizing by simply saying that med school is much harder than ugrad. We can't say that. I've known computer science majors that are always up until wee hours (4:00 AM) of the morning in a lab working on a project.

You just described the sister of one of my friends in that computer science part. She's a computer engineer, not comp science person but it is still the same deal for her.

 

[Law2Doc]

I think this is a great post! It really depends on what one studied as an ugrad. Many on here are generalizing by simply saying that med school is much harder than ugrad. We can't say that. I've known computer science majors that are always up until wee hours (4:00 AM) of the morning in a lab working on a project.

Not so. I've known quite a few computer science majors and engineering majors who would agree that med school was still harder. Not conceptually harder, but the material is simply more voluminous than anything they throw at ANY undergrad major.

 

[21JumpStreet]

Not so. I've known quite a few computer science majors and engineering majors who would agree that med school was still harder. Not conceptually harder, but the material is simply more voluminous than anything they throw at ANY undergrad major.

I still disagree. Have you majored in every ugrad program? Stop generalizing. People don't realize this: if a program is conceptually more difficult, one will spend more time studying to grasp concepts to solve abstract problems. SO whether or not it is an ugrad or grad/med program, a difficult program means more studying.

Some of us med students are such drama queens/kings.

 

[Law2Doc]

I still disagree. Have you majored in every ugrad program? Stop generalizing. People don't realize this: if a program is conceptually more difficult, one will spend more time studying to grasp concepts to solve abstract problems. SO whether or not it is an ugrad or grad/med program, a difficult program means more studying.

Some of us med students are such drama queens/kings.

I disagree. If it's conceptually hard then once you master it, you are done. If it is voluminous to the point that you will never learn all of it, then you are never done. You are welcome to believe that your ugrad major is as tough as med school, fine by me. Good luck.

 

[argonana]

I disagree. If it's conceptually hard then once you master it, you are done. If it is voluminous to the point that you will never learn all of it, then you are never done. You are welcome to believe that your ugrad major is as tough as med school, fine by me. Good luck.

heh. i understand what you're saying. math was a wonderful thing to major in because everything was so concrete--you mastered the concepts and did the problem sets/projects, and then you were done. there was a lot of time left over to just think, play, work out, do more work, whatever. but i'm confused, Law2Doc, are you already a med student? if so, what year are you in?

 

[71263]

The fact of the matter is, it doesnt matter how smart you are, or how well you did in undergrad. You will STILL have to work hard to do well. The only time you wont have to work so hard is if youve had experience in the subject matter and thus already have a solid foundation. My roommate, for example, who majored in biochem, did 2 years of research and 3 years of TA, could probably sleep through classes like biochem, cell bio, genetics, etc and do fine whereas someone like me, who only took a few intro level classes in undergrad, would have to do alot more work and may not end up getting the same results.

Suffice it to say though, he probably worked alot harder than I did in undergrad, and its showing now. The point is, everyone does the work at some point. Figuring out how to study and go about things may take longer for some than others, but in the end, as long as you put in the time and study, youll be fine.

 

[dr.kicia]

i had a firend in architecture who's roomate was a med student. He didn't even spend half of the time studying that my friend was spending on making models, drawing and studying on top of that...Plus you can really study were ever you want things like bio, chem or physics. With arch you are barely studying/doing things at home...and on top of the time consuming "making of things" you still have to first get an idea that is your own. You have to be creative not just hummer the info into your head. And very often some little things happen something goes wrong and you have to start over, and then you are being panalized for unfinished work...
And being inteligent or able to learn fast doesn't do any good to you since you still have to fight with time just like anyone else. You are not really advantaged in any way...
I do not think that med school is easy, because then we all would be doctors...but there are certain undergrad studies that are great prep for med school...
I am glad i was in arch because like no other major it teaches you discipline and comitment and perfection. If you slack off one day and not do any work you won't finish your project on time....You can't just skim through the chapter like in bio and still do great on the exam because everything slappy is visible in your work right away.
Another thing i have learned is that i can study for hours and not sleep....my pre-med firend says that i am a machine....i think that is a good characteristic to have in med shcool and i would never get it if I didn't major in arch...

 

[OSUdoc08]

How much free time do you have once you enter a medical school? Do you even have time to eat and sleep? How much sleep should you expect for yourself per day? How busy exactly is a life of a med student? Is it more or less the same as undergrad?

There is much more free time in medical school than college for me.

This may have to do with 2 things, however:

1. interest & background knowledge in the subject material i am studying

2. lack of attendance policies for classes

(I sleep several hours more a day in med school than college.)

 

[coffeeluver]

Except that that also means that they are chained to their computer studying daily. 🙂

LOL...so true

 

[21JumpStreet]

I disagree. If it's conceptually hard then once you master it, you are done. If it is voluminous to the point that you will never learn all of it, then you are never done. You are welcome to believe that your ugrad major is as tough as med school, fine by me. Good luck.

I still disagree because I have seen otherwise from others. However, my ugrad major wasn't as tough as med school. It was a criminal justice program. However, my graduate degree in geophysics was harder conceptually and more voluminous with countless student and junior faculty duties than med school.

 

[deuist]

I still disagree. Have you majored in every ugrad program? Stop generalizing. People don't realize this: if a program is conceptually more difficult, one will spend more time studying to grasp concepts to solve abstract problems. SO whether or not it is an ugrad or grad/med program, a difficult program means more studying.

I did a major in physics, a field that most people say is the most conceptually difficult major in undergrad. I only worked on Thursday nights to finish all of the homework that was due on Friday morning. I rarely had to put in more hours than that one night each week. Pre-med, on the other hand, demanded lots of time. The material wasn't difficult. I just had to spend lots of time memorizing all of the minutia. My graduate program in engineering was the same way---I only had to work the night before a test and a due-date for homework.

Someone else on this board mentioned the computer science majors who stay awake until 4am writing programs. As an amateur programmer, let me tell you a little about this world: First, the field is not terribly difficult, but it is time-consuming. Have you ever started reading something online, only to click on a link to another site and continue reading? Before you know it, an hour has passed! Programming is the same way. I can write code all night without ever feeling tired or burned out. I usually won't stop until I look at the clock and realize that it's 5am and that I have to go to bed. I would never say that programming is difficult---although some of the material taught in upper level CS classes can be a bit hairy.


Difficult material does not = time-consuming

 

[21JumpStreet]

I did a major in physics, a field that most people say is the most conceptually difficult major in undergrad. I only worked on Thursday nights to finish all of the homework that was due on Friday morning. I rarely had to put in more hours than that one night each week. Pre-med, on the other hand, demanded lots of time. The material wasn't difficult. I just had to spend lots of time memorizing all of the minutia. My graduate program in engineering was the same way---I only had to work the night before a test and a due-date for homework.

Someone else on this board mentioned the computer science majors who stay awake until 4am writing programs. As an amateur programmer, let me tell you a little about this world: First, the field is not terribly difficult, but it is time-consuming. Have you ever started reading something online, only to click on a link to another site and continue reading? Before you know it, an hour has passed! Programming is the same way. I can write code all night without ever feeling tired or burned out. I usually won't stop until I look at the clock and realize that it's 5am and that I have to go to bed. I would never say that programming is difficult---although some of the material taught in upper level CS classes can be a bit hairy.


Difficult material does not = time-consuming

My graduate program was a phd program. It entailed rigourous coursework. There were Comp exams and orals to take, teaching, holding office hours for students, conducting research, writing a juried dissertation, and defending it. I had absolutely no time to be on SDN. Also, the last year in my program wasn't any less stressful. So, as a med student I find myself less stressed because I don't have to conduct research and be responsible for a large number of students. In other words, I can just be a student and not a junior faculty member.

For many difficult does=time consuming. It also varies on how difficult we are talking about.

As a former calculus tutor, I have seen students struggle for hours upon hours on just a few math problems. There was no way that they would learn all of the material for an exam. Some of these students were pre-med students and non-pre-med students. Simply, if the material is too difficult for an individual, there isn't enough time to master all of the information needed for an exam. At least that is what happened to some of my former students.

 

[tigress]

I think everybody is trying to generalize. No, not all med students will need to study those 12 or whatever hours a day. Some will, and some won't. My husband doesn't study nearly that much except right before a test. OTOH, my best friend studies at least that much every single day. Granted, the former isn't exactly in the top half of his class 😛 and the latter is probably in the top 5 in her class. But especially at schools that are pass/fail, this isn't necessarily so important (how important it is depends on the individual). And I know that I'll have to study at least 3x as much as my husband just to do as well, because he has the amazing ability to read something carefully once and remember it.

So, as I said before -- it depends on the person! Yes, you have a LOT more to learn than you did in most undergrad programs. And some people get overwhelmed and stressed out (well, maybe even most people do at some point). It's over in about 2 years, you slog through it, and depending on who you are you have more or less free time. Then you get to third year and get to learn how to do med school all over again 😛

 

[spot the cat]

ok i do not know how the med school is but i was an architecture student and if someone is considering 6 hr of sleep/day bad...arch students would kill for 6 hr of sleep, because that is how much we would get in a given week....no exaggeration
and i was only a first year studio undergrad....sometimes i didn't even sleep in two days...and i know people in master's program who would have pillows and sleeping bags under their descks in studio...they basicly lived there sleeping when they remebered and eating food from the vending machines... just my insight on time 🙂

I was wondering if there were any architecture students out there. That is probably one of the more brutal degrees you can get.

I have a masters degree in landscape architecture. Getting to bed by 4 am in order to get to a 10 am class was luxurious. Health services at my school said that the design school students were by far more overworked/underslept than the med students and law students. At the same time, my best friend was in medical school, and she was always able to do things outside of school - nothing too outrageous, but outside reading, a James Bond movie marathon with her bf and some other friends one weekend, and she could travel. She could bring her study notes to, say, london or a tropical beach, but I had trouble bringing my studio projects along to such exotic locales. (Of course, there were some studio options in exotic locales, so I can't complain too much). At times, my apartment seemed like a vacation because I was at studio so much.

It was fun in a sick kind of way - everyone was in it together and there'd be spontaneous outbursts of brazilian music and red wine late on a friday or saturday night, dashing out to a bar before last call for a beer before coming back to studio, sneaking out to matinee movies when we were supposed to be getting desk crits in the afternoon... And it certainly gave me the confidence that I can withstand some truly gruelling academic conditions!

 

[dr.kicia]

very good point spot the cat 👍

 

[21JumpStreet]

I know architecture is a rigourous discipline. My father is an architect. When he was in school, I hardly saw him.

 

[dr.kicia]

both my grandfather and my father are architects...lol i am braking the family tradition

 

[caldoc44]

both my grandfather and my father are architects...lol i am braking the family tradition

Shame on you

 

[werd]

How much free time do you have once you enter a medical school? Do you even have time to eat and sleep? How much sleep should you expect for yourself per day? How busy exactly is a life of a med student? Is it more or less the same as undergrad?

med school isn't all that bad. you have lots of free time, although less than in college... first year is significantly easier than second year but even 2nd year there's time to run/play sports/go out. at my school the med students put intramural teams together for every intramural sport offered, sometimes like 3 teams for a sport. there is a faction of the (mostly 1st year) class that goes out most thursday nights, and a much larger fraction goes out and has fun at least one night of the weekend.
you get pretty damn busy sometimes, especially around exams but it should never impinge on your ability to get as much sleep as you need to (although some people let it - personally i think it hurts them more than helps). it's the same lifestyle as in undergrad but with a lot more to learn in a shorter time. personally, i've given up watching tv but that's about the only sacrifice i've made.