medschool orientation-what to expect?

[integra892]

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Tomorrow is my orientation for medschool...a little late to do this but...and I wanted to know what to expect and if there is anything special I should bring with me from fellow SDNers that have gone through it already. I am thinking I will probably need a big backpack and paper/pen anything else that might be of use?

 

[Viper RT/10]

be prepared to be bored out of your mind. we didn't need to bring anything but a pen to ours.

 

[DrMom]

Most likely you'll be spending a lot of time sitting & listening to people tell you about what they think is important.

I seriously doubt that you need the backpack. 😉

 

[UNMC2006]

Bored by day... PARTYING by night. Bring a pen and some serious advil. If it is anything like ours, you will be up early in the morning feeling like ****, but in an effort to meet people you will regroup and go hard again that night. Enjoy this week, it is the last taste of freedom you will have for awhile.

 

[kaos]

Is there a dress code? What do people usually wear to these things?

 

[ckent]

Originally posted by kaos
Is there a dress code? What do people usually wear to these things?

For our orientation, there was no dress code. I've heard that they have been experimenting with different sorts of activities though in the last few years with orientation (they used to have us all go out to a ski resort in summer, what a smart school), 🙄 , but I can't imagine that the "dress code" has changed. The only thing that you need to dress up for is your Intro to clinical practice course when you start interviewing patients (not in the beginning) and your white coat ceremony (I think that's sometime in october or something.

 

[Pickle Salt]

did you people really worry this much about orientation?

jesus what'll happen when exams start up?

 

[ItsGavinC]

Good point pickle.

And orientation...ugh, we had it for nearly a week. Ugh again. Remember when your undergrad teachers would take a couple of minutes to review classroom policies? It's like that but it lasts for a whole week.

 

[ckent]

Originally posted by Pickle Salt
did you people really worry this much about orientation?

jesus what'll happen when exams start up?

A lot of med students have diagnosable OCPD according to one of my psychiatry prof's. It's what got you into med school, and you can't expect personality traits to change overnight or at all for that matter.

 

[Kovox]

Originally posted by ckent
The only thing that you need to dress up for is your Intro to clinical practice course when you start interviewing patients (not in the beginning) and your white coat ceremony (I think that's sometime in october or something.

Is it required that a student attend the white coat ceremony? And how often are parties, like social events with other schools in the area like the law/denta/pharm schools if at all?

 

[BPKurtz]

Originally posted by Kovox
Is it required that a student attend the white coat ceremony? And how often are parties, like social events with other schools in the area like the law/denta/pharm schools if at all?

Go to your white coat ceremony unless there is 1) a death in the family, 2) you are graduating from something else that day, or 3) something else of that magnitude (like your wedding). You will have plenty of time in med school to get jaded with things, I don't recommend you start doing it before classes even begin. The white coat ceremony is supposed to be highly symbolic.

We had stuff with the other professional schools about 2-3 times/year. It depends on the student council's social committee or whatever.

bpkurtz

 

[ckent]

Originally posted by Kovox
Is it required that a student attend the white coat ceremony? And how often are parties, like social events with other schools in the area like the law/denta/pharm schools if at all?

If you are planning on going to Maryland, it's not "required" but they will call your name at the ceremony unless you ask them not to, so certainly at some point you will be asked about it. Actually, I think that 3-4 students didn't attend our white coat ceremony, and the dean actually had a "mini" white coat ceremony in his office, where even some of the student's family members attended. There are social events with other schools, I get e-mails about them every now (probably ~1/month sent to all schools) and then but I usually don't go. I've been to 2-3 during my first 2 yrs, and just kept with the med students that i knew, but I suppose if you wanted to make an effort, you could get to know students at other schools. Most students, as far as I know, don't though.

 

[8744]

Medical school orientation, a full week at my school, is an exercise in profound dorkiness where you will be told, with many variations, that "you are good enough, you are smart enough, and gosh darnit people like you."

With very little effort the whole week could be compressed into a couple of hours after registration.