Schools with the happiest and least happiest med students?

[bollywoodlover]

What do you think makes a happy med student?

Which schools do you think have the happiest med students?
Which schools have the least happiest med students?
What did you base your opinion off of? For ex. interview, attend that school, heresay.

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For me, I'd be happy somewhere that I will be able to maintain a balance of work and doing fun stuff (like working out and maintaining my outside relationships). I prefer somewhere that has a collaborative vibe among student rather than somewhere super cutthroat and competitive. I also prefer a curriculum that is more flexible, a relaxed environment.

I thought both schools I interviewed at, UTMB and UTHSCSA, had pretty happy med students.

Haven't interviewed at school that had med students that seemed super stressed / unhappy yet. I think most of the Texas schools have a more relaxed vibe though.

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[phikapdoctor]

I heard AZCOM and DMU have a pretty upbeat atmosphere. Take this with a grain of salt but I believe balance and competition is the biggest factor. If your school curriculum gives you 8 weeks vs 2 days to study for STEP 1 you are going to have a better atmosphere. Also I believe a pass/ fail system would add to the environment so not everybody is as competitive.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN Mobile app please excuse punctuation and spelling

 

[lobo.solo]

I would say a happy med student gets plenty of sex, alcohol, lives in a interesting area where there is plenty of entertainment...., ohhhh and maybe some cool research, community involvement opportunities available too.

 

[bollywoodlover]

I know a lot of people on SDN strive to go to schools like John Hopkins and UChicago and such. How happy are students at these top schools? I'm guessing they are pretty cutthroat. I've heard Hopkins and UChicago undergrad students aren't very happy.

 

[Irish Football]

I know a lot of people on SDN strive to go to schools like John Hopkins and UChicago and such. How happy are students at these top schools? I'm guessing they are pretty cutthroat. I've heard Hopkins and UChicago undergrad students aren't very happy.

I don't know about the UChi medical school, but I have definitely heard that many students at the UChicago undergrad are not happy (mainly because the level of competition and grade deflation).

 

[911 Turbo]

i would be happiest at the school with the most attractive women

 

[911 Turbo]

I don't know about the UChi medical school, but I have definitely heard that many students at the UChicago undergrad are not happy (mainly because the level of competition and glade deflation).

btw good job on beating those OU losers today

 

[Irish Football]

btw good job on beating those OU losers today

Thas how we do!

Oklahoma lost the football game and James Harden!

 

[ACal]

Saint Louis University claimed to have the lowest rates of depression....not sure how valid that is though

 

[ShenanigansMD]

If you guys are talking about undergrads with unhappy students, I gotta say it's the same everywhere in competitive programs, specifically with premed/prelaw/engineering. All of my experiences with these groups (not so much with pre-law I admit) have had the tendency to make me feel quite unhappy at times. In the end it's up to you to get out of the unhappy zone and find something that keeps you going outside of all the competitive garbage that peers will spoonfeed you throughout undergrad, and it can make or break your entire college experience.

But Med school... jeebers guys Harvard has the happiest med students!

 

[kgpremed11]

1. Attractive women that have a liberal attitude towards certain things
2. Area with something to do where you can have a great social life
3. True P/F to minimize competition
4. Top notch education
5. Enough time to study for Step 1 and 2.
6. School has a great reputation with residency directors and hospitals.

Needless to say, no school will have all of these. Maybe 3 or 4 tops.

 

[Cinclus]

Saint Louis University claimed to have the lowest rates of depression....not sure how valid that is though

That's because at SLU, they eat pancakes every day:

[YOUTUBE]R5RapBjos3I[/YOUTUBE]

 

[TheMightySmiter]

Colorado has really happy students; probably we've all got euphoria induced by oxygen deprivation.

 

[Cinclus]

Colorado has really happy students; probably we've all got euphoria induced by oxygen deprivation.

You should all be acclimatized at this point, with the increased levels of 2,3-BPG and such. It must be the scenery.

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

Tulane students seemed really happy when I went there on an interview. I guess the combination of good music, good food, a good school and a P/F grading system does make a difference.

 

[mimelim]

Saint Louis University claimed to have the lowest rates of depression....not sure how valid that is though

They can claim it is the lowest because they are one of only a handful of schools that track it. At the same time, they are one of the few schools that actively trying to decrease depression levels. I thought it was all bs, but I went through their data with one of their deans a couple months ago and it was very impressive. They are have been implementing this 'resiliance' training based on military research to make students more able to cope with the stresses of medical school. The before and after data after implementation of the program was astounding. I would predict that they will present a fairly compelling paper and argument for how other medical schools should deal with student depression in the next couple of years after they gather more data and refine their method.

Back to the topic... I would be very cautious about interpreting happiness levels based on what students look like when you interview at places. It isn't a very good guage...

 

[NickNaylor]

I don't know about the UChi medical school, but I have definitely heard that many students at the UChicago undergrad are not happy (mainly because the level of competition and grade deflation).

Speaking to this point specifically, the medical school and the undergrad have VASTLY different cultures. They really aren't even comparable.

OP, this is a silly question. What makes you happy isn't what makes others happy. Thinking you're doomed to be unhappy at a particular school is immature thinking. Do the things that are important to you, keep in touch with loved ones, work hard but not too hard, and you will likely be happy. Those things are not dependent upon being at any one school.

(sent from my phone)

 

[Tipp]

UMich has a collaborative atmosphere. Ann Arbor is a pretty cool city, too, and there is a lot of school pride.

 

[Heal With Steel]

UVa is extremely pleasant. Genuine class solidarity, really fun/quirky town, work hard play hard attitude.

 

[kpcrew]

I thought NYMC was pretty chill.

 

[RomanTaylor]

As far as happiest, I think the answer is quite obvious.

 

[CuttingCorneas]

btw good job on beating those OU losers today

Thas how we do!

Oklahoma lost the football game and James Harden!

I WAS GOING TO SAY most OU students are pretty happy. And then you guys just poured salt in the wound. :cry:

 

[CuttingCorneas]

As far as happiest, I think the answer is quite obvious.

I think we have a winner. Who wouldn't be happy studying biochem on the beach?

 

[dudeliness]

They can claim it is the lowest because they are one of only a handful of schools that track it. At the same time, they are one of the few schools that actively trying to decrease depression levels. I thought it was all bs, but I went through their data with one of their deans a couple months ago and it was very impressive. They are have been implementing this 'resiliance' training based on military research to make students more able to cope with the stresses of medical school. The before and after data after implementation of the program was astounding. I would predict that they will present a fairly compelling paper and argument for how other medical schools should deal with student depression in the next couple of years after they gather more data and refine their method.

Back to the topic... I would be very cautious about interpreting happiness levels based on what students look like when you interview at places. It isn't a very good guage...

Hmm, I would be very interested to hear more about this "resilience" training. Sounds pretty interesting...

 

[rubisco88]

Really Harvard? I watched that Harvard med related documentary and those students seemed pretty miserable.

 

[RomanTaylor]

Really Harvard? I watched that Harvard med related documentary and those students seemed pretty miserable.

/second

 

[theWhat]

http://www.amsa.org/premed/medsurvey/

 

[bollywoodlover]

Thanks for the link!! Looks like it should be helpful.

Boo the sample size is so small for a lot of the schools . I wish AMCAS did a big extensive one. Most of the opinions are like from 2002...beware.

 

[TheShaker]

Really Harvard? I watched that Harvard med related documentary and those students seemed pretty miserable.

Drama makes for better TV. I'm pretty sure they spinned the story to make them seem more stressed out than they actually were (even though they were probably very stressed, like all med students).

 

[theWhat]

Thanks for the link!! Looks like it should be helpful.

Boo the sample size is so small for a lot of the schools . I wish AMCAS did a big extensive one. Most of the opinions are like from 2002...beware.

Yeah, unfortunately it's not that comprehensive, but at least it's something.

 

[Irish Football]

Boo the sample size is so small for a lot of the schools . I wish AMCAS did a big extensive one. Most of the opinions are like from 2002...beware.

Yeah, I noticed that too. Most of the surveys are from a decade ago.

 

[theWhat]

It's surprising there isn't a proper, current survey. Perhaps med schools don't want people to know how miserable their students are

 

[CuttingCorneas]

Really Harvard? I watched that Harvard med related documentary and those students seemed pretty miserable.

Not sure about med, but undergrad...

 

[Nymphicus]

It's surprising there isn't a proper, current survey. Perhaps med schools don't want people to know how miserable their students are

There is, the MSQ. The AAMC keeps it under tight wraps though.

 

[theWhat]

There is, the MSQ. The AAMC keeps it under tight wraps though.

I couldn't find any school specifics on the msq, just a general overview

 

[xroc]

UMich has a collaborative atmosphere. Ann Arbor is a pretty cool city, too, and there is a lot of school pride.

I would say that so far, from my own experiences, this also struck me as a school with extremely happy students.

 

[Nymphicus]

I couldn't find any school specifics on the msq, just a general overview

They don't release the results to the public. I believe each school does get their own results though.

 

[ShenanigansMD]

Really Harvard? I watched that Harvard med related documentary and those students seemed pretty miserable.

/second

Sarcasm bros

Edit: Oh yeah, that documentary! I got the same vibe, but they only followed 6 med students.

 

[mmmcdowe]

Columbia is Disney World, true story.

 

[ChartaBona]

UVM has to be one of the happier places, I'd imagine.

 

[dbeast]

In the unlikely event you can land a residency, then I'd say Carribean is a slam dunk winner.

 

[lovesfall]

I met a little group of residents who all went to Loyola and loved it. Their reasoning was that the atmosphere was nice and that they felt well supported. I haven't heard much by way of complaints from anyone other than that the first two years are tough no matter where you go.

 

[theWhat]

I met a little group of residents who all went to Loyola and loved it. Their reasoning was that the atmosphere was nice and that they felt well supported. I haven't heard much by way of complaints from anyone other than that the first two years are tough no matter where you go.

I don't know why but this popped in my head when reading your description.

 

[ShenanigansMD]

I don't know why but this popped in my head when reading your description.

broken image, but I'm guessing oompa loompa

 

[theWhat]

broken image, but I'm guessing oompa loompa

fixed. close!

 

[vbgal41]

Not sure about med, but undergrad...

I saw this on PS as well and was thinking the same thing!

 

[yuiness]

I don't know about the UChi medical school, but I have definitely heard that many students at the UChicago undergrad are not happy (mainly because the level of competition and grade deflation).

I went to UChicago undergrad and very nearly stayed for med school. The undergrad experience was tough and I definitely worked extremely hard, but I'm very happy with the education that I received and would not trade it for anything. I think it did a great job to prepare me for medical school, but more importantly, it taught me how to think.

As for Chicago's med school... the med students are actually a lot more laid-back than the undergrads, probably owing their pass/fail grading system. Oddly enough, in order to complete my undergrad biochem major, I was required to take a graduate chem or biochem class, and the med school's 1st year biochem class was on the list of classes that meet that requirement. So while the med students take this class pass/fail, several undergrad students take it graded.

 

[Praefectus]

UMich has a collaborative atmosphere. Ann Arbor is a pretty cool city, too, and there is a lot of school pride.

Ann Arbor is a *****.

 

[Wordead]

NYMC had the most miserable students I had ever encountered in my life...and these were the people during interview day, so i can only imagine how bad the other students are.

 

[mcloaf]

My sample size is small, but from what I've seen my vote goes to UMichigan.