Time for non-medicine classes as an MS1?

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[Syndicate]

Probably. But why? Med school is for studying medicine and becoming a doctor. Whatever extracurricular interests or non-medical interests should've been explored back while you were in college

 

[justAstudent]

Spanish is an excellent tool for a doctor IMO. I'm wondering what med students have to say about this topic also.

 

[sinombre]

My school offers a medical spanish elective that you can take throughout the year... I imagine this is fairly common. It would probably be a bad idea to take a class outside of the medical school at your institution (scheduling would be very difficult because your school probably won't follow a set schedule... lecture times are usually pretty sporadic).

Unless you are continuing with a project and/or PI you're already working with, I would at least get a feel for how much time you have to study to be able to comfortably pass before starting to look for research or any other extracurricular activity. Medical school takes up much more time than undergrad.

 

[Lya]

Probably. But why? Med school is for studying medicine and becoming a doctor. Whatever extracurricular interests or non-medical interests should've been explored back while you were in college

I believe Yale and Columbia make many other courses available for auditing during medical school years. I remember one Yale student commenting about auditing a poetry/English course.

Not all medical school curricula are thoroughly comprehensive, and sometimes college education doesn't offer enough to satisfy one's appetite.

 

[MedMinded]

Depending on time management skills, I'm sure people vary on what they're able to do as a first year. I think making time for working out/sports is easier because it counters the intensive sit down and study mode.

But do you think one can take a non-medicine class concurrently to the med school curriculum? For example, would I have time to continue my Spanish language studies? Not just looking through convo books but actual grammar, structured class etc. Would I have time to do this on top of doing research?

It's most definitely possible. With proper time management and focused study sessions, medical school isn't nearly as time consuming as some people make it out to be. That being said, it seems like it might be helpful to take a spanish program or self-taught curriculum in case you ever need to focus on school.

You could do research as well, but medical school, research, and spanish seems like it wouldn't leave much room for relaxation, time with friends/family, etc. I'd suggest studying spanish on your own time during medical school curriculum and maybe do research over the summer or something. Just an idea.

Doing well in medical school and avoiding burnout is all about balance! Good luck!

 

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[SouthernSurgeon]

It might be possible, but I wouldn't advise trying it as a first semester M1.

Your first priority is to succeed in medical school. First demonstrate to yourself that you can do that.

Then if you feel you have enough free time and mental energy on top of your studies, go for it.

 

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[mcloaf]

Whatever extracurricular interests or non-medical interests should've been explored back while you were in college