University of Melbourne info for new student

[freshclay]

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Hello!

I will be commencing University of Melbourne's MBBS this July as a graduate entry student. I graduated from the University of Arizona a few years ago with a degree in Medical Technology and currently work as a med tech at a local hospital.

Being from the US and knowing almost nil about Australia and just a tad more about the school and curriculum, I was hoping some students and/or graduates of UniMelb could fill me in on what to expect as Semester 2 begins. I've briefed some of the other forums and they have provided some interesting information on Aussie schools in general vs US schools which was helpful.

I was looking for more specifics on Melbourne itself such as structure of the curriculum, campus atmosphere, how to adjust, where (or where not) to live, city life, adapting to the switch in seasons, different holidays, etc. Basically, any legitimate advice on easing the transition to this brave new world would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[piu]

i'm an international student in 2nd year now, i'd be glad to help. feel free to ask.

 

[theunraveler]

how much is needed per month to survive there?

 

[Winged Scapula]

Wow...looks like this one got buried.

If your are from Arizona, I think you'll find the change in weather a bit different, but you'll still find no snow, and more humidity in the winter than in Az. Melbourne is windy and can get rather cold, although nighttime temps in the winter shouldn't dip below 30 F.

It does seem a bit weird to be warm at Christmas time, but there's something to be said for lying on the beach on Christmas Day! Otherwise I didn't find the switch of seasons to be very upsetting.

Obviously you won't have holidays for typical US celebrations like July 4th, Labor Day, Columbus Day, etc. You will have the usual holidays of New Years, Easter (a much bigger deal than in the US) and Christmas. As Australia was settled by the British, Australian holidays are heavily influenced by British holiday observations. Australian holidays include: Australia Day (January 28), ANZAC Day (April 25) - have an ANZAC cookie - delicious, Adelaide Cup (May - only in South Australia), the Queens's Birthday (June 10), Labour Day (October 7), and Proclamation /Boxing Day (December 26). The other states have their own cup holidays like Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane as well as Perth.

Melbourne Uni is within walking distance of a number of cafes, Starbucks, and McDonalds (there is seriously one on every corner in Melbourne) - even the McCafe, which serves lattes and sweets! The campus itself is old, ivy covered and beautiful in architecture.

Since I haven't lived in Melbourne I'm sure someone else would be better to comment on the ease of public transportation (the chime of the cable cars makes it sound as if you're in San Francisco), where to live, etc.

 

[stembio]

Hey! Good to know that another American will be joining the course! I am from North Dakota (one of very few, I think) and am doing the MBBS course here at Melb Uni (2nd year). I have enjoyed living here, so far. Lots of great restaurants, clubs, pubs (hotels) and such! The lifestyle here is a bit more easygoing, which is refreshing, having lived in England for the past 4 years. The weather during the winter can be kind of chilly some days, but other days, its pretty all right, judging by North Dakota standards, which are far from typical. Great thing about Melbourne too is that there are lots of different types of people here, from all over the world.
The course has been interesting so far, in a good way. It's just great to finally be learning medicine, you know?! It is taught with a very practical bent, which is good, because it means that you will learn clinical skills very early on. Every other week, you will have a clinical palcement (hospital visit) where you can learn from practicing docs on the wards, pretty good, eh?! The only objection I have with it is that the anatomy compnent is not that strong. You can easily make up for this through independent study if you like.
Good luck to you! Hope that you like it! Let me know if I can help any more.

All the Best

 

[canucker]

Hey stembio,

How much time do Melbourne students get for electives during clerkship years (ie. overseas rotations)? I've been poring over the UniMelb med site and it seems that students get a 4 week elective in year 6; is that the extent of elective time?

Cheers, canucker

 

[freshclay]

Thanks for the help from everyone who replied or PMed back!

Getting settled in Melbourne has been alright with the exception of pulling teeth to get my student visa to come through. The inefficiency and unwillingness of the DIMIA is frustrating. Aside from that, everything's peaches.

stembio, I look forward to meeting you! Is there much interaction between the various years of students? Thanks for the heads-up on the anatomy. I've brought a heavy anatomy atlas from home and am already perusing it daily. How's the cadaver work at UniMelb?

 

[Cziffra]

Wow! You guys are amazing! I think Melb only accepts 10 international students every year, and you guys made the cut!

 

[Cziffra]

Are all schools strict on their international quota?

 

[pitman]

no. UQ at least has a target, but doesn't set the number.

 

[Cziffra]

hi pitman,

do you know how many international students there are in your class?

 

[Cziffra]

Hi!

Any Canadians currently studying there?

 

[Cziffra]

Can anyone tell me the age range of a typical 2nd year class?

 

[pitman]

At UQ:

current year 2:
9 canucks
5 yanks
+ a number of Bruneians

current year 1:
24 canucks
6 singaporians
5 americans
+ a couple brits, malaysians, a norwegian and some Bruneians

Our year 2 if i recall correctly now has a mean age of just over 24. There are one or two who are 20, a handful in their 30's, and I think one or two around who are older than that.

 

[Cziffra]

thanks for the info pitman.

in fact i was looking for info specific to melbourne. sorry that i didn't specify...

 

[freshclay]

Hi fellow SDNers,

Found a link to this ancient thread and just wanted to say thanks for taking the time to drop advice when I was all by my lonesome and vulnerable in a new city on a new continent. There have been so many lessons learnt both in and out of med school over the past several years.

I was the only American left standing when my class graduated last December and I'm interning at St. V's now. 50/50 right now on whether I want to work back in the US, but regardless it feels super to be working as a doctor finally.

Cheers!

 

[Cziffra]

Hi fellow SDNers,

Found a link to this ancient thread and just wanted to say thanks for taking the time to drop advice when I was all by my lonesome and vulnerable in a new city on a new continent. There have been so many lessons learnt both in and out of med school over the past several years.

I was the only American left standing when my class graduated last December and I'm interning at St. V's now. 50/50 right now on whether I want to work back in the US, but regardless it feels super to be working as a doctor finally.

Cheers!

what happened to the rest of the Americans? 😕

 

[freshclay]

They either took a year off or just petered out. It's not uncommon for students here to take a year off.

 

[schrizto]

Wow, this thread gets bumped 5 years later, and the same users are discussing it!

 

[pitman]

cool.