What classes should one take on top of the prereqs to be a well-rounded, good doctor?

[12ongo]

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Basically, I am looking for a class that I can take that isn't related to sciences that will help me become a better doctor! I was thinking ethics courses but anyone have any better ideas?

Please list!

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ALSO i have taken the MCAT and don't plan on taking it again.

 

[SN12357]

Basically, I am looking for a class that I can take that isn't related to sciences that will help me become a better doctor! I was thinking ethics courses but anyone have any better ideas?

Please list!

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I think it's less a matter of specific classes than of skills. You should be able to:

1. Understand the scientific method, scientific research, and statistics enough to understand medical literature.
2. Be able to write and speak well, so that you can communicate with patients and colleagues. I'm amazed at the low levels of literacy among many medical professionals. Considering how much information gets transmitted by writing, it's downright scary.
3. Understand enough about social context to understand and empathize with your patients even if they come from another culture or different socioeconomic strata than you do.

So sure, ethics isn't a bad idea. Or something in socio, psych, foreign languages, history, writing...personally when I had free space in my schedule at college I tried to pick classes with great professors, even if their area wasn't exactly what I was most interested in. Good strategy IMO.

 

[zeppelinpage4]

Basically, I am looking for a class that I can take that isn't related to sciences that will help me become a better doctor! I was thinking ethics courses but anyone have any better ideas?

Please list!

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-
-
-

Hmm no clue if this will apply to me being a doctor, but I took a lot of English classes and I felt like I got a lot out of them. We discussed race issues, and a lot of topics regarding the human condition really. It also improved my writing abilities I think, which is good because no matter what field or job I'm in, I think being able to write well and communicate what I want on paper is a useful skill.

In the end though, I'd say take classes that you enjoy. I think that if you genuinely like the subject or class, you'll probably gain more from it and you'll find a way to apply it down the road. -2 cents

 

[antizaitsev]

I would recommend any class on argument analysis, formal, and informal logical fallacies. Not only is it super helpful for life in general (since people are always trying to persuade you), but also it'll probably help out a bit on the verbal section of the MCAT!

 

[SunsFun]

1. Spanish

2. Environmental justice

3. Any history class

4. Gender communication

 

[Contr0lz]

I took a medical ethics class last semester and found it to be a truly interesting subject. We covered a diverse array of topics ranging from traumatic brain injury & CTE to abortion rights and feminism. I believe one's critical thinking and reasoning skills can be honed by putting a decent amount effort into the subject (instead of cramming before tests or writing garbage essays). Try it out!

 

[Contr0lz]

I would recommend any class on argument analysis, formal, and informal logical fallacies. Not only is it super helpful for life in general (since people are always trying to persuade you), but also it'll probably help out a bit on the verbal section of the MCAT!

I wanted to take an argument class really badly next semester, but its been discontinued since 2010 at my school :/

 

[Aerus]

Here is my personal list of classes that I am taking and my reasons why. Yes, in my opinion, being a well rounded doctor also means a lot of social sciences and humanities. It's not just science classes and medically related courses.

1) Language classes -- knowing another language will only help you.

2) Sociology classes -- while we must appreciate how far society has progressed, we must also understand the challenges we still need to overcome. Analyzing institutional structures and ideological formations is crucial. Race, gender, class, sexual orientation, etc. - their impacts on how a person struggles in society, their coalescing effects when together (the struggles that a Hispanic woman may face that a White woman or a Hispanic male may not face), and what progress still needs to be made are all things that everyone needs to know, especially a physician who will most likely treat all types of people.

3) Psychology classes -- Understanding how a person thinks, why they think in that way, and what led them to this sort of thinking can help you better empathize and sympathize with patients. I highly recommend developmental and social psychology classes.

4) History classes -- particularly relating to US history, it may be helpful to know the history of different minority groups and the challenges they've had to face. That helps you appreciate the different struggles that they still face today. Knowing about our country also never hurt anyone.

I'm sure there are plenty more classes that can help you become a more well rounded doctor, but these are a few (IN MY OWN OPINION) that will help you, if not become a more well rounded doctor, at least become a more well rounded person and informed citizen.

 

[ksmi117]

You'll take medical ethics classes in medical school, so take whatever you find interesting, be it Spanish or Underwater Basket Weaving. It makes me kind of sad that sometimes pre-meds feel the need to focus every single ounce of energy into making themselves look good on applications or into getting ahead of the curve in medical school. Seriously, just enjoy college. Go out with your friends and live a little. The one thing that I frequently see missing in my fellow medical students at my school and others is the ability to relate to and empathize with another human, and that's not something that can be taught in the classroom.

 

[BlackBox]

1. Spanish

2. Environmental justice

3. Any history class

4. Gender communication

+1

 

[CCrown]

I'll second that you can't go wrong with Spanish. Depending on where you live, you might not even need a class: just watch Spanish-language tv, radio, pick up a newspaper, or talk to people.

 

[eagles22]

Spanish is the only class that will actually help you be a better doctor that you could take in undergrad.

 

[BlueLabel]

Yeah Spanish wouldn't hurt. But my advice is not to listen to any of these guys. You don't need extra college coursework to be a "well-rounded doctor". All you need to be a good doctor is the pre-reqs because that's what you need to get into medical school. Everything else is fluff. I think that college students have a tendency to greatly overstate the impact and value of college coursework. This is especially the case for introductory courses, but prominent exceptions would probably be select classes in the engineering disciplines.

In any event, I recommend you take classes that you find really interesting (Civil War history, wine tasting, creative writing, whatever floats your boat), or the ones known on your campus to attract high percentages of fetching young ladies. Power move: find classes that meet both of these criteria. Cheers and happy new year everybody!

 

[SN12357]

All you need to be a good doctor is the pre-reqs because that's what you need to get into medical school.

Whether or not college classwork is the place to look for it may be an open question, but you need a hell of a lot more than the prereqs to 'be a good doctor'.

 

[RhinB]

Besides the ones mentioned here's my list of suggestions

If your school has these, kind of specific:

-US Healthcare/anything to do with the new ACA implementation things etc.
- Social justice


I SUPPORT SPANISH AND ETHICS CHOICES TOO.

 

[BlueLabel]

Whether or not college classwork is the place to look for it may be an open question, but you need a hell of a lot more than the prereqs to 'be a good doctor'.

To rephrase: "all you need out of college coursework in order to one day become a good doctor is the pre-reqs".

 

[eagles22]

Dude, take whatever you want, but look at what the actual med students are suggesting which is that anything from undergrad has marginal significance in med school and even less significance when practicing medicine. The only exception is achieving fluency in a common language like Spanish/Polish/Chinese/etc.

 

[ksmi117]

Dude, take whatever you want, but look at what the actual med students are suggesting which is that anything from undergrad has marginal significance in med school and even less significance when practicing medicine. The only exception is achieving fluency in a common language like Spanish/Polish/Chinese/etc.

I will agree that being fluent in something like Spanish would be super useful for medical school and in your medical career, but taking Intro to Spanish will only be marginally useful as you'll need an interpreter anyway. So I personally wouldn't worry about it and take something awesome that interests you that you won't get a chance to study again after finishing college.