hi- i am a firstyear at michigan state this year. i really want to be a doctor. the thing is, i dont really like the academics here. my classes are huge and the smaller ones are TA'ed by graduate students that i cant understand. i am considering transferring to a smaller private school. i hear classes get better as the years go by-here at MSU. do you think i should transfer to a lesser known school that i would get more individual attention right away or stick it out here? i was just wondering what you guys think-since i hope to be in med-school someday. thanks drew
Drew's Daddy, Welcome to SDN. The best place for you to post on this topic is the Pre-Allopathic or Pre-Osteopathic forum. One of the moderators will likely bump this topic over there shortly. This forum is intended for issues facing current med students, although I'd like to think you don't have to be a current medical student to weigh-in (Right, Fix-It-Man?). dh
Hey Drew, Others may disagree, But I think you should stick it out where you are. Unless you transfer to a very small school, the intro classes are going to be huge anywhere you go! Take advantage of tutor hours or Prof office hours if you need extra help. As you move on in your program, you'll find that classes get smaller pretty quickly (I should know--I'm at one of the largest Universities in the country!) Now as far as your TAs go, I know it sucks not to be able to understand them right off the bat, but try not to get fustrated. (after all, how well do you speak Chinese/French/Whatever?) Be patient. Ask your TA to repeat a phrase you don't understand. If you continue in the sciences, you're going to need to develop the knack for understanding heavy accents sooner or later. Just be happy you're not "required" to learn a whole new language, like everyone else in the world. I TA'd Ochem for a long time, and I had a similar problem with some of my foreign students. During Lecture or office hours, I could tell that they couldn't understand me! I'd pull them aside and ask them if they understood. Often they'd say "yes", but when I pressed them they'd say "OK...I'm sorry...no." Well, they don't have to be sorry and neither do you. Be polite, but ask for clarification until you really do understand. Especially as scientists, we live in a global community now. We all have to make an extra effort to understand each other. Good Luck.
Speaking from experience-this is my fifth year here. The classes get smaller as you move higher up. Once you're out of intro classes, then the classes get smaller. Here (Texas A&M) it isn't drastic. I would just stay put and use profs office hours. Remember they are there to teach you and help you. YOU PAY THEM. Unless you're having an absolutely miserable experience then transfer, like I did. But you must also realize every school you go to is the same regardless of what others tell you.
