What percentage of lectures do you attend?

[ny2cali]

ok i'm just wondering.. what percentage of lectures do you guys attend/miss?

Say attendance isn't taken, lectures are recorded, and there's no lab component for the course (like anatomy)..

Do you feel its necessary to go to class? Or would u just stay at home and listen to lectures on your own time?

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[Hurricane95]

I don't trust myself staying home all day and watching all the lectures online. I know I would screw that up somewhere along the line and have problems come test time. However, I live far and commute a long time in the morning to get to school (almost an hour and a half with traffic) and it's really hard to get up like at 6:30am, especially after a long night of studying, as needed. Therefore I sometimes skip my first one or two classes, come in late, and watch those two at home in the evening.

I would say I attend 75%.

 

[Wizard of Oz]

I would say fewer than one in five. I would probably never go if classes weren't scheduled around required events and I didn't work on campus outside of medical school.

It's easier to read the material at home, and if I want to hear the lecture, I can download it and listen at double speed.

I'll point out, though, that I don't consider myself a home-schooler since I very rarely listen to the lectures when I don't go to class.

My school provides a great deal of printed material that covers all of the relevant exam and USMLE content. The lectures are really for people who need explanations. Since I'm either content with those in the printed material or had enough of it before coming to med school, I'd rather just read and memorize the minutiae while on the elliptical or at home.

Hurricane, I enjoy your avatar(s), but your profile says you are male. Please tell me that is your girlfriend or something? (I'm jealous if so.)

 

[Pontifex Maximus]

Since about 1/3 of the way through anatomy, 0%.

 

[cfdavid]

I'll only attend lecture if it's scheduled around other clinical or lab obligations (which right now, with biochem and physio is not often), OR if the lecturer doesn't allow him/herself to be recorded (infrequent, but there have been a few).

The key is to stay up on it though. You CAN'T get behind (as most of you would agree). But, streaming allows you to increase the playing speed for slow talking lecturers, and also has the advantage of being able to pause when they make key points. I think it saves a lot of time. Plus, there's no driving in rush hour traffic....

 

[MystikBliss]

::giggling:: I go to the first lecture of every new block (we're one of those schools) and don't ever go again. That's one lecture ever 9 weeks. I study at the library. I found when I'm home, I tend to sleep 15 hours/day. I've missed so many classes that people actually thought I dropped out

 

[MartianOddity]

Personally I feel that there's a need to attend to all lectures in my med school. The professors bring up topics and areas you never thought you should need be learning, and the curriculum is too crude to know what to base your studies on for the next lecture.
If there were no mandatory presence (the presence is mandatory, and there are no official recordings or handouts of material whatsoever either) I would attend to 99% of all classes.

 

[Dr. McDreamy]

i used to attend the first lecture of each block...now i don't even do that. i only attend our medical decision making lectures because this lecturer is actually pretty entertaining and i enjoy it. besides, that, 0%.

it all depends on if you are a good self-learner or not. i prefer this and my grades are a lot better when i don't go to class b/c i have more time to study the material in the amount of depth that I need. when i go to a full day's worth of classes, i'm too exhausted to spend the 5-6 additional hours i need to actually study the material. I guess i'm just not an auditory learner, b/c i retain almost nothing from a lecture.

 

[45408]

my attendance is quickly plummeting. I went to the public library yesterday for 8 hours, and I'm going to my undergrad's library today. Studying at school and going to class have been pretty counterproductive of late.

 

[Droopy Snoopy]

...streaming allows you to increase the playing speed for slow talking lecturers, and also has the advantage of being able to pause when they make key points. I think it saves a lot of time. Plus, there's no driving in rush hour traffic....

Absolutely. Not going to school saves me so much time throughout the day. Driving to and fro (- 1.5 hrs), less time for lunch (- .5 hr), slow lecturers boosted up to 1.4x (- 1 hr), and the odd hour here or there that somebody doesn't show or nothing's scheduled that I end up playing freecell through. Plus eating PB&J at home is a lot cheaper than McD's, Subway, or the student grill at school (yes we do have a McDonald's inside the hospital -- so ******ed). I go to 0% of non-mandatory lectures, but about 10% of our time is required lectures and labs so that's about where I'm at.

 

[jbrice1639]

well, i'm apparently in the minority here, but i have never missed a lecture. and, for the most part, no one at my school has either (in our first year classes anyways...can't speak for the second years)

for me, recorded lectures are useless...i can't force myself to pay attention to them the same as watching someone speak and gesture at diagrams and such in person. and, i would feel like i wasting a whole lot of tuition if i just taught myself out of books and recordings...

so, for me and most of my class, lecture attendance is around 100%

 

[jbrice1639]

Plus eating PB&J at home is a lot cheaper than McD's, Subway, or the student grill at school (yes we do have a McDonald's inside the hospital -- so ******ed).

why not just pack your lunch then? eating pb&j at home costs about 2 cents less than eating pb&j at school (assuming 2 cents for the super awesome brown paper bag)

 

[Flopotomist]

well, i'm apparently in the minority here, but i have never missed a lecture. and, for the most part, no one at my school has either (in our first year classes anyways...can't speak for the second years)

for me, recorded lectures are useless...i can't force myself to pay attention to them the same as watching someone speak and gesture at diagrams and such in person. and, i would feel like i wasting a whole lot of tuition if i just taught myself out of books and recordings...

so, for me and most of my class, lecture attendance is around 100%

Just to reiterate what jbrice is saying (we are at the same school) our lecture attendance is close to 100%. We also have pretty short lectures (only a few hours a day) and they are VERY high yield.

Put another way - you are paying $250 a day to be in school - why stay home and waste that money? Make them EARN it.

 

[psipsina]

I only go if I feel that I really retain alot of the info from that lecturer. My brain seems to rebel against disorganization and monotone voices, and it just shuts down and blocks all learning out. I found that I have the discipline to stay at home/go to the library and study the subjects that I am missing class for in that time and I get much more out of it. I think its all about recognizing your personal learning style and having the balls to do whats right for you, not necessarily what everyone else seems to be doing or what your proffessors reccomend. If lecture works for you, then rock it out in lecture, if not find what does work for you and rock that out in the time that you would have been in lecture, in addition to any extra study time. If you don't have the discipline to study on your own you should probably keep going to class.

 

[jae9970]

wow, this is totally unexpected.

I'm an undergraduate student right now.

I know medical schools are different from undergraduate years, but I've only seen a very few individuals who can skip most of the lectures, only study with the materials given, and pull off a decent grade in the class. Plus, the class has to be super easy and simple in order for someone to do something like that.

 

[Droopy Snoopy]

wow, this is totally unexpected.

I'm an undergraduate student right now.

I know medical schools are different from undergraduate years, but I've only seen a very few individuals who can skip most of the lectures, only study with the materials given, and pull off a decent grade in the class. Plus, the class has to be super easy and simple in order for someone to do something like that.

Most of us were that guy in undergrad who could attend two lectures and score an A. Mainly though it's because the audio (and sometimes video) of the lectures is put online as well as the powerpoint presentations and objectives lists. We have a note service, so if it's your day you go to class and take notes and distribute them to the rest of the class within the next 2-3 days. Plus, many of our Path lectures for example simply highlight key info from the Robbins textbook, so reading the pertinent chapter could almost entirely substitute for Path attendance. We have old exams floating around, so you kind of know what info a particular prof focuses on, and there's a mountain of high yield review info available at the bookstore.

 

[jae9970]

Most of us were that guy in undergrad who could attend two lectures and score an A. Mainly though it's because the audio (and sometimes video) of the lectures is put online as well as the powerpoint presentations and objectives lists. We have a note service, so if it's your day you go to class and take notes and distribute them to the rest of the class within the next 2-3 days. Plus, many of our Path lectures for example simply highlight key info from the Robbins textbook, so reading the pertinent chapter could almost entirely substitute for Path attendance. We have old exams floating around, so you kind of know what info a particular prof focuses on, and there's a mountain of high yield review info available at the bookstore.

i see..

so i guess its those "few few individuals" who end up getting accepted into medicine

 

[psipsina]

wow, this is totally unexpected.

I'm an undergraduate student right now.

I know medical schools are different from undergraduate years, but I've only seen a very few individuals who can skip most of the lectures, only study with the materials given, and pull off a decent grade in the class. Plus, the class has to be super easy and simple in order for someone to do something like that.

There are alot of differences between undergrad and medschool:
1) At many schools the lectures are recorded with video/mp3/notesets that are distributed to the students (this means you can get all the info of the lecture at your own pace at your own convienence . . . I personally like reading them in my PJs)
2) Almost all the powerpoints the proffessors use will be accessible by you
3) Everything you need to know is not covered in your classtime like it was in undergrad, you might be able to pass some classes without using outside sources but you certainly won't honor anything that way.
4) Almost everyone (if not everyone) in a medschool class will be the best and the brightest from undergrad, the self motivated or brilliant or perfectionist, . . . so we all know how to study and are motivated to do it on our own, whereas in undergrad there is a wider range of ability within a class so many won't be able to push themselves through a curriculum on their own.
5) Doctors are expected to continue to learn on their own throughout their careers so to some extent this self-teaching is encouraged by the curriculum at medschools

 

[Hurricane95]

Haha, I enjoy my avatar too, which is why I chose it. At least I have something nice to look at when I go through the threads I participated in.

And no, I'm not that lucky. She's a model named mercedes terrell....not quite my girlfriend, unfortunately. For now I'll have to give up girls who look like that to the frat guys majoring in business who have time to build enormous biceps, while I use all my time to study . Maybe when I finish med school.

 

[Med_equality]

Ditto on all of it. I never go to class. Whoever said that they know a large portion of med students can't get by without going to almost all of their classes has not spoken with many med students, obviously. Generally, the people in my class who go to lecture are the ones who feel guilty for not going. When I attend class, I usually see note packets from other lectures, tablets opened to different study guides from other classes, etc. These people are doing in class what everyone else is doing either at home or at a library. I guess it just makes them feel better to be in class. Obviously, there will always be a small contingent that states they get a bunch out of every lecture. Hey, if it works for you then do it. I, personally, only go to lectures that are mandatory or just plain interesting. Otherwise, it is sofa city for me! Plus, we have a noteservice and everything else that supplements missing lecture, etc.

 

[soeagerun2or]

I think I said it in another thread but regular attendance and passing are mutually exclusive. I go for mandatory events and thats about it.

 

[cfdavid]

Haha, I enjoy my avatar too, which is why I chose it. At least I have something nice to look at when I go through the threads I participated in.

And no, I'm not that lucky. She's a model named mercedes terrell....not quite my girlfriend, unfortunately. For now I'll have to give up girls who look like that to the frat guys majoring in business who have time to build enormous biceps, while I use all my time to study . Maybe when I finish med school.

then you can prescribe yourself some anabolic supplements that work! j.k.

 

[potato51]

ok i'm just wondering.. what percentage of lectures do you guys attend/miss?

Say attendance isn't taken, lectures are recorded, and there's no lab component for the course (like anatomy)..

Do you feel its necessary to go to class? Or would u just stay at home and listen to lectures on your own time?

Last semester, I went ~90% of the time. Pretty much every morning, every afternoon.

This semester I no longer go to morning lecture since the syllabus is great and lectures are downloadable. I still attend in the afternoon since histo lab is right after.

Funny thing is, the fact that physiology is so well-taught here is why I'm completely skipping it. I get way more out of listening to and processing the good lectures than actually attending them, where I might miss a few details here and there.

 

[ashahdc]

About 60%.
It takes a while to get a feel for who the good teachers are though, because there are some I would never miss.

 

[vtucci]

Depends on the class and how close to the test I am.

I try to attend all path classes. It is my favorite subject and in my opinion, the course that is taught best at my med school. I like my micro/immuno classes as well and it depends whether I need to be there at 8 am (I hate mornings). Of course, we attend all mandatory classes and lab regardless of the class or professor's style.

We have note service (with exact dictation) and I am a visual learner so reading the professor's comments is better for me than listening to it.

 

[girlofdestiny]

at my school, id say about half the kids go daily, and about half never go.

then again in terms of the kids that go, 1/3 of them spend the two hours sleeping, playing solitaire, and checking their email, while 1/3 of those that don't go spend those 2 hours at the library studying.

our school offers full audio recordings of the lectures.

at least in terms of me and the kids i sit with, we go mostly in hopes of some sort of intellectual osmosis.

 

[Law2Doc]

ok i'm just wondering.. what percentage of lectures do you guys attend/miss?

110%

 

[Wizard of Oz]

I'm gonna tack on a qualifier to what I said.

For the psych/human behavior-type stuff, I can either go to class or study at home. The material isn't any harder than freshman psych. Lately I decided to just go to that class, in part because today we had a very droll professor who reminds me of Margaret Goodman, one of Nevada's best boxing ringside neurologists. What can I say, she does it for me?

 

[FenderHM]

i used to attend the first lecture of each block...now i don't even do that. i only attend our medical decision making lectures because this lecturer is actually pretty entertaining and i enjoy it. besides, that, 0%.

it all depends on if you are a good self-learner or not. i prefer this and my grades are a lot better when i don't go to class b/c i have more time to study the material in the amount of depth that I need. when i go to a full day's worth of classes, i'm too exhausted to spend the 5-6 additional hours i need to actually study the material. I guess i'm just not an auditory learner, b/c i retain almost nothing from a lecture.

ditto

 

[Bubb Rubb]

::giggling:: I go to the first lecture of every new block (we're one of those schools) and don't ever go again. That's one lecture ever 9 weeks. I study at the library. I found when I'm home, I tend to sleep 15 hours/day. I've missed so many classes that people actually thought I dropped out

i probably skipped 75% of my non-small group lectures, if not more. i went to almost all small groups, hit up the review sessions, and always did the reading on my own, one way or another.

i skipped less in undergrad, for what that's worth.

 

[deleted77919]

Absolutely. Not going to school saves me so much time throughout the day. Driving to and fro (- 1.5 hrs), less time for lunch (- .5 hr), slow lecturers boosted up to 1.4x (- 1 hr), and the odd hour here or there that somebody doesn't show or nothing's scheduled that I end up playing freecell through. Plus eating PB&J at home is a lot cheaper than McD's, Subway, or the student grill at school (yes we do have a McDonald's inside the hospital -- so ******ed). I go to 0% of non-mandatory lectures, but about 10% of our time is required lectures and labs so that's about where I'm at.

This is why I like living inside the medical center. Hooray for dorms. I don't have to walk outside to make it to lecture. My commute consists of a few flights of stairs (elevator is a bit slow when everyone is trying to make it to lecture in the morning). I get the convenience of staying at home and the benefit of attending lecture. Our class attendance averages around 130 out of 160 for lectures. I go to 90%+ of my lectures.

 

[DrZeke]

There are alot of differences between undergrad and medschool:
1) At many schools the lectures are recorded with video/mp3/notesets that are distributed to the students (this means you can get all the info of the lecture at your own pace at your own convienence . . . I personally like reading them in my PJs)
2) Almost all the powerpoints the proffessors use will be accessible by you
3) Everything you need to know is not covered in your classtime like it was in undergrad, you might be able to pass some classes without using outside sources but you certainly won't honor anything that way.
4) Almost everyone (if not everyone) in a medschool class will be the best and the brightest from undergrad, the self motivated or brilliant or perfectionist, . . . so we all know how to study and are motivated to do it on our own, whereas in undergrad there is a wider range of ability within a class so many won't be able to push themselves through a curriculum on their own.
5) Doctors are expected to continue to learn on their own throughout their careers so to some extent this self-teaching is encouraged by the curriculum at medschools

The only time I started doing well in undergrad was when I stopped going to lectures. At my huge Canadian school we had note taking clubs, recorded lectures and with 150-650 ppl in a class, it seemed to be the best option.

Also, when memorization is the main theme as it is when figuring out how to do well in bio sciences, listening in lecture doesn't always help that much. I just finished an SMP last year, and people were always flipping out because I skipped certain classes religiously, but I still did really well. You have to do what works best for you.

What's funny is that I remember almost everything I hear, but with monotone voices and 5 hours of class a day, I just don't have the patience or the attention span to go to that much class and then study the additional 4-5 hours that day like someone else mentioned on here. So, with the knowledge that I'm I do benefit from hearing things, I pick and choose which lectures to attend and thankfully I'm also a fairly visual person.

I think a lot of people who are used to attending class every single day in undergrad, probably come from smaller private schools or liberal arts colleges with small classes. Maybe I'm wrong...but just a thought...

 

[psipsina]

What I think is funny is the people who attend non-mandatory classes but study something else while they are there, I've even seen some of my classmates with headphones in during lecture to block out the lecturer?? I do this if I end up in a bad lecture by mistake, or in the random ones where they take attendance, but why on earth would you do this everyday instead of staying home or going to the library??

 

[Pianoboe01]

I go to class just about 100% of the time, but I'm also at a satellite campus with only 15 students. This means, of course, that we don't have all the perks of the main campus (notes, dictations, videotaped lectures, etc.) and it's quite obvious when people don't show up to class when there's only 15 of us. The guilt factor definitely plays a role in such a small class, especially when we know a lot of the doctors from the community are practically volunteering their time to teach us (I think they get paid like $50 for a 2 hour lecture -- so they are actually losing money to teach us).

 

[tchantel21]

Since about 1/3 of the way through anatomy, 0%.

haha. Same here. That was my 3rd course of 1st year. Im a second year now and haven't been back since.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

What I think is funny is the people who attend non-mandatory classes but study something else while they are there, I've even seen some of my classmates with headphones in during lecture to block out the lecturer?? I do this if I end up in a bad lecture by mistake, or in the random ones where they take attendance, but why on earth would you do this everyday instead of staying home or going to the library??

That is so weird. I actually think it's ruder to the professor to attend their lecture and blatantly not listen (headphones are an excellent example of that) than it is to not go to the lecture. If I were teaching a class, I think I'd find the headphone users and the people who were totally ignoring me pretty irritating.

About the initial question. I go to maybe 10% of my lectures. I mainly go to human behavior, but that's it. We have notegroups, our lectures are recorded (just audio -- no visual) and the professors generally release their powerpoints. Also, they start at 8 am and lots of days we have 6 full hours of lecture. If we only had 2 hours of lecture a day, I'd probably go. Since they start so early and last so long, it's just not worth it for me.

 

[Sophie]

I go to around 80% of lectures, out of a combination of guilt (for the poor professors), not wanting my ultra-ambitious friends to think I'm a slacker, and paranoia that I'll miss something important. The sad thing is I get almost nothing out of at least 90% of the lectures I attend (I'm not an auditory learner), and then I come home after them and am too tired to study for more than a couple hours. The days I do stay home (e.g. when I'm sick) I get amazing amounts of studying done, and know the material much better.

I'm hoping to wean myself off of lectures over the next few months.

 

[stoic]

i don't go to anything that isn't required. ie virtually no lectures. i'm a second year and i never really went to lectures. we have audio and this year video of the lectures online. i listen to most of them at like 1.5x.

a large percentage of my class does the same.

 

[lanzarlaluna]

I haven't mustered the courage to skip class, so I go to 100% of the lectures. Although I'm usually about 15 minutes late every day. I need to quit being a sucka and stay home/go to the library, especially if I get the vibe a particular professor sucks during his or her first lecture. Some profs are really good, though.

 

[md mayhem]

class attendance is mandatory for some classes at my school, but not most. and they are not recorded. and we do not have official note takers.

i find it necessary to go to class all the time. i think it has worked well for me so far.

 

[crys20]

never, unless its ICM or something req'd - notes are great - texts to supplement if absolutely necessary = great life and great grades!

 

[cmeshy]

With powerpoint, mp3 lectures, handouts, text, blackboard, and notepool (verbatim notetaking service for all those BOLDED test items) the only thing I miss by not going to class is not seeing the little laser pointer point to the exact words found on the powerpoint on the screen in front of me on my pc and overhead.
The funniest thing about it all is showing up for exams and seeing the professors face for the first time and trying to recognize who he is by voice (which requires thinking what he sounds like at 1.4 speed). pretty amazing i'm paying 32K a year for this. little pathetic i think. maybe i'll go to class tomorrow....nah, i'll pass.

 

[Benign_foodtube]

Yeah, I don't go to any lectures whatsoever. There are audio recordings for us, but I don't even listen to those. I study, and I kinda like not going to class, because it leaves more time for study, as well as other things. I go to all my standardized pt sessions, and special events and labs an such, PBLs, etc, but kinda f#ck class.

I feel guilty sometimes, and every now and again go to class because I'm paying so much for it. every time I do, though, i end up remembering why I don't go to class.

Why? WHat am I missing?

 

[Ypo.]

1/8.

 

[Just Joshin]

This is why I like living inside the medical center. Hooray for dorms. I don't have to walk outside to make it to lecture. My commute consists of a few flights of stairs (elevator is a bit slow when everyone is trying to make it to lecture in the morning). I get the convenience of staying at home and the benefit of attending lecture. Our class attendance averages around 130 out of 160 for lectures. I go to 90%+ of my lectures.

Do you mind if I ask where you attend school? I'm interested in dorms instead of having to rent an apartment for med school.

 

[JohnUC33]

ok i'm just wondering.. what percentage of lectures do you guys attend/miss?

Say attendance isn't taken, lectures are recorded, and there's no lab component for the course (like anatomy)..

Do you feel its necessary to go to class? Or would u just stay at home and listen to lectures on your own time?

Heck, for some dumb reason, I decided to forfeit my precious sleep time and actually go to lectures today (which I'm in right now). Why did I do that???ah!! I just have a hard time focusing for long periods of time. Anyways, I usually just listen to lectures at home on my own time cause we have the recorded MP3's and are given all the notes we need. So that how I learn. It really depends on how you learn best.

 

[deleted77919]

Do you mind if I ask where you attend school? I'm interested in dorms instead of having to rent an apartment for med school.

I go to NYU. Housing in NYC (especially in this neighborhood) is so expensive most people live in the dorms. I think it creates a pretty good social atmosphere as well as making life really convenient. Now there has been the occasional day when I realized that I didn't actually go outside, and that's a little depressing. But worth it in my cost benefit estimation.

I know USC has dorms, but very few people chose to live in them. Wash U has dorms as well and I think it's the same story. Columbia, Sinai, and Cornell have dorms that most students utilize for the same reason as NYU ($$$).

 

[Just Joshin]

I go to NYU. Housing in NYC (especially in this neighborhood) is so expensive most people live in the dorms. I think it creates a pretty good social atmosphere as well as making life really convenient. Now there has been the occasional day when I realized that I didn't actually go outside, and that's a little depressing. But worth it in my cost benefit estimation.

I know USC has dorms, but very few people chose to live in them. Wash U has dorms as well and I think it's the same story. Columbia, Sinai, and Cornell have dorms that most students utilize for the same reason as NYU ($$$).

Cool! Do you have a roommate or a single room? Also, would you happen to know if any other East Coast schools have dorms? I'm going to apply all up and down the East Coast, but I'd rather live in a dorm than an apartment.

 

[zimmie256]

Cool! Do you have a roommate or a single room? Also, would you happen to know if any other East Coast schools have dorms? I'm going to apply all up and down the East Coast, but I'd rather live in a dorm than an apartment.

I believe NJMS and NYMC have dorms.

 

[deleted77919]

Cool! Do you have a roommate or a single room? Also, would you happen to know if any other East Coast schools have dorms? I'm going to apply all up and down the East Coast, but I'd rather live in a dorm than an apartment.

I can speak for NYU. The rooms are all singles.

To be honest I can't imagine too many places with dorms do doubles for med school. I wouldn't be here if my only option was doubles housing.