Doctor School

So what does medical school actually entail? Considering tomorrow is only the end of our first week of real classes, I am no expert. However, with the aid of two curriculum presentations during our orientation and a trusty handout, here's my summary of the upcoming four (or five) years:

Year one:
Our time is spent predominantly in the classroom/lab/lecture hall taking classes in blocks of roughly 5-8 weeks. In order, these are Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Human Anatomy (with cadaver lab), Human Genetics, , Clinical Epidemiology & Population Health, Human Physiology, and Microbiology & Pathology.

These classes are supplemented by a weekly class in Social Medicine & Global Health fall semester and Medical Ethics & Professionalism spring semester.

Last, but of course not least, is Patient-Doctor 1 which runs weekly the entire year and consists of learning how to interview and compile a history of patients that takes place in hospitals around Boston.

If it sounds like a lot, that's because it is. An often-used analogy is trying to drink water out of a fire hose. Luckily, we are giving a two month summer respite that many students spend doing research, traveling abroad, or generally trying not to freak out that this is the last "free" summer ever.

Year two:
If the first year is characterized as learning about a healthy body's biology, the second year is studying everything that can and does go wrong. This, I believe is when medical students start to become hypochondriacs. We go from system to system (think head, shoulders, stomach, knees, and toes), and incorporate pharmacology into the material.

Patient-Doctor 2 is also spread out through the entire year and focuses on mastering the physical exam. This is so we can poke and prod ourselves and validate our fears that we're coming down with the diseases we're studying.

Alas, year two does not end with a vacation. Instead, in April, we take Step 1 of the Board Exams. I've been doing my best to deny the fact that we have yet more standardized tests, so you'll have to ask me later about that.

Year three:
Directly after taking the Step 1, we move from the classroom to the wards and clinics. This means we begin to directly work with real patients, under the supervision of real doctors. The third year consists of the mandatory rotations among different divisions within the hospitals including Internal Medicine, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Pediatrics, Surgery, Radiology, Neurology, and Psychiatry. I really don't know much more except that we hardly see any third or fourth years around campus and so I assume they're working hard in the hospitals.

Year four:
The fourth year is also spent in the wards, but these are spread among required and elective rotations such as Emergency Medicine and a second Surgery rotation. Many students also use this time to do an international or domestic away rotation (apparently Cape Cod is a popular clinic placement).

Fourth year is also the time that we take Step 2 of the Boards as well as when we start the application once again, this time for residency programs where we will "complete" our medical training in our specialties.

The gap year:
Many students spend a fifth year here either pursuing a Master's degree or full-time research. The Master's of Public Health, Master's of Business Administration, and other programs are actually inserted between the third and fourth year while research is usually added on as a "second lap" fifth year. There are also a small number of students who pursue a Ph.D. while in medical school, and they are just here forever. But hey, I guess it's not such a bad place to be.