Understandably, most premed students are more concerned with getting into medical school rather than what comes after. However, looking ahead and understanding what comes after that acceptance letter arrives is important and will help with transitioning to the next four years of schooling. Generally, the medical school curriculum is consistent throughout schools in the United States with some minor variation depending on whether a school is osteopathic or allopathic. This is an overview of a typical four years at medical school: Year One The first year of medical school can be both an exciting and stressful time. On one hand you get to finally see your years of hard work and dedication become a reality. Along with this excitement, you also have to make a quick transition in order to be successful from the beginning. The first year typically consists of basic science courses that are not unlike many of your undergraduate courses. Some common classes include anatomy, physiology, histology, pathology, and biochemistry. The main goal of these courses is to provide students with a fundamental understanding of the human body, which includes an in-depth analysis of its parts and functions. In a typical anatomy class, for example, students will often work with cadavers, observing and memorizing the intricacies human body parts and their unique functions. This knowledge lays the groundwork necessary for the next year’s courses. Year Two Year two of medical school is similar to the first in that it is also classroom intensive and focuses on building scientific knowledge of the body. However, this year places an emphasis on diseases and their treatments of them with classes such as pathology, pharmacology, microbiology, and immunology. Students will also learn the basics of patient interaction by learning how to take patient histories and perform physical exams. This information is also crucial to passing your first USMLE exam which usually takes place after the second year and is required in order to acquire a medical license. This exam is split into three parts typically and is used to test different skills needed to be a physician. The first part of the test is centered on the ability to relate basic scientific concepts to medicine which is why it is taken after two years of classroom instruction on relevant material. Year Three The third year of medical school is most likely what most students will have been looking forward to since this is when all of the memorization and studying is put to the test. During this year, students will finally leave the classroom and begin their rotations through the different areas of medicine. Some common areas that are covered during these rotations are family medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, surgery, psychiatry, and internal medicine. Medical students will be able to acquire an understanding of these fields and gain a better sense of what specialty is the best fit for them. Many students enter these rotations with an idea of what they would like to pursue, but they are surprised that they actually have an inclination towards another, completely different specialty. For this reason, keeping an open mind to all different aspects of medicine is important. Year Four Going into your fourth year of medical school, you will continue studying in a hospital setting and continue going through rotations. During this last year, you will have the chance to delve deeper into a specific area of medicine. If a particular subspecialty piqued your interest, this year is your chance to further explore it and see if it is truly a good match. In addition, students will begin looking ahead to the next step which is residency; interviews usually start in December, and matches for residency are announced by March. At or near the end of this year, you will have to take the second part of the USMLE exam, so it is crucial to keep up with your studies to do well on this. The second part of the USMLE primary focuses on applying clinical skills to patients in standardized scenarios. Students will be given a patient and a set of symptoms, and based on this information, they should be able to explain the proper approach to this case. The last part of the test is usually taken after graduation and is a continuation of testing on clinical skills in both a supervised and unsupervised setting. Though this whole process seems like a distant reality, it is never too early to think about the future and what one should expect from it. According to Mary Ella, a current med school student, “everyone has a different style of learning and coping” when it comes to dealing with the curriculum in medical school. This means that the key to being successful in these courses is to find the style of learning that best suits you. Having an idea about the specific courses and activities of medical school will help students better understand the kind of dedication and commitment that is needed to be successful. Ultimately, looking ahead may help premedical students understand the end goal of all their hard work. Source
