Undergrad Degree = Success?

[Queensstudent]

Hi guys just a question (may be dumb, but there no dumb questions....just dumb people :D).

I was noticing the US curriculum and realized that I have covered most courses, if not all, in my undergrad degree to a certain level. In fact I was looking at the Saba bookstore and to my (great) surprise, a lot of the texts required for study I already have!

I know it seems like a dumb question, but for those who are at Saba and who have taken an extensive number of medical science courses in undergrad, do you find the curriculum easier having done this mateial before? Similarily, I would like to hear from people who did not have an extensive background in the medical sciences during the undergrad.

[maserati]

Hi guys just a question (may be dumb, but there no dumb questions....just dumb people :D).

I was noticing the US curriculum and realized that I have covered most courses, if not all, in my undergrad degree to a certain level. In fact I was looking at the Saba bookstore and to my (great) surprise, a lot of the texts required for study I already have!

I know it seems like a dumb question, but for those who are at Saba and who have taken an extensive number of medical science courses in undergrad, do you find the curriculum easier having done this mateial before? Similarily, I would like to hear from people who did not have an extensive background in the medical sciences during the undergrad.


From what I have researched and heard from med school profs at McGill ... the basic science you learn in med school is basically just a repeat of the 4 year health science undergrad. That is schools don't care if you have the background or not because EVERYONE is going to learn EVERYTHING from the start.

So I don't think it's just a SABA thing.

[Queensstudent]

thats a good point maserati, but i notice the difference in curriculum structure between US/Carib and CDN schools. A lot of CDN and US Queens grads tell me that 1st year is all repeat and pretty easy if you have sufficient background in the medical sciences. 2nd year is a little more difficult, but grads who have gone down to the US find that taking advanced upper year sciences (especially courses in pathology), really helped.

[playarf]

The big difference between undergrad and SABA is learning the same amount of material in practically 1/10th of the time. According to my faculty advisor, medical school doesnt require THAT much brain as it requires hard work, persistence, and stamina.
To cut the story short, you may be familiar with a lot of upcoming content as you went to Queens, but the amount of detail required, and volume to be memorized is immense. So dont think that SABA will be an easy ride...

[don1]

I agree, my impression is that the detail of knowledge required by medical schools are much greater than that for undergrad, although the text book they use may be the same.

The big difference between undergrad and SABA is learning the same amount of material in practically 1/10th of the time. According to my faculty advisor, medical school doesnt require THAT much brain as it requires hard work, persistence, and stamina.
To cut the story short, you may be familiar with a lot of upcoming content as you went to Queens, but the amount of detail required, and volume to be memorized is immense. So dont think that SABA will be an easy ride...

[bigkap87]

From my experience, the material covered by one of my undergrad courses that was similar was taught in like one day at Saba hehe.

[Queensstudent]

thanks for the input guys.

[JeebusLives]

From my experience, the material covered by one of my undergrad courses that was similar was taught in like one day at Saba hehe.


im glad i didnt go to your undergrad. lolz!

[BTH]

Salutations:

I would imagine that for those students who have taken more undergraduate courses in the sciences may tend to feel more comfortable than someone who only took the basic requirements. I guess when it boils down to it physiology is physiology and pathology is pathology except that more of it is taught in medical school and at a faster rate. And I mean faster.

[gianefiasco]

You really don;t even need a degree to get acceptted or do well here on SAba. In fact you can get awarded a BSc upon completion of basic sciences portion of your SABA MEd school program...I kid you not!

And also: there are dumb questions and there are dumb people, and its not a coincidence that they occur together!:eek:

[Botox]

I would just like to clarify some things here (with the aid of cliches of course)...
You can't possibly think that because you went to a decent school you will automatically achieve success. As you may or may not know "success" usually requires loads of work/time/effort. This all applies to medical school in general where ever you may be in the world and especially Saba. Things you learnt in an entire semester at Queen's you WILL learn in one lecture (most cases an extra lecture on weekends :cool:). Another thing is in med school, as opposed to undergrad, everything you learn you should retain because you don't know when you might use it in the course of your medical career....which we all know makes things a lot more difficult. That being said, if you have a background...nice....if you don't it's cool. You will most definately have to apply yourself. Everyone in medical school and again specifically at Saba studies even math Ph.D's.....everyone. Do not let anyone lead you to think otherwise. Just know that with an introduction to perhaps similar material (after all, med school curriculum is taught somewhat similarly all over the world...science is science), you might feel more comfortable with the material but does not mean it will be easy.

And I'm spent.

P.S. For you devil's advocates, I just completed the 1st block exams for 1st semester and I had to study my **** off to do well. This is WITH a Honours B.sc. @ McMaster U. in Molecular Biology.

[mike james]

ppl who have taken advanced courses in physio and anatomy in undergrad should be more familiar with the material as opposed to someone just with the "prereqs"

[Queensstudent]

You can't possibly think that because you went to a decent school you will automatically achieve success. As you may or may not know "success" usually requires loads of work/time/effort. This all applies to medical school in general where ever you may be in the world and especially Saba. Things you learnt in an entire semester at Queen's you WILL learn in one lecture (most cases an extra lecture on weekends :cool:). Another thing is in med school, as opposed to undergrad, everything you learn you should retain because you don't know when you might use it in the course of your medical career....which we all know makes things a lot more difficult. That being said, if you have a background...nice....if you don't it's cool. You will most definately have to apply yourself. Everyone in medical school and again specifically at Saba studies even math Ph.D's.....everyone. Do not let anyone lead you to think otherwise. Just know that with an introduction to perhaps similar material (after all, med school curriculum is taught somewhat similarly all over the world...science is science), you might feel more comfortable with the material but does not mean it will be easy.


great points. And I do imagine that med school is just a lil difficult ;).
But 1) going to a competitive school for your undergrad certainly prepares you for the competition you will face in the classroom, rotations and inevitably residency matching. 2) There are prereqs and then there are advanced courses. Truth is that some 4th year courses (at least at Queens) in some medical science disciplines cover material at a significant depth than in medical school (many of these courses involve classrooms consisting of both undergrad and masters students). This is why many top medical schools emphasize that applicants, although may not be science majors, should take advanced courses to get a feel for the material. 3) While I certainly agree with you that med school expands on most disciplines taught in undergrad, I doubt the material taught in a med school single lecture = an entire semester (sorry if I didn't realize the sarcasm); if it is, then something is wrong. The whole point of these undergrad courses is to prepare you (almost like a vaccination :D), so when you get into medical school, you will be able to comprehend and understand the material, building on what u already know and elevating it to a level acquainted with being a physician. I know this because I have talked to people who have graduated from Queens and completed the basic sciences in CDN, US and even Caribbean med schools. Someone with a bio science background should have an advantage in the basic sciences over someone who has never been exposed to the material - if not then a) question your undergrad school and its curriculum, because I know well that a pre-med program should adequately provide its graduates with solid understanding of the clincal sciences, b) question yourself as a student - what exactly happened to all that you learnt over your undergrad career. 4) I feel sorry for people who totally forget what they have taken in undergrad - either their school's curriculum did not build on the preliminary knowledge or the student got lazy. I am certainly not saying you should remember everything from everyone of your courses. Its impossible for doctors to remember every single detail of what they learned in school - but doctors should have recollection and have the ability to reacquire the knowledge in a very short time - same goes for med students.

This post is not to undermine students who did not take science degrees. In the end, as the above poster said, it totally comes down to hardwork and discipline. If you have these two things and a true passion for medical science, I'm sure you'll do fine. My question was moreso related to whether having an undergrad science degree with significant background in the sciences is an advantage - and I believe I answered my own question.

[bigkap87]

I am kind of confused here Queen, you posed a question to the members here yet you seem to be an authority on the matter? Yes your undergrad degree will help esp in semesters 1,2,3 but in my opinion, having just left Saba nothing will prepare you better for semesters 4,5 and the bulk of your medical education like actual hands on clinical patient experience.

[TMM]

Im one of those kids who doesn't remember much from undergrad unless its chemistry or psychology. Been high too much of the time, or late night cramming

[Queensstudent]

I am kind of confused here Queen, you posed a question to the members here yet you seem to be an authority on the matter? Yes your undergrad degree will help esp in semesters 1,2,3 but in my opinion, having just left Saba nothing will prepare you better for semesters 4,5 and the bulk of your medical education like actual hands on clinical patient experience.

well things change in days. I talked to some friends and acquiatances on the matter and they provided some great insight. And you're absolutely right, 4 and 5th semesters (equivalent to second year in CDN schools) has no undergrad prep and thats a major stumbling block for some people.

[miasma]

i didn't finish an undergrad degree (only did 3 years), and i don't feel that an extra year of undergrad would have helped me at saba. just personal opinion.

[Botox]

Okay, I will end this thread.

You must be one of those people that overanalyzes situations and beats things to death. And if this is so...I will talk to my faculty advisor and beg that you receive an honourary M.D. (standing for Major ****).
Not a veritable trait to carry with you into practice since most patients (people) don't care what grade you received in medcial microbiology...as long as you smile and tell them that you will do everything in world to make sure they will be fine. AND actually stepping up when say some IV drug addict is going into relapse and you can't find a vein. I've seen so called brilliant medical students freeze up when someone is in anaphylaxis. And you might be thinking usually one who excels in undergrad and medical classes will epitomize the pinnacle of medical practice...I say pfff.
In the grand scheme of things....what the hell difference does it make what school you went to if you know every chemical structure of every known drug class...and it's mechanism of action? Stanford/Clown College? Again you say, "surely coming from Queen's will allow me to coast through medical school?" and I say medical school is a little more than "lil" difficult. The best part is when my colleagues and I will score higher on the boards than other students from other well known schools.

You should be asking superfantastic and intelligent questions such as..."How comfortable are the desk chairs here in the dorms?" (Answer being....not at all).

You will make provost list if you come here.

I'm spent.

[Queensstudent]

do you have a complex or something? When did I say anything about coasting through medical school? I know its difficult and I know what it takes...and I all I wanted was an insight into its curriculum and nature.

These boards are for intelligent posts, not halfwitted responses to the conversation. I guess you didnt get the ;) after the lil difficult part.

Go ahead and build your ego by finding gratification in beating students from "better schools". I was hoping to have a solid conversation of the matter and you turn it into something in the opposite direction.

PM me and talk about it in a more cordial manner or else don't bother.

[JeebusLives]

do you have a complex or something? When did I say anything about coasting through medical school? I know its difficult and I know what it takes...and I all I wanted was an insight into its curriculum and nature.

These boards are for intelligent posts, not halfwitted responses to the conversation. I guess you didnt get the ;) after the lil difficult part.

Go ahead and build your ego by finding gratification in beating students from "better schools". I was hoping to have a solid conversation of the matter and you turn it into something in the opposite direction.

PM me and talk about it in a more cordial manner or else don't bother.

there isnt much of a conversation to be had here. of course if youve had these courses before and actually learned something it should be easier to relearn what you were taught and go deeper. If you want some stats to prove it thats something i cant provide. But it seems like common sense.

So basically the answer in one word is YES.

lolz!

[Schiffbase]

there isnt much of a conversation to be had here. of course if youve had these courses before and actually learned something it should be easier to relearn what you were taught and go deeper. If you want some stats to prove it thats something i cant provide. But it seems like common sense.

So basically the answer in one word is YES.

lolz!

Yeah...I don't know what these canadians are talking aboot-it's rather self evident that people with education and aptitude for science will tend to do well in a science-heavy curriculum. ::slightly confused::

[playarf]

no one understands what people go through at saba. its so hard to relate our experiences to people back home, or anyone who hasnt been here. when i tell them that i wrote 2 exams, moved to a new house, paid my rent, packed my stuff, and took a boat to st. maarten the same night (because winair got cancelled), they just play it down...no one can relate to that and understand what you go through here...the amount of goats you have to fight, the grey bunny who doesnt move when you're comin down hillside, the cars who are more than willing to crash into you, the profs locking doors on you...you will never understand any of that unless you come here...its quite humbling - NOTHING THAT YOU'RE QUEENS DEGREE PREPARED YOU FOR...
its quite insulting to me personally to see someone not giving enough respect to the rigor at SABA...and by the way, just because you are from Queens, doesnt mean you're special...I went to UofT st george, did a specialist in medical sciences, and i find it quite challenging as well...
and yes, my 4th year classes also had grad students and i got an A...not that it mattered by then :roll::roll:...
there are some people in my class with masters in bchm and genetics, and blah blah...its the same ish for them...they still have to study hard
all im saying that please dont think SABA is a piece of cake...everyday is a challenge, and its all about stamina, perseverence, character, and a lot of other things that dont involve a 'good' science background...
besides any fool can learn about anything...last time i checked, libraries had books, and membership was free.

[krust3]

....what the hell difference does it make what school you went to if you know every chemical structure of every known drug class...and it's mechanism of action? Stanford/Clown College? Again you say, "surely coming from Queen's will allow me to coast through medical school?" and I say medical school is a little more than "lil" difficult. .

Indeed, I have to agree with Botulism Toxin.

Sure... I attend the Stanford Clown College- Honors track I might add..., which included "advanced balloon animalling" and "stuck in box pantomiming- a sad clown's perspective"....
But, that doesn't mean i can just "clown around" HONK HONK!

Seriously folks, don't let the grossly oversized red shoes and face paint fool you. I have to work just as hard as the poor underprepared sap next to me with the vastly inferior biochemistry/pre-med major.

[Botox]

hahaha :cool: