Basic Medicine Program & Moving to Hungary

[Debrecen2008]

First off, thank you to all those who have contributed useful information here over time.. I have been refering to this sight for quite some time.

Now I am getting ready to make my move to Debrecen.. I am starting out in the Basic Medicine Program (1 year pre-med), followed by the six year Medical School Program (after successfully passing the basic program). Anyone's five cents who has gone through this experience would be appreciated..

I am from the states and have never been to Hungary.. I will be going there and hunting for an apartment myself based on the advice provided here on this site and have jotted down the agencies to avoid. Before I do so, I wanted to see if there is anything I should bring with me from the states that is not available in Hungary? (ie: personal hygene stuff, electronics, etc.) Or anything I shouldn't bring? (ie: xbox, stereo, insturment, cell phone, etc.)

Also, I have found an extremely wide range of estimates on living expenses in Debrecen.. Could anyone give me a broken down figure of how much to I should expect to pay for rent? (no dorms. I prefer 1 bedroom or a large studio) Are there any must haves or have nots to keep in mind? And since I don't know the area too well, are there any neighborhoods to avoid or that are more desirable? And last set of questions for now, how many days in advance before school starts should I get there (and how many days do I need?) in order to arrange my living accomodations?

Sorry for all the questions.. any answers would be greatly appreciated.. Thanks much in advance for any help.

[african_child]

hmmm...you've asked them all. I'm also quite interested in answers to these questions.

[Chemist_11]

May I ask why you are on the premed?

Btw, from my experience of medical school so far, anything what you know will be a distraction - leave at home!

[Debrecen2008]

May I ask why you are on the premed?

Btw, from my experience of medical school so far, anything what you know will be a distraction - leave at home!

Hi Chemist_11,

Good words of advice.. I agree with you regarding distractions... There is a lot of information on the web, and as we've all seen, there is a good mix between the positive and negative.. How I look at it though, I'm going to be going to MEDICAL school.. I don't expect it to be easy, and I understand it will require me to give my 110% in order to successfully make it through, even if its studying all day/every day.. Six years (or in my case, seven years) will fly by before we know it, and when I've accomplished my goal, I'll realize it was worth all the effort/sacrifices.

In my asking the questions, I just want to make sure I'm as fully prepared as possible before I go.

In regards choosing to enter the Basic Medicine Program... As of right now, all I would need to complete all my pre-med is only Physics.. But because I have been out of school for a bit now, I would rather spend one extra year to better grasp all the material (in order to have a solid base of my basic sciences), then risk to struggle for six years of medical school.

So are you going through Med School right now? In Hungary? In Debrecen? If so, what year?

Any other words of advice? On studying? On time management? Anything?

Thanks much.

[Chemist_11]

Hi Debrecen2008,

I'm currently a first year medical student in the UK, i'm actually back home for easter at the moment but with the amount of work, its not much of a holiday! lol.

I am very easily distracted, so as I mentioned I left all possible distractions at home - 250 miles away! (Including the significant other :p).
After passing all of my semester one examinations, I decided that time management was an issue for me - handing in assignments 5 minutes before the deadline and still learning new things on the eve of the exam!

Its hard to give any specific advice, however you will learn to know what you should and shouldn't be doing after semester one :D

[Debrecen2008]

Yeah.. I've been told by many that the first three years are going to be the most difficult. And if could get through the beginning, it would only get easier for me as I continue to get the hang of things (ie. time managment).

Just out of curiousity, do you ever go out? I'm a social bee, but at the same time, I don't mind sheltering myself because I know the reward in the end is worth it. Is it to a point in which I can never party again? Is there time to play some sports? Or perhaps take a day off to relax? And obviously, sleep is probably minimal, but whats your sleep schedule like?

Also, please provide me with your address, drivers license number, date of birth, and mothers maiden name.. Jk.. Lol.. I've never asked for someones sleep schedule before.. Haha :)

Much thanks.

[Stranger Stel]

hey man. i was just reading ure posts.....to answer ure social question...OF COURSE you can go out, all students need some way to relieve stress, the only thing is u kinda gotta wait to go out after the exams. People who mess themselves up do it cuz they dont realize when are appropriate times to party and when not. Look at every exam as a chance to party after its done and ull be fine.....but on the other hand, dont get scared but all this nonesense you hear about not being able to have free time. when i went to hungary all these students were telling me you have to study 10 hours a day......where does one even find 10 hours a day to study...unless you count class, tutorials , eating breakfast and taking your morning dump studying.

all i can say tho is not to worry about such things, ull see how things are when u get there, and will have to work out your own balance of studying and partying. i mostly depends on the person..
cool?

[Debrecen2008]

hey man. i was just reading ure posts.....to answer ure social question...OF COURSE you can go out, all students need some way to relieve stress, the only thing is u kinda gotta wait to go out after the exams. People who mess themselves up do it cuz they dont realize when are appropriate times to party and when not. Look at every exam as a chance to party after its done and ull be fine.....but on the other hand, dont get scared but all this nonesense you hear about not being able to have free time. when i went to hungary all these students were telling me you have to study 10 hours a day......where does one even find 10 hours a day to study...unless you count class, tutorials , eating breakfast and taking your morning dump studying.

all i can say tho is not to worry about such things, ull see how things are when u get there, and will have to work out your own balance of studying and partying. i mostly depends on the person..
cool?


Hey Stranger Stel,

Yeah, very cool.. I guess too much of anything is not good- including studying.. I don't expect med school to be a breeze and understand I'll need to put my time in to do well, but it was somewhat of a concern to me to hear that I have to be studying while taking my morning dump :)

I'm older, and have gone through the partying phase.. but I still like to have a good time every once in a while- or when I feel I've earned it, after exams.

I know sometimes all this is basic stuff that we all might know.. but its really great to hear it from someone who has been through it all, so thank you very much for your response.

Just out of curiousity, what school did you attend in Hungary? How long ago? and where are you at now?

[Stranger Stel]

actually man, i havent yet attended school in Hungary, but have gone to university away from home. I have so many friends in dentistry and medicine all over the world, and they all say the same thing...just dont be stupid about it..... i have been accepted to szeged university and am waiting to hear from semmelweis. Currently i am drawn between deciding on which one to go to if i am accepted to semmelweis. Both are good schools, and apparently szeged is accepted by more states than is semmelweis, but to me it comes down to living in a big city with crazy distractions, or a smaller town which may be boring, but when bored, study i guess.

what do u think?

[cools]

Anyone's five cents who has gone through this experience would be appreciated..
Hey , I have not gone thru the BMC course, but I can give you info and advice regarding the gen med portion.
Since you will be doing BMC....i suggest you concentrate on hungarian as much as you can , so tht you wont have to struggle too much with it in the other years. Needless to day that you make your clinical practics better if you , know hungarian properly. Best would be to get a hungrian gf..! Otherwise i dont think BMC is hard , but i will not know , since i havnt done it

I wanted to see if there is anything I should bring with me from the states that is not available in Hungary? (ie: personal hygene stuff, electronics, etc.) Or anything I shouldn't bring? (ie: xbox, stereo, insturment, cell phone, etc.)

First and foremost, get a convertor. I mean , the electric sockets here are diff from tht in US, so i bet you will need it for any electronic instrument tht you bring. I guess you will defi bring your laptop and accessories like external hard drive etc , along with that, its a good idea to get a cell phone.. but you can buy them here too, though not tht cheap.
I cant think of anything else right now.. but will post if i can cum up with sumthing later.

Also, I have found an extremely wide range of estimates on living expenses in Debrecen.. Could anyone give me a broken down figure of how much to I should expect to pay for rent?

Am going to quote the prices in forint since the dollar rates fluctuate a lot these days. These days 1 $ = approx 155 to 165 ft.
About the apartments.. well you can find them from anywhere between
55000 forint - 80000 ft - just the basic rent
community fee - 2000 -3000 ft
water 2000 - 4000 ft
heating.. ( if you have central heating then you pay a fixed price for both summer and winter which is around 20000 ft)
I personally think , its better to live in apartments where you control your own heating, .. so that comes to nuthing in summer , and goes upto 25000 in winter.

electricity - 2500 -3500 ft
Phone( landline) - if u dont make to many international calls, only locals than around 3500-4000 per month
Internet - anywhere from 2000 - 10000 per month , depending on which company and what plan you select

Of course , if you share an apartment, than everything will turn out to be much cheaper.

Restaurants... usually one dish on the menu costs 2000- 3000 ft


Actually do you know , that the dorms are actually like studio apartment... so its (nuthing like shared kitchen and bathroom or anything)...infact you have your own room with a little kitchen and quite furnished. I cant post the link , cause my post sount is not high , but you can look up the link of the student hostel. I dont intend to say tht u shud stay in the dorms, but its defi a good idea, when you cum here first, cause you can make friends etc. And you wont have to deal with paying bills and all

I think in the dorms the cost is right now 78000 ft per anum . It increases every year , so i hav lost track of it now.


Are there any must haves or have nots to keep in mind? And since I don't know the area too well, are there any neighborhoods to avoid or that are more desirable? And last set of questions for now, how many days in advance before school starts should I get there (and how many days do I need?) in order to arrange my living accomodations?
Really can't say how long it takes to get an apartment
Accomodations, well it might be hard to get the right place in september, cause there is huge demand. I mean , not saying you absolutely wont get one , but either they might be too expensive, or not well furnished, etc...
In , short , they might not be the best suitable ones.
If , you do change your mind and intend to live in the dorms, you should book them now, cause they run out of rooms very soon

My personal opinion would be to come 4-5 days before the start of the term , so that you , get used to the envmt and get rid of the jet lag.

Debrecen is pretty much a safe city. There are no areas , that i know of so far i my 4 years of study , that one must avoid. So , don't worry about that.


Lastly....
Good luck...!!!!

[vivica]

romania and perticularly constanta has a good medical school.....many students from hungery are already moved since the price is less its much better and the degree is EU recognized............being a former admission coordinator if you have more question feel free to contact.....admissions and transfer of studies are still possible