Our Students

What are your goals within the broad spectrum of medicine? What kind of physician, what kind of person do you hope to be? Answering these questions can be challenging. We offer resources and support to help with your decision making including:

• Confidential individual career counseling
• On-line and print medical career resources
• Information sessions on medical specialties
• CaRMS: assistance with applying for medical residency programs
• Individual career counselling offering resources and support to help you with your decision making. Contact: Kent Robinson at robink15@mcmaster.ca

Medical school is challenging!

There is a high volume of material to be learned, and students at McMaster are challenged to identify what to learn, how to learn it, and when to learn it, from the very start, just as they will in their clinical years. This may require some adjustment in your learning and study strategies to ensure you are using the most effective and efficient methods.

Learning in a problem base curriculum is quite different from more traditional didactic lecture based formats. Students who are unfamiliar with this type of learning may have some difficulty making the transition. Working independently and then processing the learning in a small group setting can feel quite different. Sorting out how to contribute to the learning of others while learning oneself can require different approaches.

This is an exciting and stimulating time, but if you feel that the adjustment is difficult for you, it is a good idea to seek advice earlier rather than later.

Every student in the MD Program is assigned a student advisor who will monitor their academic progress throughout the duration of their time in medical school. Student advisors are faculty members that volunteer for the position and are familiar with the undergraduate program and the special concerns that are common during medical school. Your student advisor is not involved in your evaluations.

Medical school is very demanding and it is not always easy for students to achieve and maintain the multidimensional levels of wellness that they need and want. So much to do and so little time! In recognition of this, the Student Affairs Office has developed and run programs to help you take time to find the right balance between you, school and work.

The Financial Competency Curriculum developed at McMaster University has one overall goal: to make future Health Professionals knowledgeable about Personal Finance issues in an unbiased manner. The hope is that this reduces stress regarding your finances so you can focus on what's of primary concern to you: thriving in your current program and future career.

This mentoring program is an informal process where students are provided a list of peers with varying experiences and expertise, allowing them to seek our assistance they might require.

The Mac-Masters are a diverse group of students in the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine who have identified themselves as resources for their peers. The Mac-Masters are typically second and third year students who have self-identified as McMaster "specialists". The Mac-Masters each have unique experiences that can help them guide students in any stage of the program. These students have agreed to answer questions via email on a variety of topics, including electives, learning strategies and resources, health & wellness, clerkship, and problem based learning.

The transition in medical school from the classroom to a clinical setting can be a daunting prospect for new clerks (CC2s). A mentorship program that matches upper year CC3s (Mentors) with incoming CC2s (mentees) - the Mac-Masters Clerk-to-Clerk (C2C) Program - can be a potential solution to provide new clerks with the guidance needed to make their shift into clinical responsibilities a successful one. To facilitate the best match, mentors will be paired with mentees within the same clerkship stream. This can help increase effective mentorship as CC3s can provide insight into the unique traits and characteristics of their streams, and assist in clerkship planning on a much more personalized level.

Ask A Resident: These are residents who have graduated from McMaster medical school and have been identified as being successful in the program and having the interpersonal skills to work with medical students. This program is designed for students who are looking for more than just information and who may want some assistance in adjusting to medical school life or could benefit from advice and guidance from a senior colleague who has been in their shoes not too long ago. Possible areas of focus could include: problem based learning and a new style of learning; high volume of material to be learned and fast pace of program; adjustment to biological sciences; living in a new community; choosing a career in medicine; and a variety of other issues.