What's Medicine like?

Jimdw

What's Medicine like in Trinity?

Peslo

Hard.

Agent Smith

Its Full of Wannabe doctors....

Timans

It's not very nice but I hear a spoonful of sugar makes it tolerable.

Crania

Peslo wrote: »

Hard.

And Post of the Year goes to Peslo for that extremely informative, helpful while altgether succint answer.

Like in fairness Jimdw, it's a pretty broad question. I think you know it's hard. For people to help you, you'll have to narrow it down. For example, how many lecture hours a week, how many assignments, etc.

But yea, I guess it's pretty damn hard man!

Brian

It's a course where you learn to be become a doctor. Or are you not from Cork?

mardybumbum

Do any other meds intend on reading "Essential Cell Biology"?
Will an understanding of leaving cert biology suffice?:rolleyes:

sd123

1st year book list will be as follows:

Anatomy: Gray's anatomy For students
Physiology: Sherwood's Physiology
Biochemistry: Stryer's biochemistry


Know them well and you'll do very well in 1st year.

To the guy above, LC biology doesn't even prepare you for the introduction to most topics. If you were going to do something, read sherwood's physiology, great book.

Plug-me-in

Actually, speaking of Gray's Anatomy, someone gave me a really old edition, it's the "Centenary Edition" and pretty much an antique!! Very interesting too.....




Are they the only three books we'll be needing for first year??

Kwekubo

I recently wrote up a couple of general notes on this topic for someone as regards the first medical year, so I'll post a rejigged version here:

There's a rather aspirationally-worded breakdown of the curriculum available at http://www.medicine.tcd.ie/ugeducation/medicine/curriculum_phase1.php, as well as the version in the prospectus. Take these with more than a pinch of salt; the actual core subjects you will be studying are Biochemistry, Anatomy and Physiology. Biochem is a shock to the system, and the first few lectures at least (if they're still the ones from last year: protein folding by Ken Mok) may leave you in despair if you're anything like me! But you will surprise yourself in how things come together around exam time, if you do make some effort to study regularly. There's also a course in behavioural sciences on which you will have an exam, and a log book on human development; these are less stressful.

Don't buy any books, at least for the first month or so. There are plenty of books in the library, and there is absolutely no point spending hundreds of euros on books before you know whether they work for you personally. I would suggest using Sherwood for physiology, either Gray's for Students or big Moore for anatomy textbook, Netter for anatomy atlas, and Lippincott and/or Stryer for biochem (these names will become familiar to you). But like I said, you don't need your own copy of all these, and at any rate don't buy anything until you've used the various library books for a while. Look out for the book sale that the Biosoc (the University Biological Association, i.e. the med students' society) will be running early in the year; this is well worth going to. It isn't essential to have the very latest edition of the books mentioned above, but try not to go beyond the previous edition (for example, either 4th or 5th ed of Moore would be grand).

Whatever you do, though, don't spend money on the suggested human development/behavioural sciences/histology books. There's more than enough copies in the library and you will barely use them, if at all.

Mardybumbum, Leaving Cert biology is fine; the point they are making is that it helps to have a vague idea of the big picture of biology before you start discussing everything in detail. If you haven't done biology then don't freak out and try to memorise the LC course between now and October. Just look up the relevant entries on Wikipedia, or flick through a site like this or this. My take would be a little different WRT chemistry though; I've heard that the preliminary chemistry course isn't up to much, and there is less recap of the basic concepts than there is for biology, so if you haven't done LC chem then look through something like this over the next month. (But again, don't go overboard.)

In terms of time spent per week, a fairly significant part of the course is the problem-based learning component. You may notice that this aspect of the course is hardly mentioned in the prospectus; I think this is on purpose. In essence it's a tutorial with no tutor, the idea being that you stumble through the topic as a group (often without having covered the material at all beforehand), go off and research it, and report back to share your discoveries. I remain of the opinion that the concept will be discredited in years to come (at least in the way Trinity is currently using it), but it's worth putting a little work in as it's worth 10% of your final mark in biochem, anatomy and physiology, and by doing so it should be possible to average between 70% and 80% in PBL without killing yourself, thus bringing up your average in the other subjects (in most cases).

There's a lot more that could be posted, so if you have any more questions then ask away.

mardybumbum

Thanks for the post kwekubo.:D Dont really fancy delving into the study just yet. And I would have read a few of my dads very old medical books so I have an idea of what to expect! Looking forward to it newhooo!

Kwekubo

mardybumbum wrote: »

Dont really fancy delving into the study just yet

And no one's telling you to! A whole month left before college ftw.

littlneutralone

CoolCiaran wrote: »

For example, how many lecture hours a week, how many assignments, etc.

I'll ask these questions :pac:

Is the timetable cruelly busy?

sd123

Kwekubo wrote: »

Mardybumbum, Leaving Cert biology is fine; the point they are making is that it helps to have a vague idea of the big picture of biology before you start discussing everything in detail. If you haven't done biology then don't freak out and try to memorise the LC course between now and October.

So much for scaring the **** out of the new freshers, thanks Kwekubo

sd123

littlneutralone wrote: »

I'll ask these questions :pac:

Is the timetable cruelly busy?

I think it was about 20-25 hours per week, but you also have 2 hours of PBL twice a week, which also requires a few hours (minutes:D) of research. Oh, and you'll have to keep up to date continually thoroughout the year, otherwise you'll be left behinid come exam time.

Pet

Tbh, I MUCH prefer Germann/Stanfield for Physiology - it's a far nicer book, the diagrams are far more comprehensive, and it's very well-conceptualised. Sherwood's is a bit sketchy in parts.

Jimdw

Anybody did an Erasmus Programme in Paris?
How is it administered?
It's very tempting to go to France, It's the best way to learn French and French way of life, Paris's way of life anyway.

sd123

Pet wrote: »

Tbh, I MUCH prefer Germann/Stanfield for Physiology - it's a far nicer book, the diagrams are far more comprehensive, and it's very well-conceptualised. Sherwood's is a bit sketchy in parts.

Well, if you're really up to it, you could just study guyton & hull, would pretty much cover everything you're likely to meet.....