====Virginia Commonwealth Univ/ MCV Class of 2012====

[nka1985]

I'm surprised you felt that way...I thought the Fletcher book for pop med was extremely useful. It's very well written and short, while both the syllabus and lectures in that course are pretty bad. I would certainly advise anyone to check it out in the bookstore before making a decision though.

I'll agree with that statement, but there was never anything on the test that wasn't in the syllabus.

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[vcumed2012]

Does anyone know when we/parents receive the tuition bill? Thanks

 

[nka1985]

Does anyone know when we/parents receive the tuition bill? Thanks

It's posted on e-services when they charge you. It might already be there. I never received a paper bill last year-I don't think they mail one.

 

[himerenee]

hey all
so io\m getting my car sipped tomorrow and was wondering for those that ot their cars shipped or drove long distance to va...does the heat of the summer damage any clothing/shoes you put in the trunk? my car will be going across the us for like 12-14 days andi 'm pretty sure some states get pretty hot. thanks!

Renee

 

[Elixir86]

Is anyone going to that "Mini-Med. School" week (Aug 4-8)? I was considering it, but decided not to in the end because (1) I won't get back from vacation until Aug 4th, and (2) I wanted to try and have at least one more week of vacation time before jumping into things. If anyone is going, let the rest of us know what you think of it.

 

[Beamer128]

Is anyone going to that "Mini-Med. School" week (Aug 4-8)? I was considering it, but decided not to in the end because (1) I won't get back from vacation until Aug 4th, and (2) I wanted to try and have at least one more week of vacation time before jumping into things. If anyone is going, let the rest of us know what you think of it.

I'll be going, mainly because I've been out of school for a year and it'll help me get back into the swing of things. Here's a copy of the schedule.

 

[Elixir86]

I'll be going, mainly because I've been out of school for a year and it'll help me get back into the swing of things.

Wow, you guys got yourselves a small Biochemistry course as well. Well, let us know how things go. Enjoy your last few days of vacation!

 

[montessori2md]

Ok, looking at my tax for this year, it's $150 for the 12 months in Fairfax County. This county is one of the most expensive in the state, though, and when I was in Blacksburg at Tech, the rate was about half that. I'm not sure what it'll be in Henrico County where Richmond is, but I'm guessing somewhere in between.

You can probably get insured somewhere around the same rate here (maybe a bit higher for theft in the city of Richmond) and yearly registration is more - I think about 70 or so.

Safety inspections run around $15 and emissions are around $25. On a new car, you should have no problem passing either.

If you buy a car in VA, it will already have passed both inspections (assuming you're buying from a dealer, not an individual).
My dealership usually does my inspections for free if I'm getting something else done, like an oil change or a tune-up.

My car tax was $120 this year, my car is 6 years old. I used to own a crappier car, my tax was only like $50 then, but I had to get emissions every year instead of every 2 years. The problem with owning a piece of junk car here is that eventually it gets too expensive to pass inspections to keep the car (the repairs are more than the car is worth).

That said, back in OH, my local income tax was like 6 or 7%, with no exemption (not that any of us have income! but I did then...). Anyhow, here, I pay 0 for local income tax, it's just the property tax, even with owning a house we pay less in (local/state) tax here than we did there when we were renting.

Oh, and the DMV here sucks. I don't know how it is over in Richmond, but here it's awful. But, you can check the wait times on their website, and they list in detail what pieces of paper you need, and you can print the forms at home and fill them out before you go. Once you get your first license and get your car registered, you shouldn't need to go back again for years, because it's all online. You can register to vote at the same time.

 

[pseudoknot]

Oh, and the DMV here sucks. I don't know how it is over in Richmond, but here it's awful.

I wasn't clear on what you meant by "here," but I have to say that coming from California, I'm very impressed by the Virginia DMV. It seems way more efficient and better run, with more services online and cheaper, faster services in person.

 

[ChimpanzeeMinky]

If you buy a car in VA, it will already have passed both inspections (assuming you're buying from a dealer, not an individual).
My dealership usually does my inspections for free if I'm getting something else done, like an oil change or a tune-up.

My car tax was $120 this year, my car is 6 years old. I used to own a crappier car, my tax was only like $50 then, but I had to get emissions every year instead of every 2 years. The problem with owning a piece of junk car here is that eventually it gets too expensive to pass inspections to keep the car (the repairs are more than the car is worth).

That said, back in OH, my local income tax was like 6 or 7%, with no exemption (not that any of us have income! but I did then...). Anyhow, here, I pay 0 for local income tax, it's just the property tax, even with owning a house we pay less in (local/state) tax here than we did there when we were renting.

Oh, and the DMV here sucks. I don't know how it is over in Richmond, but here it's awful. But, you can check the wait times on their website, and they list in detail what pieces of paper you need, and you can print the forms at home and fill them out before you go. Once you get your first license and get your car registered, you shouldn't need to go back again for years, because it's all online. You can register to vote at the same time.

Even when buying from an individual, the vehicle will already have a state safety inspection. You just may have anywhere from a few days to 11 months to have to get a new one. Same goes for a new car.

It's $15. It's in the noise. Don't worry about it.

Don't be too frightened of getting through safety and emissions. I had an 85 VW Vanagon that always had something wrong with it, and I was always able to get it through safety and emissions with minor things needed. Since the safety inspection is annual, it's not as stringent as other places where it's more infrequent.

And no matter the age of the vehicle, emissions has to be done every other year.

 

[ChimpanzeeMinky]

I wasn't clear on what you meant by "here," but I have to say that coming from California, I'm very impressed by the Virginia DMV. It seems way more efficient and better run, with more services online and cheaper, faster services in person.

Yeah, DMV sucks everywhere. They just suck to varying degrees. And my experience with other places has made me quite appreciative of the relative lack of suckage experienced in VA with the DMV.

 

[FFwannabeMD]

Where did you guys buy your stethoscopes from? The MCV bookstore, online, etc.? Also, does anyone have any recommendations for a good stethoscope? And one more question....is it necessary for us to buy any other equipment besides our stethoscopes for M1 (this question is directed to current M1 or above students)? Thank you!

You'll get a loaner Littmann Classic II for the first year, and I suggest shopping around to get a good price on your very own scope in the meantime.

I bought my scope off of Ebay for ~40% off (with a buy it now option instead of bidding), if you don't mind taking the time to peruse, it's usually well worth it. But make sure the description says new, or else who knows what condition it'll be in.

AllHeart.com has everything at a discount of usually at least $20, sometimes more, and with the option of engraving your name. If you want to buy in person, Discount Medical is a store on Boulevard in Richmond that sells most stethoscopes at a good price, usually the same as AllHeart.

As far as stethoscopes, many people will tell you that it doesn't matter what type you get unless you're a cardiologist. I think it does to a certain extent, but I think you'll be fine with anything Littmann Classic II quality or above. The most popular are probably Littmann Cardiology III steths, pretty much top of the line except for the electronic varieties (don't do that). Comparable to that are the Welch Allyn Harvey Elite scopes, same price range. I have that one because I didn't want a tunable diaphragm (you'll see whole discussion boards opinionated on that issue one way or the other) and found it to seems a little sturdier and a little less likely to 'disappear' into someone else's pocket (it's a little more straightforward, a little less snazzy looking). But that's a matter of personal preference, try to get your hands on a couple different scopes. You'll probably want to make sure that the scope you get has both a diaphragm and a bell (Littmann Classic II's do, WAH Elites do, and Littman Cardio III's have the option of exchanging out the ped diaphragm for a bell).

Don't stress about it too much. Stethoscopes are known to get lost or stroll into someone else's pocket during actual rotations (even if they're engraved), so there's a decent chance you'll be replacing one sometime early in your career.

 

[nka1985]

I'll be going, mainly because I've been out of school for a year and it'll help me get back into the swing of things. Here's a copy of the schedule.

Holy cow, if they did that last year I never heard about it....an extra week of Biochem? Ugh, no thanks. (Ha, sorry, some of you might like biochem but I was thrilled to be done with it.) It will give you a chance to check out the school a little, and get back into school mode if you've been out a while. See you guys around campus...I'll be the girl with the overflowing backback muttering about sympathomimetic agents under her breath...Okay, I'm not that bad yet but this weekend is going to be a fun-filled with studying for pharmacology and our clinical skills workshop.

 

[meister]

Yes, there was a certified notary public in the office.

What the hell kind of doctor's office is that? You lucked out, I don't even have a doctor out here. Ack

 

[himerenee]

hey all,
i was wondering how all of you managed to move newly purchased furniture etc? coming out of state i find it a bit hard to find a helping hand hehe

 

[Inuranic]

hey all,
i was wondering how all of you managed to move newly purchased furniture etc? coming out of state i find it a bit hard to find a helping hand hehe

I moved down with my girlfriend, and had my Dad drive the truck. No problems with hands.

When are you moving here?

 

[Elixir86]

For those of you who participated in that one week "mini-medical school" this past week, how was it? I guess the big question a lot of anxious M1s are concerned about is how was the test at the end of the week and is it similar to what we can be expecting during the year?

 

[Inuranic]

For those of you who participated in that one week "mini-medical school" this past week, how was it? I guess the big question a lot of anxious M1s are concerned about is how was the test at the end of the week and is it similar to what we can be expecting during the year?

I really enjoyed it. I didn't think the test at the end of the week was all that bad, although they did say the "real" tests would be somewhat harder. They covered a TON of information in three days (~160 PowerPoint slides). My biggest criticism is they didn't address what steps you should take if you did poorly on the test. For everyone who did fine - great. But what about someone who made a good effort and didn't do well? I'm pretty sure they're now far more nervous now than had they not done the pre-matriculation workshop.

A concern of mine are these "Team Based Learning" activities. The paper they gave us was fairly detailed, and we're supposed to learn it on our own and then take a test. We'll see how that goes...

 

[meister]

hey all,
i was wondering how all of you managed to move newly purchased furniture etc? coming out of state i find it a bit hard to find a helping hand hehe

I drove in a 16 ft. Budget truck full of my family's stuff all the way from California. Not very fun.

I've been in Richmond for 2 weeks now and have really enjoyed the time to unwind, can't wait for Monday.

A concern of mine are these "Team Based Learning" activities. The paper they gave us was fairly detailed, and we're supposed to learn it on our own and then take a test. We'll see how that goes...

So you learn something on your own and then participate in a group activity or something?

 

[Inuranic]

So you learn something on your own and then participate in a group activity or something?

Essentially. We were given a paper on DNA damage/repair and diseases that result from malfunctioning repair pathways. The article went into appreciable detail (i.e. the exact protein subunits involved, the order they come in, etc.). They ended up testing us on the "main ideas" (and Kordula kindly covered DNA repair in lecture beforehand, which he said won't happen again).

The whole scenario made me nervous because they could be kind to us on these things (mostly test us on main ideas and our ability to pick them out of papers) or destroy our poor little minds (ask for obscure details presented on page 4, figure 3).

 

[pseudoknot]

A lot of TBL questions last year were very picky, but it's not a huge part of your grade so I wouldn't worry about it. Just do your best and enjoy the ride!

 

[Instatewaiter]

I really enjoyed it. I didn't think the test at the end of the week was all that bad, although they did say the "real" tests would be somewhat harder. They covered a TON of information in three days (~160 PowerPoint slides). My biggest criticism is they didn't address what steps you should take if you did poorly on the test. For everyone who did fine - great. But what about someone who made a good effort and didn't do well? I'm pretty sure they're now far more nervous now than had they not done the pre-matriculation workshop.

A concern of mine are these "Team Based Learning" activities. The paper they gave us was fairly detailed, and we're supposed to learn it on our own and then take a test. We'll see how that goes...

Unless your undergrad was really easy, the tests aren't too bad. It will take you a bit of time to get used to the volume of info thrown at you but you will adapt. If you failed the exam you might want to meet with the adminstration before the first exam and talk with them.

TBL is possibly the worst creation on the planet. It is really inefficient. You will be give an article to read before hand. You read it then you take a test. Then you take the same test with your group and the two scores are averaged. You then discuss the quiz with the class. Then you do some class activity. With 190 people in the auditorium, it takes a ton of time to get anything done.

Small groups second year are much better.

Very few people end up doing poorly in TBL because part of your grade is based on your group and usually someone in the group knows the answer. If you dont get it right on the first try, you get to try again and lose only a few points. Few people came away with a TBL grade that significantly impacted their overall grade.

The whole scenario made me nervous because they could be kind to us on these things (mostly test us on main ideas and our ability to pick them out of papers) or destroy our poor little minds (ask for obscure details presented on page 4, figure 3).

TBL tests you on the minutia of the paper. Look at all the diagrams. Usually one or 2 questions come from the diagrams when there isnt any text in the paper about the diagrams. I specifically remember this being true for the sickle cell TBL (Not sure if they still have this).

Again though, it isnt going to affect your grade too much.

 

[meister]

Medical Biochemistry:
- Lippincott's Illustrated Review of Biochemistry
- BRS Biochemistry

Did they change the required text for biochem? I'm seeing Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry on eCurriculum. Used on amazon starts at $120, damn.

 

[pseudoknot]

Did they change the required text for biochem? I'm seeing Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry on eCurriculum. Used on amazon starts at $120, damn.

No, nothing changed. Most people didn't find the Lehninger book necessary. Some of my friends and I used the Lippincott review (it's much shorter and has little that you don't need), but strictly speaking the syllabus is all you need for biochem.

 

[CompSciToMD]

No, nothing changed. Most people didn't find the Lehninger book necessary. Some of my friends and I used the Lippincott review (it's much shorter and has little that you don't need), but strictly speaking the syllabus is all you need for biochem.

Totally agreed - The Lehninger is overkill. You really need something that is less bulky to elucidate any of the difficult points in the syllabus, not add more detail - Lippincott does that very well.

 

[CompSciToMD]

You'll probably want to make sure that the scope you get has both a diaphragm and a bell (Littmann Classic II's do, WAH Elites do, and Littman Cardio III's have the option of exchanging out the ped diaphragm for a bell).

The cardio III's have a 'tunable diaphragm' which allows each side to have a bell and a diaphragm, you select which based on the amount of pressure you apply to the skin. This essentially means you get a peds bell/diaphragm and an adult bell/diaphragm on the same scope. Most students will tell you the cardio III is the standard scope to get for med school.

 

[nka1985]

The cardio III's have a 'tunable diaphragm' which allows each side to have a bell and a diaphragm, you select which based on the amount of pressure you apply to the skin. This essentially means you get a peds bell/diaphragm and an adult bell/diaphragm on the same scope. Most students will tell you the cardio III is the standard scope to get for med school.

True, but you might want to switch out the Ped side so it obviously looks like a bell. FCM will want to see you turn it over during physical exams since they have no way of knowing how much pressure you are using. I have the Littman Cardio III and love it, btw.

 

[ChimpanzeeMinky]

The cardio III's have a 'tunable diaphragm' which allows each side to have a bell and a diaphragm, you select which based on the amount of pressure you apply to the skin. This essentially means you get a peds bell/diaphragm and an adult bell/diaphragm on the same scope. Most students will tell you the cardio III is the standard scope to get for med school.

Yes, and anyone who's used both a tunable diaphragm and a non-tunable diaphragm will tell you that it's not nearly as easy as you make it out to be. Getting proficient with a tunable diaphragm is difficult, and in my opinion, totally unnecessary when there are easier, similar to better quality alternatives.

There's another allo thread that goes over this in more detail, and has residents and attendings weighing in. Check out the Welch Allyn line of steths. After extensive research, I opted for a Harvey DLX.

 

[pseudoknot]

Yes, and anyone who's used both a tunable diaphragm and a non-tunable diaphragm will tell you that it's not nearly as easy as you make it out to be. Getting proficient with a tunable diaphragm is difficult, and in my opinion, totally unnecessary when there are easier, similar to better quality alternatives.

There's another allo thread that goes over this in more detail, and has residents and attendings weighing in. Check out the Welch Allyn line of steths. After extensive research, I opted for a Harvey DLX.

Oh snap! I have to say I agree, but I know that Mr. CompSciToMD has been using his stethoscope for quite a while and may not even remember the learning curve at this point. I myself decided to get the Welch Allyn Harvey Elite partly for this reason (as well as good experiences with W-E products). It's awesome.

You may want to check out this review of a bunch of stethoscopes: http://www.forusdocs.com/reviews/Acoustic_Stethoscope_Review.htm

And once again, don't buy one now! Just borrow from FCM for a while and then toward the end of the year you will have a better sense of what you want from your stethoscope. You will NOT get better grades this year just because you own one.

 

[Inuranic]

Who enjoyed today's test?

 

[ChimpanzeeMinky]

Who enjoyed today's test?

I did, since I figured it could have been far, far worse.

 

[Inuranic]

I did, since I figured it could have been far, far worse.

I loved the Biochem part. Pop Med...I could have done without.

Note to self: You need to study for pop med.

 

[nka1985]

I loved the Biochem part. Pop Med...I could have done without.

Note to self: You need to study for pop med.

Yeah, the information is easy enough that (last year anyway) they tend to pick out little tiny details. Well, congrats on being done with your first test in med school.

Ugh, I wish we'd had our test today. Instead I get to spend the 3 day weekend trying to stuff Micro into my head. I'm really tired of bugs and drugs.

 

[Elixir86]

Who enjoyed today's test?

Yeah, overall not too bad. Although next time, I need to calm my nerves and read the entire question. I sometimes read only part of the question and made up my mind on an answer or didn't read the question carefully enough to catch a small detail which made me choose the wrong answer even though I knew the correct one if I had just been more careful. Oh well. I still ended up doing well and now I know I just need to be a bit more careful and slow down for the next test. Btw, for you upperclassmen, how is the next test? About the same difficulty or harder?

 

[pseudoknot]

Btw, for you upperclassmen, how is the next test? About the same difficulty or harder?

1. You should change your status to "Medical Student" now

2. I think the biochem exams were all about the same, although it's hard to remember. Don't worry, everything will get harder after biochem. Except for gunners like nka1985, who wanted to take our hardest test to date yesterday, apparently. If micro had been on Friday I don't even think I'd have bothered to show up.

 

[nka1985]

1. You should change your status to "Medical Student" now

2. I think the biochem exams were all about the same, although it's hard to remember. Don't worry, everything will get harder after biochem. Except for gunners like nka1985, who wanted to take our hardest test to date yesterday, apparently. If micro had been on Friday I don't even think I'd have bothered to show up.

Ha, no, I never was one of the people trying to push the test up to Friday. I've heard it's a bad one, and I definitely need the time...I just reserve the right to complain a bit about a 3 day weekend of studying.

 

[pseudoknot]

Well, it's every medical student's right to complain about our horrible lives. Just as long as you weren't one of the ones trying to move the exam

So far, the only class that I looked forward to and then went on to actually like was pharm. The rest I've hated after a week at most. Ugh.

 

[Inuranic]

Less talky, more study.

Us M1s will continue to get hammered.

 

[meister]

Thank ****ing god genetics is done with, I hated that class. Anatomy is 10x more interesting and 10x harder.

Just wanted to say thanks to all the upperclassmen for the help this past summer, it really helped me out a lot and saved me a lot of money.

 

[nka1985]

Thank ****ing god genetics is done with, I hated that class. Anatomy is 10x more interesting and 10x harder.

Just wanted to say thanks to all the upperclassmen for the help this past summer, it really helped me out a lot and saved me a lot of money.

Ha, yeah, a lot of people find genetics rather...painful. LOL. Glad your enjoying anatomy more-I think you really know once and for all that you are in medical school once you've been elbow deep in dead body.

Enjoy anatomy and enjoy the rest of first year. M2 is actually even more interesting, it's just way more work than M1.

 

[Inuranic]

Anatomy would be so much more fun if I could just follow professors around and watch them dissect.

My dissecting "skills" are more suited for serial killing than learning.

 

[pseudoknot]

M2 is actually even more interesting, it's just way more work than M1.

You know, everyone always says this but I really don't think it's true. Certainly anatomy and neuro were way harder than anything we've had this year so far. Maybe it's just easier now that I've given up trying to do well

 

[nka1985]

Anatomy would be so much more fun if I could just follow professors around and watch them dissect.

My dissecting "skills" are more suited for serial killing than learning.

You do get better at it with time, but thanks for the laugh-its been a rough day.

And you can follow the professors around watching them dissect if you want...but your lab partners won't really appreciate it. It is great to jump in and watch when they are at a nearby table, just don't abandon your partners and make them do all the dissection. Someone in the class above me told me last year that you remember your lab group really well-you remember who was a team player, who helped out, and who never showed up during lab only to come in on their own time to study once all the work was done. I thought it sounded a little bitter and harsh when I heard it, but it's kind of true. For me it means that there are some people I would love to work with during M3, and some that I hope I'm not partnered up with.

Anyway...have fun in anatomy and don't get big sharp scissors near little delicate structures!

 

[nka1985]

You know, everyone always says this but I really don't think it's true. Certainly anatomy and neuro were way harder than anything we've had this year so far. Maybe it's just easier now that I've given up trying to do well

I didn't think anatomy and neuro were that bad, personally. Micro, on the other hand, sucked. Renal was a piece of cake because I've always like it. And maybe I feel like M2 is a lot more work because I'm trying a lot harder than I did last year-having boards in the not-so-distant future has been a major motivator for me.

 

[gstrub]

Anatomy would be so much more fun if I could just follow professors around and watch them dissect.

Don't be that guy.

 

[Inuranic]

Don't be that guy.

I know, I know.

Practical done, written to go. The good news: I don't think I'll be failing out of medical school. The bad news: no post exam drinking today.

 

[mikecougarmd]

Hey guys. I've been accepted for next year's class and I'm trying to get an idea for cost of living for the area and how close you guys stick the COA/budget the fin aid office determines. I've got 3 acceptances right now and tuition is fairly similar among them so I'm taking a closer look at cost of living.

I'm finding a huge disparity between schools in the amount they budget for different categories (Transportation School A: $1000 Transportation School B: $3500). I realize rent is obviously different between different cities, but there are enormous differences in amounts budgeted for personal costs, food, transportation, etc. by the various schools.

What's your experience? How close do you guys stick to the school's COA? What's typical rent for sharing a 2 bedroom apt?

 

[meister]

2 BR apartment'll run you around a grand probably, unless you live in a hoity toity Fan area or something. The COA here is reasonable if you're single and don't have any kids, that's all I'll say about that.

Did you guys get the email about the curriculum changes to FCM?

Dear Student,



I am writing to apprise you of some changes in the Foundations of Clinical Medicine course for next academic year. For the past several years, our FCM team has struggled to provide the quality of preceptorship experience we would like. As you know, some of you have had to travel many miles to your preceptor. Others of you have struggled in non-ideal educational environments. Neither the long travel times nor the poor educational experiences are acceptable. With increasing class size, these problems have only increased. This year, one of your colleagues did not receive his or her preceptor placement until October, and it was in Fredericksburg. Clearly, a change is needed.



Over the past several years, the FCM team has looked at several options to maintain quality preceptorships. After careful consideration of the available teaching sites and faculty, the team decided to propose decreasing the preceptorship experience. Beginning next academic year, the M1 preceptorship will be eight sessions long during the spring semester. And, the M2 preceptorship will be eight sessions long in the fall semester. There will be no fall M1 and spring M2 preceptorships. To make up for the lost clinical exposure, we are adding two patient workshop sessions to each of these semesters. In addition, we will be working to build a stronger network of shadowing opportunities for all students and possibly increasing inpatient experiences during the spring of M2.



Yesterday, this change was approved by the Curriculum Council. Your curriculum representatives and several faculty voiced strong opposition and represented your perspective well. However, the Council voted to approve the change, recognizing this decision was the best of several difficult options. The Curriculum Council, your curriculum representatives, and I will be reviewing this process of change regularly to make the transition as smooth as possible.



Understandbly, you may have some concerns that you wish to voice about this change. On Tuesday March 3rd, I will come to the M2 class in MSB at 7:45 AM, prior to your behavioral sciences class. Then, I will be available to the M1 class in Baruch at 8:30 AM, prior to your physiology lecture.



The FCM team, the curriculum staff, and I deeply value the clinical experience of the FCM preceptorship. We will continue to work to provide you the highest quality educational experience. Please feel free to contact me if I may be of service.



Alan Dow, MD, MSHA

Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine

Assistant Dean of Clinical Curriculum

Virginia Commonwealth University

So they cut preceptorships in half. This **** ****ing sucks. I guess I'll just have to make up for it on my own somehow by shadowing or something. I always wince when I think about going to preceptor but it's probably been the coolest thing I've been doing all year. This is pretty terrible news.

 

[nka1985]

2 BR apartment'll run you around a grand probably, unless you live in a hoity toity Fan area or something. The COA here is reasonable if you're single and don't have any kids, that's all I'll say about that.

Did you guys get the email about the curriculum changes to FCM?


So they cut preceptorships in half. This **** ****ing sucks. I guess I'll just have to make up for it on my own somehow by shadowing or something. I always wince when I think about going to preceptor but it's probably been the coolest thing I've been doing all year. This is pretty terrible news.

I was really sad to see this too. M2 Preceptor experience has been awesome-you actually know whats wrong with your patients, you're confident in your physical exam skills, and you really get a feel of what it's like to be a doctor. This announcement made me happy to already be an M2 so I won't be affected, and it made me feel sorry for all the M1s and incoming classes because they'll only get half the preceptor time. It's always the highlight of my week. I hope they are able to at least expand the clinical exposure for the rising M2s so that they are well prepared for M3.