Hi everyone,
I was hoping to get some advice on where I should study medicine, as I am lucky enough to have several options before me! I currently have two offers; the first is from the University of Queensland, my home state uni, and guarantees a spot in their four-year MD upon completion of my bachelors degree (I want to study Science). The second is an offer to the University of Melbourne for Science through the Chancellor's Scholars program. I also received an offer today to interview at Monash next week, and I'll find out if I've earned a spot there in the second round of VTAC offers - both my ATAR and UMAT score were fairly high, so as long as my interview is alright I think I should receive a place.
I'm having trouble deciding on where to go for a number of reasons.
The first is the structure of the programs. While I know that Medicine is a difficult program that will require a lot of hard work regardless of where you study it, I instinctively prefer the format at UQ and UniMelb, because I would get to do a Bachelor of Science and have a bit more of a 'normal' university experience to begin with, and then do the graduate medical degree. I would be able to study some subjects that aren't directly related to medicine, and have a relatively relaxed time where I could work part-time, explore other interests, go on exchange, etc. But if I choose Melbourne, there's the possibility that I could fail the MMI at the end of my third year and be quite stuck when it comes to getting into Medicine, which worries me a lot. Monash seems like it basically sends its students straight into medicine and clinical practice and would be quite full-on from day one, which, while reasonable, given that they have to get everything done in 5 years, worries me, because I worked really hard throughout Year 12, essentially putting a lot of my social life and broader life experiences on hold, and I don't know how keen I am on doing even more of that for 5 years. And there are limited opportunities to study anything other than medicine and medically relevant sciences/social sciences.
The next consideration is financial - I haven't received any scholarship offers to UQ, but I've received a Melbourne National Scholarship and I qualify for the Monash Scholarship for Outstanding Achievement. Perhaps the scholarships shouldn't be the most important factor in my decision, but the amount of money and other benefits that are offered by these two unis are really tempting, and it's thus making me consider going to Monash, despite my preference for studying a BSc as opposed to straight undergraduate medicine.
The final one is a bit less important, but it's still weighing a little on my mind - location and lifestyle. I've lived just outside of Brisbane for half my life, and while there is a decent lifestyle for uni students here, I've heard from almost everyone that Melbourne is just... well, better. This is in terms of arts, culture, music scene, food, and overall 'vibe'. Living in Brisbane would still be fun, and in terms of access and proximity to some of the best beaches it would be great, but apart from that, it seems like Melbourne has a lot going for it on that front. Furthermore, I think it's a great opportunity for me to challenge myself by having to meet new people, and experience a new city, especially one so well known for being extremely liveable.
I'm a bit lost here; UQ is my ideal course of study with a guaranteed spot in medicine, but no scholarship at all, which would mean being at least partially financially dependent on my parents for a while - and I'd really like to move out as soon as possible. Melbourne is my ideal study program with a great scholarship, but there's the huge factor of uncertainty involved with entry into medicine that could definitely come back to bite me, especially now since the Chancellor's Scholars only get one shot at it, in their third year. I've looked at the pass requirements for the interview and they certainly don't seem like they're easy, since they're assessing graduate students with a wealth of experience and knowledge. And as for Monash, I'd really prefer to do a science degree before medicine, but I've honestly heard nothing but great things about the medical program and student experiences at Monash, which is making me reconsider.
I know there are probably very few Queensland students on this forum, so I was hoping to get some insight from students into what it's like studying medicine at Monash, like how taxing the program is in terms of day-to-day schedule and workload by semester, what it's like living on campus/in Clayton as opposed to the city, and whether they wish they could study a greater variety of content. Also, does anyone know whether the medical degree allows any overseas placements or summer semester courses overseas that could be funded by the Monash Global Scholarship? Monash, by all accounts, sounds great, but I'm not one of these inherently talented and intelligent people who breezes through academic challenges - I think I would have to work fairly hard to keep up, and I really want to enjoy my university experience instead of just seeing it as a means to an end and working insanely hard as a result.
Oh, and as for prestige of each uni and the quality of clinical placements, I'm not too fussed, since all three have pretty highly regarded medical programs, facilities and associated teaching hospitals, and I don't mind too much about where I'm placed for clinical rotations or internships.
I would love to get advice from anyone here, because I'm really struggling right now. Oh, and my apologies for the huge post, hopefully someone will take the time to read it
Thanks!
Home
Help
Search
Login
