How To Study Medicine At University

How to study medicine

Possibilities of studying Medicine at a distance

Although universities and students are clear about the importance of online training and the facilities and flexibility that this modality allows, we must be aware that not all areas and careers can transfer all their subjects to the online world. These are mainly technical, scientific, or health careers, in which practical learning is the pillar of teaching and the key to being able to practice certain professions.

It is quite difficult for a future doctor to learn to do a medical examination or a suture only through digital content and training videos. Also, it should be noted that, in health careers, the development of soft skills and the development of social learning is very relevant and for this, interaction with their teachers and other colleagues is necessary.

To date, no national or international university offers the entire Medicine career online, because, as we have indicated, the Medicine career contains many practical subjects that require the presence of the student yes or yes.

Perhaps in the first two years of the degree, it could be done online, since there are hardly any practices. But a medical student, after these two years, carries out most of his theoretical and practical training in hospitals and health centers, attending real cases and guided by a specialist professional who acts as a personal tutor.

At the end of the day, what prepares a person who is going to practice medicine and who is going to have the responsibility of lives in their hands, is practical experience. And at the moment it is difficult to transfer this learning to the online world. That is why, for now, no university in the world has considered doing a Medicine career completely online. It is possible that the student can rely on online material to know how a certain surgery is done, or learn to do scans, or do different procedures, but in the end, it takes practice to learn how to do it and perfect it. 

Some of them indeed offer the blended modality, being able to do some theoretical subjects at a distance. The combination of face-to-face and distance subjects in careers such as Medicine makes it easier for students to make their study more flexible and dedicate the time they see fit to delve into theoretical concepts and carry out readings.

Other distance health careers

On the other hand, other health sciences careers have the possibility of being done online, since they do not require an internship. They are careers such as psychology, human nutrition, and dietetics, or speech therapy. These are some examples of careers that are related to health science and that can be done remotely.

Distance Medicine Courses

Things change when we talk about postgraduate training, where it is more common to find courses and specialties offered in online training.

This type of postgraduate training has a theoretical basis or is designed in such a way that distance education meets the same expectations as face-to-face education. There will also be postgraduate courses that are impossible to do online, but in this type of study, there are specializations that do not require practice in patients.

They are simply theoretical specialties that do not require practical training, so it is ideal for any graduate in Medicine who cannot attend the study center and who wishes to continue their training.

This is the case of some postgraduate courses that we can consult, such as this Master of Forensic Medicine or this Postgraduate Diploma in Neuropsychology of Neurodegenerative Diseases.

There are also other examples of universities that offer this online modality:

· Master in Musculoskeletal Tumors, European University.

· Master in Pediatric Anesthesia, Pain and Perioperative Intensive Care, UNIR

· Master in Public Health, European University.

· Neuroimmunology, UAB

On the other hand, many universities opt for mixed training, such as the Master in Integration and Resolution of Clinical Problems in Medicine at the University of Alcalá, where the student is free to do the theoretical block on their own, complementing it with practical sessions and put in common.

Is online or face-to-face training better?

No educator or teacher, like the studies conducted on the subject, dares to state which training is the best or the most convenient. A study carried out by the American Educational Research Association did emphasize that some of the facilities and tools with which online training is used are more effective than face-to-face classes.

It is also true that there are still some details to be ironed out in online training, especially about the student's experience and interaction with other participants.

Therefore, at the moment it is impossible to study Medicine at a distance of 100% of its content. It is a career that requires many hours of practice, and not only at the university, but also in hospitals or health centers, and therefore it must be in person.