title: The summer premedical program for matriculating medical students: a student-led initiative.
abstract: The freshman academic year is one of the most difficult years that a medical student experiences in his/her academic life at a medical school. Freshmen are frequently faced with several challenges, such as adaptation to a new academic environment and its associated different methods of teaching, learning, skills, and assessment. The aim of this study was to describe a 4-wk innovative summer premedical program developed by senior medical students at the College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, in an attempt to improve/smooth the experience(s) of prospective freshmen. This report describes the objectives/strategies/methodologies used to tackle the top three identified freshman challenges, namely, 1) advancement of the academic/scholastic/educational background, 2) the development of college-required skills to succeed and excel in the freshman year, and 3) adaption to the college environment. At the end of the program, a survey was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the summer premedical program. Seventy-two students attended this program over the past three summers from 2010 to 2012, and twenty-nine students answered the survey with a response rate of 74.1%. Overall, >90% of the survey respondents reported an improvement in their understanding of basic medical science, integration, presentation skills, medical terminology, and junior-senior relationships. Furthermore, the survey highlighted the need for more focus on skills such as time management, participation in large-group discussions, and use of electronic resources, as >50% of respondents reported no improvement in these areas. In conclusion, this is the first report, to our knowledge, that describes a program developed by senior medical students to improve the experience of freshmen.
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Ayman M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Awad
authors.forename: Abdulhadi A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Alamodi
authors.forename: Mohammad A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Shareef
authors.forename: Ammar J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Alsheikh
authors.forename: Asim I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Mahmoud
authors.forename: Asem O
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Daghistany
authors.forename: Mohammed M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Hijazi
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Abu-Zaid
authors.forename: Mohamed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alsadoon
authors.forename: Mohamed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shabllout
authors.forename: Abduljabar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rasool
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yaqinuddin
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D032882:Comprehension; D003479:Curriculum; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods*; D004516:Education, Premedical / Q000379:methods*; D004522:Educational Status; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D010379:Peer Group; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012529:Saudi Arabia; D012577:Schools, Medical; D012621:Seasons; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods*; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: freshmen; matriculating students; premedical education; summer premedical program