title: Medical students perception of their medical environment-expected versus actual perceptions--a cross sectional study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the expected (perceptions of their environment at the beginning of their 1st year) versus actual perceptions (perceptions at the end of 1st year) of 1st year students at Dow University of Health Sciences.
  
  
  METHODS
  The 'expected' perceptions of the students were recorded at the beginning of their 1st year (n = 411) of medical education when they entered the medical school using Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM). DREEM is a validated and self-administered inventory which focuses on learning, teachers, self-confidence and academic as well as social environment. The 'actual' perceptions were then recorded at the end of their first year (n = 405) of education when they had received adequate exposure of their environment. The 2 records were then compared.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The total expected DREEM score was 118/200 and the total actual DREEM score was 113/200. The expected domain (Students' perceptions of learning, students' perceptions of teachers, students' academic self-perceptions, students' perceptions of atmosphere, and students' social self-perceptions) scores were 28/48, 26/44, 20/32, 28/48, and 16/28. The actual domain scores were 27/48, 23/44, 19/32, 27/48, 16/28. However both the actual and expected scoring displayed satisfactory environment for learning. Significant differences (p < 0.0001) were found in the two samples.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In general the results displayed that the students perceived the environment positively but the significant difference found in the two samples, demonstrated that their expectations were not met.
authors.forename: Ayesha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sundus
authors.forename: Mohammad Nadir
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Haider
authors.forename: Mohammad Faisal
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Ibrahim
authors.forename: Nida
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Younus
authors.forename: Mohammad Talha
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Farooqui
authors.forename: Fatiha
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Iftikhar
authors.forename: Osama
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Siddique
authors.forename: Sina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aziz
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D004777:Environment; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012577:Schools, Medical; D012931:Social Environment; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires