title: Workplace immersion in the final year of an undergraduate medicine course: the views of final year students and recent graduates.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Most medical schools require formal competence assessment of students immediately prior to graduation, but variation exists in the approach to endpoint assessments. This article reports perceptions of senior students and graduates from a school with a six-year program which has introduced final year workplace immersion placements following a barrier examination at the end of the penultimate Year 5.
  
  
  METHODS
  Final year students (22) and recent graduates (4) attended focus groups and in-depth interviews exploring their perceptions of the value of the curriculum experience during the final two years, the structure and timing of assessment, and their preparation for internship.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants felt that the penultimate year was more pressured, and focused on passing "artificial" examinations. In contrast, the final year was more relaxed, building skills for postgraduate work and later career development. As a result, students felt well prepared for internship with some indication that the self-directed nature of the final year promoted a lifelong learning approach.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The final year workplace immersion model was regarded positively by senior students of this medical school. This model may be a better way of preparing students to be junior doctors than a traditional final year heavy on theoretical learning and assessment.
authors.affiliation: James Cook University , Australia .
authors.forename: Tarun
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sen Gupta
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hays
authors.forename: Torres
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Woolley
authors.forename: Gill
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kelly
authors.forename: Harry
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jacobs
mesh_terms: D002982:Clinical Clerkship / Q000458:organization & administration*; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003479:Curriculum; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004521:Educational Measurement / Q000379:methods*; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D018794:Problem-Based Learning; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*; D016526:Workload; D017132:Workplace / Q000458:organization & administration*