There’s always one question at the top of every student’s mind: When is summer break? If you’re a med student, summer breaks will look quite a bit different than they did in high school or undergraduate. But, don’t worry – there are still plenty of fun things you can do during your summers as a med student, and I’m here to tell you all about it!
This post is all about answering does med school have summer break.
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Does Med School Have Summer Break? – Find Out Here
A Breakdown of Medical School Breaks
Each medical school will handle summer breaks slightly differently. I can’t tell you exactly what your breaks will look like (unless you went to the same school as me), but I can give you an idea of what to expect based on some common scheduling traditions.
Most schools will give first year students a summer break that lasts between 8 and 10 weeks, similar to the traditional summer break you might be accustomed to having in undergraduate. You’ll also get time off for winter break, spring break, and a few holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving. These breaks won’t be limited to just your first year, but the longer summer break probably will be.
Let’s look at Brown University as an example. Their medical school calendar includes all of the following breaks and holidays:
- Labor Day: Years 1 and 2.
- Fall weekend: Years 1 and 2.
- Thanksgiving break: Years 1 and 2.
- Winter break: Years 1 and 2.
- Spring long weekend: Year 1.
- Spring vacation: Year 1.
Notice how most breaks occur in the first year with a couple spilling over into second year. Since Years 3 and 4 will be spent doing clinical rotations, you might have less official breaks scheduled into the actual academic calendar.
Let me tell you a little bit about my own experience too. After my first year, I had a 6 week break for the summer as well as time off for winter break, spring break, and holidays. Some schools will also allow a break after second year, though it might be much shorter. Mine, for example, was only about 1 week long.
Once you’re through your first and second year though, you probably won’t have any more summer breaks for the rest of medical school, so soak up that sun while you can!
4 Summer Break Ideas for Med Students
So, what do med school students do in the summer? The truth is, there are lots of activities to choose from depending on where you’re at in your journey. Here are 5 great ways to spend your summer breaks as a med student!
1. Volunteer
Looking for a little extra clinical experience? Try volunteering at a clinic in your area! When you volunteer, you open yourself up to a whole world of opportunities. You can network with other medical professionals and maybe even find a mentor if you don’t have one yet. Plus, you might find your passion for a certain specialty or subspecialty, which could help shape your career path as you move through the rest of medical school.
Additional extracurriculars like volunteering or other forms of clinical experience can also help you spruce up your resume for the residency applications you’ll have to tackle in your 4th year. Especially your summer breaks after years 1 and 2 are extra free time that you probably won’t have when the time to actually start applying rolls around, so dedicating a few extra hours to supplementing your resume early on could save you tons of time and stress in the future!
2. Participate in a Research Project
Summer breaks are also a great time to get ahead on research projects. Since you’ll only have between 2 and 10 weeks for your break, you might not be able to complete a full-scale research project in just one go. However, you can brainstorm ideas, look for ongoing projects to join, or start putting together a plan for your own research.
It’s important to remember that some residency programs have medical research as a necessary requirement to apply. In fact, conducting research that pertains to a certain specialty could help improve your chances of matching with programs that specialize in that field.
Medical students are extremely busy throughout the regular school year, especially during clinical rotations in M3 and M4, so taking advantage of your summer free time to push yourself forward on your research can be super helpful in terms of relieving stress later on.
3. Prepare for Upcoming Subjects or Exams
If you’re a medical student, then you’ve already passed the MCAT. However, there are still big tests looming on the horizon. At the end of your second year, you’ll take Step 1, an exam that assesses your understanding of basic scientific concepts as they apply to practicing medicine.
Despite being pass/fail, it is a difficult exam that you’ll have to spend quite a bit of time studying for. If you choose, you can dedicate some of your first year summer break to formulating your study plan and even starting to study the concepts that you’ve already learned. This will help you get ahead and stay ahead as you prepare for the exam during your second year.
You can also check your school’s curriculum to see what subjects you have on the agenda for your next year. Students heading into their second year will still be taking pre-clinical courses that teach things like basic medical concepts, the structure and functions of the body, diseases, diagnoses, and treatment. Look into the courses you have coming up and start prepping your brain for the material you’ll be covering over the next year.
Students heading into their third year can spend their summer break getting ready for clinical rotations. This is when students leave the classroom in favor of actually spending time working in a hospital or clinic. The core rotations most students will complete include internal medicine, family medicine, general surgery, psychiatry, neurology, pediatrics, ob-gyn, and emergency medicine. During your break, you can compile the materials you’ll need for your rotations and go over any information you might need to practice before you get started.
4. Relax!
Medical students are super busy all year long. I know from experience! So, trust me when I say that you might want to use your first and second year summer breaks as exactly what they are: breaks.
Those few weeks can give you just enough time to unwind and decompress, especially after your first year of medical school. Adjusting to the change is difficult, but you did it! You definitely deserve to take some to relax. Plus, you’ll be better off going into the next year with a fully refreshed mind.
I’m a big believer in work-life balance and enjoying the little moments in life to the fullest. Working hard is important, but you’re going to burn yourself out very quickly if you never take any time to just have fun. Don’t be afraid to spend your med school summer breaks hanging out with friends and family and doing the things you love. There will be plenty of time during the rest of the school year to study and accomplish your goals.
Treat yourself to the me-time you deserve!
Final Thoughts
Saying goodbye to the traditional summer break is one of the sacrifices we have to make as medical students. But, you can still make the most of the smaller breaks you get during your first and second year to get ahead, accomplish your goals, or simply hang out and relax.
No matter how you choose to spend your time, I hope you have a fantastic break and head into your next year of school confident and ready for anything!
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