894
Views
137
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Short Communications

Medical students’ perceptions of an undergraduate research elective

, , , &
Pages 659-661 | Published online: 03 Jul 2009
 

Abstract

Recent years have seen a steady decline in the number of new physician-investigators (Association of American Medical Colleges, 2000). To encourage medical students to select research careers, the Queen's University Faculty of Health Sciences curriculum includes a mandatory Critical Enquiry elective in the 2nd year. An anonymous written survey was administered to medical students before and after the elective to determine their perceptions of the value of the elective and its impact on their decision to pursue a career in medical research. There was a significant increase in the number of students expressing an interest in pursuing a research career following the elective (35–42%, p = 0.029). Students recognized other benefits including the development of critical appraisal, information literacy, and critical thinking skills; and the opportunity to select an area of and form contacts for postgraduate training. Even students who choose not to pursue careers in medical research perceive benefits to a mandatory undergraduate research elective.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.