Age for Med School in Poland

Please, let's keep the mudslinging down to a minimum between the Americans and everybody else.

If I understand it correctly, Poles go into med school basically at age 18, while Americans go and do a Bachelor's degree first and then are able start med school at age 22 or 23.

Pros and cons of each?

There is no comparison because European medical school lasts 6 years while US one lasts 4 years.

Right, but is an 18-year-old ready to make such a decision? Becoming a doctor is a long serious process. American students percolate for four years doing an undergraduate degree and then decide if that's what they really want to do.

In Germany you have to take serious decisions from the age of 12 years old.European system demands early maturity.

I guess.

18/19. Remember that Poles go to high school a year longer than Americans.


Mostly their parents make that decission ;) Many students have a parent who is a doctor and put a pressure on children to become one. Of course there are also students who are not from medical family backgound (and the person I know is one of them).

I think generally the decission process of a person who has no a doctor parent looks like that:
a kid is in high school, likes biology, is quite good in chemistry and physics. Those less ambitious apply for biology etc. those who are ambitious and have top marks and like challenges apply to medical academy because it's prestigious.

Those who aren't sure drop out within a year. You must remember that first year is a kind of selection of candidates.

Generally the whole issue of who applies for medical school and who should apply is rather complicated.There is no common consensus about that and free will has its limitations.

I taught at a Polish university for eight years and found university studies quite different from what I was used to.

We know.

What are the rules in Poland if a student does, for example, four years of medical school and says "this isn't for me." Can he start back in year one in another faculty and still get it for free?

A person may apply for admittence on another faculty, yes. Is it free, I'm not sure. It used to be free.


Of course you are aware of how university courses works in Poland? A person applies for a specific major at the university not at university itself. So if someone resigns or is removed from list of students of some major, he can begin everything from the strach and take part in admission for a different major.

So theoretically, a person could study his entire life for free.

It used to be like that. Now there are (I believe) a new regulations in that matter. What I heard (but I'm not sure) is that there are ECTS points to be used for free (just to finish 1 major). If someone use all of them must pay for further education. But I'm not sure if that eventually passed through the parliment. Anybody knows?

Not really, there used to be some age limit... 28 maybe, but I'm not sure...

When you turn 26 you loose your medical insurance but then the University can insure you, so not a problem at all.

Latest story is that the 2nd "faculty" is now paid for - this year was the last year of free second studies.