Hey everyone! Over the past month and a half I've talked some about what my classes are like and how the education system functions in Spain, but today I want to elaborate a little bit more. Some of this will probably be redundant, but I want to give everyone a clear picture of what the university system, and specifically my experience with it, is like here.
Universities here are broken up into Facultades, or schools/colleges. There isn't an exact translation, but it is like a College of Engineering, or School of Medicine. So I only interact with the students in my Facultad. It is possible to do classes of "libre configuración" (free configuration) in which you can take a class in a different Facultad. A medical education here takes 6 years and is broken up into "cursos." So when you enter in the university, you start in classes in the first curso. The cursos are then broken down into groups (A, B, C). You then attend classes with only the students in your group. So say the first year you take 6 different classes, you attend lectures for each of those classes with all of the same students. Since I am a visiting student, I am taking classes specifically in the Department of Public Health and Preventative Medicine, so my classes are from a variety of cursos (3rd, 5th, and 6th). So when other students ask me which curso I am in, it takes a little bit of explaining on my part. After 6 years you have finished the educational part of the medical degree, then you go on to do more practical experiences and specializations.
So right now we have universities broken up into facultads broken up into cursos broken up into groups. It continues! Each of the groups are broken up into smaller groups for prácticas. I've talked a little bit about prácticas and compared them to a lab, but it is a little bit different. Now that I have had a few prácticas I understand a little better how they work. Lectures are given in a big lecture hall with everyone from that group, so it is not a very personal class. You pay attention and take notes, but that is about it. The prácticas give students and professors the opportunity to get a little more involved on a personal level. In my práctica group for Epidemiology, there are about 20 of us. We break up into groups and work on specific cases or problems. It gives you the opportunity to be engaged and ask questions, etc. For me, as an international student, the prácticas have given me the opportunity to meet people in my classes. It is difficult to meet people in lecture so now after the prácticas I feel like I know more people in my class and it makes me feel more at home and comfortable in lecture.
The prácticas I just talked about are for Epidemiology, but the prácticas for Preventative Medicine work a little bit differently. For Epi we have prácticas scheduled on certain dates (7 total), but for Preventiva the práctica groups meet in blocks. So my group will meet starting December 1st and will go through early January. The first semester ends in late-January/early-February and then exams are the first two weeks of February. I will take exams for Epi and Preventiva and then start my other two classes in the second semester (late February-June).
I hope this has helped to clarify some things. It is so different from the way we do things in the U.S., so it can be confusing. I still don't completely understand everything! If you have any questions feel free to comment!
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