Bologna University Dorms
Keesha Ondieki
I am very pleased with my university overall, our lectures are held inside of the hospital which is huge (it is the biggest hospital in Italy, with 33 buildings/departments). The hospital is very close to the city center, it takes 10 minutes to walk. Our laboratory lessons are held in a different place which is also in the university area and very close to both the hospital and the city center. We have many different opportunities: for example we met students from Pennsylvania State University and had sightseeing of different places near Bologna together. We had a lecture from a professor from Darthmouth College (ivy league university in the US). Have many different interesting elective courses such as Regenerative Medicine: Unfolding the Nanoworld of Stem Cells Towards a Self-Healing Potential and Experimental Approaches to Brain and Behaviour.
Most of our professors have different kinds of researches which gives us opportunities to participate in their researches (laboratories in the US and Italy). They provide us to attend to different conferences in different places around the world (in Asia, US and Europe). Because they are very international, they have a very good English level so most of the lessons are very clear. If we have questions they are very willing to answer (between lecture breaks, after the class and from email). Most of the presentations are in very good quality but definitely not enough for the exam. In this case we have a Medicine and Surgery Drive that all of the students from all classes upload their notes, which is a life saver. We have a platform called Virtuale that all of the professors upload the teaching supplements.
I confronted myself with peers from Italian medicine courses from other places in Italy as well as bologna. I would say that I know as much as them, and I think most of my colleagues are the same, the way in which the classes were organized made it so that some things were repeated way too many times and things we really needed to know well we're glazed over. Lectures were a bit a hit or miss, we had a few good professors that presented well, many others that were somewhat unhappy of being there and did show it.
First, we are only 90 students, comprising more or less 50 italian students, 20 European students and 20 non-european students: therefore, compared to the course held in italian (450 students), the communication with the professors is way more efficient, clerkships are better organized and classrooms are more comfortable and adequate. Moreover, the university organizes a lot of activities, both regarding medicine and other cultural topics.
also because most of the professors are notable and expert in the field. Some of them are important medical doctors, while others are researchers, and they also may invite you to their laboratory if you are interested. The problem is that, as they are all italian, their english level is not always adequate to teach in a course where half of the students are international: however, it is really rare that students don't understand at all a concept due to language issues, as most of the professors provide good study materials, as slides and notes.
University of Bologna is the most ancient in the world and you can tell. It's enchanting studying in the center, in the various "aule" under paints and paints on the ceilings, on the walls, pictures of families that funded the city and the University during the years. Everything is so beautiful, that one would like to be a student for a ling long time. Despite some difficulties, bureaucracy is totally against students in Bologna, and some Professors I would rather not have known, I would choose Bologna again and again.
Most Professors are not good at English, they are all Italians indeed, but they try their best. They are for the most young and this is a point in favour. Some of them would rather speak Italian even if the course is led in English. Lectures by surgeons are always delayed or rescheduled. Personally, I dislike it a lot. There is a decline of quality from the first two years to the following, with a positive spark in the fifth year with Pediatrics, but that is it. The last year is the worst, even worst then gastroenterology that was bad enough.
In my experience, the university of Bologna has been very well organised and has provided a great level of knowledge. However, I find that not all professors are as good at teaching as they are in their research/clinical practice. Some of the clerkships are really well structured, while other are mostly up to what you as the student want/ask to do (though I feel this is more a problem of medicine in Italy rather than in Bologna specifically).
The exams are typically well structured and the professors are always happy to help and provide further explanation. Some of them speak perfect English, while others seem to translate word for word from Italian and this might be harder to understand for non-Italian speakers.
Overall, I would sign up for the university of Bologna again, as I feel its cons are not specific to the city, but rather due to the structure of the medicine course in Italy; the pros are attributable to the good reputation the university has in the country, definitely providing many more possibilities for research and project compared to smaller universities.
The information presented by the professors is easily found in books and class transcripts from the previous years, and therefore very little is added in lectures that could not be studied on your own. However, many of my classmates find the lectures useful and choose to attend them religiously. I think this largely depends on your preferred method of studying and if you really benefit from attending lectures or if that time would better be spent studying on your own.
Some of the professors speak perfect English and have taught in various American and foreign universities and carry out research in tandem with foreign institutes, while others seem to simply translate their inner Italian monologue into English word for word.
The slides are however typically well-made and contain most of the information you will need for the exams, and the level of teaching is quite in-depth and detailed.
Depends on the professors, I'd again give this a 3. Some profs really do just have the case of readingtheslidesitis where they just read off the slides and occasionally when a student asks a question there might be some variety, but by and large it's a slide reading show and tell- I even notice a drastic decrease in student attendance for this reason.
The university is overall good in quality, but there are some issues regarding the clerkships, exams and the way the professors conduct their lectures sometimes. I will elaborate on that in the following answers.
4, it depends on the professor. Some professors put a lot of effort and it's manifest that they care about the education of their students. Others only read the slides rather than properly explaining the topics, and don't show passion for this job.
However, in general i would say there more "good" professors than "bad" ones.
I think the level of english is overall satisfying now, but i rememer in the first year there were some professors whose english was very bad. In any case, in my opinion, the most important thing would be for them to put effort in their lectures, i don't care as much about the english accent as long as they are fluent.
In the first year we mostly have written exams (except Cellular Biology and Genetics exam which is an oral exam). Written exams are usually multiple choice questions with 2 written/open questions at the end. Oral exams are slowly integrated, so that we are getting used to them easily. They are fair and usually on time (sometimes it can start a bit late, depends on the professor). And they take usually 15-20 minutes each student. Some exams are much harder than the others but we have unlimited amount of tries so it is not unmanagable.
One of our classes had fewer exam sessions than required so you got one less chance but eventually the students managed to make them change their mind.in terms of fairness I would say that most professors are quite easy on us, some not so much. You then tend to know which ones do and which ones don't and you adapt.
also when compared to other italian universities. Exam dates are always communicated months in advance, therefore it is easy to plan travels in advance, especially for international students that want to go back home. Even if frequently they are difficult and require to study a lot, marks are giver fairly 99% of the times. Moreover, exams are almost always on time, and marks are communicated only few days if the exam is written, while immediately if it is oral.
Surgeons always on the bad side, they disappear, they reschedule, they do what they want, but in the end you must take it. Exams are for the most very easy to pass, you end up study always more than what is really needed to get a 30.
While some exams are well-structured and fair, there are significant issues that detract from the overall experience. One major concern is the difficulty in reaching professors for clarification or assistance, which can be frustrating and hinder preparation. Additionally, the occurrence of delayed exams is problematic, especially considering the integrated nature of the courses with multiple modules and professors. This situation is exacerbated by discrepancies between our program and the Italian medicine course, leading to unexpected questions and confusion during exams. Overall, there's a clear need for improvement in terms of exam organization, timeliness, and alignment with course content.
I find the exams to be consistent with the material covered in lectures and, thus, fair; however, since most of the exams are oral, you will need to become accustomed to this method of examination before actually finding these exams fair.
Remember that Italians grow up having oral exams for all subjects starting from primary school, and therefore find these types of exams easier when compared to their foreign classmates. It just requires time to become fluent in oral exams.