Effect of variations in sequencing of clinical tutorials

The sequence in which different specialties are presented to medical students may influence their impact. However, the subjects has been rarely examined. In the present study a variety of educational outcomes were evaluated for a second-year medical school class. They followed a series of eight clinical tutorials but did so in four different sequences. The outcomes assessed were: (1) student achievement during their tutorial year and in several major clinical courses taken in the third medical school year; (2) student perceptions of the tutorial experiences and the impact of the tutorials on subsequent clinical training; and (3) student choices of clinical courses and programmes in their third and fourth years. The results indicated that the sequence of the eight tutorials had no adverse effect upon the educational outcomes examined.