“MHB – a big benefit for all of them”

Neuruppin, 13 February 2024

Cindy and Sinah Stern are sisters, and both study medicine at the Brandenburg Medical School (MHB). Cindy Stern passed the state exam last year and is currently in her Practical Year, sister Sinah is a seventh-semester student. In this interview they describe how they got there and talk about the experience.

Where do you come from?

Sinah: From a town in Hesse with a population of about 120,000.

How did you come to hear of the MHB?

Cindy: Following secondary graduation, I qualified as a paramedic and during that period started researching ways to study medicine. The system of terms to wait for a free place at a state medical school already appeared problematic. I heard about Witten/Herdecke University and was thinking about going there but in the end never sent my application. The MHB concept is oriented towards the Witten model, at least in parts, and this is how I became aware of the MHB. I finally got around to sending an application to the MHB, but the deadline date was a public holiday, and all post offices were closed. I rushed all over Berlin to get the required date stamp, and this is how I applied to the MHB at the last possible moment.

Sinah: When I finished school, the lack of available study places in medicine made me try my luck outside Germany. I studied medicine in Sofia, Bulgaria, for two semesters, always with the intention to return to Germany, not least because I wanted to be near my family. The course in Bulgaria corresponded to the conventional curriculum; in parallel I heard from my sister about practice-based formats of organizing medical studies. Then I attended an Information Day on site in Neuruppin and was absolutely thrilled. And funnily enough, I submitted my application for the winter term 2020/21 on the very last day of the deadline, the same as my sister before me.

Why did you choose the MHB?

Cindy: I opted for the MHB because I found the model curriculum very attractive with a high proportion of practical training right from the first semester. All that sounded quite unique, and like a somewhat different approach to medical studies, at least in comparison to the many state medical schools. And honestly, there was not really much of a choice for me. I never considered studies abroad. From the moment I was notified of acceptance, my focus was on the MHB for 100 % and not on alternatives.

Sinah: I was in my second semester in Bulgaria when the Corona pandemic started. We had lots of online instruction, which meant I was frequently in Germany. The best chances to change over to a German university are after the preliminary examination. So I expected to stay in Bulgaria for at least one more year. But I wanted to switch to a university with a model curriculum soonest possible, and I applied to the MHB, hoping for the best.

Cindy: Wasn’t Bulgaria markedly less expensive than studies at the MHB?

Sinah: True, but I admit I had borrowed the money for Bulgaria from our granny (laughs) and the MHB fortunately offers various financial options which permit studies without financial support from the family.

What did you expect when you started at the MHB? The MHB is still a very young university and not widely known.

Cindy: I had no specific expectations. From the notification of acceptance, I was just happy and highly motivated to master any future challenge. But I was not fully aware of the long-term implications of an advance from a hospital to finance medical studies. At that time, the intake was only 48 students per year, so I hoped for a familial environment and high-quality education, two key aspects that made me opt for the MHB.    

Sinah: When I started out at the MHB, you were in your sixth semester and moved to Brandenburg/Havel. It would be wrong to say I had no expectations. I had some information from you and was therefore prepared, and it was nice not to be thrown in at the deep end. Two semesters in Sofia had freshened up my basic knowledge of natural sciences, which made the first semester here not quite so hard. Nevertheless, I tried to keep expectations low, seeing that the MHB is still young and knowing how much the MHB had already changed and improved through feedback from students, not least through continuous development and evaluation of the medical curriculum. But what was confirmed right from the beginning was the strong involvement of students and close student-lecturer contact.  

What is your experience with the MHB?

Cindy: My expectations were exceeded. From the very first day, everything was very familial. In our first semester – we were the fourth cohort of MHB students - we got to know everybody at the university. Contacts among students were excellent and close. Practice orientation was strong, we were well taken care of, and even my moves to Neuruppin and Brandenburg/Havel were uncomplicated.

Sinah: Well, searching for lodgings is no longer so easy today.  

Cindy: Right from the start I found there is much room for personal ideas and proactive participation, and students can achieve a lot either in panels and committees or as student representatives. My experiences have definitely been positive, although a bit chaotic in some respects.  

Sinah: I started my studies with about half of instruction in online formats due to Corona, but the practical parts of training did not suffer. My fellow students and I found ways to enjoy student life in Neuruppin despite the pandemic and the resulting difficult starting conditions, and I have found friends for life. We have completed a huge number of projects in the context of higher education policy and curricular advances and organized social events such as excursions and Christmas parties. And of course I have seen a disproportionally large number of towns, villages and hospitals in Brandenburg (laughs).

Tell me what went well.

Cindy: On the whole, and having passed the final examination, I can say that the content-wise preparation and the practical training at the MHB worked out well. I feel that all clinical electives and the Practical Year provided sound practical preparation over five years. My impression corresponds to the general feedback not only from MHB members and not only from MHB-associated hospitals. With a view to the 100-days learning plan and the second state examination, much of the knowledge acquired over five years was easy to access or to refresh.     

Sinah: There is unlimited room for student initiative, either in university affairs or extracurricular activities. You are free to join various panels and committees and become active in a number of projects to improve the MHB. Everybody at the university appears open to criticism, and feedback is welcome – which on the one hand is necessary for such a young university but on the other cannot be taken for granted. My experience with Bulgaria was just the opposite in this respect; this is why I appreciate the situation at the MHB where you are not just one of 300 students in your class.  

Where do you see potential for improvement?

Cindy: First and foremost, in terms of tuition fees. Despite the existing options to finance your medical studies, there is an awful lot of money involved, and early on you have to make a far-reaching decision with implications beyond the five years at the university, whether you opt for a hospital loan or a bank credit. Not everybody is privileged enough to go that way, and I believe here is enormous potential for improvement.

Sinah: My suggestions to the MHB for improvement primarily refer to finances and the decentralized study concept. Changes of study location, the subsequent main residence during the decentralized stage of studies and the many electives in the region require repeated relocations. Conditions in the Neuruppin housing market seem to be almost as tense as in Berlin, and moves frequently pose huge logistical as well as financial challenges – it is simply expensive to move house or to commute. Fortunately, the MHB offers some opportunities to earn money parallel to studies, for example via minor jobs for student assistants or via scholarships you can apply for on an annual basis. But there is certainly room for more.

What is special about the MHB from your point of view?

Cindy: Two things: the familial atmosphere right from the first day, and the tremendous dedication of MHB students. Lots of events are exclusively student organized, such as Open Days, Christmas parties, summer festivals and skiing tours. Many of these events and attractions depend on the untiring commitment of fellow students. Another aspect to be mentioned is the huge development potential of this still young university. The MHB started out with 48 students of medicine per year, and 24 psychology students. In the short period after its foundation, it has extended the range of curricula by additional courses in psychology, health services research and – starting soon – dental medicine. I think that speaks for itself.

Sinah: In my opinion the MHB stands for practice-oriented instruction of highest quality in harmony with leisure time, something like study-life balance. There is a good measure of obligatory teaching events which leaves sufficient time, on the one hand, to earn money to cover tuition fees and living expenses and on the other, for all kinds of activities.   

And what about your sister? What did you think, Cindy? Were you pleased, or did it feel weird that your younger sister followed you to the MHB?

Sinah: Didn’t that remind you of school, when Mom always gave the money for our breaktime snacks to you, so that I had to come to your “table of cool people” during the school break and beg for a bit of money.

Cindy: No (laughs). As soon as you started at the MHB I was awfully proud. Our family is not large, and I thought it was really cool that 50 % are now at the MHB. I mean we are not from Brandenburg, and it had always been an issue to be far away from the family. And all that changed abruptly when you arrived.

Sinah: I was also very glad, that is what I wanted. Interesting that we never stayed together at one place. When I was in Neuruppin, you were in Brandenburg/Havel. When I was in Brandenburg, you were in Bad Saarow. Now I am in Bernau/Rüdersdorf and you in your Practical Year. But we still worked on projects together. This brought us closer together, and it makes things easier to know that someone is not five but only one hour away.

Cindy: I thought it was cool of you to get involved in student affairs and university politics right from the first semester. I felt I just had to pass on the baton, and you would take over from me and get on people’s nerves. I never thought that weird.

And are there more of your siblings who may be expected to come to the MHB and “get on people’s nerves”?

Both in unison: Oh no, thank goodness.

Cindy: But there are several pairs of siblings among MHB students or graduates, and from what I have heard they all agree that the MHB is and was a big benefit.