Mary Wrobel (left) and her daughter, Emily, have attended several Mini Medical School sessions together.

When Mary Wrobel learned about Mini Medical School a few years ago, the idea of taking classes from Medical School faculty without prerequisites, homework, or a hefty bill was appealing.

But most important was something else. “It was,” says Mary, “something my daughter Emily and I could do together.”

At Mini Medical School, students spend 5 Monday nights getting to know what life is like for first-year medical students through taking courses in anatomy, genetics, biochemistry, pharmacology, and physiology.  

Mary and Emily attended their fourth session of Mini Medical School in fall 2009 when the 10-year-old series went “Back to Basics.”

Wide audience

Students who attend are of all ages and backgrounds. And the students have all kinds of connections with each other: friends, coworkers, and parents and their children find common ground in their fascination with medical topics.  

Mary, 64, is an administrator in the Department of Writing Studies in the College of Liberal Arts. Emily, 27, has gone through emergency medical technician training and works for the Salvation Army with at-risk teenage girls. And although their ages and career-paths differ, Mary says they share a love of learning about health issues and medicine.  

The variety of students is one of the best things about Mini Medical School, says Jenny Meslow, who directs the program for the University’s Academic Health Center.  

“Our students have included retired health professionals, airline pilots, teachers, social workers, and engineers,” Meslow says. “For an upcoming session, a small group of high school students from Red Wing will commute to the U every week.”

Q&A and hands-on experience

“The students are well-educated and engaged in the presentations, which makes the question-and-answer portions of the classes really interesting,” Meslow says.  

Presenting to this audience is a unique opportunity for faculty members too. “It helps them understand what people from outside academic settings want to understand about research and health.”  

A vital part of Mini Medical School is the hands-on experience. “[Students] are able to see and touch organs and joints, and compare healthy specimens with diseased ones,” she says. “Students also can see what implanted devices like pacemakers and titanium rods look like in the body.”

Format and faculty keep students coming back

Mary says Mini Medical School’s audience-friendly format and lectures from premier clinicians and researchers are why she and Emily keep coming back. “The people who are presenting obviously have a passion for what they are talking about,” Mary says.

Mary was glad to take the “Back to Basics” session. Years ago when she wanted to take a similar session, it filled up before she and Emily had a chance to enroll. In the meantime, they’ve attended sessions on aging, the brain, and taking charge of one’s health.

 “Now we finally get to go back and start at the beginning.”