Lifestyle

Living Expenses

There are no living facilities within the Medical Center. Students usually share apartments. Current students estimate the expense of sharing an apartment with two persons, plus food and transportation to be approximately $800-$1000 month.

Health Insurance

Students are required by Tufts to pay a medical fee. This helps cover cost of the Tufts University Health Center for treatment of minor illnesses and for yearly physical examinations. This does not cover x-rays, medications, laboratory tests, physicians visits outside of Center hours, medical care of chronic conditions, hospitalization or referrals to specialists. Therefore, students are required to have health insurance. If needed, the University has student health insurance available which may be purchased at the Fall registration.

Hours

Variable, depending on affiliation and class schedules. Regular hours for FSNC are 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday.

Weekends

Students will not be given weekend rotations for patient care during ambulatory affiliations. Some weekend responsibilities may be required in the inpatient area. This usually amounts to no more than five weekends during the 20-month program.

Vacation

Four weeks. Typically, one week at Christmas the first year, one during Spring break at Tufts, one during the summer, and the fourth week at Christmas during the second year.

Holidays

There are nine hospital holidays per year and three personal days. It is important to note that Tufts University and Tufts Medical Center observe different holiday schedules. It is necessary to follow the appropriate schedule according to the students current affiliation.

Dress

In the clinical areas, clean laboratory coats are worn over street clothes which meet acceptable professional standards. Each intern is responsible for providing and laundering his/her own lab coat. In the hospital setting, students must wear appropriate ID tags. Review of the Frances Stern dress code is provided to students during orientation.

Living in Boston

Greater Boston is one of the major educational, medical, social and cultural centers of the country. Over six universities have active programs in nutritional sciences. The wide variety of institutions adds greatly to the intellectual vitality and provides many educational and social advantages for the graduate student. The Medical Center itself is located in the heart of downtown Boston and within commuting distance of all of the major hospitals and universities.

Culture

An extensive network of public transportation makes traveling throughout the Metropolitan Boston area easy and inexpensive. There are a number of excellent department and specialty stores, world-famous seafood and foreign restaurants, historic landmarks, the Freedom Trail and museums nearby. Theater is an important part of Boston's cultural life, as this is the traditional "try out" city for many Broadway plays. Our Museum of Fine Arts is known throughout the world, as are the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Pops Orchestra.

Sports and Recreation

Skiing, camping and hiking are available in the nearby mountains of New Hampshire and Vermont. Most students manage a trip at some point to the miles of sandy beaches on Cape Cod and rugged seacoast in Maine. Visits to Rockport, Gloucester and Plum Island and boating and sailing on the Charles River are all popular pastimes. These are but a few of the many educational, cultural and recreational opportunities available to Bostonians.