How first-year medical students perceive changes in their approach to learning science

To understand how first-year medical students perceive changes in their learning approaches during a course emphasizing critical thinking.

Study Design: Qualitative descriptive design using semi-structured interviews with nine first-year medical students.
Data Analysis: Reflexive thematic analysis applied at the semantic level.

Participants reported a shift from surface-level memorization to deeper understanding.
Students developed a more questioning stance towards course material.
Efforts to map conceptual connections across lectures were described as meaningful but cognitively demanding.
Modifications in study habits, including increased self-testing, were noted after recognizing prior methods were insufficient.

The extent or permanence of perceived changes in learning approaches remains uncertain.
The study involved a small sample size of nine students.