Introduction

The Social Service (SS) year is an approach to real professional life that considers the professional profile of the learner, the epidemiological and cultural characteristics of the population, and an excellent setting for the practice of general medicine, as well as to demonstrate the professional skills in a real scenario, which can be very useful for educational planning and the projection of the professional practice of graduates.

Objective

To identify the socio-demographic, economic and satisfaction characteristics on the training received in School of Medicine, as well as in the students’ performance during the SS year.

Method

A descriptive, cross-sectional, non-comparative and retrospective study conducted on a group of 388 students who finished their SS year in 2014. A 58 items questionnaire was developed and validated related to: socio-demographic and educational factors, satisfaction of graduates, and development of the SS year. Data were analysed during the first stage, using descriptive and inferential techniques.

Results

Of the total 388 students who responded, 143 were male and 245 were female. Almost all (95.6%) declared a high school grade average of ≥ 8, and 60.4% concluded their degree in 6.5 years, with 60.8% not failing any subject. The SS year was taken by 60% outside Mexico City with 63.4% receiving supervision or advice. More than one-fifth (21.9%) of the sample was assaulted, 1.8% physically, of which 58.8% was by the community and 38.8% by the institution. Almost all (95.8%) of the students considered themselves as successful, and 96.6% would recommend the School to study Medicine. They considered that its prestige and teachers are its main strengths. The main weakness reported was the bureaucracy of the School.