DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2017.v05i07.035

Pages: 2666-2671

Learning environment in any medical school is found to be important in determining students' academic success. There is a need to evaluate perceptions of the educational environment of training institutions for health professionals as part of any assessment of quality standards for education .Present study was undertaken to assess students’ perception about the education environment and compare the variation in perception among male & female students and students of different semesters at MKCG Medical College, Berhampur, Odisha. Cross sectional study was conducted using Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) questionnaire among 278 undergraduate students of four semesters. Overall mean score was 118.8 (of a maximum of 200) indicating relative satisfaction of students with the perceived environment. Students’perception of learning (28.9),of the teachers (36.7) and their academic self perception (19.8)revealed more positive perception score. Similarly perception of student of the atmosphere (26.8) and their social self perception(19.8) revealed more positive attitude. There was no individual areas of excellence (score>3.5).But some items scored badly with score less than 2 indicating area of concern. No difference in mean score of perceptions among the students of different semesters was found in the domains. Similarly among male and female students no significance observed in mean scores except their perception of teachers. Though overall score for all the domains was encouraging, individual scoring reflected problematic areas of learning environment for some aspects for which remedial measures need to be taken.