Not particularly sure what aspects you're asking about but I'll just give an overview from as far as I've seen it. Keep in mind that I've only been through three years, with two of them at actual university and not in the hospital. Also keep in mind that this is a Monash perspective of things.
University - non-clinical yearsOverall, pretty much what you expect. Lots of lectures and lots of tutorials. It's fairly slow to start (first few weeks are just on things like communication, and you'll spend an entire two hours learning how to just ask a few simple questions to patients etc), but it builds up in speed eventually and second year can become a bit overwhelming for some. Be aware there's more to Medicine than just the biomedical sciences - you'll have to deal with epidemiology, law, sociology and such during these years too. Anatomy is quite a grind, basically just heaps and heaps of rote learning. The dissections are a bit confronting for some. I remember hacking apart a skull with a vibro-saw, so be prepared for this sort of thing. While many think they wouldn't be, you eventually just get desensitised. You'll also have a few assignments here and there as well, together with a few clinical placements to familiarise yourself with what it's actually like out there. Rural weeks are a particular highlight - one week in first year and two in second year. Plenty of clinical exposure, but also great fun (they provide you accommodation and it's pretty much a party every night). Second year has a research project where you'll spend a day a week for pretty much the entire year with a community service (e.g. I worked with the Royal District Nursing Service). With them, you'll have to run a full research project, complete with writing up a report of it and such. You'll then have to present your findings to the heads of Medicine and whatnot so it's quite an experience (albeit tedious) overall. Essentially, be prepared for a lot of rote learning throughout these years. I find whether or not one can juggle part-time work and other things in their life really depends on the individual. It definitely is possible though.
University - clinical yearsIf you're intending to go to Monash, make sure you have a car available. It's quite likely that you'll struggle to survive without it in these years. Anyway, these years revolve mainly around three things, lectures, clinical learning (seeing patients and being on the ward), and of course, self-study. You'll be put in many awkward and uncomfortable situations initially, but you'll eventually start to develop confidence. Be prepared for many quite invasive things such as breast and rectal examinations, and even urinary catheterisation (basically inserting a tube up the penis). I had to perform these and get them signed off to pass the year (except for the rectals - managed to dodge that
). Nowadays, the whole patriarchal nature of Medicine often portrayed in TV shows such as Scrubs is mostly gone. The majority of the consultants are really nice, and will often let you sit in on their clinics, and some will even allow you to take your own consulting room by yourself to see their patients in.
Career-wise (some details may be slightly wrong - I get fragmented accounts and different stories from different doctors, and of course, the experience always varies depending on the individual)
From being at the hospital and having talked to doctors this year, basically you start to see what Medicine is really like. And well, I guess it's not a nice image - not for a while at least. While life as a consultant seems good (this is the side of Medicine you mostly hear of), the steps before that seem pretty bad. Internship mostly entails being a glorified paperwork bitch - I had an intern who hadn't really examined a patient properly for over 8 weeks. Residency can be a bit better, but you'll have to return to many intern roles anyway if the work gets heavy enough (and it will). Overtime is expected, and you won't have time for much else during these years. Eventually you get to your registrar years where you start to study for the exams to specialise. This is where things seem to get pretty damn bad. You have the responsibility of running the majority of the hospital as consultants are only in for an hour a day or so to check how things are going. Now with this responsibility of your shoulders, you still have to study for your exams which are pretty damn hard. It's not just about passing anymore - it's about beating every other specialist-to-be. Then there's the job interviews you have to pass even if you pass the specialist exams. If you don't get through them, bad luck, gotta try again next year. And apparently it costs about $2000 each time you try to sit these exams. Many doctors undergoing physician training said to me up-front to not go through it. I'm not kidding when I say most of the doctors in this position are actually depressed - not your typical VCE student saying they're stressed, but actual complete emotional exhaustion. Seriously, imagine studying like that after doing some of the most emotionally and intellectually challenging work for an entire day. I don't think I need to go into the specialist side of things too much. There are problems, but life is mostly pretty good from then on as far as I can see.
Overall, the benefits of Medicine can be found in many other careers. If what you want is money, do dentistry. Seriously, you'll earn heaps more than Medicine, and you start getting it immediately after you graduate. For helping people, there's other ways to do it. If all you like is the idea of Biology/science, then pursue an academic career. Clinical medicine actually comes down to a lot of common sense/rote learning and less actual science and such than you may think. What medicine does do is perhaps combine all the above elements into a single career, and that's the main reason why you should consider even going through this mostly hellish path. Anyhow, I've left heaps out and I could keep going, but I'll leave it here and await more specific questions/clarification perhaps.
EDIT: Oh and yes, one thing I forgot to mention. Medicine is pretty much all about old people. Unless you become a paediatrician, be prepared to be dealing with old people the majority of your life. On the plus side though, the elderly are lovely. I much prefer having an elderly person than a young patient. Young patients can be quite bitchy. The elderly are much more appreciative and pleasant to deal with
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