The investigation of quality in Zahedan University of Medical Sciences from students’ view points and solution to improve the situation

Introduction. One of the issues which is usually evaluated in higher education systems is the process of teaching and the situation of the graduates. Students' views are a matter which is always taken in to consideration. Methods. This qualitative research on the situation of theoretic and practical training, training material and students' role, was conducted in the form of focus group discussion. Two group of last term students were selected on the basis of average grades (point above 15 and below 15), randomly, form different schools of zahedan University of medical sciences. There were 8 to 10 students in each group. A total of 87 students participated in the project. On average, a minimum of 1.5 hours, 1 hour and 45 minutes were spent on group discussion. Results. The results were cited on the basis of the majority's and minority's viewpoints. The criteria for the majority and minority were the remarks of 80% and 30-40% of the students, respectively. Most of the students were not satisfied with the teaching methods of teachers especially in specialized subjects, using traditional methods, inapplicability of the teacher's material, not mastering the subject and ability to transfer the knowledge and incongruity of educational planning on the basis of specialty. Concerning practical credits, the majority of the students, because of several reasons including inappropriateness of clinical training to educational objectives, improper planning in wards, using lecturers with little experience, and shortage of facilities and equipments in wards, were not satisfied with the trend. The most important solutions offered were, unifying theoretical and clinical classes, contracting basic sciences, using modern methods for teaching, presenting material applicably, equipping centers for students, and evaluating students in terms of performance and not on the basis of assignment at the end of training. Half the students were not satisfied with physical surroundings because of unprincipled building and ventilation problems. The majority of students referred to improper usage of training material and its shortage. On the issue of information provision, the majority of the students were not satisfied with libraries and internet and they stated that the number of reference books in libraries was low and access to internet for up-to-date information was not possible for most of the students. Most of the students believed that a student could play an important role concerning training, but officials did not like being criticized, that's why students were not permitted to be involved. Conclusion. Considering the existing problems in theoretical and practical training, it seems that, in order to promote the level of training, it is necessary for officials to cooperate with students and compile training programs which will be capable of meeting trainee's need in practical field .