Learning core clinical skills - a survey at 3 time points during medical education

Background: It is generally unknown which clinical skills students acquire during medical education and which factors influence their levels of competence. Methods: We asked German medical students how competent they felt in performing individual clinical skills. Results: Third year students evaluated their competence in clinical skills, on average, not better than 4.7 on a Likert scale ranging from 1 ('excellent') to 6 ('insufficient'). The average score for fifth year students was 4.1, for final-year students 3.3. Deficits in all groups of students were most prominent in communication skills and diagnostic skills. Conclusions: These results are a plea for a structured curriculum including training courses to practice clinical skills.