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Introduction: The purpose of this study was to do a quantitative description of how medical students spend their time during their clerkship in the eighth semester of study. We examined to what degree students have the possibility to learn both from the doctors and other staff and through active participation in daily work routines. Subjects and methods: Time registration was carried out through observation of six medical students spread over 32 observation days, corresponding to 6,674 minutes. The observations cover surgical and medical clerkships in two hospitals in Aarhus, Denmark. Results: The study revealed that the students (1) were present in the clinic about four hours a day; (2) spent about two-thirds of their time with doctors; (3) received guidance to a limited degree when they spent time with doctors; (4) carried out specific and visible actions in relation to patients to a limited degree; (5) practically did not co-operate with the nursing staff. Conclusion: Recent learning theories recommend that students should work actively on a subject or a task and that they should receive guidance to ensure their reflection on the tasks performed. We observed that students have plenty of opportunity to learn through watching experienced practicioners. However, the limited amount of guidance and the students' role as observers indicate that the learning potential of being with doctors and patients is not being exploited sufficiently.

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