The Long Arc of Training

The Long Arc of Training: Six Stories of Aspiring Doctors follows six medical trainees over twelve years, offering a view into the personal and professional transformations involved in becoming a doctor.

Through a series of interviews conducted during this time, this book captures the deeply human side of medical training. It’s not just what these aspiring doctors learn, but how they become who they are.

Unlike memoirs written in hindsight or short-term studies, this book presents longitudinal narratives that unfold gradually. Readers witness how the emotional responses, sense of self, personal well-being, and career plans of doctors-in-the making transform alongside growing medical knowledge and clinical skills.

This book is for anyone curious about the process of becoming a doctor aspiring medical students, current trainees, practicing physicians, educators, and readers drawn to stories of growth and transformation. With a focus on authentic storytelling, The Long Arc of Training challenges common assumptions about medical education and invites reflection on how to best support those in training. It provides a fresh, human-centered perspective on a process often viewed in purely academic terms.

Author Biography

Dorene F. Balmer is professor of pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and co-director of research on pediatric education at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.