Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos (UFSCar) launched in 2006 the UFSCar Medical School, with constructivist, competency curriculum and practice based learning, interweaved in the SUS structure. The objective of the present study is to analyze the perceptions of teachers and students from the first group of graduates about their experience usingthe methodology called Life Oral History. Despite reports of infrastructure deficiencies, the narratives suggest that the curriculum favored the development of competencies such as search capability, critical and reflective thinking and self-managed learning. The fact of having practice integrated into the SUS, especially within the Family Health Units, improved intellective, relational and affective dimensions of patient care, favoring professional autonomy.
Education medical undergraduate; Competency-based education; Problem-based learning; Brazilian National Health System