Abstract: Objective　To assess the necessity of introducing a plastic surgery course at the undergraduate level, which would enhance the current teaching method.  Methods　The survey subjects were undergraduate students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from the classes of 2017 to 2019, who were divided into three groups based on whether they had taken plastic surgery elective courses and/or clinical courses (internal medicine and surgical courses). Questionnaire was used to investigate the influence of the current elective course on students' comprehension level, interest, information acquisition channels, future career orientation in plastic surgery. Results　A total of 111 questionnaires were distributed, with 103 of them being returned (98 of which were deemed valid). Following completion of the course, 92.31% of students expressed an increased interest in plastic surgery. The students are generally interested in common techniques of human body aesthetics and cosmetic surgery, and they desire clinical clerkships in addition to the current theoretical electives. Conclusion　The introduction of a plastic surgery course at the undergraduate level is advantageous for enhancing students' understanding of plastic surgery and assisting them in choosing their future specialty. Furthermore, appropriate inclusion of the subject's frontier progress can broaden students' thinking and enrich the teaching mode, which is expected to improve overall teaching quality.

Key words: Plastic surgery, 　Plastic surgery training, 　Plastic surgery education, 　Undergraduate medical education