Determination (grit) is a desirable personality trait in medical students, in favor of favorable academic performance. Commitment to work is a competence desired in the teaching-learning processes in the undergraduate. HE evaluates the effect of determination on work commitment of the students, during their rotation through the subject of surgery general. Methods: Students rated their determination on the Scale Short of Grit (GSS) and their commitment to work using the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES17-S). Through a linear regression analysis of mixed effects, the relationships of the previous variables were established. Results: 327 students from ten medical schools were included. The GSS score was 2.96 ± 0.58 (1-5) and the UWES-S17 score was 3.94 ± 0.85 (range 2.4–7.0). In the fixed model, the effect of grit on students' work engagement was not significant (b = 0.04; 95% CI: -0.11, 0.19), as well as in the randomized analysis exploring interaction by medical school (b = 0.02, 95% CI: 0.0044, 0.15). The determination did not influence the commitment to student work. Conclusions: no significant effect of determination was found on students' commitment to work during rotation in general surgery. Other aspects such as context and social interaction must be explored.