Goljan audios alone or Pathoma videos alone

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colts

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I posted this in the 2012 thread, but thought I'd post it here so it's easier for more people to see.

I basically have time to do just one: either the Goljan audios (not the rapid review book, just the audio alone) or the Pathoma videos alone. Which one do you guys reccomend?

Also, is the Pathoma text any good? Can I watch the videos alone or do I need to follow along with the text?

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I haven't really used the text but I'd highly recommend watching most of the videos. One big negative to Pathoma is that he seems to rush in the final chapters. The CNS section is way too short and there's no peripheral nervous system pathology section. If you're not already strong on neuroanatomy then he's going to leave you wanting since a lot of neuro pathology basically tests on normal by saying X structure has been damaged. Pathoma also doesn't touch on any biochemistry or nutritional pathology (beyond the obvious B9/B12 heme stuff) which Goljan does address to a greater degree.

First Aid is probably enough to fill any holes though. Maybe listen to Pathoma + Goljan nutritional lectures (there are like 3 of them, so it's manageable). Goljan doesn't address biochemistry pathology in his audio, but I do think he has it in his book.
 
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I posted this in the 2012 thread, but thought I'd post it here so it's easier for more people to see.

I basically have time to do just one: either the Goljan audios (not the rapid review book, just the audio alone) or the Pathoma videos alone. Which one do you guys reccomend?

Also, is the Pathoma text any good? Can I watch the videos alone or do I need to follow along with the text?

Goljan audio and Pathoma are completely different, a better comparison might have been RR path and pathoma. Goljan is something you listen to while running or driving somewhere, pathoma is a comprehensive review of Step 1 pathology.

If u're weak in path and don't have time for RR path, then pathoma's the way to go. There's sample pathoma videos, maybe u can check them out and see the difference for urself.
 
I'll repost what I wrote in response to your other post:
I think Pathoma is better if you can only do one. Goljan audio is great, but it's not a standalone resource... to be good at pathology, you need to learn to recognize certain pictures, etc.

Also, Pathoma is more to-the-point. Goljan audio is about 35 hours long, but he spends a lot of time making jokes, telling stories, and explaining basic concepts that you should already know by this point in time. Pathoma just focuses on telling you what you need to know in the minimum possible time.

To add to that, I agree that RR Path is a better comparison to Pathoma. Goljan audio is something that's good for squeezing in some review when you're doing other things, but Pathoma and RR are comprehensive.
 
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I highly recommend Pathoma instead of Goljan audio, as I've been using both and Pathoma is much more succint and better explained
 
An upperclassmen who got a 250 last year, told me he listened to Goljan like 4 times and had it to the point where he had the audio files memorized and said it really helped.
 
Only thing I wish about Pathoma is an audio only version, so I could listen to it in the car like Goljan. Although he seems to do a fair amount of writing/drawing stuff that you'd miss on an audio only version...but you miss stuff with Goljan audio too, but it's still beneficial.

Actually, as I am typing this, I realize I haven't done much searching on Pathoma, is there a way to download the audio to a phone for on the go listening?
 
Only thing I wish about Pathoma is an audio only version, so I could listen to it in the car like Goljan. Although he seems to do a fair amount of writing/drawing stuff that you'd miss on an audio only version...but you miss stuff with Goljan audio too, but it's still beneficial.

Actually, as I am typing this, I realize I haven't done much searching on Pathoma, is there a way to download the audio to a phone for on the go listening?

not legally
 
Goljan focuses a lot on verbal explanations. Even when he puts up slides, you can get a lot from just listening to him talk.

Pathoma is very focused on drawings and other visual aids. I don't think it would be all that useful as an audio file.

Also, one of the great things about Goljan audio is that it's so conversational that you can listen to it in the car or at the gym. Pathoma isn't really like that... I think you have to be focusing on the material if you want to get a lot out of it.
 
Also, one of the great things about Goljan audio is that it's so conversational that you can listen to it in the car or at the gym. Pathoma isn't really like that... I think you have to be focusing on the material if you want to get a lot out of it.
That's also one of the things I don't like about Goljan's audio. It's nice when you're in the car, but normally when I study I want to sit down and get as much done as possible. With Goljan you can't do that because he goes on so many tangents.
 
I'd agree that it's apples and oranges. The pathoma videos are meant to correlate directly to the text. He basically walks you through the chapter and expands upon each concept.

I'd agree with most other people here, that goljan is more conversational.

Pathoma is better for serious studying, ie. sitting down with the text and focusing. goljan is better for driving, working out, or just laying in bed.
 
That's also one of the things I don't like about Goljan's audio. It's nice when you're in the car, but normally when I study I want to sit down and get as much done as possible. With Goljan you can't do that because he goes on so many tangents.

You mean you don't like hearing him make fun of how the other professors suck at writing exams and like it when everyone fails? :rolleyes:
 
I have a quick question:

Would either of these be a complete source for pathology?

Meaning if I memorize and learn either Goljan audio or Pathoma videos, then I really don't need to bother with BRS Path and should instead just do questions?
 
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Once again, Goljan audio and Pathoma video are not comparable to each other. If you want to make a fair comparison, say Goljan audo + RR vs. Pathoma video.

Pathoma is comprehensive, but it's quick. If you have time, you're better off using RR Path. If you don't have time, then yes, it's a great choice and it's more comprehensive than FA. So to answer your question... yes, Pathoma is essentially a complete source for pathology if you memorize/learn everything he says.
 
I have a quick question:

Would either of these be a complete source for pathology?

Meaning if I memorize and learn either Goljan audio or Pathoma videos, then I really don't need to bother with BRS Path and should instead just do questions?


I would choose pathoma over goljan audio. However, i would try my hardest to find time for goljan. But i would, did and will use goljan transcript instead of the audio's.

FYI, transcript that i speak of is NOT the high yield or the questions. It is a pure manuscript of the audio's. Some gentle soul took the time to type up word by word what he says in the audio. Its better because its much much much faster!!!
 
I would choose pathoma over goljan audio. However, i would try my hardest to find time for goljan. But i would, did and will use goljan transcript instead of the audio's.

FYI, transcript that i speak of is NOT the high yield or the questions. It is a pure manuscript of the audio's. Some gentle soul took the time to type up word by word what he says in the audio. Its better because its much much much faster!!!

Any idea where I can get this transcript?...if you have it, can you send it to me? I can PM you and give you my email.
 
Goljan audio is useful for getting an overview of the material and connecting the dots. It gives you a good understanding of the overall material before you start your hardcore studying. If you only have 4-6 weeks left, don't bother. If you only relied on Goljan audio for path on the Step1, you would probably fail the Step 1.

I completed it but I did a few months ago just because I wanted a good starting review of everything. I listened to the first half in the car, then the last half on the computer. I found it to be much more efficient on the computer because you can speed up the audio files on Windows Media Player and follow along with his slides. You can easily still understand him at 1.5-1.7x and all his random tangents end up not wasting your time since you are going twice as fast anyway. :)
 
I voted for Pathoma because if I could only pick one, I could both learn and review with Pathoma. Goljan is a recording of a 5 day review course years ago but the information has not changed that much. Maybe a handful of things have updated at the very most and he does say a few wrong things but he's human and if you're reviewing with it and not learning from it like it was designed to be then you can easily pick those up. After finishing UWorld, Goljan has helped me a lot in answering not just path but physio, pathophysio, and even a few micro questions. Pathoma will integrate but not nearly to the extent that Goljan integrates, and Pathoma will highlight "high-yield" facts, but so will any other review book (Pathoma just does a better job teaching it). Goljan on the other hand will tell you how it's presented on an exam question and how you should think about it on the exam which Pathoma never does and that's THE major difference. I've also looked at the transcript and the transcript is full of typos and not just a lot of minor spelling mistakes, which you for the most part can guess what they thougt Goljan was saying, but even content mistakes. It's still nice nonetheless

And I don't think it's fair comparing Pathoma to Rapid Review. That's analogous to comparing the First Aid pathology sections to Medium Robbins. Rapid Review has A LOT more depth and details than Pathoma and when you're reviewing, that's not necessarily a good thing. They're all tiered and unique in their own ways.
 
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I need Goljan slides although I got unclassified audios and transcript, could you advise please?? Many thanks
 
When people go through Pathoma, do they annotate into FA and disregard the Pathoma book; or do you use the book that comes with Pathoma and not touch FA until after you feel you've mastered the material (and never touch the Pathoma book again) and switch solely to FA?
 
When people go through Pathoma, do they annotate into FA and disregard the Pathoma book; or do you use the book that comes with Pathoma and not touch FA until after you feel you've mastered the material (and never touch the Pathoma book again) and switch solely to FA?

I have been annotating into the book, it has enough margin space to reproduce the drawings he does. There is enough stuff in FA already. He gives quite a lot of extra material and I have been using it the whole year so it was easier just to use its margins. If you want everything in one place you can always take out the bindings of the book and hole punch along with FA.
 
I've been watching the Pathoma lectures as I go through the same system in FA and then using FA to review everything that I learned from the lecture. I haven't really used the Pathoma book.
 
Depends on how much study time you have and what your intending to do with pathoma -- if you're just trying to brush up, maybe stick with FA -- if you're trying to seriously prepare, do both the book and then annotate into FA from the book

So I did all of Pathoma during MS2 but didn't do the first 3 chapters. Are these worth it if I've read RR? I'd like to watch it but all 3 together are ~8 hours. Any sections that were particularly good from the first 3 chapters or that you felt were better explained than what could be found in RR? I don't like listening to things at a higher speed (especially b/c it still takes a long time anyway and I'll probably have to pause and rewind enough that it would be about the same). TIA :)
 
Depends on how much study time you have and what your intending to do with pathoma -- if you're just trying to brush up, maybe stick with FA -- if you're trying to seriously prepare, do both the book and then annotate into FA from the book

I annotated pathoma extensively while watching the lectures. I didn't annotate fa from pathoma too much because I was using both at the same time. Meaning read a section from pathoma and then later read the same chapter from fa.
 
So I did all of Pathoma during MS2 but didn't do the first 3 chapters. Are these worth it if I've read RR? I'd like to watch it but all 3 together are ~8 hours. Any sections that were particularly good from the first 3 chapters or that you felt were better explained than what could be found in RR? I don't like listening to things at a higher speed (especially b/c it still takes a long time anyway and I'll probably have to pause and rewind enough that it would be about the same). TIA :)

I also have not done some earlier chapters of Pathoma and am curious about this... I've done most of the organ systems.

I have heard General Path topics (which are some of those first 3 chapters, e.g. inflammation) are actually pretty high yield so I may end up going back & doing them!
 
I really loved the way he taught the first 3 chapters and they really are the foundation of patholgy and immunology FWIW
 
how long does it take to go through pathoma? thanks

Depends on your background and the way you structure it. It's 35 hours of lectures that can be watched at 1.4x or 1.7x, and he's a slow enough talker so that you can watch most of them at 1.7x without any trouble.

I went through it by watching each relevant section as I got through it in FA. Usually, that meant watching about an hour or two of Pathoma video every day or every other day, depending on the section.

But if you just want to go through it in one big burst without any review time in between, you could watch all of them in 21 hours.
 
So based on this thread, would it be safe to say that I should abandon (due to time constraints) goljan audio, rapid review text, and pathoma text, and just watch the pathoma videos?
 
So based on this thread, would it be safe to say that I should abandon (due to time constraints) goljan audio, rapid review text, and pathoma text, and just watch the pathoma videos?

If you want the most high-yield content per unit time, then yes, that's probably the best way to do it. If you have a bit more time, I'd say you could review Pathoma text after every lecture, but I just used the Pathoma videos along with FA.
 
If you have time constraints, you can abandon goljian audio and (especially) RR text, and just go with pathoma (that's what I'm doing). However, the pathoma text is integrated with the pathoma videos. There is not a single thing in the text that's not covered by the video. So if you really want to just watch the videos, you can -- and then you can review whatever you watched a week, a month, whenever later with the text. Again, this is NOT like the KLN + lectures where they go off on their own little details... pathoma = pathoma text + videos
 
. Again, this is NOT like the KLN + lectures where they go off on their own little details... pathoma = pathoma text + videos

The best part about Kaplan is when you see a pharm chapter that's only 3 pages and you think this is going to go real quick, but the video is actually over an hour long (I love Raymon though)
 
I have been using Pathoma consistently alongside my Path course and my advice is that if you are going to watch the lectures, you might as well use the book to go along with the videos. I don't think it makes sense to watch the videos without using the book, because the text is really minimal and high yield, and also, like other posters mentioned, he does a lot of drawings which would be worth cpoying down, so you might as well copy them into the book. I think that would help if you wanted to do a quick review later on by just reading the Pathoma book.
 
I have been using Pathoma consistently alongside my Path course and my advice is that if you are going to watch the lectures, you might as well use the book to go along with the videos. I don't think it makes sense to watch the videos without using the book, because the text is really minimal and high yield, and also, like other posters mentioned, he does a lot of drawings which would be worth cpoying down, so you might as well copy them into the book. I think that would help if you wanted to do a quick review later on by just reading the Pathoma book.

Well, that depends on your learning style. I find that if I have to keep moving my eyes back and forth between the book and the screen, I get distracted by something else. Since everything in the book is also on the screen, I just watched the videos and reviewed FA later.
 
So based on this thread, would it be safe to say that I should abandon (due to time constraints) goljan audio, rapid review text, and pathoma text, and just watch the pathoma videos?

you need the text to follow along with the videos...
 
To quote a recent comment that I saw elsewhere on this forum about 10 seconds ago...

"Different learning styles for different people"

of course...but having a text that videos go from certainly helps...

it's kind of like doing DIT without first aid..
 
let's all be honest here...the only reason why you wouldn't use the pathoma book is because you have the bootleg videos and don't want to purchase the book....
 
let's all be honest here...the only reason why you wouldn't use the pathoma book is because you have the bootleg videos and don't want to purchase the book....

you would be wrong mate, I've bought the subscription, I bought it last year in september or october, can't remember.
even mentioned on here somewhere how much it cost me in pounds plus surcharges for postage to UK.
it's easy to jump to conclusions, I know.
 
you're def in the minority...

I'm not sure that's true.

I bought the course, but I rarely use my book.
The book is merely an outline of the take home messages in the videos... But the videos have a lot more information and actually explain stuff. If you understand the video, you don't need the book, IMO. (but I also don't learn well from outlines... not a huge fan of RR, the BRS's etc.)

back to that different learning styles comment... :cool:
 
I'm not sure that's true.

I bought the course, but I rarely use my book.
The book is merely an outline of the take home messages in the videos... But the videos have a lot more information and actually explain stuff. If you understand the video, you don't need the book, IMO. (but I also don't learn well from outlines... not a huge fan of RR, the BRS's etc.)

back to that different learning styles comment... :cool:

yep..back to it...and just like i said..its like doing DIT without having FA...

thats why most take notes in the pathoma book...and pathoma videos, from the little I have done do a good job of explaining it more further

of course you can take notes starting from blank...but not worth it IMO..better to just annotate your book
 
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