AMA- 3rd year med student

BU Medical Sciences
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How did you go about handling all the material first two years in terms of study schedule? Ill be a first year this summer and worried about failing behind with all the material. Also any tips you wish u knew when you were an incoming student?


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DrGainzzz said:
How did you go about handling all the material first two years in terms of study schedule? Ill be a first year this summer and worried about failing behind with all the material. Also any tips you wish u knew when you were an incoming student
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The way our curriculum is set up, we have blocks of 3-5 weeks. The first 3 weeks were biochemistry for us. During that first block, the entire class will be in “wtf land” cause it’s new to everyone regardless of background. You will study your ass off and then after that first exam you can either tone down/up the amount of studying based on your results and goals. For me, the first two courses were my lowest grades. In these courses, I learned how to study for medical school. There is no right or wrong way to do that. Everyone says “you will figure out what works best for you” which is truly the case. The people I study with all did really well, but we all approached the material a little differently. After you figure out how you can be most efficient, you apply that study habit to the rest of your classes (with minor adjustments).

Tips I wish I knew? I think one thing I wish I knew is to give 150% on all your courses and really learn the material. The material presented in your classes is “board material.” Starting second year (and even first for some) you’ll start hearing your classmates say “I’m gonna focus less in class and study for boards.” You are doing yourself a disservice by doing this because by not learning your course material well, you won’t have a strong grasp of that subject and you will have to go back during board studying to learn it. During the last two blocks I “started board studying” and these two areas were my weakest on boards.
 
-How did you spend any time off you had after your first year but before starting your second? If you could go back and change anything, how would you rather spend it?

-Have you decided on a specialty to pursue, or are you hoping that your 3rd year clerkships will help sort that out?
 
SynapticDoctah said:
The way our curriculum is set up, we have blocks of 3-5 weeks. The first 3 weeks were biochemistry for us. During that first block, the entire class will be in “wtf land” cause it’s new to everyone regardless of background. You will study your ass off and then after that first exam you can either tone down/up the amount of studying based on your results and goals. For me, the first two courses were my lowest grades. In these courses, I learned how to study for medical school. There is no right or wrong way to do that. Everyone says “you will figure out what works best for you” which is truly the case. The people I study with all did really well, but we all approached the material a little differently. After you figure out how you can be most efficient, you apply that study habit to the rest of your classes (with minor adjustments).

Tips I wish I knew? I think one thing I wish I knew is to give 150% on all your courses and really learn the material. The material presented in your classes is “board material.” Starting second year (and even first for some) you’ll start hearing your classmates say “I’m gonna focus less in class and study for boards.” You are doing yourself a disservice by doing this because by not learning your course material well, you won’t have a strong grasp of that subject and you will have to go back during board studying to learn it. During the last two blocks I “started board studying” and these two areas were my weakest on boards.
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Thanks a bunch for the info! I really appreciate it !


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Siromas said:
-How did you spend any time off you had after your first year but before starting your second? If you could go back and change anything, how would you rather spend it?

-Have you decided on a specialty to pursue, or are you hoping that your 3rd year clerkships will help sort that out?
Click to expand...

Summer break between first and second year is the last summer break you will have. Most people will tell you to not do anything and relax because of that. If I could go back, I would have gotten some research in during that time. It is tougher for DO students to get research during medical school and if you are wanting to enter into a competitive specialty, you will need research (especially ACGME programs). So I guess my answer is do not study for school, but if you want to do something productive, research is probably your best bet.

I want to go into orthopedic surgery right now. Although I haven’t been on rotations yet, I know I want to be in a surgical field.

I am actually taking a year off right now (between 2nd/3rd year) to complete a fellowship where we can work on research and teach medical students.
 
Thanks in advance for starting this thread!

Question about studying for school and boards - and this stems from probably too much reading on SDN and trying to figure out study materials prior to even beginning school - neurotic I know!

Anyway, from reading on SDN, it seems the general consensus is to learn as best you can from school lectures/etc. so that board prep is really a review and not studying new topics. In addition, however, it seems others suggest following along in FA/Pathoma/Sketchy/etc. during your classes so you understand what boards are looking for. My question - how did you narrow down the resources you used? I see so many suggestions and there are so many resources, how can you possibly narrow it down? Which resources did you find most helpful?

I want to state that I'm not concerned/worried, I'm just enjoying my time off before starting in the fall; it's just a genuine curiosity!

Thanks again!
 
Jdp00921 said:
Thanks in advance for starting this thread!

Question about studying for school and boards - and this stems from probably too much reading on SDN and trying to figure out study materials prior to even beginning school - neurotic I know!

Anyway, from reading on SDN, it seems the general consensus is to learn as best you can from school lectures/etc. so that board prep is really a review and not studying new topics. In addition, however, it seems others suggest following along in FA/Pathoma/Sketchy/etc. during your classes so you understand what boards are looking for. My question - how did you narrow down the resources you used? I see so many suggestions and there are so many resources, how can you possibly narrow it down? Which resources did you find most helpful?

I want to state that I'm not concerned/worried, I'm just enjoying my time off before starting in the fall; it's just a genuine curiosity!

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

I do suggest using FA, Pathoma, Sketchy during your regular classes as a SUPPLEMENT. For example, I would not use Pathoma as THE source of pathology knowledge. I would use Robbins or Golijan or whatever your school suggests. What I did for pathology was listen to that chapter in Pathoma first so that it was explained to me so I wasn't jumping into a pathology textbook without any background in the pathology, then I would read Robbins.

It all boils down to the fact that the more familiar you are with these resources going into board studying, the less you have to learn. For example, if you use Sketchy (which is hundreds of videos and would take you weeks to learn if you started in dedicated), then by the time you get to boards, you've already seen the videos and don't have to waste time memorizing pictures.

I also think Boards and Beyond is an awesome source for classes/boards.
 
SynapticDoctah said:
I do suggest using FA, Pathoma, Sketchy during your regular classes as a SUPPLEMENT. For example, I would not use Pathoma as THE source of pathology knowledge. I would use Robbins or Golijan or whatever your school suggests. What I did for pathology was listen to that chapter in Pathoma first so that it was explained to me so I wasn't jumping into a pathology textbook without any background in the pathology, then I would read Robbins.

It all boils down to the fact that the more familiar you are with these resources going into board studying, the less you have to learn. For example, if you use Sketchy (which is hundreds of videos and would take you weeks to learn if you started in dedicated), then by the time you get to boards, you've already seen the videos and don't have to waste time memorizing pictures.

I also think Boards and Beyond is an awesome source for classes/boards.
Click to expand...

Thank you! And all of this makes sense... but this brings on a second question. When you say "when I was doing pathology," what exactly do you mean? What I mean is... based on the curriculum of the school I will be matriculating at, everything is done by system. Therefore, isn't pathology covered simultaneously with everything else - physiology, etc? I guess I'm asking - how do most schools keep the curriculum organized? From what I understand, we have biochemistry/genetics/etc. for a few weeks in MS1, then we do gross anatomy, and finally MS2 is all the individual systems. How is the material usually broken down?

Thanks again!
 
Whaddup Synaptic 😀

Was hoping for some insight on the transition from MS1 to MS2 studying-wise. In your opinion, what are the most dramatic changes (if any) and what advice would you have for a smooth transition?

If you have specific advice for utilization of Robbins that would be cool too! I am curious as to what the dynamic is between lectures & reading... This part is obviously more specific to KCU, but is it basically a year of DSA's from Robbins? Or do people watch lecture, and reference Robbins for clarification (kind of how we first years utilize Costanzo)?
 
Jdp00921 said:
Thank you! And all of this makes sense... but this brings on a second question. When you say "when I was doing pathology," what exactly do you mean? What I mean is... based on the curriculum of the school I will be matriculating at, everything is done by system. Therefore, isn't pathology covered simultaneously with everything else - physiology, etc? I guess I'm asking - how do most schools keep the curriculum organized? From what I understand, we have biochemistry/genetics/etc. for a few weeks in MS1, then we do gross anatomy, and finally MS2 is all the individual systems. How is the material usually broken down?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

Our school is a systems curriculum. For example, in M1 we would learn cardiovascular physiology. Then M2 we would come back to cardiovascular and learn pathology/pharmacology for that system. So I was referring to M2 when I was using the boards material. However, Boards and Beyond is "boards material" and they cover everything (including physiology). I would check it out.
 
NecrotizingFasciitis said:
Whaddup Synaptic 😀

Was hoping for some insight on the transition from MS1 to MS2 studying-wise. In your opinion, what are the most dramatic changes (if any) and what advice would you have for a smooth transition?

If you have specific advice for utilization of Robbins that would be cool too! I am curious as to what the dynamic is between lectures & reading... This part is obviously more specific to KCU, but is it basically a year of DSA's from Robbins? Or do people watch lecture, and reference Robbins for clarification (kind of how we first years utilize Costanzo)?
Click to expand...

Biggest difference between M1 and M2 is second year you have much more freedom to study how you want. You are literally given Robbins and told to read the chapter and know everything in it. If that means you read it 4x and retain info better that way, then do it that way. If you are a note taker and want to read it 1x, but take solid notes, do that. It all depends on you and how you like to study. I never looked at lecture notes really for path that was assigned reading in Robbins (but I am not going to tell you to do that. You gotta see what works for you).

Personally, the way I approached path was...Pathoma, then "baby Robbins", then large Robbins 3-4x.
 
Were there any classmates who were in a masters in medical science program, and if so did they have a significant advantage over students who did not attend a medical science program?
 
Also, what would you say was your ratio of studying at home/on campus? Or alone/in a group?
 
iforget2 said:
Were there any classmates who were in a masters in medical science program, and if so did they have a significant advantage over students who did not attend a medical science program?
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Absolutely not. Maybe for the classes they have had before (like one or two), but no.
 
SynapticDoctah said:
I only went to mandatory lectures and studied at home most of the time.

I only studied in a group the weekend before exams with two other people to review.
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What were your grades like doing it this way.
 
I saw in another thread you did well on COMLEX, did you also take USMLE? What is your application strategy for ortho with the merger?
 
How were your experiences with rotations?
 
iforget2 said:
Were there any classmates who were in a masters in medical science program, and if so did they have a significant advantage over students who did not attend a medical science program?
Click to expand...

I attended the BUSM program, and I can tell you 100% (as was stated by OP) this has given me an advantage in a few classes, but not overall.
 
Last edited:
sab3156 said:
I attended the BUSM program, and I can tell you 100% this has given me an advantage in a few classes, but not overall.
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That is what I said.

I know numerous people that got their masters and took the exact same courses in the masters program before coming to medical school. Yes, they aced the classes that they already took (shouldn't they?), but once you move onto courses that you haven't taken outside of biochem, cell bio, etc, you are on the same playing ground with everyone else.

I am sure it will help some because you have seen "med school level" courses, but the reason I am just flat out saying "no, it won't" is because I know multiple people who got cocky after taking a few courses and acing them, and then dropped like flies once the "new" courses came along.
 
SynapticDoctah said:
That is what I said.

I know numerous people that got their masters and took the exact same courses in the masters program before coming to medical school and taking the same course. Yes, they aced the classes that they already took (shouldn't they?), but once you move onto courses that you haven't taken outside of biochem, cell bio, etc, you are on the same playing ground with everyone else.

I am sure it will help, but the reason I am just flat out saying "no, it won't" is because I know multiple people who got cocky after taking a few courses and acing them, and then dropped like flies once the "new" courses came along.
Click to expand...

I posted in agreement with you. Edited my post to reflect that.
 
What are your thoughts on debt? I'm considering some of the service scholarships available but interested to hear how someone who is just paying via loans is approaching everything (sorry if I'm assuming incorrectly this is what you're doing).
 
workaholic181 said:
What are your thoughts on debt? I'm considering some of the service scholarships available but interested to hear how someone who is just paying via loans is approaching everything (sorry if I'm assuming incorrectly this is what you're doing).
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I’m not familiar with what service scholarships are.

My thoughts are that everyone is going to be in debt. You can’t let it bother you. It’s just the way med school goes. The only thing you can do is live below your means to save as much as possible. Try to rent in the cheapest place you can that is safe, don’t go spending tons of money out all the time, etc.
 
SynapticDoctah said:
I’m not familiar with what service scholarships are.

My thoughts are that everyone is going to be in debt. You can’t let it bother you. It’s just the way med school goes. The only thing you can do is live below your means to save as much as possible. Try to rent in the cheapest place you can that is safe, don’t go spending tons of money out all the time, etc.
Click to expand...

By service I meant like military HPSP, NHSC, etc. I've just been thinking of this since it seems like I'll have significantly more debt than the national avg. But at the same time most med students I've talked to has reiterated what you've said here, so I appreciate your insight, thanks.
 
workaholic181 said:
By service I meant like military HPSP, NHSC, etc. I've just been thinking of this since it seems like I'll have significantly more debt than the national avg. But at the same time most med students I've talked to has reiterated what you've said here, so I appreciate your insight, thanks.
Click to expand...

My opinion on the service scholarships are that you should ONLY do them if you WANT to be in the service. If you are doing them for economic reasons (which it sounds like), I would advise against it unless you are positive and wanting to go into lower paying specialties. I’ve done the math and if you are specializing in anything outside of family medicine or pediatrics, most of the time you are coming out on top financially even if you have to pay back your loans.
 
workaholic181 said:
By service I meant like military HPSP, NHSC, etc. I've just been thinking of this since it seems like I'll have significantly more debt than the national avg. But at the same time most med students I've talked to has reiterated what you've said here, so I appreciate your insight, thanks.
Click to expand...

As an HPSP (who I think has replied to you before on KCU) I can tell you that you shouldn’t do HPSP if you don’t want to be in the military. I have always wanted to be in the service and was fortunate enough to have my college and med school paid for but I now will be in the military for 20 yrs without a doubt. By the time I’m done serving all my friends will have paid off their debt
 
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