Does anyone else feel like they aren't learning anything?

[lisi326]

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Yeah, first year sucks. Yeah, a lot of your learning will come from wikipedia. after you get past 2nd year, a lot of your learning will come from uptodate. Yeah, it's just a lot of memorization. That's kind of a huge part of learning medicine. Take it upon yourself to learn more/better if you're not happy via review books, question banks, etc. Unfortunately this is just part of the game. It'll get better as you keep going.

 

[W19]

(I realize I may just be responding to a troll post, but thought I'd give him the benefit of the doubt)

After I read all his/her posts, I also think it might be a troll post...

 

[The new guy]

After I read all his/her posts, I also think it might be a troll post...

It's not

 

[LostinLift]

Where do you go (if you don't mind my asking)? Never heard of radiology being incorporated into preclinical coursework like that.

At a different school than W19, we had CT, XR, and US images on our second exam. Loved it.

 

[Mass Effect]

Where do you go (if you don't mind my asking)? Never heard of radiology being incorporated into preclinical coursework like that.

You never heard of radiology being incorporated into gross anatomy? Every anatomy practical we took had radiology incorporated. The first several or last several questions were on powerpoint slides and they were images from x-ray, CT, or MRI.

 

[W19]

At a different school than W19, we had CT, XR, and US images on our second exam. Loved it.

🙁

 

[ssfire]

My experience is that most of the lectures are ****ty. The material isn't difficult to understand, it just requires a good memory or a lot of work to make up for a memory deficit. Some of the material is interesting and some of it is boring as hell. I feel like I'm learning stuff, it's just that it's disjointed because none of the dozen or whatever lecturers I've had have made any attempt at unifying the information -- although I expect for the sycophantic gunners to bitch at me and tell me that it's my job to tie it together.

This is pretty much how I feel too. I understand the information when I study it on my own for a long time, but the lectures have been really disappointing so far. I get so frustrated in class. Hopefully, the next block will be better.

 

[Microglia]

I guess that's what I'm annoyed about. Shouldn't the school be providing this? Why do I need to supplement with internet when I am paying a crapload of money for them to supposedly teach me how to be a doctor. Seriously feel like 50% of my knowledge so far has come from Wikipedia

You'll feel that way at all schools. Not just yours. You get more meat in M2, but it's still just as superficial. Med students learn what they need from first aid and qbanks during/after the curriculum. Do that and you'll be fine.

 

[wjs010]

I know. Med school is too easy! Every test should be an IQ related test only! No memorization required!


Not srs. When is med school dumbed down?

 

[PIacebo]

I would go thru USMLE World question bank in your extra time. You would be preparing for boards now and see what all you weren't taught in class. Unfortunately that is how med school works here.

 

[TooMuchResearch]

Is this normal or is it just my school? That's my concern

It's normal. The education is the same.

That's why I continue to tell people to attend the cheapest school that will take them.

 

[Promethean]

I have no strong feelings about anything except the bolded. That would be an incredible waste of money.
Don't waste time doing this.

Okay, maybe that was slightly hyperbolic. The point is that there is so much that an adult learner who is responsible for their own education and feeling unchallenged by a curriculum could do to challenge themselves.

 

[MedWonk]

I have no strong feelings about anything except the bolded. That would be an incredible waste of money.

UWorld is designed for testing integrated concepts from throughout the first two years. Even then, it is a challenge. You might be able to learn from the explanations, but if you do that, you rob yourself of the opportunity to use those questions in board review.

Don't waste time doing this.

Agreed. As an MS1, UWorld is a bunch of gibberish. We don't know enough to really get anything out it at this point.

 

[MedWonk]

Maybe I am not good at imaging, but the class average was 75 in our first exam (musculoskeletal)--the lowest so far....

That seems low. It's entirely possible they're giving you guys images that are a bit beyond your level, or they just suck at teaching imaging.

 

[DermViser]

Can't reveal that on a public forum, but it a bottom 10 US allo med school... You did not have images of bone fractures in your musculoskeletal exam in Anatomy where they ask you nerves/blood vessels that will be affected (at least 5 in a 60 questions exam)... We had one MRI and one CT scan in which they asked us what was missing on them.. Needless to say that the class average was a 75--lowest so far.

The professor only looked at X-ray with us during dissection... He did not look at MRI an CT scan.

You realize part of USMLE Step 1 is being able to indentify basic anatomy on imaging right? CT, MRI, X-ray, etc. It's a more clinical tilt on a basic science subject of Gross Anatomy. And maybe it's just me but how do you know your school is a bottom 10 allo school? Is this from US World News and Report, bc there are schools that are unranked as well.

 

[DermViser]

Agreed. As an MS1, UWorld is a bunch of gibberish. We don't know enough to really get anything out it at this point.

Which is why the best thing to use is USMLERx, although it would be a waste in 1st semester of 1st year, bc you're trying to keep your head above water.

 

[DermViser]

That seems low. It's entirely possible they're giving you guys images that are a bit beyond your level, or they just suck at teaching imaging.

Agree! It should be like this:

 

[The Kraken]

The collection of facts are worthless if you don't integrate the material with clinical. I still don't know what you define as "worthless" or how you can't find connections to the real world.

 

[DermViser]

The collection of facts are worthless if you don't integrate the material with clinical. I still don't know what you define as "worthless" or how you can't find connections to the real world.

Not every basic science fact has a clinical application in real life. The problem is as med students you don't know which is the case just based on looking at a powerpoint.

 

[seminoma]

I am a MS1 at a supposedly "top 20" school and I feel like the quality of education frankly sucks. The exams are all multiple choice and require only the most superficial level of understanding. Except when they test things that were never covered in class or on any lecture slides...which happens quite often. I just don't really feel like im getting what I expected. I thought I would be working much harder and learning much more. Instead feel like I'm in a dumbed down undergrad program with crappy professors. Really pissed that this is costing me $60k a year.

You can work as hard and learn as much as you want, just fyi. Consider yourself lucky that your school doesn't test on random crap minutiae that only the professor cares about (e.g. species of rat used in XYZ study) because that means you have more free time to peruse resources generally felt to be useful for boards and beyond.

 

[DermViser]

You can work as hard and learn as much as you want, just fyi. Consider yourself lucky that your school doesn't test on random crap minutiae that only the professor cares about (e.g. species of rat used in XYZ study) because that means you have more free time to peruse resources generally felt to be useful for boards and beyond.

 

[Successful BM]

Actually I am doing really well, averaging in the 90s. I've aced quite a few tests. I'm not bragging though,because it feel like I don't know that much. The tests are multiple choice and i do well by process of elimination most of the time

So you're mad that med school is too easy for you? You're bragging.

You're an M1. Your job this year is to get the basic sciences down before you start learning the clinically relevant stuff. Next to 4th year, 1st year is supposed to be the easiest year. So your performance thus far should make sense to you. The fact that you're only a few months into your med school career and you feel qualified to judge the efficacy of your 4-year program, which you state is ranked in the top 20, is nothing short of astonishing. But again, you're only bragging.

M1 is relatively low yield for step 1, but it's entirely necessary to understand the M2 material, which is very high yield for boards. But there is stuff from M1 on the boards. If you're looking to fill the void, do what others have suggested and poke around the test prep material.

 

[CnsCrit]

What others are saying makes sense but honestly your experience is opposite of mine. Our first year curriculum is very clinical in every course, and our multiple choice exams can very tricky. For example, I have a biochem test monday for which I need to know at least 30 different diseases. Yes, some of them are rare but some of them aren't. And, our professors specifically told us they were emphasizing a few of them because they are high yield on step 1, and this is in the first couple months of first year. I agree that M2 will even more relevant, and M2s at my school have said they enjoy it more, but it still - from my perspective theres lots of important clinical knowledge to be gleaned from M1. But, you're at a top school I guess, so you'll probably be ok in the end. Maybe they are easing you in to things, or you'll just have to work harder later to get what you need.

 

[Mass Effect]

That seems low. It's entirely possible they're giving you guys images that are a bit beyond your level, or they just suck at teaching imaging.

I know some here post class averages in the high 80s often, but an average of 75 does not seem low to me. The vast majority of the class averages in the preclinical years at my school hovered around 75. I don't remember a single exam that had an average higher than 81%.

 

[operaman]

In general, any exam where the class average is much below 80% is a crappy exam. Poor questions with ambiguous stems, tricky wording, technical errors, etc. The NBME has published papers looking at the quality of med school class exams and it's pretty abysmal overall. Med schools are full of generally smart, hardworking overachievers. Low class averages say far more about the faculty than they do the students. I think there are some faculty who were raised in a different era who believe that high averages reflect an oversimplified examination, but the current literature on test-writing (that they aren't reading) shows this to be patently false.

Writing good MC questions is hard work and takes training and practice. Any idiot can write a one-liner direct recall question about a piece of minutiae (species of rat wtf?!), but it takes skill to write a clinically-relevant question that requires actual thinking and integration of course material. The boards have gotten much better at it but it's taken them a couple of decades to do it and they continue to refine their techniques.

 

[Kahreek]

Fellow non-trad arts major here. No science background either.

I don't think the tier of school matters -- the 'problem' is that you are probably a highly intelligent person and accustomed to learning things like an artist. In comparison, M1/M2 are pretty much a cakewalk. I remember a conducting final where we had to prepare an opera act (about an hr., 150-200 pages of music) and conduct all of it from memory ( you conducted the prof who was playing the whole score on the piano and poorly singing all the lines) during which time the professor would stop randomly and ask detailed questions about that moment in the score (who's playing? who's singing? what word are they singing? what does it mean? What's happening on stage? What's about to happen? dynamic markings? meter? which important cues are coming? etc). Compared to that, memorizing some PPT slides for biochem is nothing! I suspect you had similar experiences in your undergrad as well.

The other issue is that you're just at the beginning -- the simple scales for instruments, simple vocalises for singers, theatre games for actors. Just like you did with your art, focus on mastering the fundamentals and allow things to build at their natural pace. Supplement as needed with outside materials. Talk with your faculty and ask when things you see in BRS will be covered in your curriculum. I know ours skipped around a good bit and it looked like we weren't covering something but then we'd get to it later in the year. Either way, the material will build on itself and you'll get to where you need to be. Maybe talk to some smarter upperclassmen to see how they felt and if it might get better/tougher going forward.

(I realize I may just be responding to a troll post, but thought I'd give him the benefit of the doubt)

very good, to be honest, basic sciences in medschool is a sham, apart from a dozen fundamental things you learn, and another dozen in the hidden curriculum.

 

[W19]

You realize part of USMLE Step 1 is being able to indentify basic anatomy on imaging right? CT, MRI, X-ray, etc. It's a more clinical tilt on a basic science subject of Gross Anatomy. And maybe it's just me but how do you know your school is a bottom 10 allo school? Is this from US World News and Report, bc there are schools that are unranked as well.

It's unranked, but I consider it the bottom 10...

 

[DermViser]

It's unranked, but I consider it the bottom 10...

I wouldn't let that color your thinking. 1) It doesn't help and 2) There are many variables in play so don't let it psych you out.

 

[W19]

I wouldn't let that color your thinking. 1) It doesn't help and 2) There are many variables in play so don't let it psych you out.

I actually like my school...

 

[DermViser]

I actually like my school...

Ok, good! Sorry I couldn't tell based on your previous posts.

 

[mcloaf]

Dude if you have free time that you aren't taking advantage of you aren't going to get much sympathy around here. Study outside resources if you want. Start a research project or two. Volunteer at a clinic. Take up skydiving.

I would go thru USMLE World question bank in your extra time. You would be preparing for boards now and see what all you weren't taught in class. Unfortunately that is how med school works here.

OP is an MS1 in 1st semester. It's hard to think of worse advice than "do uworld" for someone in his stage of med school.

 

[Meh.meh]

OP is an MS1 in 1st semester. It's hard to think of worse advice than "do uworld" for someone in his stage of med school.

Part of me wondered if that was a username based joke. The guy's name is "placebo," so it feels appropriate.

 

[MedWonk]

Agree! It should be like this:

View attachment 186624View attachment 186625

I can totally see that first one being on my exam next week. I'm guessing E is the SVC? A looks like the ascending aorta and B looks like the pulmonary trunk. I'm not sure what C and D are other than they look like dark air filled spaces. The descending aorta looks like it's next to C. The right lung is full of trouble. Is that fluid in the right pleural space? Is she bleeding into her chest?

 

[alpinism]

It's MS1. It sounds like you have a handle on the material they have taught so far. You're not attending clown college, you're attending an LCME accredited MD school. Trust in your program and supplement your material as needed from other sources (internet, board review materials).

Damn, I want to go to clown college.

At a different school than W19, we had CT, XR, and US images on our second exam. Loved it.

Same for our school.

Agree! It should be like this:

View attachment 186624View attachment 186625

This is basically what our written anatomy tests looked like.

We usually had about 10-15 radiology correlation questions out of 80 total.

 

[DermViser]

I can totally see that first one being on my exam next week. I'm guessing E is the SVC? A looks like the ascending aorta and B looks like the pulmonary trunk. I'm not sure what C and D are other than they look like dark air filled spaces. The descending aorta looks like it's next to C. The right lung is full of trouble. Is that fluid in the right pleural space? Is she bleeding into her chest?

Yes. The correct answer is E.

 

[Nxtjourney2MD]

This sounds like a good problem to have.
Use your extra time to study for the USMLEs (you indicated preparation concern in above post).

You might want to consider studying abroad......Germany, India, South America ect.
Many international students I have come across seem to have been exposed to the academic depth you were expecting...many of them were amazed by the entire concept of multiple choice testing.

 

[DermViser]

It's normal. The education is the same.

That's why I continue to tell people to attend the cheapest school that will take them.

Some medical schools are better at teaching to the boards than others.

 

[DermViser]

You might want to consider studying abroad......Germany, India, South America ect.
Many international students I have come across seem to have been exposed to the academic depth you were expecting...many of them were amazed by the entire concept of multiple choice testing.

🙄

 

[Tipsy McStagger]

I guess that's what I'm annoyed about. Shouldn't the school be providing this? Why do I need to supplement with internet when I am paying a crapload of money for them to supposedly teach me how to be a doctor. Seriously feel like 50% of my knowledge so far has come from Wikipedia

There is simply too much information in medicine to be spoon fed to you. It is of paramount importance that you have the curiosity to look beyond what you are taught in class, have the intelligence to be able to find information you are looking for and the discipline to learn it on your own. Things change all the time in this business; you need to develop the ability and desire to learn for yourself now before you graduate and realize you're way behind the curve.

 

[seminoma]

At a different school than W19, we had CT, XR, and US images on our second exam. Loved it.

Us too, plus MRI and angios. US was just stones though.

 

[The Kraken]

I actually like my school...

Do you go to school in the tundra?

 

[W19]

Do you go to school in the tundra?

🙁

 

[Mgod]

You might want to consider studying abroad......Germany, India, South America ect.
Many international students I have come across seem to have been exposed to the academic depth you were expecting...many of them were amazed by the entire concept of multiple choice testing.

lol wut. i'm a canadian undergrad. no idea what you meant by that statement and I did pretty well on VR 😛

 

[Mgod]

Agree! It should be like this:

View attachment 186624View attachment 186625

err that's a joke right? Seems like glorified anatomy questions.

 

[MedWonk]

err that's a joke right? Seems like glorified anatomy questions.

And what exactly would you expect in an anatomy class?

 

[seminoma]

err that's a joke right? Seems like glorified anatomy questions.

i'm a canadian undergrad

ok.

 

[Jabbed]

You never heard of radiology being incorporated into gross anatomy? Every anatomy practical we took had radiology incorporated. The first several or last several questions were on powerpoint slides and they were images from x-ray, CT, or MRI.

I could imagine basic XRs and CTs, I was mostly surprised at the fact that MRI competency was included in pre-clinical coursework.

 

[DermViser]

I could imagine basic XRs and CTs, I was mostly surprised at the fact that MRI competency was included in pre-clinical coursework.

There isn't this vast difference in terms of CT vs. MRI when it comes to imaging anatomy.

 

[Pose]

I could imagine basic XRs and CTs, I was mostly surprised at the fact that MRI competency was included in pre-clinical coursework.

Yeah, the only additional stuff we had to be able to identify on MRI was whether it was T1 or T2 weighted, with or without fat sat, etc. But in terms of identifying anatomy, it was no different.