For the non-lecture goers...

[tcar18]

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What's your secret?

I'm considering not going to lecture anymore but have some fears:

1. Sometimes the transcripts end with (And the tape stopped).

2. I really want to do well, interested in competitive specialties, I know its early as an MS1. but whats worse that handicapping yourself early... i did that in undergrad.

Thanks all.

 

[SoCuteMD]

What's your secret?

I'm considering not going to lecture anymore but have some fears:

1. Sometimes the transcripts end with (And the tape stopped).

2. I really want to do well, interested in competitive specialties, I know its early as an MS1. but whats worse that handicapping yourself early... i did that in undergrad.

Thanks all.

I stopped going. My grades went up 10 points. I work, just at my own pace, on my own terms 🙂. I'm learning WAY more than I would sitting in a lecture hall.

Plus, the way I see it I am building skills that I will need for this career - no one is going to schedule lectures for me to learn what's going on in medicine once I'm done with residency. I'm gonna have to do it on my own, and I will have had TONS of practice!

 

[psipsina]

Yeah I think I'm still going to go to gross, because the pimping helps me figure out how far behind I am and we always have mandatory dissection afterwards . . . but everything else that doesn't have attendance I'm never ever going to again this semester. I started of the block thinking I was really absorbing stuff sitting there, and then when it came time to review I realized I remembered nothing. At least if I'd spent that time on my own I would have definitely retained some of it.

 

[Law2Doc]

Plus, the way I see it I am building skills that I will need for this career - no one is going to schedule lectures for me to learn what's going on in medicine once I'm done with residency.

If you work in a major hospital setting, there will actually be multiple weekly department lectures and lunch speakers you may go to.

 

[SoCuteMD]

If you work in a major hospital setting, there will actually be multiple weekly department lectures and lunch speakers you may go to.

Not really as much in emergency medicine (which is my top pick at the moment, could change with the direction of the wind later today) because of the swing schedules.

 

[njbmd]

What's your secret?

I'm considering not going to lecture anymore but have some fears:

1. Sometimes the transcripts end with (And the tape stopped).

2. I really want to do well, interested in competitive specialties, I know its early as an MS1. but whats worse that handicapping yourself early... i did that in undergrad.

Thanks all.

My secret to doing well without sitting in class was mastering the material as outlined in the course syllabus. I was less dependent on listening to lecture tapes and more focused on mastering what the syllabus outlined as the course content. Our classrooms were wired and practically every professor had powerpoint slides available for download. Since I could easily obtain the slides, already had the syllabus for content, I didn't need to listen to very many lecture tapes. Anything in the syllabus or assigned reading was testable material whether it was mentioned in lecture or not. The content was always available so I made sure that I covered it well. Most of the time, listening to a lecture tape was counterproductive to this. Our note-takes did not transcribe lecture tapes but outlined and organized the lectures. This was very helpful too.

 

[donmedi]

I like to spend a lot of time organizing my resources and which ones I'll use to learn the ridiculous amount of material we all have to "absorb." Basically, I use the BRS and high yield texts for broad overviews/big picture thinking, then go thru the provided notes and make my own, condensed, clean summary. I try to avoid actual audio recordings unless I really don't get it. Unfortunately, my school is pretty lecture note dependant... but so far, so good. Also, I wish I had more ways to quiz myself on my retention.

I just think if you put in the time to organize, you can study more efficiently, which is the biggest thing.

ps. lecture is for suckas

 

[hyperbaric]

lecture is for suckas

I only wish I had realized this earlier in my first year. Would have saved much stress on my part.

 

[deleted109597]

That's not true. Lecture served the purpose of waking me up and getting me out of the house to interact with people, so that we could plan what bars we were hitting.
It was also a good place to surf the internet, and download stuff, as I only had dialup my first year.

But to go to actually listen to lecture? Or more correctly, to listen to the tools who ask questions during lecture?

 

[AmericanIMG]

That's not true. Lecture served the purpose of waking me up and getting me out of the house to interact with people, so that we could plan what bars we were hitting.

LoL!

 

[tupac_don]

What's your secret?

I'm considering not going to lecture anymore but have some fears:

1. Sometimes the transcripts end with (And the tape stopped).

2. I really want to do well, interested in competitive specialties, I know its early as an MS1. but whats worse that handicapping yourself early... i did that in undergrad.

Thanks all.

This is my suggestion. Go to class, for a first couple of months, simply to meet people in your class and make some connections. If you become a home schooler right off the bat, you might be out of loop and you don't want that.

As far as home studying it's great, also I would suggest to speed up lectures, so that you listen to them at a faster speed, then read the material. You will have a lot more time if you stay at home and will get a lot more out of class. Don't feel guilty for not going to class, do what's most effective to get good grades, and staying home and mastering the material is the most effective way to go in my opinion.

 

[coastal]

The only problem with home-schooling is that sometimes you get sidetracked....for example today. Took a sleep in, took the dog for a two hour walk, played some computer games, played some online poker, now I'm going to go get food ready for some friends coming over tonight. This afternoon I'll probably read novels and then have a nap. Days like today usually happen once a week, often twice. But still I get by!

 

[fantasty]

This comes up so often on SDN, it's like "What are my chances?".

Some people are auditory learners (like me). I went to class because it motivated me to get up and forced me to go over the lectures and spend a little time on each class every day (we don't do blocks here).

But, if you don't go to lecture - that's fine. My annoyance is when people go to lecture and just end up distracting the people who actually want to be there (by asking the dumb ass questions, talking, messing around on their phones or computers, doing crosswords, sleeping).

Also, as an occasional lecturer, I found that to be annoying as well.

 

[bjackrian]

But, if you don't go to lecture - that's fine. My annoyance is when people go to lecture and just end up distracting the people who actually want to be there (by asking the dumb ass questions, talking, messing around on their phones or computers, doing crosswords, sleeping).

Also, as an occasional lecturer, I found that to be annoying as well.

I understand how you'd be annoyed as a lecturer, but how does another student doing a crossword or sleeping distract you when you're sitting in a lecture. Yes, talking and cell phone noises are annoying, but if a student is unobstrusively doing something other than taking notes with rapt attention, that shouldn't hurt other students' experiences...

 

[hyperbaric]

That's not true. Lecture served the purpose of waking me up and getting me out of the house to interact with people, so that we could plan what bars we were hitting.
It was also a good place to surf the internet, and download stuff, as I only had dialup my first year.

But to go to actually listen to lecture? Or more correctly, to listen to the tools who ask questions during lecture?

Can't argue with the truth.

 

[mtDNA]

I am a first year med student who has also discovered the magic of not going to lecture. It really is the way to go in my opinion, it frees up so much time. To keep myself on track, I make sure that I am always in the library studying whenever a lecture is going on (with the exception of biochem, cuz 8:20 is way too early for me, I am not even awake until 9:00). But yeah, instead of hearing lectures for hours and retaining almost none of that, I am studying hard, and it makes everything waaaayyyyyy easier time wise. The notes have all the info we need to know, no reason to listen to a lecture on them.

 

[Dr Who]

I suggest going to at least a few lectures at the beggining of each block so you can get a feel for how each faculty member gives lectures. While you can reasonably skip most lectures and study the material on your own, there ARE some lecturers that you must absolutely NOT miss. In my school there have been lecturers that give a lot of material verbally but give out handout with lots of diagrams and graphs with no explanations. Other professors might give important hints on what material is important and what isnt, which will probably make your life much easier. Other professors just know how to explain difficult or complicated material in a way that textbooks and lecture notes might not.
As you can see, at least go a few times so you get an idea of what to expect before deciding to sleep in.

 

[Taus]

I suggest going to at least a few lectures at the beggining of each block so you can get a feel for how each faculty member gives lectures. While you can reasonably skip most lectures and study the material on your own, there ARE some lecturers that you must absolutely NOT miss. In my school there have been lecturers that give a lot of material verbally but give out handout with lots of diagrams and graphs with no explanations. Other professors might give important hints on what material is important and what isnt, which will probably make your life much easier. Other professors just know how to explain difficult or complicated material in a way that textbooks and lecture notes might not.
As you can see, at least go a few times so you get an idea of what to expect before deciding to sleep in.

I totally agree with you....but thats where the advantage of having all lectures recorded on mp3 kicks in...if it wasn't for that I would not miss nearly as many classes as I do....the profs tone of voice or other means of emphasizing specific things usually give away what will be asked....also when its a great explaination by a prof that you would love repeated...what better way to do it then to hit pause and rewind the audio as many times as you want....

 

[Rendar5]

Everyone learns by a different modality, primarily. If u're an audio learner, go to lectures. if u're a visual learner or a kinetic learner, u're prolly better off on ur own outside of lectures.

 

[psipsina]

Ok so I recently implemented my experiment in not going to lecture, and I think its really working, but I feel kindof naughty/guilty whenever I do it. And most of my classmates seemed really shocked at my decision not to go. I'm still going to gross but nothing else except stuff with mandatory attendance. My school has a note service so I have everything that was said in the class typed up form me. Anyone else dealing with their guilt issues? I've never not gone to class before and it feels really really weird.

 

[akpete]

I started not to go to class about 3-4 weeks into first year. Best decision I ever made. Some people thought I was crazy at first, but slowly but surely others followed. Now, in 2nd year, about 50% don't go to lecture on a somewhat regular basis (or so I've heard cuz I'm not in lecture to see how many people are there 🙄 )

Never felt guilty about it since I started skipping lectures in my first year of undergrad. Sorry, can't relate to the guilty feeling.

Bottom line, just like everyone else has said: you gotta do what's best for you.

 

[AggieJohn]

This comes up so often on SDN, it's like "What are my chances?".

Some people are auditory learners (like me). I went to class because it motivated me to get up and forced me to go over the lectures and spend a little time on each class every day (we don't do blocks here).

But, if you don't go to lecture - that's fine. My annoyance is when people go to lecture and just end up distracting the people who actually want to be there (by asking the dumb ass questions, talking, messing around on their phones or computers, doing crosswords, sleeping).

Also, as an occasional lecturer, I found that to be annoying as well.

Yes, I can't tell you how many times I've been in lecture and some guy has the nerve to.... completely distract me while... doing a crossword? 😕

 

[45408]

I started not to go to class about 3-4 weeks into first year. Best decision I ever made. Some people thought I was crazy at first, but slowly but surely others followed. Now, in 2nd year, about 50% don't go to lecture on a somewhat regular basis (or so I've heard cuz I'm not in lecture to see how many people are there 🙄 )

Never felt guilty about it since I started skipping lectures in my first year of undergrad. Sorry, can't relate to the guilty feeling.

Bottom line, just like everyone else has said: you gotta do what's best for you.

Probably explains why I've only seen you once after meeting you 😛

 

[BooMed]

Ok so I recently implemented my experiment in not going to lecture, and I think its really working, but I feel kindof naughty/guilty whenever I do it. And most of my classmates seemed really shocked at my decision not to go. I'm still going to gross but nothing else except stuff with mandatory attendance. My school has a note service so I have everything that was said in the class typed up form me. Anyone else dealing with their guilt issues? I've never not gone to class before and it feels really really weird.

Yes, I'm feeling really guilty. I have never skipped classes before and it feels so weird. But I'm getting so much more done! I'm literally trading one hour of anatomy lecture for five hours of studying, then I head off to school for gross lab and some social time.

At our school the administration basically tells us not to go if we do better at home, but some of the professors are really weird about attendance. I actually ran from one of our anatomy professors the other day because I'm so afraid of him!

 

[psipsina]

Yes, I'm feeling really guilty. I have never skipped classes before and it feels so weird. But I'm getting so much more done! I'm literally trading one hour of anatomy lecture for five hours of studying, then I head off to school for gross lab and some social time.

At our school the administration basically tells us not to go if we do better at home, but some of the professors are really weird about attendance. I actually ran from one of our anatomy professors the other day because I'm so afraid of him!

Yeah I definitely have a fear of the proffs realizin I'm not in class anymore. I hope that if any of them ever say anything I have the cohones to explain how much more efficiently I am using my time. I actually really liked going to lecture, the stuff just didn't seem to make it into my long term memory like it does when I pound it in for an hour at home.

 

[med_heidelberg]

I go to lecture, but I wonder if it's useless and a waste of time. I wonder if I would be motivated to study extra to make up for it if I didn't go ... and if i don't go I feel like I am missing something. Still when I'm in there half asleep I think it sucks. So it's a catch 22. I went to lecture for my 1st year so I guess I'll keep it up in the 2nd. If it ain't broken don't fix it I guess.

 

[diosa428]

In our class, we have a "notes group" - one person is responsible for taking REALLY good notes for one lecture, and we rotate. There are about 50-60 of us in the group, so we only end up needing to take notes for the group about once a month. Then we can all access the notes. This makes studying at home easier, b/c I can do the assigned reading and then supplement it with the notes from class, without actually having to attend class. Of course, the quality of the notes vary, as people have different note taking styles, but they are often better than the lousy notes I would write while I was busy playing games or on IM. We also have the ability to stream our lectures, so if the notes are particularly bad, I can restream. But for the most part, people do a good job.

 

[MossPoh]

Overall just listening is one of the least effective ways to learn...even if you are an auditor learner. You get the most benefit out of a combination. If you reviewed all the material before hand, formulated your own questions that seemed important, went to lecture, and then reviewed again afterwards it would be great...but realistically nobody does that so lectures really aren't helpful. (still in undergrad...just got preached to about lectures by a prof in cogn. psych the other day) My problem now is that I tend to feel guilty for whatever reason not going to the stuff...even though I know I won't get benefit from it. I think I need to shake that feeling before I get to your point. 😉

 

[Wizard of Oz]

Don't go--best move I ever made.

 

[Dookter]

I discovered skipping lecture on day two of medical school. All the older students said to not go, so I made it until after the second lecture on Tuesday of the first week. Then I stopped almost completely for my whole first block. I am a few weeks into second block, and I started going to class thinking that I would pay attention and learn. Let's just say it is not working out. I did not go to class today and plan to skip the rest of the block. I learn SOOOO much more at home. Also, in lecture material is presented in a linear fashion, which is obviously not how something like physiology, for example, works.

But at my school we had TONS of social activities up front, so we all know each other pretty well. I am not missing much socially by not going to class.

Also, we have a notes group where we alternate who is responsible for making notes for each lecture by watching the video online after each class. So I actually have all the notes from class without having to attend. Sweet!

 

[liverotcod]

I go to lecture pretty religiously (missed maybe 2-3 all first year) and if the instructor isn't very engaging, I just open the syllabus or text and study right there. I need the structure that getting up and going to lectures gives me.

 

[Smitty3L]

I'm a big time homeschooler, and self studying is definitely a more efficient use of my time! Especially when you take into account driving to school, parking, walking to class, etc. When you homeschool you can wake up, walk over to your desk and start class while eating your breakfast.

The best method I have found is to listen to the lecture at a faster speed, with the syllabus open in front of me. As I need to I pause and/or rewind and take some notes. After doing this I only need to make a quick review over the material once the night before the test.

However, when I don't have the time to sit down at a desk and really study I have my ipod on me and listen to lectures while doing whatever else needs to be done. This works especially well for subjects like human behavior, and not so well for things like anatomy where looking at diagrams is really helpful. However I always absorb some information no matter what the class is. An ipod has been a necessity for me!

 

[wannabmed]

hey all,

i'm also doing the study-at-home method. just out of curiosity about how many hours are you guys putting in per day? (i'm trying to stick to 6-8 solid hours a day.)

 

[Smitty3L]

I'm lucky to get 2-3 solid hours in a day. Some days I don't get any studying done at all. I have a 9 month old who also stays home with me, so I get little bits in here and there while chasing her around, and as I mentioned before listen to lectures on my ipod. After she goes to bed I try to study until I go to bed. By the time test block rolls around I have some catching up to do, but with a couple of all nighters and I'm doing just fine. Ideally I would love to have 5-6 hours of solid study a day, I could probably take the weekends completely off if I had that during the week.

 

[78222]

I quit going to most classes around my first week of class. I cannot for the life of me understand people that refuse to skip class despite the fact that its not really helping them.

 

[ubcredfox]

At UBC we spent a LOT of time in class. On a usual day we have 2 hrs PBL in the morning, followed by 2hrs of lecture (that's 8am-12am); break; and then from 1PM onwards you have "other lectures" of a more optional variety - especially a so called course in "doctor patient and society".

Fridays are the worst, because from 1PM-210ish we have Gross lecture and than gross lab to 5pm. So, a total of 8 hrs of class 🙁

Just seems like too much sitting on my butt staring at a guy talk time and def. not enough time to review material/make notes. Unfortunantely we don't have any audio recordings or lecture video feeds.

Sigh...

 

[fun8stuff]

Research as repetitively shown that lectures are among the worst ways to learn anything. Most people cannot simply passively absorb material presented in lecture, although most people who make it to medical school are probably better at this than the average joe.

To maximize your studying at home, make it active studying. You will do tons better than you would in lecture and save you a ton of time. At my school, 99% of the time all questions come from the notes. I watch lectures at 2x as a summary of notes and to get an idea of important key points. If the lecture is cut off, it really won't matter that you missed those 5-10 extra seconds. ... everything is in the notes!

 

[psipsina]

Ok, so I've stopped going to lecture and am loving it and being so productive. My school has a notes service and the powerpoints are online, so thats how I've been studying. But now there's a problem. Apparently in a lecture today the proff announced that if attendance doesn't go up for this course, they aren't going to put the powerpoints online anymore. .. ugggg. . . . I'm so torn as to what to do because not going to class has really been working for me, and I feel like it shouldn't matter how I learn as long as I learn. I was really under the impression that my school was lax about this issue, . . . but apparently not. So should I start going to save the powerpoints? And what if it doesn't even matter because no one else starts going again? Has anyone faced a similar issue at their school??

 

[yellowcat322]

Ok, so I've stopped going to lecture and am loving it and being so productive. My school has a notes service and the powerpoints are online, so thats how I've been studying. But now there's a problem. Apparently in a lecture today the proff announced that if attendance doesn't go up for this course, they aren't going to put the powerpoints online anymore. .. ugggg. . . . I'm so torn as to what to do because not going to class has really been working for me, and I feel like it shouldn't matter how I learn as long as I learn. I was really under the impression that my school was lax about this issue, . . . but apparently not. So should I start going to save the powerpoints? And what if it doesn't even matter because no one else starts going again? Has anyone faced a similar issue at their school??

We have a similar issue at my school with webcasting. In addition to putting up powerpoints, this year our school decided to try taping the lectures and putting them up online as webcasts. This was really great for me since now I had the option to watch the lecture if I felt that the power points weren't enough. But of course, as can be predicted, attendance dropped significantly (i mean why would you get up to go to an 8am lecture when you can watch that same lecture at home in your PJs around noonish) and now some professors are threatening to do away with webcasts. So what we did was got organized as a student body - we sent e-mails to the professors explaining why webcasts are so instrumental to our learning and we took a survey of the class to see how many people were benefitted by these webcasts. As a result many professors changed their mind and now we get to keep webcasting, although not all lectures will be taped like before.

I hope your school will keep putting up powerpoints cause otherwise it would be tough to miss lectures unless your professors all have amazing notes. I know ours definitely don't

 

[nightowl]

lecture until 5 one day a week? Try lecture 8-12 and lab 1-4 or 5 every single day. We're in class 8 hours monday through friday. I'm about to start skipping simply because after 8 hours of school I really don't have a lot of energy to put in an additional 3+ hours of studying a night. 😕

 

[Izabelle]

I can totally see why people wouldn't go to lecture and I wish that my conscience would let me skip, but I always go out of respect for my professors who have prepared these lectures and are there to share their knowledge. Does anyone else feel that way...attend out of respect for the professor?

Still, I think it should be up to us. After all, we are adults and should be able to decide how our time is best spent. If only I could get that darn respect thing out of my head and skip too.

 

[mkerr]

i respect them for spending the time and energy preparing and lecturing.
i don't let that get in the way of my desire to do well in med and to have a life at the same time.

there's a few lecturers that i actually rock up for because they're on relevant stuff and presented fantastically. if more lecturers did the same i'd attend more lectures.

 

[psipsina]

I don't think not going is disrespectful to the proff's efforts. I still use their teachings via their powerpoints and a noteset that is based off a recording of their lecture. So I'm still letting them teach me, its just that I take it in better if I read it and then go over it a few times before moving on than just hearing it in a rushed lecture where they're trying desperately to get thru X amount of material in X amount of time. Its really nothing against my lecturer's, I actually really enjoy going to lecture, its just that I realized I wasn't retaining much from them. Thats why I don't get them being so upset about people not coming, there are so many studies about how different people learn differently. Honestly, who cares how I'm learning this stuff, as long as its getting in my head I'm fulfilling the goal of medical school.

 

[Taus]

I don't think not going is disrespectful to the proff's efforts. I still use their teachings via their powerpoints and a noteset that is based off a recording of their lecture. So I'm still letting them teach me, its just that I take it in better if I read it and then go over it a few times before moving on than just hearing it in a rushed lecture where they're trying desperately to get thru X amount of material in X amount of time. Its really nothing against my lecturer's, I actually really enjoy going to lecture, its just that I realized I wasn't retaining much from them. Thats why I don't get them being so upset about people not coming, there are so many studies about how different people learn differently. Honestly, who cares how I'm learning this stuff, as long as its getting in my head I'm fulfilling the goal of medical school.

I couldn't agree more...though I notice some classmates seem "bitter" and like to think they are somehow more studious or tougher for making it to all of the classes. I have a hard time allowing myself to feel bad about not going when I am very satisfied with my grades. One year from now I won't be able to control my hours at all....might as well enjoy it while I can. To each/his her own.....

also...this method would absolutely not work without recordings and posted powerpoints and notes. I really enjoy class, but can't stand when something clicks in my head and I want to take a minute to write it down...and have then missed what the lecturer said next. Pressing pause and rewinding something important just makes my life a lot easier....not to mention doing 8am lecture at noon....

 

[Izabelle]

Good points...maybe I will soon be convinced to stop attending lectures too. I am also bad about feeling more studious than the non-lecture goers but that truly isn't the case. I think it shows studiousness (whatever the noun is) to actually stay home and study on your own.

Thanks for the insight.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I'm currently a halftime class attender. I go to anatomy because we get points for going, and I go to human behavior because going is pretty much all you need to do to do well (well, coupled with 3 hours of studying the night before the exam). I also attend embryology, which only meets once a week, because otherwise I'd forget I'm taking it. 🙂 However, I pretty much never go to biochem because 8 am is way too early for me, and I can't stand a full day of lectures. Mostly, I've been relying on notegroups, the syllabus and powerpoints, and I think I'm really learning the material and did do well on the first exam. The current professor doesn't release powerpoints, so I'm listening to her lectures at 1.5 time, which is an amazing tool.

This gets to me to my big thought about listening to the recordings versus attending lectures. I can skip one class and listen to the recordings becaue the class is too early, but I'm not disciplined enough to listen to recordings for all my classes on my own time. So, if a class is at a reasonable time, and I feel like I need to listen to the lecture, I actually attend.

 

[fun8stuff]

I couldn't agree more...though I notice some classmates seem "bitter" and like to think they are somehow more studious or tougher for making it to all of the classes. I have a hard time allowing myself to feel bad about not going when I am very satisfied with my grades. One year from now I won't be able to control my hours at all....might as well enjoy it while I can. To each/his her own.....

also...this method would absolutely not work without recordings and posted powerpoints and notes. I really enjoy class, but can't stand when something clicks in my head and I want to take a minute to write it down...and have then missed what the lecturer said next. Pressing pause and rewinding something important just makes my life a lot easier....not to mention doing 8am lecture at noon....

i feel the same way. the only reason i can think of to go to class would be for social reasons... but i'm not really in med school for social reasons.

 

[Babylonian]

Class interferes with my education.


Only show up for exams. Walk into my 8am exam like 8:05am. Everytime I show up to the exam, the testing people are yelling "hurry the exam is going to start." I don't pay 40gees to be hurrying up for people. Sheatttt! I leave out through the back door before exam officially ends. Only know one person in my class, don't give a damn about the rest. Funny stuff.

Spend half the day painting and the other half on course material.


Oh, and for gross lab. Walk into lab around 12am on sat and sun until about 4am each day just to review structures and relationships and draw everything out on boards. Lab partners love to dissect so they don't mind I skip out on lab.

 

[Moto]

Class interferes with my education.

Only show up for exams.

Spend half the day painting and the other half on course material.

Never went to class. Only go to mandatory meetings. Have more time than as undergrad. My grades don't warrant a change.