Medical How to develop study habits for medical school

[militaryPHYS]

Hey SDN

I was recently accepted into medical school!! I am a senior taking a few courses before I graduate. I am trying to adjust my study technique and make it more of efficient for med school. Any ideas/study techniques I should practice.

Basically the material I have to learn is 4 chapters worth of PowerPoints. I am open to ideas and techniques. I was thinking of using my PowerPoint as a study guide and blocking out or whiting the terms out and then it's kind of a fill in the blank PowerPoint. Or quizlet, anki but it's not that efficient. I want to develop a useful technique now rather then later and have to adjust.

Thanks!

At the beginning of medical school the volume of information will feel daunting and dreadful. But quickly you will get in to a routine and understand what is the actual high-yield information for each subject and topic you cover.

I began creating word documents (now I use oneNote) to create high-yield review sheets for each topic. For example, Krebs Cycle. You can easily copy and paste tables, images, etc. while combining it with hand-typed text of the stuff you need to know based on lectures and book chapters. This is likely similar to what you are doing with PPT, but I would recommend using a more efficient and user friendly note-taking system such as Word or OneNote. As the exam was getting closer, and as I was nearing completion of the document, I would print it off. Once it is printed off you can begin the Pomodoro technique and highlight, underline, add in additional info from other sources you are utilizing. Think of the document as the central pillar to the information you are focused on. You'll find you have textbooks, review articles, lectures, etc. There are so many resources for the same information that it becomes a daunting task to read/review each of them multiple times (because you do need repetition). I would essentially pick out the high-yield info from each resource as I was going through it the firs time and translate it in to my study document. That way you never have to go back to each resource, but can as needed during your memorization period leading up to the exam. You'll also find yourself remembering things based on photographic-type memory because you condensed the info down so much and reviewed it so many times.

Ultimately you create for yourself an "everything I need to know" document that can be used for step exams, boards and even review during residency when you find out what you'll be doing. I referenced them often and still do to this day.

Typing everything out feels inefficient because it is compared to what you are currently used to doing. I found that it was the MOST efficient way for me to compile all of the info I needed during medical school once I was a year or so in. Typing/writing always helps me memorize too.

Good luck!

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[Goro]

Read this:

• Goro's Guide to Success in Medical School (2018 edition)

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Congratulations on your acceptance. I'm not sure what pedagogy/curriculum you are entering, nor do I know what techniques you are really practicing or how your knowledge in your current exams is going to be assessed. The pomodoro method is always suggested, and I've encouraged advisees to use it for preparing for the MCAT/standardized exams.