How to succeed without taking notes

[161468]

I can't keep up really with the material, and I don't have the energy anymore. I'm looking to completely change how I study because I am getting burned out fast and am not doing that well in my class anyways. So, what I want to know, is how to study without taking diligent notes but still being able to retain all the minutiae my teachers love to test us on.

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[thechad]

Well, I pretty much gave up on taking notes about a quarter of the way through my first semester (with the exception of one class). Notes are kind of already taken for you (i.e. BRS Anatomy, Rapid Review Path, or class syllabus).

 

[medstudent11]

Lecture transcripts/recordings? Does your med school do that?

Don't underestimate Wiki and all the review books out there for at least getting some general knowledge.

~Medstudent11
http://themedstudentexperience.blogspot.com

 

[Depakote]

I'll tell you what I do, feel free to disregard if it's no help:

I'm more of a passive learner. I just try to get as many views of the material in before the test.

I still take notes, but it's more for the act of taking them than for later study. Just writing it down helps me retain the info. You might try this but without the note taking if you want to just listen and absorb.


I'll attend lecture, and annotate the syllabus. (this is my first pass of the info)

That evening I'll listen to the lecture again (our school records lectures), this time at 2x speed. I'll take a second set of notes on the same page. (this is my second pass of the info)

When possible, usually that weekend, I'll try to review that same material in a different source. Either BRS, a textbook, whatever I've found works. But something that's a different presentation than the way the lecturer did so I get a different perspective. I'll review this and try to summarize the content in the margins so I know I've processed the info and understood it. (3rd pass of the info)

Week before the test... reread the syllabus cover to cover if time permits for a 4th pass.

Week before the test... Practice Questions (I'll do these even if time doesn't permit for the 4th pass): Lots of different sources for these but just refreshing the info and picking up on the minutiae. This also tends to hit high yield points.


This is what has been working for me, but it took me over a year to build this system and adapt it to my personal study habits. Try to figure out how you learn best and make one that works best for you.

 

[lord_jeebus]

When I went to lecture, I would take notes - but much fewer notes than those around me.

Did they say something obvious? Don't write it down.

Something that won't be tested? Don't write it down.

Something that's already printed in the hand-out, syllabus, or textbook? Don't write it down.

Review from previous lecture? Don't write it down.

Are they giving a clinical example of how to apply a concept? Put down the pen and pay attention.

Write large so that you're not tempted to write too much. Throw away the Hi-Tec C and get a pen with a fat point.

Diligent notes are notes that won't burden you when you're reviewing later. There's no way around taking notes (or having someone else take notes) on testable minutia.

 

[abooodMD]

I'll tell you what I do, feel free to disregard if it's no help:

I'm more of a passive learner. I just try to get as many views of the material in before the test.

I still take notes, but it's more for the act of taking them than for later study. Just writing it down helps me retain the info. You might try this but without the note taking if you want to just listen and absorb.


I'll attend lecture, and annotate the syllabus. (this is my first pass of the info)

That evening I'll listen to the lecture again (our school records lectures), this time at 2x speed. I'll take a second set of notes on the same page. (this is my second pass of the info)

When possible, usually that weekend, I'll try to review that same material in a different source. Either BRS, a textbook, whatever I've found works. But something that's a different presentation than the way the lecturer did so I get a different perspective. I'll review this and try to summarize the content in the margins so I know I've processed the info and understood it. (3rd pass of the info)

Week before the test... reread the syllabus cover to cover if time permits for a 4th pass.

Week before the test... Practice Questions (I'll do these even if time doesn't permit for the 4th pass): Lots of different sources for these but just refreshing the info and picking up on the minutiae. This also tends to hit high yield points.


This is what has been working for me, but it took me over a year to build this system and adapt it to my personal study habits. Try to figure out how you learn best and make one that works best for you.

I have to admit that I'm so admired of your studying system.
but there is some points I wanna discuss with you ..
In one semester you have more than one subject, like: Neurlogy, Pharmacology, Immunology... etc. (according to each country and med school system.. there is some differences).
Any way I just wanna ask.. talkin about me, sometimes I have 3 classes aday, so I can get the first pass of the info for each one easily,
but talkin about the other passes ... it is so difficult.
How could I listen to 3 lectures records and write down notes, and at the weekend to revise for the whole week and for every subject from a big and truley they are a very big text books??

just want you to tell me, I think you are an expert as long as you follow such great system in your studying???

thanks for your useful post.

 

[Depakote]

I have to admit that I'm so admired of your studying system.
but there is some points I wanna discuss with you ..
In one semester you have more than one subject, like: Neurlogy, Pharmacology, Immunology... etc. (according to each country and med school system.. there is some differences).
Any way I just wanna ask.. talkin about me, sometimes I have 3 classes aday, so I can get the first pass of the info for each one easily,
but talkin about the other passes ... it is so difficult.
How could I listen to 3 lectures records and write down notes, and at the weekend to revise for the whole week and for every subject from a big and truley they are a very big text books??

just want you to tell me, I think you are an expert as long as you follow such great system in your studying???

thanks for your useful post.

I will admit that my system is very time intensive. I don't always get as many reviews in as I like.

For the 3rd pass. It's usually in a review text like BRS or something like that. Generally not the full text unless I have an abundance of time... But we're talking like a 20 page chapter for a week's worth of material. It's manageable.

 

[abooodMD]

I will admit that my system is very time intensive. I don't always get as many reviews in as I like.

For the 3rd pass. It's usually in a review text like BRS or something like that. Generally not the full text unless I have an abundance of time... But we're talking like a 20 page chapter for a week's worth of material. It's manageable.

you know what.. talking about your studying system is very time intensive is very specific description.
but can you tell me how many hours do you spend in your university attending lectures, and when you go home, how many hours do you spend studying ??

and thanx for your reply.

 

[Depakote]

you know what.. talking about your studying system is very time intensive is very specific description.
but can you tell me how many hours do you spend in your university attending lectures, and when you go home, how many hours do you spend studying ??

and thanx for your reply.

It's probably not best to quantify it in hours b/c some days right after a test I'll spend 4 in lecture, another handful reviewing the days material after and get home nice and early. Other days (like right before a test), I'll spend 14+ just going through as much as possible before grabbing a bite to eat, getting some sleep and doing it all over again.

It's about making sure you get through the material and don't behind. Spend as much time as you need to do that.

 

[45408]

When I went to lecture, I would take notes - but much fewer notes than those around me.

Did they say something obvious? Don't write it down.

Something that won't be tested? Don't write it down.

Something that's already printed in the hand-out, syllabus, or textbook? Don't write it down.

Review from previous lecture? Don't write it down.

Are they giving a clinical example of how to apply a concept? Put down the pen and pay attention.

Write large so that you're not tempted to write too much. Throw away the Hi-Tec C and get a pen with a fat point.

Diligent notes are notes that won't burden you when you're reviewing later. There's no way around taking notes (or having someone else take notes) on testable minutia.

Agree. I did this with taking notes and for highlighting. If I already knew it, could easily figure it out or wouldn't need to know it, I didn't highlight it. My notes look pretty blank compared to some classmates, who would write EVERYTHING down. I didn't even go to class, and I rarely listened to lectures, so I didn't even know what they talked about in lecture. If it wasn't in the notes, I probably wasn't gonna learn it. Worked pretty well for me.

 

[abooodMD]

It's probably not best to quantify it in hours b/c some days right after a test I'll spend 4 in lecture, another handful reviewing the days material after and get home nice and early. Other days (like right before a test), I'll spend 14+ just going through as much as possible before grabbing a bite to eat, getting some sleep and doing it all over again.

It's about making sure you get through the material and don't behind. Spend as much time as you need to do that.

sometimes I should spend 22 hours a day to get most of the material.

Thanks a lot my buddy .

 

[KnuxNole]

I hope you were exaggerating the 22 hours a day thing...sleep is a wonderful thing

 

[Superman78]

In Biochemistry my current professor posts extremely detailed (too detailed) notes online and his lectures are just a summary of the important parts of those notes. So for this class, instead of taking my own notes, I just sit in class and try to actively memorize everything he says. When you make an active effort to memorize things when they're presented to you, you tend to remember more. I just sit back and watch his class like it's the Discovery Channel and it's about the most important topic in the world, and it will only be aired once and then will be lost forever. Then in the library I'll go through his notes and rewrite them in my own way, complete with pneumonics and ridiculous little associations (often dirty and sexual) to help me remember the material.

To a certain degree you have to minimize your writing and re-writing and transcribing the same notes over and over and just trust your brain to remember everything. Just trust that you've got a powerful supercomputer in your skull that will remember things if you store them properly.

 

[161468]

I'll tell you what I do, feel free to disregard if it's no help:

I'm more of a passive learner. I just try to get as many views of the material in before the test.

I still take notes, but it's more for the act of taking them than for later study. Just writing it down helps me retain the info. You might try this but without the note taking if you want to just listen and absorb.


I'll attend lecture, and annotate the syllabus. (this is my first pass of the info)

That evening I'll listen to the lecture again (our school records lectures), this time at 2x speed. I'll take a second set of notes on the same page. (this is my second pass of the info)

When possible, usually that weekend, I'll try to review that same material in a different source. Either BRS, a textbook, whatever I've found works. But something that's a different presentation than the way the lecturer did so I get a different perspective. I'll review this and try to summarize the content in the margins so I know I've processed the info and understood it. (3rd pass of the info)

Week before the test... reread the syllabus cover to cover if time permits for a 4th pass.

Week before the test... Practice Questions (I'll do these even if time doesn't permit for the 4th pass): Lots of different sources for these but just refreshing the info and picking up on the minutiae. This also tends to hit high yield points.


This is what has been working for me, but it took me over a year to build this system and adapt it to my personal study habits. Try to figure out how you learn best and make one that works best for you.

This is very similar to what I was considering doing. I learn better by reading textbooks but that used to take too long because of all the stopping to take notes. Reading one source for the initial (most difficult) pass and then reading lecture notes if available to solidify what my teachers will test. And then going over another source with practice questions and the lecture notes the week before the exam (we get some free days thankfully). Things that seem new to me or that I have forgotten I intend to make note of. But outlining material is over for me.

 

[abooodMD]

I hope you were exaggerating the 22 hours a day thing...sleep is a wonderful thing

when you need to finish alot of chapters in pharmacology, you have to.

 

[cobaltgreen]

My recommendation is not to go too extreme and stop writing anything. Writing does help me learn.

I make a half-page to one pager. I agree that the micro-point pen must go. Get a normal pen and write succint associations.

If I learn that info cold--then filling in minutiae seems to just happen as I flip through the notes and read material from outside sources.

I changed to this method because writing out notes was great until I started losing efficiency . It felt awful walking into an exam knowing 90% of the material in ridiculous detail and not so much about the rest...gotta just know it all pretty darn well.

 

[utorontograd]

Hi aboood,

Dep's strategy sounds a lot like what I did.

I listened to all my lectures at 2x (double speed). Usually only once though. Preferred a more active approach.

I reviewed lecture notes for every class given in a day that evening, once the next morning, once on the weekend where I studied every lecture for the week. Then a couple more times before the test to get the last-minute minutiae in.

I put a check mark on my schedule, every time I read over a lecture. To ensure that I always hit my 5 time minimum of reviewing lecture notes.

Only used textbooks to fill in the gaps. Didn't spend much time with them at all. Purposely.

Took brief notes during lecture just to stay awake.

Taking an OCD approach actually freed up a lot of time and made things way easier.

I have to admit that I'm so admired of your studying system.
but there is some points I wanna discuss with you ..
In one semester you have more than one subject, like: Neurlogy, Pharmacology, Immunology... etc. (according to each country and med school system.. there is some differences).
Any way I just wanna ask.. talkin about me, sometimes I have 3 classes aday, so I can get the first pass of the info for each one easily,
but talkin about the other passes ... it is so difficult.
How could I listen to 3 lectures records and write down notes, and at the weekend to revise for the whole week and for every subject from a big and truley they are a very big text books??

just want you to tell me, I think you are an expert as long as you follow such great system in your studying???

thanks for your useful post.

 

[RunningKing]

You can do well without studying endlessly if structure your studying properly to learn the material instead of simply comprehending the material. This is a subtle difference, but it is very important. Much of medicine is simply learning vocabulary...seriously. Here is my basic procedure.
1 podcast the lecture at 1.5x for a basic overview.
2. go through the lecture, picking out terms that you don't understand very well. Write these down and look over them often.
3. If you have time, read about the more difficult aspects of the material in an alternative source, such as Robbins or BRS.
4. As the test nears, make sure you memorize WELL what the terms mean, go thru the lectures once more to get a new perspective, looking for details you missed.

Everyone is individual, I am naturally a big picture thinker, the details can escape me if I don't put emphasis on memorizing them. I have been scoring well on all my tests, getting 8+ hours of sleep, and exercising 10-12 hours a week. Balance is key, but when you study, STUDY!