Learning Anatomy Before Entering Med School

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smoodle

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Hey Guys!

I've been told a great way to get a jump on med school is taking an anatomy course before matriculating. I am not in school right now and am weighing my options for this. Do you guys think taking a course is the best route for this? Or is there other good study tips/books/websites that I could use so I dont have to pay for an actual course?
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smoodle said:
Hey Guys!

I've been told a great way to get a jump on med school is taking an anatomy course before matriculating. I am not in school right now and am weighing my options for this. Do you guys think taking a course is the best route for this? Or is there other good study tips/books/websites that I could use so I dont have to pay for an actual course?
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Take a course, it's the best way.

The people in my class who never took anatomy seem to really be struggling, so I highly recommend you do it if you can.

SLC
 
This is all what I've heard on SDN, take it with a grain of salt.

Some people say it helps a little, but any advantage would be lost within the first week or so. Med school hits you hard and fast so there's little benefit from an undergraduate anatomy course. Someone else posted here that undergrad anatomy courses teach you where things are, but med school anatomy teaches you where it is, how its connected to things around it, and how they all play a part in a larger picture that is medicine.

It's up to you if you want to take it, but I'll echo what I've read on here: enjoy your time off. You won't really get another chance to.
 
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If your med school has a summer accelerated anatomy course that will help you get a jump on the school year. Plus you'll be able to just focus on anatomy and not have to deal with other classes. Taking an anatomy class somewhere else before will help you out, but less than you'd think. Your time and money are probably better spend doing something fun while you still have the opportunity.
 
MRSAful Fate said:
If your med school has a summer accelerated anatomy course that will help you get a jump on the school year. Plus you'll be able to just focus on anatomy and not have to deal with other classes. Taking an anatomy class somewhere else before will help you out, but less than you'd think. Your time and money are probably better spend doing something fun while you still have the opportunity.
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Does anyone know which schools offer accelerated summer anatomy classes? I think I saw that Western/COMP does. Any others?
 
Don't take a course, it's expensive and time consuming. The extent of my anatomy pre-studying was going through Netter's flash cards on down time during work. I think it helped quite a bit in the sections I'd studied.

If you're really gung-ho, you could buy Gray's Anatomy for Students. Reading through it once probably would have been enough to pass all the written exams in anatomy, and subsequent readthroughs are easier and faster. If you have acceptances, you can try checking what textbook you'll be using, and pick that up. It would definately be helpful, but you have to ask yourself how much time you're willing to sink into this.

I'm more open to the idea of pre-studying than many of the medical students on here, but even I'll say that you shouldn't sacrifice anything to do it. If it's down time at work, or you're sitting around the house and the people in your social circle aren't available to do something with, then go ahead. If you're passing up anything more than playing video games alone, then you're taking it too far.
 
Look guys, I'm as big a proponent of taking time off before med school as anyone. I'm also a big proponent of the advice to forget trying to pre-study before starting. But in the case of human anatomy, I feel quite differently.

Maybe my undergrad anatomy course was far better than most, but I feel like I haven't had to study for anatomy because of it. While I've seen anatomy take classmates, who've never taken it, down.

So I guess I'll revise my advice, if you can get a good human anatomy course, take it and don't let anyone tell you not to. If all you have access to is a weak course, then save your money.

If you can get a good class, you WILL NOT regret it.

Take it from an OMS-I

SLC
 
SLC said:
Look guys, I'm as big a proponent of taking time off before med school as anyone. I'm also a big proponent of the advice to forget trying to pre-study before starting. But in the case of human anatomy, I feel quite differently.

Maybe my undergrad anatomy course was far better than most, but I feel like I haven't had to study for anatomy because of it. While I've seen anatomy take classmates, who've never taken it, down.

So I guess I'll revise my advice, if you can get a good human anatomy course, take it and don't let anyone tell you not to. If all you have access to is a weak course, then save your money.

If you can get a good class, you WILL NOT regret it.

Take it from an OMS-I

SLC
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I noticed your name SLC, you didn't happen to take Mark Nielsen's anatomy course at the UofU?
 
Oo Cipher oO said:
I noticed your name SLC, you didn't happen to take Mark Nielsen's anatomy course at the UofU?
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That I did! And I lived in student housing next to the Medical School. Most of my neighbors were medical students and many said his undergraduate class was as good or better than what they got at the SOM.

I can attest to that for my program too!

Even Dr. Neilsen's basic (prosection) class is INCREDIBLE! You will learn, anatomy, histology, embryology and get a fair bit of clinical application as well.

SLC
 
The majority of my class passed just fine (and the few I know who didn't had other circumstances that affected their grades).

I would save the time and money and enjoy the remainder of the freedom that you have, because you won't have much of it once you start, regardless of if you have taken extra courses to help. I had A & P in college, but it was 4 years before I even started med school, and while some things came back, it was still a lot of memorizing and studying, and I am very glad I did not bother studying before I started school.

Take the money you would spend on a course, and go on a vacation somewhere. I definitely wish I went on more vacations before I started.
 
Oo Cipher oO said:
Does anyone know which schools offer accelerated summer anatomy classes? I think I saw that Western/COMP does. Any others?
Click to expand...


UMDNJ-SOM in NJ offers one also.
 
Lewist02 said:
The majority of my class passed just fine (and the few I know who didn't had other circumstances that affected their grades).

I would save the time and money and enjoy the remainder of the freedom that you have, because you won't have much of it once you start, regardless of if you have taken extra courses to help. I had A & P in college, but it was 4 years before I even started med school, and while some things came back, it was still a lot of memorizing and studying, and I am very glad I did not bother studying before I started school.

Take the money you would spend on a course, and go on a vacation somewhere. I definitely wish I went on more vacations before I started.
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👍

Tried to study anatomy while I was backpacking europe before med school. I have vivid memories of studying on train rides, but absolutely no memories of what I learned 😛 It just doesn't stick without a class or something to let you know what's important.

You have a long 4 years ahead. You were bright enough to get here, I am sure you will be bright enough to get through anatomy when the time comes. Enjoy your freedom while you have it!
 
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DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME TAKING ANATOMY.

Just finished Anatomy in med school. First, I took Anatomy in college. I found that it didn't help (and my Anatomy course was taught by med school professors). Second, if I had to retake med school Anatomy over again, I'd probably study just as hard as I did the first time I took it. That's because I already forgot most of Anatomy.

So seriously, don't take Anatomy before med school. It won't help, and you won't remember it.

Even people who have a MASTERS DEGREE IN ANATOMY were struggling through the course.
 
Don't take anatomy before medical school.

Our class is passing anatomy just fine. You'll be hit with a lot of information; doing well in in anatomy is all about how you study and how often you repeat the information in your head. Also looking at cadavers is essential for good recall - not all bodies have the same perfect layout, so deciphering and recognizing these variances is important to solidify the information in your head.
 
This might be a stupid question, but does anyone ever get an "A" in anatomy? Or is it one of those courses people are expected to just get by with a passing grade.
 
Iliketoytles said:
This might be a stupid question, but does anyone ever get an "A" in anatomy? Or is it one of those courses people are expected to just get by with a passing grade.
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Our school is pass/fail but a good portion of students got 90% and higher in the class overall.
 
Iliketoytles said:
This might be a stupid question, but does anyone ever get an "A" in anatomy? Or is it one of those courses people are expected to just get by with a passing grade.
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Plenty of people. If you're good at memorizing, you should have no problem. But I wouldn't worry about trying to score the A.
 
Iliketoytles said:
This might be a stupid question, but does anyone ever get an "A" in anatomy? Or is it one of those courses people are expected to just get by with a passing grade.
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I also just want to add that every school does their curriculum differently, so one school may have just one term of anatomy, where one school may have it throughout the entire year (including lab), so maybe that could affect grades too.
 
Lewist02 said:
Plenty of people. If you're good at memorizing, you should have no problem. But I wouldn't worry about trying to score the A.
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I think SPOM was the worst course of med school ughhhh. Yeah I did well enough in it but it was the biggest time sink, of school so far...and I only watch tegrity...so having to come to school for anatomy lab suckedddddddd haha. Nothin like practically falling asleep against a cadavers leg...sitting on your stool...at 8am in a freeeeeeezing cold room while TK rambles on and on about the dissection of the day.
 
willen101383 said:
I think SPOM was the worst course of med school ughhhh. Yeah I did well enough in it but it was the biggest time sink, of school so far...and I only watch tegrity...so having to come to school for anatomy lab suckedddddddd haha. Nothin like practically falling asleep against a cadavers leg...sitting on your stool...at 8am in a freeeeeeezing cold room while TK rambles on and on about the dissection of the day.
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Haha - Drexel does a full year of anatomy lab! COULD YOU IMAGINE. 😴😱
 
Lewist02 said:
Haha - Drexel does a full year of anatomy lab! COULD YOU IMAGINE. 😴😱
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Yeah F that haha. Thank god we only have like 2 or 3 lab sessions for neuro. That was a very pleasant surprise to look at that grid...I assumed it would be like a ton of sessions. Looks like a pretty cool course overall
 
I'm planning on signing up for an anatomy class through my community college and the course description sounds like it would be a good enough headstart for med school (I'm missing some biology pre-req credits anyway).

Course Description
Code: 
This course is a systems approach to the study of human body 
structure from the microscopic level of organization to the gross level. 
Structure related to function from study of histological slides, 
photomicrographs, anatomical models and charts, and mammalian (cat) 
dissection. This course is intended to meet the requirements of 
students in the fields of nursing, physical therapy, recreational therapy, 
occupational therapy, athletic training, chiropractic, psychology, 
physical education, and biology or those who wish to extend their 
knowledge of the human body beyond the scope of introductory biology.


Also, hurray for cat dissection?
 
DrWily said:
Can't take the human dissection class until you finish the cat one @_@
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You guys have access to actual cadaver lab as undergrads? Damn thats sickkk. Didnt have actual dissection in undergrad anatomy, or grad anatomy either for that matter.

Oh, and since I never actually answered the question....taking anatomy 2x before I took it in med school didnt help me one solitary iota.
 
willen101383 said:
You guys have access to actual cadaver lab as undergrads? Damn thats sickkk. Didnt have actual dissection in undergrad anatomy, or grad anatomy either for that matter.

Oh, and since I never actually answered the question....taking anatomy 2x before I took it in med school didnt help me one solitary iota.
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Is it uncommon to have access to human cadavers in undergrad? I was under the impression that cadaver based classes were the norm.

My undergrad anatomy course must've had 40+ prosected cadavers to learn from.

I'm not sure I'd take a course that didn't have cadavers available. Definitely would take one that did.
 
SLC said:
Is it uncommon to have access to human cadavers in undergrad? I was under the impression that cadaver based classes were the norm.

My undergrad anatomy course must've had 40+ prosected cadavers to learn from.

I'm not sure I'd take a course that didn't have cadavers available. Definitely would take one that did.
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I never had any. I went to a small university though.
 
I took anatomy at a community college and did full cadaver dissection plus had access to lots of prosections. I also took comparative anatomy and dissected cats, frogs, a small shark, an alligator. Med school anatomy was still really hard. I got honors, but I know other who did as well with no previous anatomy experience (and people with prior experience who did a lot worse). I think the only real advantage you will gain from taking anatomy before med school is having better dissecting skills in lab.

If you really want to do something scholastic before school starts how about learning Spanish, or laying the groundwork for a research project/volunteering opportunity, etc.
 
SLC said:
Is it uncommon to have access to human cadavers in undergrad? I was under the impression that cadaver based classes were the norm.

My undergrad anatomy course must've had 40+ prosected cadavers to learn from.

I'm not sure I'd take a course that didn't have cadavers available. Definitely would take one that did.
Click to expand...

Yes it is uncommon, especially considering the shortage of bodies available, which is partially why some medical schools are choosing to go to virtual labs. The only undergrad institutions that i've heard of having cadaver lab have been associated with medical schools and have a large student body (as well as a very decent endowment)
 
willen101383 said:
Yeah F that haha. Thank god we only have like 2 or 3 lab sessions for neuro. That was a very pleasant surprise to look at that grid...I assumed it would be like a ton of sessions. Looks like a pretty cool course overall
Click to expand...

Ahh, the joys of being a naive 2nd year.

You won't be singing the same tune about it being a cool course in couple of months.

Wait till you hear Kriebel's lecture on Spinal Pathways...😱
 
smoodle said:
Hey Guys!

I've been told a great way to get a jump on med school is taking an anatomy course before matriculating. I am not in school right now and am weighing my options for this. Do you guys think taking a course is the best route for this? Or is there other good study tips/books/websites that I could use so I dont have to pay for an actual course?
Click to expand...

There are several people in my class who took med-school level Anatomy courses before starting school, and are definitely ahead of the rest of the class in knowledge. I'm not sure that I'd spend my last year doing that class, though, because there is no way to tell if the class you'll be taking is comparable in difficulty to your Anatomy class in medical school.
 
I also plan on learning some anatomy before matriculating. However, I'm working fulltime and don't feel like shelling out money for a course. Just ordered Netter's on amazon, so I'll be reading and teaching myself a bit once it arrives. Anyone else planning on doing some independent learning before matriculating too?
 
lacrosse87 said:
I also plan on learning some anatomy before matriculating. However, I'm working fulltime and don't feel like shelling out money for a course. Just ordered Netter's on amazon, so I'll be reading and teaching myself a bit once it arrives. Anyone else planning on doing some independent learning before matriculating too?
Click to expand...

I was really debating on taking that Anatomy course that I posted a few posts up, but I've decided not to. It would take up a lot of my time in the months before matriculating, so I'm just gonna go the independent route. I bought the Anatomy Coloring Book (which I heard helps A LOT) and I'll be purchasing Netter's soon so that I can learn some stuff beforehand. Even if its a slight advantage, it's still better than going in cold I think.
 
Lewist02 said:
Yes it is uncommon, especially considering the shortage of bodies available, which is partially why some medical schools are choosing to go to virtual labs. The only undergrad institutions that i've heard of having cadaver lab have been associated with medical schools and have a large student body (as well as a very decent endowment)
Click to expand...

I am currently in a Cadaver Anatomy course at my college. The course uses the same tests and practical exams (pinning tests) as the state medical school. Probably good for me when if I get accepted but my GPA will take a hit.
 
DrWily said:
I was really debating on taking that Anatomy course that I posted a few posts up, but I've decided not to. It would take up a lot of my time in the months before matriculating, so I'm just gonna go the independent route. I bought the Anatomy Coloring Book (which I heard helps A LOT) and I'll be purchasing Netter's soon so that I can learn some stuff beforehand. Even if its a slight advantage, it's still better than going in cold I think.
Click to expand...

Yeah I def agree. We'll be saving quite a bit of money going the independent route. Plus, we get to set our own hours, which are oh so precious before we swan dive into the field of medicine during matriculation
 
DrWily said:
I was really debating on taking that Anatomy course that I posted a few posts up, but I've decided not to. It would take up a lot of my time in the months before matriculating, so I'm just gonna go the independent route. I bought the Anatomy Coloring Book (which I heard helps A LOT) and I'll be purchasing Netter's soon so that I can learn some stuff beforehand. Even if its a slight advantage, it's still better than going in cold I think.
Click to expand...

I'm going to do the same. I've already looked into getting Netter's... hopefully I'll order it soon.

Anatomy Coloring Book? Is there a link to this? It sounds cool! 😀
 
Iliketoytles said:
I'm going to do the same. I've already looked into getting Netter's... hopefully I'll order it soon.

Anatomy Coloring Book? Is there a link to this? It sounds cool! 😀
Click to expand...

Amazon.com

"The Anatomy Coloring Book"

$12.27 👍
 
I think it'll help to get exposure to anatomy.

I came in without knowing anatomy and was extremely stressed out the first two months. You'll be exposed to such a vast amount of material in med school that taking a course won't necessarily help you with content or relationships, but it will make you feel a bit more comfortable in class. Learning all the muscles/origins/insertions/actions would help immensely. One thing that really made anatomy easier for me was looking at those tags on exercise machines learning what exercise machines help with what muscles, and where those muscles are (in a gross sense). Vasculature and nerves will likely be much more stressed than muscles though.

I think self studying is better than a course. But focus on learning the big concepts. Even learning where all the organs or bones are can help. If you can come into class knowing muscles, bones, and organs, you'll have a much easier time.
 
Kevin Baker said:
I think it'll help to get exposure to anatomy.

I came in without knowing anatomy and was extremely stressed out the first two months. You'll be exposed to such a vast amount of material in med school that taking a course won't necessarily help you with content or relationships, but it will make you feel a bit more comfortable in class. Learning all the muscles/origins/insertions/actions would help immensely. One thing that really made anatomy easier for me was looking at those tags on exercise machines learning what exercise machines help with what muscles, and where those muscles are (in a gross sense). Vasculature and nerves will likely be much more stressed than muscles though.

I think self studying is better than a course. But focus on learning the big concepts. Even learning where all the organs or bones are can help. If you can come into class knowing muscles, bones, and organs, you'll have a much easier time.
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for posting this. It's good to hear this from a med student.
 
willen101383 said:
I think SPOM was the worst course of med school ughhhh. Yeah I did well enough in it but it was the biggest time sink, of school so far...and I only watch tegrity...so having to come to school for anatomy lab suckedddddddd haha. Nothin like practically falling asleep against a cadavers leg...sitting on your stool...at 8am in a freeeeeeezing cold room while TK rambles on and on about the dissection of the day.
Click to expand...

Ah, Tage the Rage! Love that guy. Rumor going around that he was a wrestler in the 70s, so I asked him about it, to which he replied, laughing, "that is the most ridiculous thing i've ever heard--I played hockey".
 
Rollo said:
Ahh, the joys of being a naive 2nd year.

You won't be singing the same tune about it being a cool course in couple of months.

Wait till you hear Kriebel's lecture on Spinal Pathways...😱
Click to expand...


I dont think he should be allowed near spinal pathways considering the way our grid looks this term (aka a fing mess).
 
TallScrubs said:
Ah, Tage the Rage! Love that guy. Rumor going around that he was a wrestler in the 70s, so I asked him about it, to which he replied, laughing, "that is the most ridiculous thing i've ever heard--I played hockey".
Click to expand...

ahhhhhh hahahaha thats hilarious. I like the man....just not the 30 minute rambling while you are sitting there half asleep and either burning to death or freezing depending on how the HVAC is working haha.
 
willen101383 said:
I dont think he should be allowed near spinal pathways considering the way our grid looks this term (aka a fing mess).
Click to expand...

Well on the upside, and I don't know if you remember from last year, but Burton the EMED guy ain't there anymore...retired, from what I've heard. So don't expect a lecture on dressing professionally from the guy who wears the same dirty suit and ugly red shirt anymore.
 
DrWily said:
Amazon.com

"The Anatomy Coloring Book"

$12.27 👍
Click to expand...

So I did some research and found a ton of positive reviews for this. I went ahead and ordered it off amazon... should come in Friday.

Now I gotta find some colored pencils! lol...
 
Iliketoytles said:
So I did some research and found a ton of positive reviews for this. I went ahead and ordered it off amazon... should come in Friday.

Now I gotta find some colored pencils! lol...
Click to expand...

Amazon.com

"Prismacolor Scholar 24"

$6 and change!
 
SLC said:
Ahem? Post #2, I guess I should have spelled it out more eloquently, but I've been advocating this position since the beginning of the thread.
Click to expand...

I noticed that! Thanks to you too, lol.

DrWily said:
Amazon.com

"Prismacolor Scholar 24"

$6 and change!
Click to expand...

I read that prisma colors doesn't work well in the book because the paper is quite absorbant... they said to not use markers or any oil based thing.

I think I have some colors laying around... might go to walgreens and pick up a cheap pack. Looking forward to my mom's reaction seeing me with a coloring book
 
Iliketoytles said:
I read that prisma colors doesn't work well in the book because the paper is quite absorbant... they said to not use markers or any oil based thing.

I think I have some colors laying around... might go to walgreens and pick up a cheap pack. Looking forward to my mom's reaction seeing me with a coloring book
Click to expand...


While the PrismaColor Premier is quite oily since it has softer wax, the Scholar series is made to be less oily and more suited for beginning artists who don't know how to use proper pressure. Scholar series has a mix of soft and hard wax. Either way, you can't go wrong with any set of colored pencils. I just wouldn't use markers. I just got the scholar series cuz it was $6 and its Prismacolor 😀👍
 
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