ANKI: Zanki vs lightyear?
I used Zanki from day 1. This one comes down to personal preference. I think Zanki is superior because it's a bit more comprehensive than Lightyear and uses the cloze style. I personally could not deal with the basic style Lightyear uses because of the fact that if you get one part of the card wrong, you get the whole card wrong. This slows down your efficiency, big time. This used to be balanced out by the fact that LY had less cards than Zanki (~20K vs ~30K), but the latest version of it has like 27K. Correct me if I'm wrong, Lightyear users. People usually talk about having a BnB centric workflow with Lightyear (if BnB is your most preferred resource), but you can now do the same thing with the latest version of Zanki, AnKing V7. I will say that though Zanki is definitely more proven, I'm seeing a rising number of 250s/60s achieved with Lightyear, so don't be afraid to take the plunge with Lightyear if that's what you prefer.
Videos: BB, Pathoma (should students start using pathoma M1 on a trad curriculum since it does go over immunology, histology?)
BnB should be your bread and butter throughout the whole of preclinical. I say should, but it obviously doesn't have to be; it's just so good, lol. It's the most comprehensive lecture series out there. Pathoma is better saved for M2 on a traditional curriculum. BnB covers immuno and histo. It also covers the pathophys specific to certain diseases more in depth than Pathoma a lot of the time. Dr Ryan also integrates across systems/disciplines more, which is important. But they complement each other well.
I hear that Physeo is also really good for phys if you need a different style of teaching. Physeo draws things out more, if that helps.
Pixorize is apparently really good for the hard to remember parts of biochem. It's like a sketchy for biochem.
QPACKS: I learned through studying for the MCAT that active learning through practice questions is the best way to learn. What QPACKS should we use M1 so that we don't burn through UWORLD?
My take on using qbanks as an M1:
M1's on Traditional Curriculum, Which Qbanks Over Summer
Books: First Aid is a no brainer, is there any other recommendations for M1?
I actually haven't bought or used FA and I don't plan on it. Zanki makes FA largely redundant.
Costanzo is really good for phys if you learn better from textbooks or you need more clarification on something. It's the gold standard. Zanki phys is based almost entirely on it.
For practice questions, BRS, Guyton, Thieme's, Pretest, Gray's (for anatomy), and the BnB qs at the end of the vids are solid. I will say that these really helped me master the biophysics heavy portions of phys (cardiovascular, renal, and respiratory). Phys doesn't come naturally to me, and I'm very very confident whenever I answer qbank questions on these subjects.
