Pred-meds, how do you study?

[RBC]

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Obviously, for something like physics or calculus, your study tactic = practice problems.

But for most of your biology courses, biochemistry, physiology, psychology, even sociology and other electives, how do you study?

 

[Slowpoke]

imagine as if you had to give a presentation of the material to an entire faculty of biology professors and then put yourself in a seat and start studying and finesse your presentation.

before you know it you'll not only know the material but you'll be confident in your knowledge of it.

 

[Ea84]

I would say a combination of reading/highliting and taking notes in lectures / powerpoint slides. A lot of times I highlite major stuff in my own notes, and then write small factual information on margins or corners of the page in a different color or with a star attached.

For example, say we're studying a process dealing with enzymes, I might write what an enzyme is in the corner or margin (even if I already know), just to be sure and refresh my memory and keep me focused when I look over my notes later.

Even the minor things you're supposed to have memorized from your very first bio class can get hazy when juggling loads of info in your notes / book, so for me atleast, it helps writing little things in the margins that deal with the information on the page. 🙂

 

[sportsfreak]

cramming the night before, by reading random parts of the book and lecture slides, and sometimes listening to audio lectures at twice the speed

 

[BlitzSleep]

When I took histology I took notes from the book

Most other classes such as Genetics, Psychology, biology, etc. I just rewrote the professor's notes or if they're generous enough to give a study guide i'd rewrite it then make flash cards

 

[BlueElmo]

I just read over and over, probably not the most effective, but whatever.

 

[traumasurg]

I suppose for everyone it's different but I just read and read and read until the light bulb goes off....

 

[BlueElmo]

I suppose for everyone it's different but I just read and read and read until the light bulb goes off....

Me too, but takes so much time.

 

[shindotp]

All of the choices are passively studying, I prefer actively studying.

The BEST way to study is to actually be involved in the problem solving process and be actively thinking about the material.

First, read thoroughly and DO NOT proceed onto the next page unless you understand everything on the page you're on (unless you write it down somewhere with the intent of going into office hours).

Second, work out the examples on your own before looking at how they solve it.

Third, do as many practice problems as possible. Practice is FAR more beneficial than reading because practice forces you to use your brain.

At my school, biology, biochemistry, physiology, etc. all are problem solving courses. For courses like psychology, I write notes while reading and then type them up later (again, actively studying > > > passively studying).

 

[iCY]

1 - figure out what you want out of the study session (ex, you want to have anatomy memorized, or you want to have a pathway in biochem memorized)

2 - skim over everything that doesn't meet what you need to learn. people waste too much time reading useless information b/c its comfortable.

3 - use ALL of the above techniques

summarize everything you learn then make summaries of the summaries and use ALL of the techniques to nail the info home.

 

[lstone13]

cramming the night before, by reading random parts of the book and lecture slides, and sometimes listening to audio lectures at twice the speed

That sounds very effective... 😉

 

[lstone13]

Typically, I keep working until I have an "aha" moment that usually occurs when I am typing up my handwritten notes from the book/lecture or that occurs while doing practice problems.

 

[wanderer]

I just read over and over, probably not the most effective, but whatever.

Same here, although I'd say it was effective (but inefficient) for me. Some books come with CDs with practice questions, so I used those too.
Also try integrating concepts from other courses or see how a topic in a course is analogous or contrasts with some other topic.

 

[sportsfreak]

might not be most effective, but it has gotten the job done through undergrad, especially good method for those very boring required classes where spending 1 day a month is optimum

 

[Yudid]

I love to highlight, colorful markers and pens are the best 😉

 

[insane]

tutoring, no joke, if you have to tutor some one on material you learn it, so i tutor classmates

 

[schrizto]

LOL, "Pred-meds", like they feed on flesh or something.

 

[ILikeDrugs]

Why bother studying when I can just party and cheat on the test?

 

[oaklandguy]

Lmao, this is how I study: Take 6 caffeine pills or snort at least 80 milligrams of foaclin (120 milligrams if I use adderall) and read the chapters in question at least 3 times over. Then do any type of practice problems for the chapters, bio had them online and in back of chapters, if there are no practice problems i make notecards and or I create my own practice problems. I also create a cheat sheet with very important information on it and study it driving to school and sitting before class (drink at least 40 ounces of coffee within 85 minutes before test). Unfortunately I've built a strong resistance to the drug paraphenalia so I don't use it as often, but basically it's hard for me to remain focused reading the same thing over and over again. Studying with partners helps and making really funny metaphors for things helps me study for instance (phagocytes reminds me of fags and thats how I will remember it) (invagination... it has the word vagina in it) it sounds cheesy and immature but your gonna see phagocytes on the test and correlate it with fags and whatever you said after fags that is relevant to the context. But what works for me may not work for you.

 

[shindotp]

LOL, "Pred-meds", like they feed on flesh or something.

LOL I didn't even notice.

 

[schrizto]

LOL I didn't even notice.

I should make that my user title. I'm a pred-med.

 

[09javcar]

I generally don't study because I have a habit of scoring lower on test if I do. What I do is take notes during class then I look over them once after I take them and hopefully I remember the stuff when test day comes.

 

[Algophiliac]

I've tried both taking notes off lectures and the textbook AND just reading the lecture powerpoint slides and textbook over and over and over again. Honestly, NOT writing things down seems to help me more, because I concentrate on what I am reading. However, if I have time (and I usually plan to have time), I:

*skim the book and take notes before lecture
*take notes and pay attention during lecture
*skim over the lecture notes right after class (or within the first day)
*reread the textbook notes, textbook, lecture notes, and do practice questions at some point before the test

 

[Bac Si]

Lmao, this is how I study: Take 6 caffeine pills or snort at least 80 milligrams of foaclin (120 milligrams if I use adderall) and read the chapters in question at least 3 times over. Then do any type of practice problems for the chapters, bio had them online and in back of chapters, if there are no practice problems i make notecards and or I create my own practice problems. I also create a cheat sheet with very important information on it and study it driving to school and sitting before class (drink at least 40 ounces of coffee within 85 minutes before test). Unfortunately I've built a strong resistance to the drug paraphenalia so I don't use it as often, but basically it's hard for me to remain focused reading the same thing over and over again. Studying with partners helps and making really funny metaphors for things helps me study for instance (phagocytes reminds me of fags and thats how I will remember it) (invagination... it has the word vagina in it) it sounds cheesy and immature but your gonna see phagocytes on the test and correlate it with fags and whatever you said after fags that is relevant to the context. But what works for me may not work for you.

scary thing is that after reading this wall of text I believe you. lol

 

[mirrorpair]

I study by having an infomercial on TV so it gives background noise but I won't pay attention to it for too long. Right now I'm watching Mr. T trying to sell some kind of toaster oven.

 

[Potatoman1800]

....how do you study?

.

 

[Dannyw]

read, memorize, practice.

 

[YouNeverKnow22]

Drunk.

fratty

 

[kikiu]

1- Office hours if I need help explaining a concept (Calc, Orgo, Genetics, Gen Biology was when I utilized those)
2- Using different color highlighters and pens! Makes studying a bit more fun!
3- Retyping my notes
4- Rewriting my notes into a study guide
5- NOT STUDYING IN MY ROOM!!!!
6- Keeping up with the material on a consistent basis instead of cramming
7- Keeping things in perspective and trying not to get too stressed out.

 

[Viper15]

There are 3 things I have found that work very well for me.
1) Take notes during class.
2) Consistently review them for several minutes each day.
3) Writing important info on 3x5 flash cards, (old school but it really works)

 

[ParthVader]

I really don't think I've had any classes but chemistry, physics, and math or some combination of those lol.. But I would probably just read.

 

[La Doctora]

I make my own practice tests. Sometimes they are in the form of fill in the blank, sometimes they are "what happens when..." so I have to explain the answer to myself, I always make an answer key also, and put the page number of where they were found in my text so that I can reread it if things seem unclear.
I do this by going through the chapter and notes given, and making questions on things that seem extremely important, etc. By the end of making my practice test, everything in the chapter is at least touched on, so once I drill those q & a's into my head and can answer them correctly, I have basically memorized all I need to know.

These fake tests are good to pull out before tests to refresh memory and can be used again for finals of course.

Also, I had an extremely intelligent pre-med friend who said the way he memorizes everything is to run his finger under the sentences as he reads, and he reads slower than usual to make it stick to his memory... this allows him to comprehend everything he reads, and it actually did work for me too.

 

[jtimmer1]

notecards, notecards, notecards.

 

[49erfan]

before every semester, I buy all the textbooks for the classes, and also invest some extra money into supplemental books that i find through amazon... it comes out expensive (with the addition of the supplemental books), but it is worth every penny

then all i do is read the textbooks (rarely go to class) over and over and over again, until I almost know every word of the book

then the night before the exam, I look at the supplemental books (and force myself not to look at the textbook which makes me totally concentrate on the supplemental books which makes these supplemental books a great source!!) I bought as a quick review (since these books are a lot more condensed than the textbooks) and make sure I get a good night sleep

I never use the professor's notes to study, as the textbook and supplemental books are usually always good enough.. nor do I make any notecards or notes... just read, read, read the books

and I have been doing this since day 1 of college, and it has worked great for me



I don't go to professors office hours... nor do I make any type of notes..... nor ever look at professor's notes.. if I write something I usually write it IN the book and just as practice to answer the textbook questions... they are there for a reason as the author (who usually is a professor) wouldn't have wasted his time or energy in creating these problems for people to practice on if he didn't feel students needed to know certain concepts......

 

[undergroundcelloswan]

imagine as if you had to give a presentation of the material to an entire faculty of biology professors and then put yourself in a seat and start studying and finesse your presentation.

before you know it you'll not only know the material but you'll be confident in your knowledge of it.

INSIGHTFUL! I've been thinking of ways (and falling at it) on how to get inspired to actually learn the stuff I need to learn... I'm so using this. Thanks!

 

[La Doctora]

Oh, also... I tend to not study at home. I do study at home when I don't feel like leaving the house, but there are so many distractions (computer at my desk, video games laying around [I'm a girl who likes video games], t.v., fridge which always entices... I usually tend to go to a place I'm really comfortable that is quiet, like a library around the corner. It helps me stay focused.