RANT HERE thread

[vetmedhead]

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We can! All we can have is our answers. No pens, phones, etc. and we can only do it the specific day after the tests. After that day, they don't let you look at the exam. I hadn't done so during this last semester. I was aiming for scrapping by first quarter. But it would be a good idea to do next quarter after the midterm. I'm not sure if I can do it for the prior to Christmas break final. I would have to double check in my meeting.

I made questions as part of writing/typing out the notes. I think I just write crappy questions. Lol. They were nothing like what our profs wrote.

I've been asking closer friends how they study and they're going to go through their notes with me to show me how they study. And looking back at my undergrad, the tests I did the best on were essay based and I wrote out my notes like an essay. I haven't tried that here because we're basically 98% multiple choice. But it may be worth considering.

Thank you everyone.

What is your normal strategy when taking multiple choice tests, if I may ask? I've found that I know a lot of people who do much worse on MC exams not because they don't know the material, but because they have a hard time organizing their approach to multiple choice questions and tend to have a harder time ruling answers out because they are good at thinking of a variety of ways to support or refute all of the answers options they're given.

 

[Coopah]

What is your normal strategy when taking multiple choice tests, if I may ask? I've found that I know a lot of people who do much worse on MC exams not because they don't know the material, but because they have a hard time organizing their approach to multiple choice questions and tend to have a harder time ruling answers out because they are good at thinking of a variety of ways to support or refute all of the answers options they're given.

Yes I do that a lot. How do you fix it???

 

[battie]

What is your normal strategy when taking multiple choice tests, if I may ask? I've found that I know a lot of people who do much worse on MC exams not because they don't know the material, but because they have a hard time organizing their approach to multiple choice questions and tend to have a harder time ruling answers out because they are good at thinking of a variety of ways to support or refute all of the answers options they're given.

I go through once and answer only questions I am confident on. I flag the ones I can't answer with 100% certainty. Then I go through the flagged ones and try to narrow down the answers. If I start to struggle too much, I keep it flagged. I keep doing this until all questions are answered. I never go back to answered questions to change answers unless I have an epiphany based on another question (like when a question later on in the test inadvertently answers a previous question).

 

[pp9]

Passing the NAVLE should mean I'm on top of the world, but honestly today sucked. I'm sick af right now, my future MIL is dead set on wearing a white lace gown to my wedding (and when we asked her not to, she told us to "have a nice life" and won' talk to her son now), and my dog peed a full bladder's worth of urine on my leg/shoe when I got home. I would have moved my leg, but I took the bullet to reduce the mess on the carpet

 

[Doctor-S]

... have a hard time organizing their approach to multiple choice questions and tend to have a harder time ruling answers out because they are good at thinking of a variety of ways to support or refute all of the answers options they're given.

This reminds me of some multiple-choice medical school tests and licensing exams ... you know ... paralysis by overanalysis.

Many times, the correct answer to a multiple-choice question is directly related to the substance (or text) of the actual question itself. In other words, what exactly is the question asking you to do, solve, diagnose, or analyze?

@batsenecal ... the reason I suggested meeting with your professors is because they are the people who wrote your exams.

They might be in the best position to provide you with useful guidance and insight about their exams because they can share their personal thought processes, fixations, nuances and testing objectives with you - especially if their multiple-choice questioning styles are unique, confusing or hard af.

Sending good thoughts to you! 🙂

 

[battie]

my future MIL is dead set on wearing a white lace gown to my wedding (and when we asked her not to, she told us to "have a nice life" and won' talk to her son now)

Thats ridiculous.

 

[SkiOtter]

my future MIL is dead set on wearing a white lace gown to my wedding (and when we asked her not to, she told us to "have a nice life" and won' talk to her son now)

She’s uninvited.

 

[allygator13]

Passing the NAVLE should mean I'm on top of the world, but honestly today sucked. I'm sick af right now, my future MIL is dead set on wearing a white lace gown to my wedding (and when we asked her not to, she told us to "have a nice life" and won' talk to her son now), and my dog peed a full bladder's worth of urine on my leg/shoe when I got home. I would have moved my leg, but I took the bullet to reduce the mess on the carpet

I, too, am struggling with future MIL frustrations. Nothing like insisting on wearing a white dress, but she just keeps pushing her opinions and how she thinks we should do everything on us. She offered to pay for the rehearsal dinner, which is nice, but also obnoxious when people offer to pay because then they get to dictate how it goes. She's Italian and keeps insisting on some kind of pasta for every meal, including rehearsal dinner. NOT EVERY MEAL NEEDS PASTA. I want catering from an awesome taco place in town that's unique and delicious, but that has no pasta option...... I'd honestly rather just pay for it ourselves and get to do whatever the f*** I want than have to do everything she wants.

 

[Stroganoff]

Eff this, I'm doing a courthouse wedding with no guests. Money saved goes to 1st class honeymoon.

 

[vetmedhead]

Yes I do that a lot. How do you fix it???

I go through once and answer only questions I am confident on. I flag the ones I can't answer with 100% certainty. Then I go through the flagged ones and try to narrow down the answers. If I start to struggle too much, I keep it flagged. I keep doing this until all questions are answered. I never go back to answered questions to change answers unless I have an epiphany based on another question (like when a question later on in the test inadvertently answers a previous question).

This reminds me of some multiple-choice medical school tests and licensing exams ... you know ... paralysis by overanalysis.

Many times, the correct answer to a multiple-choice question is directly related to the substance (or text) of the actual question itself. In other words, what exactly is the question asking you to do, solve, diagnose, or analyze?

@batsenecal ... the reason I suggested meeting with your professors is because they are the people who wrote your exams.

They might be in the best position to provide you with useful guidance and insight about their exams because they can share their personal thought processes, fixations, nuances and testing objectives with you - especially if their multiple-choice questioning styles are unique, confusing or hard af.

Sending good thoughts to you! 🙂

I have a kind of crazy methodical approach, but it depends on how fast you can read/write and a lot of it was mostly something I started doing because of OCD. However, I think it has helped me be a very solid MC test taker and I think having a defined approach has helped me in interpreting and answering questions. I tend to have problems with reading through exams too quickly and accidentally skimmimg misreading important information, so some of what I do is related to trying to circumvent that.

Some general things I do that may or may not be helpful for someone else:

• If there's a big modifier in the question (like NOT or EXCEPT) then I circle it about 800 times lol. Mostly because I am bad at reading
• For any answer that I'm scratching out as incorrect, I will circle the part of the answer that is wrong (say that part of the answer was "decreased BUN" and I know that BUN absolutely doesn't decrease with the scenario they gave us, I'll circle that phrase). That way, when I'm reviewing the test before I turn it in I can see right away that there was a reason I marked that one wrong so I don't need to re-read that answer
• When I mark out answers I will also sometimes write next to them why I marked it off - for example, the answer may say "Bilirubin increased due to anorexia" and I might write "Patient is a cat, not a horse" next to that answer when I cross it off. This forces me to have a justified thought process for ruling answers in or out and helps me remember what I was thinking the first time when I go over my test again
• On questions I can't answer right off the bat, I look to see if there are any answers that I know for sure are wrong right off the bat and mark them out. This way when I come back to the question I can spend more time focusing on teasing apart the answers I wasn't sure about instead of having to tackle the entire question all over again
• I also jot notes to myself on questions I can't answer right off the bat. Why can't I decide between two different answers? What are my thoughts on those? This is sometimes helpful when I've got it narrowed down to two or three options rather than "I have no idea lol" questions haha
• Sometimes, especially on long tricky questions, I will write next to the question what I am really being asked. This is especially helpful for questions with a lot of patient data where the question sometimes gets buried in the data. For example, a zillion paragraph question about a dog is easier for me to answer when I can write next to it "Why is the dog anemic?" Because that is what my professor is actually asking in the question
• Similar to above, I check that the answer I chose isn't just correct, but that it actually answers the question being asked.
• When I'm answering a question and find an answer I like, I'll use that answer as the benchmark and compare other answers I'm not sure about against it. For example, I like answer A, but answer B also seems correct - but seems less correct compared to answer A, so B gets crossed out. C seems correct as well, and when comparing C to A, C seems more correct than A, so A gets crossed out and now C is used as my benchmark for the rest of the answers to this question
• When it comes to "What is the best answer" questions, I'll rule out any incorrect answers and then I'll sometimes number the remaining correct answers based on the magnitude of effect I think that answer has. For example, in the "Why is the dog anemic?" question, let's say the dog is in end stage renal failure and presented with a PCV of 6... but the history also says he presented after getting run over by an SUV. In my head the SUV would take precedence over the renal failure because that's severe, acute, and something that can cause a large magnitude of change quickly that is likely to be relevant to my patient. Was he probably already anemic because of the renal failure? Sure. But if I have to choose between the two I'm picking the higher magnitude, more common sense option even though both of those answers are correct
• I go through my exams about a million times. Usually once to read/answer/write thoughts on questions I don't know the answer to, once to answer questions I didn't know the answer to, once to bubble in the answers I circled on the test, and once again to make sure my bubbled answers match my circled answers lol. When my OCD was really bad I used to basically not be able to turn in exams until I went through them five times minimum... 😳

If I really have absolutely no idea...

• I look for answers that are the same but written with opposing language (e.g. one answer is "GFR will increase because XYZ" and the other is "GFR will decrease because XYZ") and try to pick between one of the two, because I have generally found that when questions are written like this that one of those two is right
• I'll pick the longest answer, especially if the other answers are way shorter by comparison. Correct answers often need qualifications to be completely accurate, which tends to make them longer
• In questions with "All of the above" or "none of the above" as answers, I'll often pick one of those. I read a paper somewhere that in questions with these answers in them, one of these answers is correct something like >50% of the time, so guessing between one of these can improve the chances of getting the answer correct. If I truly have no idea I'll usually go through and see if any of the answers are right or wrong, then pick the appropriate "all of" answer. The exception to this is when I read through and find both a right and a wrong answer in the pool, then I know I can cross off both the "all of"s plus at least one of the other answers based on the question and then I at least have improved guessing chances from there

This post is getting long and rambling, but yeah lol. I also do a lot worse on online multiple choice exams compared to paper ones because I can't write all over the questions/answers like I like to. If they let you bring in scratch paper that's where I usually do a lot of my writing damage, but it's not always the same haha

 

[vetmedhead]

Passing the NAVLE should mean I'm on top of the world, but honestly today sucked. I'm sick af right now, my future MIL is dead set on wearing a white lace gown to my wedding (and when we asked her not to, she told us to "have a nice life" and won' talk to her son now), and my dog peed a full bladder's worth of urine on my leg/shoe when I got home. I would have moved my leg, but I took the bullet to reduce the mess on the carpet

Yikes, sorry you have to deal with her. Is your SO opposed to having no contact with her? From this and other stories I've heard about her on here it sounds like that would probably be the best option for everyone lol, although I know how hard it is to step away from completely toxic family members

 

[Stroganoff]

What is your normal strategy when taking multiple choice tests, if I may ask? I've found that I know a lot of people who do much worse on MC exams not because they don't know the material, but because they have a hard time organizing their approach to multiple choice questions and tend to have a harder time ruling answers out because they are good at thinking of a variety of ways to support or refute all of the answers options they're given.

Oh that's easy. Just:

I. Choose the correct answer.
II. Choose the best answer.
III. Choose the cheapest answer.
IV. Choose the answer most applicable to the real world and/or the answer with the most words.
V. Choose the textbook answer.​

a. I only
b. II only
c. I and II
d. IV only
e. III and V
f. All of the above
g. None of the above

 

[vetmedhead]

Oh that's easy. Just:

I. Choose the correct answer.
II. Choose the best answer.
III. Choose the cheapest answer.
IV. Choose the answer most applicable to the real-world and/or the answer with the most words.
V. Choose the textbook answer.​

a. I only
b. II only
c. I and II
d. IV only
e. III and V
f. All of the above
g. None of the above

These are literally my least favorite style of question and I feel like they test no useful knowledge lol

 

[Coopah]

I have a kind of crazy methodical approach, but it depends on how fast you can read/write and a lot of it was mostly something I started doing because of OCD. However, I think it has helped me be a very solid MC test taker and I think having a defined approach has helped me in interpreting and answering questions. I tend to have problems with reading through exams too quickly and accidentally skimmimg misreading important information, so some of what I do is related to trying to circumvent that.

Some general things I do that may or may not be helpful for someone else:

• If there's a big modifier in the question (like NOT or EXCEPT) then I circle it about 800 times lol. Mostly because I am bad at reading
• For any answer that I'm scratching out as incorrect, I will circle the part of the answer that is wrong (say that part of the answer was "decreased BUN" and I know that BUN absolutely doesn't decrease with the scenario they gave us, I'll circle that phrase). That way, when I'm reviewing the test before I turn it in I can see right away that there was a reason I marked that one wrong so I don't need to re-read that answer
• When I mark out answers I will also sometimes write next to them why I marked it off - for example, the answer may say "Bilirubin increased due to anorexia" and I might write "Patient is a cat, not a horse" next to that answer when I cross it off. This forces me to have a justified thought process for ruling answers in or out and helps me remember what I was thinking the first time when I go over my test again
• On questions I can't answer right off the bat, I look to see if there are any answers that I know for sure are wrong right off the bat and mark them out. This way when I come back to the question I can spend more time focusing on teasing apart the answers I wasn't sure about instead of having to tackle the entire question all over again
• I also jot notes to myself on questions I can't answer right off the bat. Why can't I decide between two different answers? What are my thoughts on those? This is sometimes helpful when I've got it narrowed down to two or three options rather than "I have no idea lol" questions haha
• Sometimes, especially on long tricky questions, I will write next to the question what I am really being asked. This is especially helpful for questions with a lot of patient data where the question sometimes gets buried in the data. For example, a zillion paragraph question about a dog is easier for me to answer when I can write next to it "Why is the dog anemic?" Because that is what my professor is actually asking in the question
• Similar to above, I check that the answer I chose isn't just correct, but that it actually answers the question being asked.
• When I'm answering a question and find an answer I like, I'll use that answer as the benchmark and compare other answers I'm not sure about against it. For example, I like answer A, but answer B also seems correct - but seems less correct compared to answer A, so B gets crossed out. C seems correct as well, and when comparing C to A, C seems more correct than A, so A gets crossed out and now C is used as my benchmark for the rest of the answers to this question
• When it comes to "What is the best answer" questions, I'll rule out any incorrect answers and then I'll sometimes number the remaining correct answers based on the magnitude of effect I think that answer has. For example, in the "Why is the dog anemic?" question, let's say the dog is in end stage renal failure and presented with a PCV of 6... but the history also says he presented after getting run over by an SUV. In my head the SUV would take precedence over the renal failure because that's severe, acute, and something that can cause a large magnitude of change quickly that is likely to be relevant to my patient. Was he probably already anemic because of the renal failure? Sure. But if I have to choose between the two I'm picking the higher magnitude, more common sense option even though both of those answers are correct
• I go through my exams about a million times. Usually once to read/answer/write thoughts on questions I don't know the answer to, once to answer questions I didn't know the answer to, once to bubble in the answers I circled on the test, and once again to make sure my bubbled answers match my circled answers lol. When my OCD was really bad I used to basically not be able to turn in exams until I went through them five times minimum... 😳

If I really have absolutely no idea...

• I look for answers that are the same but written with opposing language (e.g. one answer is "GFR will increase because XYZ" and the other is "GFR will decrease because XYZ") and try to pick between one of the two, because I have generally found that when questions are written like this that one of those two is right
• I'll pick the longest answer, especially if the other answers are way shorter by comparison. Correct answers often need qualifications to be completely accurate, which tends to make them longer
• In questions with "All of the above" or "none of the above" as answers, I'll often pick one of those. I read a paper somewhere that in questions with these answers in them, one of these answers is correct something like >50% of the time, so guessing between one of these can improve the chances of getting the answer correct. If I truly have no idea I'll usually go through and see if any of the answers are right or wrong, then pick the appropriate "all of" answer. The exception to this is when I read through and find both a right and a wrong answer in the pool, then I know I can cross off both the "all of"s plus at least one of the other answers based on the question and then I at least have improved guessing chances from there

This post is getting long and rambling, but yeah lol. I also do a lot worse on online multiple choice exams compared to paper ones because I can't write all over the questions/answers like I like to. If they let you bring in scratch paper that's where I usually do a lot of my writing damage, but it's not always the same haha

That is amazing but wtf do I do if it's an online exam and I can't do the majority of those things?

 

[vetmedhead]

That is amazing but wtf do I do if it's an online exam and I can't do the majority of those things?

Do they let you have scratch paper?

 

[SkiOtter]

I, too, am struggling with future MIL frustrations. Nothing like insisting on wearing a white dress, but she just keeps pushing her opinions and how she thinks we should do everything on us. She offered to pay for the rehearsal dinner, which is nice, but also obnoxious when people offer to pay because then they get to dictate how it goes. She's Italian and keeps insisting on some kind of pasta for every meal, including rehearsal dinner. NOT EVERY MEAL NEEDS PASTA. I want catering from an awesome taco place in town that's unique and delicious, but that has no pasta option...... I'd honestly rather just pay for it ourselves and get to do whatever the f*** I want than have to do everything she wants.

She’s uninvited too.

 

[Coopah]

Do they let you have scratch paper?

Yes!

 

[Coopah]

Do they let you have scratch paper?

But seriously thank you for all the tips I will try them all out

 

[Stroganoff]

That's exactly my beef with Computer-Based Testing and Computer-Adaptive Testing. Need to scribble, circle, underline, and mark up on paper.

It'd be cool if exam software companies added stylus support (iPad Pro, Windows tablets) to allow for e-scribbling during exams. Then best of both worlds.

 

[SkiOtter]

That's exactly my beef with Computer-Based Testing and Computer-Adaptive Testing. Need to scribble, circle, underline, and mark up on paper.

It'd be cool if exam software companies added stylus support (iPad Pro, Windows tablets) to allow for e-scribbling during exams. Then best of both worlds.

Yeah I definitely prefer paper tests for that reason too. Sadly is not my decision :/

 

[vetmedhead]

Yes!

With scratch paper I usually write the question number and answer letters and try to do a lot of my usual stuff from there, although I have to say that it definitely doesn't work as well for me and I vastly prefer having paper exams to work with for that reason. However, being able to write at least a little bit is better than nothing and I hope at least some of the things I rambled about are helpful! 🙂

I am luckily a very good test taker, but I can't tell how much of that is from actual understanding of the material vs a lot of miscellaneous test taking strategies honed by decades of anxiety

 

[Coopah]

With scratch paper I usually write the question number and answer letters and try to do a lot of my usual stuff from there, although I have to say that it definitely doesn't work as well for me and I vastly prefer having paper exams to work with for that reason. However, being able to write at least a little bit is better than nothing and I hope at least some of the things I rambled about are helpful! 🙂

I am luckily a very good test taker, but I can't tell how much of that is from actual understanding of the material vs a lot of miscellaneous test taking strategies honed by decades of anxiety

Thank you! Your ramblings are fantastic and useful!

 

[battie]

With scratch paper I usually write the question number and answer letters and try to do a lot of my usual stuff from there, although I have to say that it definitely doesn't work as well for me and I vastly prefer having paper exams to work with for that reason. However, being able to write at least a little bit is better than nothing and I hope at least some of the things I rambled about are helpful! 🙂

I'm going to copy and paste that so I can use it as well. We use computer testing as well and are allowed scratch paper. We get 3 hours for our tests, so if I end up using all that time, it's fine. Anything legal Beagle at this point to make sure I stay in the game.

 

[vetmedhead]

I'm going to copy and paste that so I can use it as well. We use computer testing as well and are allowed scratch paper. We get 3 hours for our tests, so if I end up using all that time, it's fine. Anything legal Beagle at this point to make sure I stay in the game.

As of last semester we were about 50/50 online/paper here, but a lot of the resurgence in paper exams was a byproduct of a new anti-cheating policy drafted up by the program administration. I think for a lot of professors it ended up being less of a headache to just revert back to in-class paper exams and not deal with the headache of arranging proctoring times, test taking software, resetting exam time frames for students who need accommodations, and so on.

Regardless, I agree with the sentiment that there's nothing wrong with using the full testing period! I like being able to take the time to think things through without feeling bad about being one of the last ones in the room

 

[vetmedhead]

I also may or may not take tests with a mug of tea and a blanket if the professors don't have any objections. 😛

 

[battie]

I also may or may not take tests with a mug of tea and a blanket if the professors don't have any objections. 😛

Same. All the way in the back row with a boatload of space.

 

[WildZoo]

Eff this, I'm doing a courthouse wedding with no guests. Money saved goes to 1st class honeymoon.

My zoo wedding was perfect 😍

 

[WildZoo]

I have a kind of crazy methodical approach, but it depends on how fast you can read/write and a lot of it was mostly something I started doing because of OCD. However, I think it has helped me be a very solid MC test taker and I think having a defined approach has helped me in interpreting and answering questions. I tend to have problems with reading through exams too quickly and accidentally skimmimg misreading important information, so some of what I do is related to trying to circumvent that.

Some general things I do that may or may not be helpful for someone else:

• If there's a big modifier in the question (like NOT or EXCEPT) then I circle it about 800 times lol. Mostly because I am bad at reading
• For any answer that I'm scratching out as incorrect, I will circle the part of the answer that is wrong (say that part of the answer was "decreased BUN" and I know that BUN absolutely doesn't decrease with the scenario they gave us, I'll circle that phrase). That way, when I'm reviewing the test before I turn it in I can see right away that there was a reason I marked that one wrong so I don't need to re-read that answer
• When I mark out answers I will also sometimes write next to them why I marked it off - for example, the answer may say "Bilirubin increased due to anorexia" and I might write "Patient is a cat, not a horse" next to that answer when I cross it off. This forces me to have a justified thought process for ruling answers in or out and helps me remember what I was thinking the first time when I go over my test again
• On questions I can't answer right off the bat, I look to see if there are any answers that I know for sure are wrong right off the bat and mark them out. This way when I come back to the question I can spend more time focusing on teasing apart the answers I wasn't sure about instead of having to tackle the entire question all over again
• I also jot notes to myself on questions I can't answer right off the bat. Why can't I decide between two different answers? What are my thoughts on those? This is sometimes helpful when I've got it narrowed down to two or three options rather than "I have no idea lol" questions haha
• Sometimes, especially on long tricky questions, I will write next to the question what I am really being asked. This is especially helpful for questions with a lot of patient data where the question sometimes gets buried in the data. For example, a zillion paragraph question about a dog is easier for me to answer when I can write next to it "Why is the dog anemic?" Because that is what my professor is actually asking in the question
• Similar to above, I check that the answer I chose isn't just correct, but that it actually answers the question being asked.
• When I'm answering a question and find an answer I like, I'll use that answer as the benchmark and compare other answers I'm not sure about against it. For example, I like answer A, but answer B also seems correct - but seems less correct compared to answer A, so B gets crossed out. C seems correct as well, and when comparing C to A, C seems more correct than A, so A gets crossed out and now C is used as my benchmark for the rest of the answers to this question
• When it comes to "What is the best answer" questions, I'll rule out any incorrect answers and then I'll sometimes number the remaining correct answers based on the magnitude of effect I think that answer has. For example, in the "Why is the dog anemic?" question, let's say the dog is in end stage renal failure and presented with a PCV of 6... but the history also says he presented after getting run over by an SUV. In my head the SUV would take precedence over the renal failure because that's severe, acute, and something that can cause a large magnitude of change quickly that is likely to be relevant to my patient. Was he probably already anemic because of the renal failure? Sure. But if I have to choose between the two I'm picking the higher magnitude, more common sense option even though both of those answers are correct
• I go through my exams about a million times. Usually once to read/answer/write thoughts on questions I don't know the answer to, once to answer questions I didn't know the answer to, once to bubble in the answers I circled on the test, and once again to make sure my bubbled answers match my circled answers lol. When my OCD was really bad I used to basically not be able to turn in exams until I went through them five times minimum... 😳

If I really have absolutely no idea...

• I look for answers that are the same but written with opposing language (e.g. one answer is "GFR will increase because XYZ" and the other is "GFR will decrease because XYZ") and try to pick between one of the two, because I have generally found that when questions are written like this that one of those two is right
• I'll pick the longest answer, especially if the other answers are way shorter by comparison. Correct answers often need qualifications to be completely accurate, which tends to make them longer
• In questions with "All of the above" or "none of the above" as answers, I'll often pick one of those. I read a paper somewhere that in questions with these answers in them, one of these answers is correct something like >50% of the time, so guessing between one of these can improve the chances of getting the answer correct. If I truly have no idea I'll usually go through and see if any of the answers are right or wrong, then pick the appropriate "all of" answer. The exception to this is when I read through and find both a right and a wrong answer in the pool, then I know I can cross off both the "all of"s plus at least one of the other answers based on the question and then I at least have improved guessing chances from there

This post is getting long and rambling, but yeah lol. I also do a lot worse on online multiple choice exams compared to paper ones because I can't write all over the questions/answers like I like to. If they let you bring in scratch paper that's where I usually do a lot of my writing damage, but it's not always the same haha

Wow this is awesome
I wish I had the patience for it lol but I have to convince myself to slow down just enough to actually read the questions most of the time.
I do some of this though. Lots of crossing out answer choices and will sometimes write notes to myself about why a particular choice is wrong or right or whatever.

That last chunk made me chuckle because I feel like I do all of those things a lot, and I guess that means I just have no idea all the time

As far as studying goes @batsenecal one thing that works for me when I'm doing more of a final test review is writing out everything I can remember about a chunk of the material, and then I'll go through what I wrote compared to my notes from class and see which things I missed and need to focus on reviewing more.

For the most part though I use anki. My general system is 1) read the material before class (this doesn't always happen, and when it does it's more of a skim than deep reading 2) go to lecture. if i'm feeling energized I'll make my notecards in excel during class, if I'm not I'll take notes on the written notes they give us (or the powerpoint), highlight things they emphasize, expand on things, whatever. 3) ideally i'll fix up my notecards in excel at home that night, and then import them into anki. When i make them in class they are a little rough and usually there's too much info on one card for it to be effective, so i'll split them up and try to make good questions. if i didn't make them in class, i'll go back through my notes and make the cards. 4) from there I just use anki*. weekends are pretty big catchup days most of the time because i am bad at time management and staying on task lol

*Depending on the class I'll supplement it with other things. I may add in image cards or add in a card that is just a reminder to draw out a chart or something.

 

[Stroganoff]

writing out everything I can remember about a chunk of the material, and then I'll go through what I wrote compared to my notes from class and see which things I missed and need to focus on reviewing more.

Ooo, I'm stealing this one. I've read about how good physically handwriting things out is for memorization and learning. Probably with speaking the words out loud to hit the speaking/hearing circuitry.

I installed Anki but have never used it (yet!), but I've heard good things about it vs. regular flash cards.

A strategy that's worked for me is pretending that I have to give a presentation or lecture on the material to a pretend audience who doesn't know the material (or use a willing pet) then lecture out loud all the material. I've found that I don't truly understand something deeply until I can explain something complex in simple terms to a complete beginner; it exposes gaps in knowledge and comprehension that otherwise would have gone undiscovered.

 

[vetmedhead]

A strategy that's worked for me is pretending that I have to give a presentation or lecture on the material to a pretend audience who doesn't know the material (or use a willing pet) then lecture out loud all the material. I've found that I don't truly understand something deeply until I can explain something complex in simple terms to a complete beginner; it exposes gaps in knowledge and comprehension that otherwise would have gone uncovered.

This is really one of my primary learning strategies. I'm fairly auditory (and physical - I have a lot of hand motions and dances to remember things!) and need to talk a lot to really keep info down. My cat knows a lot of stuff now.

 

[Stroganoff]

If I really have absolutely no idea...

• I look for answers that are the same but written with opposing language (e.g. one answer is "GFR will increase because XYZ" and the other is "GFR will decrease because XYZ") and try to pick between one of the two, because I have generally found that when questions are written like this that one of those two is right
• I'll pick the longest answer, especially if the other answers are way shorter by comparison. Correct answers often need qualifications to be completely accurate, which tends to make them longer
• In questions with "All of the above" or "none of the above" as answers, I'll often pick one of those. I read a paper somewhere that in questions with these answers in them, one of these answers is correct something like >50% of the time, so guessing between one of these can improve the chances of getting the answer correct. If I truly have no idea I'll usually go through and see if any of the answers are right or wrong, then pick the appropriate "all of" answer. The exception to this is when I read through and find both a right and a wrong answer in the pool, then I know I can cross off both the "all of"s plus at least one of the other answers based on the question and then I at least have improved guessing chances from there

Along the line of the "I have no idea," I read somewhere -- maybe from Princeton Review ACT or SAT prep ages ago -- that in MC questions that have a pair of opposite answers, it's likely that one of the two is correct vs. the other MC questions.

a. hurrrrr
b. GFR will increase
c. GFR will decrease
d. durrrrrr
e. Patient is a human​

 

[Adamawavet]

I am an American living abroad and have been trying to get back to the US for interviews, including one I was at the top of the waitlist for this Saturday and was desperately hoping I would get. Well the engine on flight #2 of 4 blew out, and there is only one flight out of the country a day, so that isn’t even a possibility now. So after sobbing in an airport at 2 in the morning as I got yelled at by guards, I am spending my vacation days sitting in a random hotel room until they find a new plane so it can take me 4 days and thousands of dollars to make it to the US to get rejected. Things could be much worse, the plane could have crashed, but I am tired and frustrated.

 

[SkiOtter]

I am an American living abroad and have been trying to get back to the US for interviews, including one I was at the top of the waitlist for this Saturday and was desperately hoping I would get. Well the engine on flight #2 of 4 blew out, and there is only one flight out of the country a day, so that isn’t even a possibility now. So after sobbing in an airport at 2 in the morning as I got yelled at by guards, I am spending my vacation days sitting in a random hotel room until they find a new plane so it can take me 4 days and thousands of dollars to make it to the US to get rejected. Things could be much worse, the plane could have crashed, but I am tired and frustrated.

I’m sorry 🙁
Is it possible to contact the school and see if there’s any possibility of interviewing on a different date because of all this?

 

[cdo96]

This is really one of my primary learning strategies. I'm fairly auditory (and physical - I have a lot of hand motions and dances to remember things!) and need to talk a lot to really keep info down. My cat knows a lot of stuff now.

Oh yes. I do this too. Addy is well versed in all of my course from last year. She can probably teach you a lot about virology!

I have a massive white board, and I write everything out with like a thousand different colored markers. I also make a LOT of stupid jokes to myself (it helped when I had a study buddy but she’s not in my class any more)

It really helps my visual side because I can think back during the test when I’m struggling and I’m like “okay. It was in the XYZ section... GFR was in... dark blue... that’s because GFR gets sad with XYZ, and so GRF decreases with XYZ.

Parasitology was a hoot with this.

Other than that, I love either Anki or Quizlet pro, I’m not too specific about which one I like better

 

[SkiOtter]

Along the line of the "I have no idea," I read somewhere -- maybe from Princeton Review ACT or SAT prep ages ago -- that in MC questions that have a pair of opposite answers, it's likely that one of the two is correct vs. the other MC questions.

a. hurrrrr
b. GFR will increase
c. GFR will decrease
d. durrrrrr
e. Patient is a human​

What if your MC questions have TWO DIFFERENT opposing answers 😢

 

[supershorty]

I am an American living abroad and have been trying to get back to the US for interviews, including one I was at the top of the waitlist for this Saturday and was desperately hoping I would get. Well the engine on flight #2 of 4 blew out, and there is only one flight out of the country a day, so that isn’t even a possibility now. So after sobbing in an airport at 2 in the morning as I got yelled at by guards, I am spending my vacation days sitting in a random hotel room until they find a new plane so it can take me 4 days and thousands of dollars to make it to the US to get rejected. Things could be much worse, the plane could have crashed, but I am tired and frustrated.

Oh no, that sounds so stressful! Can you call/email whatever school you're going to and explain? That's definitely the kind of thing that falls under extenuating circumstances. 🙁

 

[Stroganoff]

I have a massive white board, and I write everything out with like a thousand different colored markers. I also make a LOT of stupid jokes to myself (it helped when I had a study buddy but she’s not in my class any more)

No lie, I've been fantasizing about buying a massive whiteboard for probably over 10 years now, but I've either been poor AF (Air Force?) or it was inconvenient to move... What kind did you get, and from where? I want one of those double-sided kind with its own stand so I can write on both sides. And magnetic. And sturdy as hell. And read about different material grades (starts with an "m" - melamine?). GRAZIE if you can help. I think I'll finally buy one as a birthday gift so I can use it for SDN Telephone Pictionary studying.

 

[cdo96]

No lie, I've been fantasizing about buying a massive whiteboard for probably over 10 years now, but I've either been poor AF (Air Force?) or it was inconvenient to move... What kind did you get, and from where? I want one of those double-sided kind with its own stand so I can write on both sides. And magnetic. And sturdy as hell. And read about different material grades (starts with an "m" - melamine?). GRAZIE if you can help. I think I'll finally buy one as a birthday gift so I can use it for SDN Telephone Pictionary studying.

So mine is a wall mounted, magnetic one that I got on amazon and it’s amazing. It’s 8 feet long and 3.3 feet tall, so perfect for white board settings. It was a present from my dad lol, so it was kinda expensive, but still not as expensive as most of them I’ve seen.

I’ll try to send a picture when I get home tonight of what it looks like- I took the metal tray out

 

[battie]

one thing that works for me when I'm doing more of a final test review is writing out everything I can remember about a chunk of the material, and then I'll go through what I wrote compared to my notes from class and see which things I missed and need to focus on reviewing more.

Added to the list

pretending that I have to give a presentation or lecture on the material to a pretend audience who doesn't know the material

Also added to the list

What kind did you get, and from where?

I have a 6ft by 4 ft board I got for free from a 4th year because I was the only person who was able to move it. Lol. She went straight to a board manufacturer where they cut it to the size she wanted from a huge sheet of white boardness.

 

[Caiter92]

I also talk through my notes. I make study guides or do the lecture objectives (if it’s a class that tests off of those), and then read through my notes out loud and will quiz myself on it as I go, and repeat sections until I have them down before I move on.

I’m sorry bats 🙁 I hope things look up this quarter.

 

[boogercat]

Y'all are somehow making me both miss studying and fearing having to again.


Side note/ asking for advice: I have an interview at the end of the month for Washington, I am OOS, so the odds that I get accepted aren't stellar. It would cost ~$500 to fly out there from the east coast, rent a car, stay in a hotel, etc.
I am currently on Davis' waitlist, #7, it is my IS and my dream school. The odds are good that I'll be moved off of it, but it's not set in stone that I'll get off of it.

Should I spend half a grand to interview at Washington?? Is it worth it?? I'm leaning towards no, but people I talk to say I should go despite my standing on Davis' waitlist.

halp

 

[JaynaAli]

Y'all are somehow making me both miss studying and fearing having to again.


Side note/ asking for advice: I have an interview at the end of the month for Washington, I am OOS, so the odds that I get accepted aren't stellar. It would cost ~$500 to fly out there from the east coast, rent a car, stay in a hotel, etc.
I am currently on Davis' waitlist, #7, it is my IS and my dream school. The odds are good that I'll be moved off of it, but it's not set in stone that I'll get off of it.

Should I spend half a grand to interview at Washington?? Is it worth it?? I'm leaning towards no, but people I talk to say I should go despite my standing on Davis' waitlist.

halp

If you don't get off the wait list at Davis, will you be mad at yourself for not following through with the opportunity at WSU? I don't know anything about Davis specifically, but typically in-state wait lists do not move very much. A waitlist spot is definitely not the same as an acceptance. You never truly know what a school is looking for in an applicant. I'd do the interview, but that's just me. Plus if the VIN cost of education map is right, it might be cheaper at WSU anyway?

 

[boogercat]

If you don't get off the wait list at Davis, will you be mad at yourself for not following through with the opportunity at WSU? I don't know anything about Davis specifically, but typically in-state wait lists do not move very much. A waitlist spot is definitely not the same as an acceptance. You never truly know what a school is looking for in an applicant. I'd do the interview, but that's just me. Plus if the VIN cost of education map is right, it might be cheaper at WSU anyway?

Davis doesn't split the wait list - So it's one list for OOS and IS! If I don't get off the waitlist - Yeah I'd be upset. As far as costs, the total difference taking into account COL + tuition is a few thousand. It's worth the extra bit to return to a community that I know and love (did undergrad there), and be closer to home. I lost my dad during undergrad, and only being 1.5 hours became very important. It's just my mom and I now and I want to be able to be closer to her. 🙁

 

[battie]

lecture objectives (if it’s a class that tests off of those)

I'm so wary of these. Several vet med profs have said they do and didn't, or their LOs are know everything.

Should I spend half a grand to interview at Washington?? Is it worth it??

If it's your only acceptance, absolutely.

 

[boogercat]

Y'all have convinced me - thank you!! 🙄

 

[Lupin21]

Y'all have convinced me - thank you!! 🙄

It's definitely rough seeing that money fly out of your pocket, but as Jayna said, you have to think about if you didn't get off the waitlist and didn't go to this interview and had to wonder if you had gone if your life would have been different. I wish you all the best no matter what!! 🙂

 

[Caiter92]

I'm so wary of these. Several vet med profs have said they do and didn't, or their LOs are know everything.

Usually they’re know basically everything lol but they emphasize what the instructor cares about. It’s usually pretty well known which instructors are full of crap when they say they test off the lecture objectives, and in those classes I make study guides of everything.

Basically I just like to organize my notes in some way that summarizes, cause that itself helps me retain things. Then I do the talking through, quizzing myself, repetition, etc.

 

[MixedAnimals77]

Y'all are somehow making me both miss studying and fearing having to again.


Side note/ asking for advice: I have an interview at the end of the month for Washington, I am OOS, so the odds that I get accepted aren't stellar. It would cost ~$500 to fly out there from the east coast, rent a car, stay in a hotel, etc.
I am currently on Davis' waitlist, #7, it is my IS and my dream school. The odds are good that I'll be moved off of it, but it's not set in stone that I'll get off of it.

Should I spend half a grand to interview at Washington?? Is it worth it?? I'm leaning towards no, but people I talk to say I should go despite my standing on Davis' waitlist.

halp

Theres a shuttle so you dont have to rent a car! Getting around pullman isn't hard. I know it's hard to think about the stats of getting in but at least you have an interview. You still have a chance. Try air bnb because theres rooms around town that are available. PM me if you want since I'm here in pullman. See about splitting a hotel with someone?

 

[Coopah]

Y'all have convinced me - thank you!! 🙄

Good luck on the wait list!

 

[MixedAnimals77]

Y'all are somehow making me both miss studying and fearing having to again.


Side note/ asking for advice: I have an interview at the end of the month for Washington, I am OOS, so the odds that I get accepted aren't stellar. It would cost ~$500 to fly out there from the east coast, rent a car, stay in a hotel, etc.
I am currently on Davis' waitlist, #7, it is my IS and my dream school. The odds are good that I'll be moved off of it, but it's not set in stone that I'll get off of it.

Should I spend half a grand to interview at Washington?? Is it worth it?? I'm leaning towards no, but people I talk to say I should go despite my standing on Davis' waitlist.

halp

Also I spent the money, defied the odds. I'm originally from CSU and was IS. I got in here. It was ~30k cheaper for me to come here overall so here I am