Stuck in Undergrad Mode...

[Arkangeloid]

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So basically, back in undergrad, things were a lot more relaxed and less time-intensive in terms of studying. And of course, I was almost always successful in any class that wasn't Physics. As a consequence, I never really developed time-efficient study habits.

In med school this is pretty much biting me in the gluteal region. Whenever I study, I get stuff done, but I'm always tempted to goof off, surf the net a bit, and relax. I end up wasting a lot of time, and on exams I end up feeling like I don't know anything.

Is there anything I can do to improve my motivation and study habits? Should I try to get an Adderall/Ritalin prescription?

 

[Dmr6186]

So basically, back in undergrad, things were a lot more relaxed and less time-intensive in terms of studying. And of course, I was almost always successful in any class that wasn't Physics. As a consequence, I never really developed time-efficient study habits.

In med school this is pretty much biting me in the gluteal region. Whenever I study, I get stuff done, but I'm always tempted to goof off, surf the net a bit, and relax. I end up wasting a lot of time, and on exams I end up feeling like I don't know anything.

Is there anything I can do to improve my motivation and study habits? Should I try to get an Adderall/Ritalin prescription?

In terms of being tempted to relax, I know what you mean. I usually go to a public place like Dunkin' Donuts or the library to study if I start feeling that way. Being around other people studying helps the feelings of wanting to goof off.

 

[evilbooyaa]

Not a whole lot else to say besides sack up and focus. If you're truly having trouble focusing due to undiagnosed ADD, then sure, get it looked at.

What I found to be a very good idea was finding out what time worked for me to study. Generally it was late at night, after an hour or two of video games post-dinner. I could watch lectures for hours at like 1AM. No way in hell I'd be able to do that at 9AM.

 

[cs24]

So basically, back in undergrad, things were a lot more relaxed and less time-intensive in terms of studying. And of course, I was almost always successful in any class that wasn't Physics. As a consequence, I never really developed time-efficient study habits.

In med school this is pretty much biting me in the gluteal region. Whenever I study, I get stuff done, but I'm always tempted to goof off, surf the net a bit, and relax. I end up wasting a lot of time, and on exams I end up feeling like I don't know anything.

Is there anything I can do to improve my motivation and study habits? Should I try to get an Adderall/Ritalin prescription?

What has worked for me is to time everything. Sit down to study, turn on an online stopwatch, and then actually focus and study for 30-55min. For a break between sessions, set your time for 5-15 min. This helps me forget about any outside distractions for the time my timer is going (ignore texts, emails, etc until breaks) and prevents my breaks from getting too long when I do something like..ahem..read SDN.

Also I write out a short easy checklist of what I want to get done in that study session (pass 1x through lectures X,Y,Z, do X module, etc) to make it more task oriented instead of time oriented. When you are done with the tasks you laid out for that session, STOP. In med school there is always more studying you could be doing, but it is easy to lapse into half-ass studying for hours upon end and that is really inefficient.

As far as motivation, stop thinking about how to get motivated and just do that first block of studying. It's only 30 minutes or so, and you will often feel good about accomplishing something and be more motivated to continue studying after your break. The mountain of material seems less intimidating once you've taken that first step.

 

[zeppelinpage4]

^ Online stop-watch worked pretty well for me. Study for a solid hour, and then facebook/goof off online to your hearts content for however long you give yourself a break for. 😛

Not a whole lot else to say besides sack up and focus. If you're truly having trouble focusing due to undiagnosed ADD, then sure, get it looked at.

What I found to be a very good idea was finding out what time worked for me to study. Generally it was late at night, after an hour or two of video games post-dinner. I could watch lectures for hours at like 1AM. No way in hell I'd be able to do that at 9AM.

That's pretty much me too, I'm a night owl. Except we have mandatory lectures every morning. 😡

 

[evilbooyaa]

^ Online stop-watch worked pretty well for me. Study for a solid hour, and then facebook/goof off online to your hearts content for however long you give yourself a break for. 😛



That's pretty much me too, I'm a night owl. Except we have mandatory lectures every morning. 😡

This would've made me absolutely hate the pre-clinical years.

 

[yehhhboiii]

^ Online stop-watch worked pretty well for me. Study for a solid hour, and then facebook/goof off online to your hearts content for however long you give yourself a break for. 😛



That's pretty much me too, I'm a night owl. Except we have mandatory lectures every morning. 😡

lol i warned you in the 12334245 threads you made

 

[Nephronlearner]

So basically, back in undergrad, things were a lot more relaxed and less time-intensive in terms of studying. And of course, I was almost always successful in any class that wasn't Physics. As a consequence, I never really developed time-efficient study habits.

In med school this is pretty much biting me in the gluteal region. Whenever I study, I get stuff done, but I'm always tempted to goof off, surf the net a bit, and relax. I end up wasting a lot of time, and on exams I end up feeling like I don't know anything.

Is there anything I can do to improve my motivation and study habits? Should I try to get an Adderall/Ritalin prescription?

Actually, I don't think stopwatch is that good of an idea (way too... military 😛)
I used to have similar problems in the first year.

You should probably try to make a schedule based on what you need to do on any particular day and stick with it. Also, pick books that are engaging and that you actually enjoy reading (might be tough for some subjects, though).
Using good review books may be beneficial as well, since it takes less time to get through a chapter.
Even taking a 2 min break every 30 min to walk around the room can be a huge help at times.
For example, I would give myself 2 days to get through a chapter of Robbins (and write down notes). So I would need to do roughly 20 pages per day. By the time I reach page #17 I am already quite tired but then taking just a little time to walk around after each paragraph can help enormously.

And, well, you won't be equally productive every day, but as the time goes on there will be less bad days (you will "get used to it").

Hope it helps, good luck!

 

[D elegans]

What has worked for me is to time everything. Sit down to study, turn on an online stopwatch, and then actually focus and study for 30-55min. For a break between sessions, set your time for 5-15 min. This helps me forget about any outside distractions for the time my timer is going (ignore texts, emails, etc until breaks) and prevents my breaks from getting too long when I do something like..ahem..read SDN.

Also I write out a short easy checklist of what I want to get done in that study session (pass 1x through lectures X,Y,Z, do X module, etc) to make it more task oriented instead of time oriented. When you are done with the tasks you laid out for that session, STOP. In med school there is always more studying you could be doing, but it is easy to lapse into half-ass studying for hours upon end and that is really inefficient.

As far as motivation, stop thinking about how to get motivated and just do that first block of studying. It's only 30 minutes or so, and you will often feel good about accomplishing something and be more motivated to continue studying after your break. The mountain of material seems less intimidating once you've taken that first step.

Excellent advice. I would also throw in the suggestion of trying to figure out how you learn the best actively. For most people this entails drawing things out, making concise notes, etc. It may seem like extra work but it will save time if you actually learn it.

Hang in there and you'll get better. By the time second year comes around you'll have more experience and be better at studying . Plus there are lots of great resources for studying second year like Pathoma and qbanks.

By the time 3rd year rolls around you'll just wish you had time to study effectively

 

[zeppelinpage4]

This would've made me absolutely hate the pre-clinical years.

Yup....I'm headed towards feeling that way about the pre-clinical years lol. Thankfully our classes aren't till 10am...so atleast there's some leeway with staying up.

lol i warned you in the 12334245 threads you made

Haha, but I'm pretty sure the only schools that accepted me all had required lectures. I didn't completely ignore the advice though. MS2s told us that the mandatory lecture thing ends after first semester for the most part...😎 I hope they were telling the truth.

 

[cs24]

Actually, I don't think stopwatch is that good of an idea (way too... military 😛)


Even taking a 2 min break every 30 min to walk around the room can be a huge help at times.

For which you might some sort of timer....perhaps, even, a stopwatch?

 

[David Hasselhof]

Well if med school doesn't work out for you at least you have a nice arranged marriage to look forward to.

 

[Arkangeloid]

Well if med school doesn't work out for you at least you have a nice arranged marriage to look forward to.

The arranged marriage is contingent on getting an MD and matching into a parent-approved specialty (anything besides Peds/OB/Psych).

Anyways, passed Cell Bio and Histo, narrowly passing Anatomy so far, but Head and Neck in 2 days. So many nerves, so little time...I've taken to calling the Trigeminal Nerve the Nightmare Nerve.

 

[KnuxNole]

The arranged marriage is contingent on getting an MD and matching into a parent-approved specialty (anything besides Peds/OB/Psych).

Anyways, passed Cell Bio and Histo, narrowly passing Anatomy so far, but Head and Neck in 2 days. So many nerves, so little time...I've taken to calling the Trigeminal Nerve the Nightmare Nerve.

That sounds depressing. I prefer the regular/normal way to find a partner...