Study habits that lead to success

[shinbeats]

Can some of you guys share study habits that are leading to your success in a lot of detail. I know some kids like studying prior to a class, some after, some hate text books but either way thanks in advance.

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[officedepot]

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[JP2740]

Wake up-Eat Breakfast-Brush Teeth/Shower-Study-Eat Lunch-Study-Eat Dinner-Study-Sleep-Wake Up, etc.

 

[JackShephard MD]

1. You will not be able to memorize everything so don't stress yourself too much. At this point you are who you are with regards to memory so make the best of it.

2. You simply just need to read a lot and memorize when necessary. Look for key words and signs, symptoms, treatments, etc that make each disease unique. Coming from an older student's perspective I'd say the one thing that would especially help M2 year would be to just read different sources about all the diseases you are taught (including a step 1 prep book even). That way you'll have a much better working knowledge of the material which I find more valuable then wrote memorization knowledge since that doesn't help as much in the real world.

3. Try your best. There is no magic bullet.

Rote.

 

[officedepot]

.

 

[JackShephard MD]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douche
lol

though I had a feeling that didn't look write when I typed it.

Just trying to help. Wasn't sure if you knew the correct spelling or not, especially considering the context.

If I really wanted to be a douche, I would have pointed out that you used "then" instead of "than".

"then wrote" or "than rote"? Honestly, not trying to be mean spirited.

 

[dr zaius]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douche
lol

though I had a feeling that didn't look write when I typed it.

I get it!

 

[officedepot]

.

 

[spaceshark]

Damn you guys are so clever.

 

[link2swim06]

Can some of you guys share study habits that are leading to your success in a lot of detail. I know some kids like studying prior to a class, some after, some hate text books but either way thanks in advance.

I dont go to any lectures nor make notes...my method is reading the material as many times as possible. I never write anything down which makes it easier for me to read it a ton of times. I can read through a 60 minute lecture ppt in ~20 minutes so it easy for me to review stuff several times.

IMO being able to read it 3-5 times before the test is a sure fire way to get an A or B.

Some people like to do lectures or write notes, that is very time consuming, but if thats your style go for it. But the advantage to just reading it is you can start studying only a few days before the test and do well. Or start a week out from your test, read everything ~10 times and destroy the test.

Obviously you cant be day dreaming while you are reading it though....

Oh....ps....dont try to "memorize" anything (by staring at 1 page for an hour), just keep reading it multiple times till you just remember it.

 

[shinbeats]

I dont go to any lectures nor make notes...my method is reading the material as many times as possible. I never write anything down which makes it easier for me to read it a ton of times. I can read through a 60 minute lecture ppt in ~20 minutes so it easy for me to review stuff several times.

IMO being able to read it 3-5 times before the test is a sure fire way to get an A or B.

Some people like to do lectures or write notes, that is very time consuming, but if thats your style go for it. But the advantage to just reading it is you can start studying only a few days before the test and do well. Or start a week out from your test, read everything ~10 times and destroy the test.

Obviously you cant be day dreaming while you are reading it though....

Oh....ps....dont try to "memorize" anything (by staring at 1 page for an hour), just keep reading it multiple times till you just remember it.

Awesome man that's how I did well in my past exams I would just read notes over and over again. Do you utilize text books? I feel like that can be time consuming but possibly effectve? then again there's just so much material in books.

 

[shinbeats]

1. You will not be able to memorize everything so don't stress yourself too much. At this point you are who you are with regards to memory so make the best of it.

2. You simply just need to read a lot and memorize when necessary. Look for key words and signs, symptoms, treatments, etc that make each disease unique. Coming from an older student's perspective I'd say the one thing that would especially help M2 year would be to just read different sources about all the diseases you are taught (including a step 1 prep book even). That way you'll have a much better working knowledge of the material which I find more valuable then wrote memorization knowledge since that doesn't help as much in the real world.

3. Try your best. There is no magic bullet.

Thank you and to all the grammar/spelling nazis please leave, I'm trying to stay on topic.

 

[link2swim06]

Awesome man that's how I did well in my past exams I would just read notes over and over again. Do you utilize text books? I feel like that can be time consuming but possibly effectve? then again there's just so much material in books.

No, for my school everything testable is in powerpoints / note packets. I just focus on what we are being tested on. Although for classes like micro I used first aid to try to organize the information better.

We have a test once every ~10 days, which is about 25 powerpoints of ~80 slides each. So I can read everything in about 8 hours. I need 2 passes minimum (16-20 hours), 3 preferably to get a B/B+. So I have started as late as a 1-2 days before the test, but I find if I start earlier and get 4-5 passes in I will get an A.

I use to be a "write everything down" person and would spend upwards of 100 hours for each test. However, I was still only getting through material ~2-3 times, now I spend a fraction of that time and get the exact same grade. I wish I would have known this as an M1, I have a ton of free time now since I dont make notes, dont highlight and dont go to lecture.

I guess it depends on your learn style though...

 

[chidoman]

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[mrwiggles3]

I'm just a high school student, but this is what I do for memorization:

First step: find out all the topics you need to know for the test (pretty straightforward)

Second: Go through a textbook (you can go through powerpoints, I never have any in high school though) that explains that subject and write full sentenced notes (ex: 1939 sept 1 WWII began vs On September 1st, 1939, World War II officially began).

Third: Compile the list of notes and number them (generally chronologically in the order you took them, but can be done in matter of importance, etc.). This can go up into a large amount of notes.

Fourth: Start at the first note. Read it out loud, then read it again out loud, but with your eyes closed. Then go on to the next note. Every time you move on to the next note, you must start from the beginning of the list and read every single note. I'll give an example of how I'd do this.


Notes

1 On September 1st, 1939, World War II officially began.
2 The Nazi forces invaded Poland
3 Simultaneously, Britain and France declared war on Germany and began a naval blockade.
4 On September 17th, the Soviets invaded Poland.

So this is the order I would read my notes in:

Note 1
Note 1 Note 2
Note 1 Note 2 Note 3
Note 1 Note 2 Note 3 Note 4
and so forth.
This method is really effective for me and it has helped me study a lot. Its crucial to be reading out loud because you really internalize the information. I hope this helped out!

 

[Oxer45]

Can some of you guys share study habits that are leading to your success in a lot of detail. I know some kids like studying prior to a class, some after, some hate text books but either way thanks in advance.

As a 4th year, since everyone already matched, all my classmates are suddenly honest about their studying skills. I'm surprised by how many people took drugs or "memory enhancers." I'm even more surprised by how mediocre they did. Studying everyday is better than taking a pill before exam and cramming.

 

[Phyozo]

Can some of you guys share study habits that are leading to your success in a lot of detail. I know some kids like studying prior to a class, some after, some hate text books but either way thanks in advance.

Read -> summarize/understand/consolidate into smaller notes (try only writing down 10% of what you just read, but the 10% that you can then read and understand the other 90%) -> read your own notes qday over the next 5 days before exam. Done!

 

[Asp]

Stop wasting time studying.

Skip all your classes. 90% of them are a waste of your time.

Do Qbanks like 24+ questions a day everyday.

Spend the rest of the time doing research for and sucking up to the bigwigs in the department of your interest.

 

[TAWS]

I have tried different methods but I think this one is the most efficient.

1. Copy every single line of text from the powerpoints into a word document (just use copy/paste, so shouldn't take long)
2. Read one time through
3. Delete all the unimportant stuff.
4. Re-read whatever is left over the weekend
5. Delete more stuff
6. Repeat as many times as necessary

I like my method because when I read notes, I am in a "editing" mindset rather than just passively reading stuff.

-Don't ever write notes by hand....too time consuming.
-Don't waste time going over complicated pictures (especially embryology).

 

[Dr Gerrard]

I have tried different methods but I think this one is the most efficient.

1. Copy every single line of text from the powerpoints into a word document (just use copy/paste, so shouldn't take long)
2. Read one time through
3. Delete all the unimportant stuff.
4. Re-read whatever is left over the weekend
5. Delete more stuff
6. Repeat as many times as necessary

I like my method because when I read notes, I am in a "editing" mindset rather than just passively reading stuff.

-Don't ever write notes by hand....too time consuming.
-Don't waste time going over complicated pictures (especially embryology).

I don't understand what you think is "unimportant" though

I go through my notes and i feel as though the only unimportant words are "the" "and" "are" etc.

 

[TAWS]

I don't understand what you think is "unimportant" though

I go through my notes and i feel as though the only unimportant words are "the" "and" "are" etc.

I usually ignore phrases with adjectives like "structure X is very big and has elastic fibers"

I have noticed many professors like to write their notes in the passive voice. This annoys the heck out of me because everyone reads quicker in the active voice, so I will rearrange their sentence to make it in the active voice.

"fever, headache, coughing are indicative of X disease" ---> "X disease symptoms are..."

 

[Abby_Normal]

I admit to not being the best memorizer, but here are some strategies that I have found that have helped:

1. Flash cards. Also any source of practice questions. The thing with flash cards is you have to decide not only what's important but what aspects of memorization flash cards will actually help with. I haven't gotten this down to a science.
2. Audio recordings of notes. I started doing this when I was taking Orgo over the summer and had a 40-50 min each way commute. Since then, I've found that even if I never actually listen to it, having made a recording of a subject makes it stick in my mind better. I ascribe this to the theory that teaching helps with mastery of subject. I basically make my own lecture based upon my notes.
3. Answering objective questions. As I said, I'm not the best memorizer. I'm an abstract thinker, so learning by using and relating concepts is easier for me. After I've taken and reviewed my notes, I go back to the objectives listed at the start of the lecture and see if I can summarize/answer them. I try from memory first and then go back to notes/text for help. I approach it like writing mini-essays (by mini-essays I mean usually not more than a page per objective, often less). These often serve as the basis for my audio recordings.

 

[CaramelFrapp]

MS0 here

Would you guys recommend getting the First Aid book early on to supplement studying during first and second year? do u think it would help to organize the material and familiarize with step1?
are there any additional step 1 review books that would help while in first year?

thanks!

 

[Phyozo]

MS0 here

Would you guys recommend getting the First Aid book early on to supplement studying during first and second year? do u think it would help to organize the material and familiarize with step1?
are there any additional step 1 review books that would help while in first year?

thanks!

No, don't do that. Enjoy your freedom first year. If you really want to get ahead, grab it beginning of second year, but even then it's early.

You won't have enough background to know what's important starting off med school...just focus on learning the new pace of absorbing material and enjoy the small amount of free time you have left. If you HAVE to get supplemental reading, I'd recommend grabbing BRS physiology to focus the high yield physio material.

 

[Dr McSexy]

Fourth: Start at the first note. Read it out loud, then read it again out loud, but with your eyes closed.

 

[Apollo316]

M-0 also.

Are there any AOA's that can bless us with their study habits?

(I'm a fan of the grammar nazis and gunners. They make us all better people.)

 

[CaramelFrapp]

No, don't do that. Enjoy your freedom first year. If you really want to get ahead, grab it beginning of second year, but even then it's early.

You won't have enough background to know what's important starting off med school...just focus on learning the new pace of absorbing material and enjoy the small amount of free time you have left. If you HAVE to get supplemental reading, I'd recommend grabbing BRS physiology to focus the high yield physio material.

Thanks!

 

[CaramelFrapp]

m-0 also.

Are there any aoa's that can bless us with their study habits?

(i'm a fan of the grammar nazis and gunners. They make us all better people.)

+1

 

[MrBeauregard]

M-0 also.

Are there any AOA's that can bless us with their study habits?

(I'm a fan of the grammar nazis and gunners. They make us all better people.)

Other people telling you their study habits won't really help you that much. I was doing the same thing that you are, but once I started school I realized that out of the 220 people in my class, there were probably 195 different study methods. Here are some generally agreed upon things you can do to succeed in medical school:

1. Don't fall behind. Medical school has so much material coming at you so quickly that it is easy to fall behind. Try your hardest to stay on top of the material. Review all of the day's lectures that day. Don't let multiple days pass before you review a lecture.

2. Repetition, repetition, repetition. This is definitely the name of the game. The more you see it, the better you'll do.

3. Don't go to class. This one may be not actually be widely agreed upon, but my grades definitely increased once I stopped going. I also found that I had more free time (read: time to study from materials that I otherwise couldn't find the time to study from before). I felt less stressed overall. I also was able to get a least another full pass through material before an exam.

These three should get you started. This probably seems pretty vague and not helpful at this point, but if you at least don't fall behind and try to make multiple passes through material, you'll do well. As far as making note cards, rewriting notes, putting all powerpoints into a word file, reading syllabi and then only studying board review books, reading Robbins (or other texts for that matter), these will all come down to personal preference and what you feel is the best use of your time. Medical school really is so intense that you simply have to find what works for you and not rely on what worked for someone else.

 

[D elegans]

More of the same advice:

Repeat, repeat, repeat. I remember thinking that I could devise some ingenious method to "get things the first time." There simply is too much material. Keep going over your lectures, notes, books, or whatever and things will start to fall into place.

 

[JackShephard MD]

Can some of you guys share study habits that are leading to your success in a lot of detail. I know some kids like studying prior to a class, some after, some hate text books but either way thanks in advance.

Btw, a search would help quite a bit. There are a bunch of threads on this.

 

[Phyozo]

By the way, did anyone mention that a lot of what you learn 1st and 2nd year is not particularly relevant to medicine? If you go to an academic center, your lectures are probably done by some PhD who will spend a great deal of time talking about some newly discovered receptor named ABGI!@$T*Y. Try to snag a couple of honors during the first few years, but don't sweat it. Step 1 is the test you want to destroy.

Oh and whoever said skip class is spot on. My grades improved dramatically after I started skipping lecture to learn the material (read: study for step 1) on my own - left me with enough time to go out every night and weekend with friends to maintain some sanity.

 

[JackShephard MD]

By the way, did anyone mention that a lot of what you learn 1st and 2nd year is not particularly relevant to medicine? If you go to an academic center, your lectures are probably done by some PhD who will spend a great deal of time talking about some newly discovered receptor named ABGI!@$T*Y. Try to snag a couple of honors during the first few years, but don't sweat it. Step 1 is the test you want to destroy.

Oh and whoever said skip class is spot on. My grades improved dramatically after I started skipping lecture to learn the material (read: study for step 1) on my own - left me with enough time to go out every night and weekend with friends to maintain some sanity.

Thanks for the advice, good to know.

 

[officedepot]

.

 

[dillydally]

No, for my school everything testable is in powerpoints / note packets. I just focus on what we are being tested on. Although for classes like micro I used first aid to try to organize the information better.

We have a test once every ~10 days, which is about 25 powerpoints of ~80 slides each. So I can read everything in about 8 hours. I need 2 passes minimum (16-20 hours), 3 preferably to get a B/B+. So I have started as late as a 1-2 days before the test, but I find if I start earlier and get 4-5 passes in I will get an A.

I use to be a "write everything down" person and would spend upwards of 100 hours for each test. However, I was still only getting through material ~2-3 times, now I spend a fraction of that time and get the exact same grade. I wish I would have known this as an M1, I have a ton of free time now since I dont make notes, dont highlight and dont go to lecture.

I guess it depends on your learn style though...

I think tests every 10 days are a bad idea since it encourages cramming, making long term retainment very difficult. Tests once every 8 weeks makes it impossible to cram, and might be a better assessment of knowledge. Could be wrong though. Sorry to get off topic

 

[link2swim06]

I think tests every 10 days are a bad idea since it encourages cramming, making long term retainment very difficult. Tests once every 8 weeks makes it impossible to cram, and might be a better assessment of knowledge. Could be wrong though. Sorry to get off topic

Ehh I would disagree with that, first semester M1 year I never crammed and studied throughout, now all I do is cram. The interesting thing is my NBME subject test scores have only gone up since I started cramming (we are on semesters, yet I am still remembering stuff from 4 months ago). Therefore, at least for me, I dont think cramming has anything to do with retention. If you learned it, you learned it. I guess this could be different for other people.

 

[DancinSarah]

I'm just a high school student, but this is what I do for memorization:

First step: find out all the topics you need to know for the test (pretty straightforward)

Second: Go through a textbook (you can go through powerpoints, I never have any in high school though) that explains that subject and write full sentenced notes (ex: 1939 sept 1 WWII began vs On September 1st, 1939, World War II officially began).

Third: Compile the list of notes and number them (generally chronologically in the order you took them, but can be done in matter of importance, etc.). This can go up into a large amount of notes.

Fourth: Start at the first note. Read it out loud, then read it again out loud, but with your eyes closed. Then go on to the next note. Every time you move on to the next note, you must start from the beginning of the list and read every single note. I'll give an example of how I'd do this.


Notes

1 On September 1st, 1939, World War II officially began.
2 The Nazi forces invaded Poland
3 Simultaneously, Britain and France declared war on Germany and began a naval blockade.
4 On September 17th, the Soviets invaded Poland.

So this is the order I would read my notes in:

Note 1
Note 1 Note 2
Note 1 Note 2 Note 3
Note 1 Note 2 Note 3 Note 4
and so forth.
This method is really effective for me and it has helped me study a lot. Its crucial to be reading out loud because you really internalize the information. I hope this helped out!

This might be the most adorable post I have ever read in this forum. How CUTE

 

[JackShephard MD]

This might be the most adorable post I have ever read in this forum. How CUTE

lol, not sure if that's a good thing. That method =

 

[flodhi1]

Other people telling you their study habits won't really help you that much. I was doing the same thing that you are, but once I started school I realized that out of the 220 people in my class, there were probably 195 different study methods. Here are some generally agreed upon things you can do to succeed in medical school:

1. Don't fall behind. Medical school has so much material coming at you so quickly that it is easy to fall behind. Try your hardest to stay on top of the material. Review all of the day's lectures that day. Don't let multiple days pass before you review a lecture.

2. Repetition, repetition, repetition. This is definitely the name of the game. The more you see it, the better you'll do.

3. Don't go to class. This one may be not actually be widely agreed upon, but my grades definitely increased once I stopped going. I also found that I had more free time (read: time to study from materials that I otherwise couldn't find the time to study from before). I felt less stressed overall. I also was able to get a least another full pass through material before an exam.

These three should get you started. This probably seems pretty vague and not helpful at this point, but if you at least don't fall behind and try to make multiple passes through material, you'll do well. As far as making note cards, rewriting notes, putting all powerpoints into a word file, reading syllabi and then only studying board review books, reading Robbins (or other texts for that matter), these will all come down to personal preference and what you feel is the best use of your time. Medical school really is so intense that you simply have to find what works for you and not rely on what worked for someone else.

By the way, did anyone mention that a lot of what you learn 1st and 2nd year is not particularly relevant to medicine? If you go to an academic center, your lectures are probably done by some PhD who will spend a great deal of time talking about some newly discovered receptor named ABGI!@$T*Y. Try to snag a couple of honors during the first few years, but don't sweat it. Step 1 is the test you want to destroy.

Oh and whoever said skip class is spot on. My grades improved dramatically after I started skipping lecture to learn the material (read: study for step 1) on my own - left me with enough time to go out every night and weekend with friends to maintain some sanity.

I tend to feel like I'm lost if I don't go to class. Aren't professors supposed to teach the material to you thus wouldn't going to class be beneficial especially if they hint important topics and questions?
How are you guys able to know what chapters/topics to emphasize on if you don't go to class? I'm assuming you watch video recordings of the lecture, listen to audio at the very least or is there a specific schedule for everything?
I'm hoping you guys could elaborate on the whole not going to class thing. In undergrad whenever I skipped a class I was pretty much screwed and would fall behind

 

[link2swim06]

I tend to feel like I'm lost if I don't go to class. Aren't professors supposed to teach the material to you thus wouldn't going to class be beneficial especially if they hint important topics and questions?
How are you guys able to know what chapters/topics to emphasize on if you don't go to class? I'm assuming you watch video recordings of the lecture, listen to audio at the very least or is there a specific schedule for everything?
I'm hoping you guys could elaborate on the whole not going to class thing. In undergrad whenever I skipped a class I was pretty much screwed and would fall behind

I see from your signature that you havent started school yet. I dont know if the following is true at all med schools, but its true for the majority. Everything you need to know will be condensed into one source, i.e. a bunch of powerpoints or a notes packet.

Therefore as long as you know every fact/figure/concept in that powerpoint/note packet you will ace the test.

In undergrad they seemed to hint about "important concepts"....but from my experience in med school "important concepts" are anything the professors included. So in other words you need to know everything.

Starting out you should GO to class because this is what you already know how to do. After your first test you can experiment with skipping classes and by second semester you can skip all classes.

I generally dont listen to lectures because I can read faster than they can talk. Occasionally I will speed a lecture up to 2 or 3X speed for a particular excellent teacher.


P.S. The cool thing about med school is the material is very simple. There aren't many difficult concepts to learn, it just a volume game (hence why skipping class works better in this setting).

 

[MrBeauregard]

I tend to feel like I'm lost if I don't go to class. Aren't professors supposed to teach the material to you thus wouldn't going to class be beneficial especially if they hint important topics and questions?
How are you guys able to know what chapters/topics to emphasize on if you don't go to class? I'm assuming you watch video recordings of the lecture, listen to audio at the very least or is there a specific schedule for everything?
I'm hoping you guys could elaborate on the whole not going to class thing. In undergrad whenever I skipped a class I was pretty much screwed and would fall behind

My undergrad didn't have recorded lectures but my medical school does audio record lectures (no video). If I didn't have an audio file to listen to I would most likely go to class. I can put a lecture on 1.7x-2x speed and get through it so much faster than if I sat in class, listened to a lecturer speak slowly for 50 minutes, sat there for a 10 minute break, listened to another lecturer drone on for another 50 minutes, etc. I can get through 4 hours of lecture in 2.5 hours at home, leaving me an extra 1.5 hours to read, go over the lectures again, or whatever. It is just a better use of your time and I get so much more done that way.

I see from your signature that you havent started school yet. I dont know if the following is true at all med schools, but its true for the majority. Everything you need to know will be condensed into one source, i.e. a bunch of powerpoints or a notes packet.

Therefore as long as you know every fact/figure/concept in that powerpoint/note packet you will ace the test.

In undergrad they seemed to hint about "important concepts"....but from my experience in med school "important concepts" are anything the professors included. So in other words you need to know everything.

Starting out you should GO to class because this is what you already know how to do. After your first test you can experiment with skipping classes and by second semester you can skip all classes.

I generally dont listen to lectures because I can read faster than they can talk. Occasionally I will speed a lecture up to 2 or 3X speed for a particular excellent teacher.

P.S. The cool thing about med school is the material is very simple. There aren't many difficult concepts to learn, it just a volume game (hence why skipping class works better in this setting).

Exactly. As this poster said, I would go to class initially (which is what I did). Once you get a feel for the volume of material and speed of medical school and you take a couple tests, then you can figure out if not going to class will work for you. And it doesn't work for all people. The majority of my class doesn't go to class anymore but there are still those students who hold strong because it works for them. All in all, I think not going to class is best, but you just have to judge it for yourself.

As for the material, every lecturer is different. Testable material is generally taken from lectures/powerpoints and not texts (unless specifically stated otherwise) so that everything you need to know is in a single binder. As long as you get through it all and know all the little details, you can expect to get really good grades. There are those professors who will literally tell you what they are going to ask, and then there are those professors who give huge lectures and you never know what question they will ask so you pretty much have to know it all. This will be specific to your school of course and so you have to take a few tests to judge how people ask questions.

 

[flodhi1]

Thanks guys!

 

[Ilovewater]

The key is repetition. I usually go through the material 2-3x before an exam depending on the amount of material. We have exams every 3-4 weeks, so you have to make sure you keep up with your studies because it's impossible to cram 60-80 lectures the week of the exam. For schools that test more regularly, you might be ok with a little cramming. I'd still advise do a little bit of work every day, go through the materials a few times, and you'll be fine.

Also, I agree about not going to lecture. Biggest waste of time.

 

[KnuxNole]

I tend to feel like I'm lost if I don't go to class. Aren't professors supposed to teach the material to you thus wouldn't going to class be beneficial especially if they hint important topics and questions?
How are you guys able to know what chapters/topics to emphasize on if you don't go to class? I'm assuming you watch video recordings of the lecture, listen to audio at the very least or is there a specific schedule for everything?
I'm hoping you guys could elaborate on the whole not going to class thing. In undergrad whenever I skipped a class I was pretty much screwed and would fall behind

There should be notes given out during lecture, so you usually read that. I've never had a lecture where they only just talk and people have to write notes. Usually, they GIVE you the material in writing, so there is absolutely no secret on what's expected.

Therefore, dependent on classes/school of course, you don't need to audio because you can read the notes yourself, read the review book yourself, and you are good to go

 

[Freakfarm0]

The key is repetition. I usually go through the material 2-3x before an exam depending on the amount of material. We have exams every 3-4 weeks, so you have to make sure you keep up with your studies because it's impossible to cram 60-80 lectures the week of the exam. For schools that test more regularly, you might be ok with a little cramming. I'd still advise do a little bit of work every day, go through the materials a few times, and you'll be fine.

Also, I agree about not going to lecture. Biggest waste of time.

I beg to differ, kind sir.

 

[WashMe]

The key is repetition. I usually go through the material 2-3x before an exam depending on the amount of material. We have exams every 3-4 weeks, so you have to make sure you keep up with your studies because it's impossible to cram 60-80 lectures the week of the exam. For schools that test more regularly, you might be ok with a little cramming. I'd still advise do a little bit of work every day, go through the materials a few times, and you'll be fine.

Also, I agree about not going to lecture. Biggest waste of time.

I beg to differ, kind sir.

Last year during MS2 I would back-calculate my time until a test and give myself 40 minutes to get through each 1hour of lecture videos (my school records everything). So, if I had 45 hours of lecture I would just start watching the videos exactly 30 hours before an 8AM test and plow through them all. Worked like a charm, especially if it was my only pass through the material, because the information was so novel it really stuck. Nothing makes you learn something well like seeing it all for the 1st time under do-or-die conditions lol

 

[amaprez]

Last year during MS2 I would back-calculate my time until a test and give myself 40 minutes to get through each 1hour of lecture videos (my school records everything). So, if I had 45 hours of lecture I would just start watching the videos exactly 30 hours before an 8AM test and plow through them all. Worked like a charm, especially if it was my only pass through the material, because the information was so novel it really stuck. Nothing makes you learn something well like seeing it all for the 1st time under do-or-die conditions lol

I'm glad that this worked for you, but I'm not sure "cram everything for the first time right before an exam" should qualify as a 'study skill that leads to sucess'

 

[JackShephard MD]

Last year during MS2 I would back-calculate my time until a test and give myself 40 minutes to get through each 1hour of lecture videos (my school records everything). So, if I had 45 hours of lecture I would just start watching the videos exactly 30 hours before an 8AM test and plow through them all. Worked like a charm, especially if it was my only pass through the material, because the information was so novel it really stuck. Nothing makes you learn something well like seeing it all for the 1st time under do-or-die conditions lol

Amazing.

I'm glad that this worked for you, but I'm not sure "cram everything for the first time right before an exam" should qualify as a 'study skill that leads to sucess'

Everybody crams.

 

[link2swim06]

Last year during MS2 I would back-calculate my time until a test and give myself 40 minutes to get through each 1hour of lecture videos (my school records everything). So, if I had 45 hours of lecture I would just start watching the videos exactly 30 hours before an 8AM test and plow through them all. Worked like a charm, especially if it was my only pass through the material, because the information was so novel it really stuck. Nothing makes you learn something well like seeing it all for the 1st time under do-or-die conditions lol

Bro, we have the identical study strategy. I have yet to sleep the night before a test this year.

 

[WashMe]

Amazing.



Everybody crams.

Bro, we have the identical study strategy. I have yet to sleep the night before a test this year.

Keep up the good work!