study habits

[jabroni108]

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I am starting med school in the fall, and I want to know how much different studying is from undergrad from med school. From what I gather, med school seems like avoiding lectures and reading like crazy. Throughout my undergrad (which was science based), i found that I learned from attending class, and reading the notes, and never cracked a book. I hope I can do this in med school because I am a bad reader (worst section on MCAT too). I would just like to see how students students prepare for the rigors of medical education. thank you

 

[mddo2b]

After 4 years of med school, in my opinion the key to studying is simply this........................COFFEE......I prefer Dunkin' Donuts French Vanilla in the biggest size available....
The truth is med school is different then undergrad....it is not that the information is hard to grasp, it is the shear volume of information on top of time constraints. I used notes, and texts and rarely went to class...
Don't fret, you'll find what works best for you.
BTW, I read as slow as a snail and somhow I made it and so will you....you'll be fine.

 

[Starboard]

All depends on where you go to school... some places will give you more than adequate notes so you wont ever need the book, others wont provide notes at all. No matter what, get the board review books. You'll need them anyways and there will be days when you won't make to class and the review books will fill you in on what you need.

 

[SammyK]

I think the study skills that will be successful depend on a number of things. Some professors give fabulous notes that give you as much info as you could want and/or need. Others will leave much to the imagination, and you may need a text to figure things out and teach yourself. It is also important to know if you are more efficient at self-studying, group studying, or a combination. That can depend on the subject you are going over. I think the main thing is to find out what works and then stay consistent and diligent with it. This is especially true in the case of time management, because as the saying goes "med school is like trying to drink out of a fire hydrant...." It isn't that the difficulty of the material in and of itself is exceptionally more difficult than the stuff you probably took to get to this point, it is just the sheer volume that you are required to process at a given time.
I never studied in undergrad, except the night before the test. I study everyday now. So for me, just the time factor alone took some getting used to. But you'll figure it out. Congratulations and good luck.

 

[Amra]

I'm with SammyK on the pre-test study habits. I'm good at learning and applying concepts quickly.. however my shortcoming is rote memorization... I'm going to have to work on that for next year... otherwise I'm in trouble. I wonder if studying daily might cure that...? <img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" />

-A

P.S. Hell... I even crammed for the MCAT - I studied the night before. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Eek!]" src="eek.gif" />

 

[DrQuinn]

It all depends on YOU.

In undergrad I studied more than I did in med school. I would study sometimes at night and definately before the test.

In med school, of course when it first starts out, everyone studies a lot at first. Then some people (like myself), realized you don't need to study everyday...
I crammed on the Saturday and Sunday before our test on Monday and did well...

some people studied several hours during the week and studied only moderately on teh weekends...

some people never studied...

that's waht your first year will be about... figuring out how you study best. Then when second year comes around, stick with it.

Q

 

[Slingblade the Surgeon]

I'm like amra, I need massive repetition for memorization. I can read very fast but my comprehension drops to around 60% at top speed and is transient (5 mins or less), so I try to slow down where I can absorb more info. I am usually a crammer, which has worked well for me in undergrad...but I don't think I'll need the extra stress in med school so I'm planning on studying a little of each subject every day. the trick for me is to make time for other intrests b/c if I don't I WILL REBEL and not be able to get myself to study for sh|t (A nice little built-in self-defeating pattern there).

The group study thing is good as long as the group can be serious enough. I have studied with groups that made the whole night before an exam a waste of time, and I have studied with groups that increased my understanding 1000%. I think the difference was how well we could buckle down and focus on the material with a little fun mixed in rather than have a laid back group-self-study session. hehehe Does that make sense? I'll read it again tomorrow in a fully awake state and see. <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" />

 

[Amra]

Ya know, Kev, I've never studied with a group before. I can see your point though.. focus = good; screwing off = bad. Actually, it is the one thing I had to learn different in grad school... being able to TALK with your prof's about the subjects instead of just learning it on paper. World of difference that is... at least for me...

-A