Medical Studying a lot without good results - what can I do to perform better?

[militaryPHYS]

Hello! I'm a first year medical student. I love medical school, I'm interested in my classes and I study hard. The problem is, I don't see the results that I'm expecting, I'm barely passing my classes. I spent more than a week studying for my anatomy test and my grade was 40. Im really disappointed and ashamed. I answered the test, felt sure about my answers and then got a 40. I'm not sure about what's going on, i'm confused and tired of feeling I'm not doing enough. What can I do? How can I study better? How do I achieve better grades?

This was/is my approach to learning:

#1 If there are practice questions or available previous exams utilize them
#2 Consolidate the high-yield information you read in to an electronic editable document (OneNote, Word, Excel, etc.). Copy and paste high-yield tables, diagrams, charts and pictures from electronic versions of your textbooks or primary sources.
#3 Print off this sheet and review it over and over. Highlight, jot down additional notes, etc.
#4 Get plenty of sleep every night (7 hours+). Take cat naps during long study days.

The key is figuring out which information is the High Yield stuff that will be testable. In Med School you are expected to review/learn with multiple books, articles, etc. that have similar information. Do not waste your time reading a slightly different version of the same material. Quickly review the sources you decide are important and jot down the important facts, pictures, etc. on to the document discussed in #2. This central document helps simplify and consolidate the information you have to memorize for the test.

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[MusicDOc124]

Ensure you're doing practice questions as stated above.

If you're studying "a lot" and utilizing your resources properly including practice questions.... then the issue isn't in how much you're studying, its in how you're studying. Don't be afraid to change what you're doing if needed. When I was in your shoes, I studied differently almost every other block as I was not only learning the material, but also learning what was working for me and what wasn't, and thus I changed.

 

[gyngyn]

This thread can be followed here: MD - Anatomy test and studying methods