Studying efficiently

[Anotherface]

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So how long was it before you got used to the course load and figured out which study habits worked best for you? Also, what are some of the things you wish you knew when you started M-1 that would have hastened your transition.

 

[sprinkibrio]

For me the transition to the best way of studying is neverending... I even changed what I did MS2 to be more efficient because there was double the work. Just put in the hours in the beginning knowing that eventually you'll get the hang of things and have more free time.

I loved to say "oh, naw, this is too detailed and won't be on the test" or "oh my, I can't possibly remember this AND that" during biochem. I wish someone had shook me and said YES you have to know those details and every detail and YES you can remember everything. People arrrrre getting A's, you know.

 

[TMP-SMX]

Buy BRS, RR, or some other review book for every subject. Don't buy the main textbooks if your school gives out decent notes. (Except for anatomy because you need the atlas to study from.

Also read through First Aid for every class.

I wish I did both of those things both years. I started doing this in Year II and my grades improved quite a bit.

 

[BrickHouseMD]

I agree that it's a continuous transition. I finally stopped going to class about halfway through M2 which freed up a couple hours of commute time and bullsh*t wasted time throughout the day (not to mention double streaming the video lectures saved time). I'd say for things like anatomy and biochem, it's all about repetition and mnemonics, for phys and path, you really need study methods that solidify concepts and critical thinking (case studies, practice questions, etc). My advice is always to just stay flexible and if something feels like it's not working, don't do it any longer. Med school is all about efficiency. It's the only way to preserve some sort of sanity and a life.

 

[turkeyjerky]

Do as many practice questions as you can--they're the most useful tool you have to really cement the knowledge in your head.

For stuff that's just straight-up memorization (arterial branching patterns, neural tracts, the coagulation cascade, etc...), memorize it the day before you learn it in class. That way you'll actually learn something during class. I started doing that with artery and nerve branches halfway through anatomy and it completely changed my learning experience during lab. It can be tough to get the motivation to do it though, but it's a much more efficient way to learn, imo.

 

[montessori2md]

The first 2 months were easy enough that I got through by behaving like I was in undergrad. Then we started anatomy. By the end of the first semester, my brain was processing at a different (much faster) speed -partly because I knuckled down and tried harder, and partly because of that whole use it or lose it thing.

What they're saying above is true -you have to be able to change your approach based on the subject matter. If you're in a traditionally formatted school, anatomy is pure memorization, but phys is more conceptual and requires you to play with it more. Some courses are paced faster than others, some are better organized, and require less set-up time.

Hear, hear for not going to class. Going to class is a great way to socialize, but it's an inefficient way to retain information. When I stopped waiting for someone to teach me, and started just learning it, I was able to control my schedule and study as I needed to, not just because today Dr. X presented Y. That was especially true for really tedious material and stuff presented right before an exam.

 

[bodonid]

for anatomy to stick well- go to lab. it won't really improve your grades that much in the short term, but it will solidify what you are reading about.

for phys & biochem- practice questions! review of physiology that accompanies guyton is good if your class uses guyton. BRS biochem and RR biochem have amazing questions.

i still don't know what to do for neuro. I did alright in the class but I forgot everything.

 

[psammomabody]

Started first year in mid-August, and probably didn't feel comfortable with my study habits until at least January. I didn't attend most first year lectures (at least after the first block) but went to school and studied every single day, Mon-Fri. I didn't listen to lectures either, just studied and memorized our note-sets. I "worked" most days from 7:30am to 6 or 7pm, but I took most weekends completely off except for the couple weekends before exams. Of course we had the required labs for histology, gross anatomy, and neuroanatomy.

Second year - It took a lot less time to figure out 2nd year. I was pretty comfortable after the first set of exams. I skipped all of pharm and microbiology/immunology, but I attended probably 3/4 of the pathology lectures. A big part of pathology is pictures and they explain these during lectures and you can't get what the lecture points to at pictures from the audio/ppt. We probably had 5-6 pathology lectures a week. Pharm is all about memorization, so lecture really does not help, even if you are a lecture person.

 

[Tensyle]

So how long was it before you got used to the course load and figured out which study habits worked best for you? Also, what are some of the things you wish you knew when you started M-1 that would have hastened your transition.

It took me all year to figure out how to study for physio becuase our curriculum was so disorganized. For the last test, I was so fed up that i decided to just stick with Costanzo's textbook (and her BRS), and I ended up performing the same.

Anatomy took me two exams to figure out, and then I just repeated my study methods...going over the lecture notes like 10 times for each unit, along with looking at netter.

and I wish I knew that you should never compare your study methods to others as you will keep thinking they are ahead of you in preparation, when in fact you are on the right track.

 

[Anotherface]

Started first year in mid-August, and probably didn't feel comfortable with my study habits until at least January. I didn't attend most first year lectures (at least after the first block) but went to school and studied every single day, Mon-Fri. I didn't listen to lectures either, just studied and memorized our note-sets. I "worked" most days from 7:30am to 6 or 7pm, but I took most weekends completely off except for the couple weekends before exams. Of course we had the required labs for histology, gross anatomy, and neuroanatomy.

Second year - It took a lot less time to figure out 2nd year. I was pretty comfortable after the first set of exams. I skipped all of pharm and microbiology/immunology, but I attended probably 3/4 of the pathology lectures. A big part of pathology is pictures and they explain these during lectures and you can't get what the lecture points to at pictures from the audio/ppt. We probably had 5-6 pathology lectures a week. Pharm is all about memorization, so lecture really does not help, even if you are a lecture person.

Thanks to everyone for their advice. Now my question is how many of you felt that you could grind things out monday through friday, stow away the books on the weekend and still do well?

 

[olemissbabydoc]

im hoping to take one day of the weekend and not study. If that's not possible, I'm going to at least take friday night to get away from the material. I am pretty sure it'll help keep my head clear.

 

[bodonid]

Thanks to everyone for their advice. Now my question is how many of you felt that you could grind things out monday through friday, stow away the books on the weekend and still do well?

I thought I could from the beginning. I made a point to for awhile, because I wasn't sure if I could pull it off, but then college football season started, and it sort of became a habit. A good one, if you ask me.

 

[engineeredout]

Anatomy took me two exams to figure out, and then I just repeated my study methods...going over the lecture notes like 10 times for each unit, along with looking at netter.

How many times do people usually go through the lectures for something like anatomy before an exam?

 

[bodonid]

How many times do people usually go through the lectures for something like anatomy before an exam?

-one time fast so the material seems doable and the words recognizable.
-one time for concepts.
-one time for details.
-one time again fast right before the test.

sometimes I don't finish 3, sometimes I do 4 and then some. sometimes I get the detail part from a book.

 

[Tensyle]

How many times do people usually go through the lectures for something like anatomy before an exam?

For anatomy:

first time - skim to get overview and a hold of the terms
2nd time - do the same, but with Netter open
3rd time - make sure everything makes sense and all the relationships are filled in (example: parasymp/symp nerve routes to the various head ganglia)

4th time - third time repeat
5th thru how many ever times I can possibly do it before the test - memorize as much as possible.

We usually have about 4 lectures per region of the body, plus about 1 clinically-oriented anatomy lecture (usually a radiologist or surgeon). Materials to study from... ppt slides, typed notes, whatever notes we take in class, Netter.

 

[engineeredout]

For anatomy:

first time - skim to get overview and a hold of the terms
2nd time - do the same, but with Netter open
3rd time - make sure everything makes sense and all the relationships are filled in (example: parasymp/symp nerve routes to the various head ganglia)

4th time - third time repeat
5th thru how many ever times I can possibly do it before the test - memorize as much as possible.

We usually have about 4 lectures per region of the body, plus about 1 clinically-oriented anatomy lecture (usually a radiologist or surgeon). Materials to study from... ppt slides, typed notes, whatever notes we take in class, Netter.

-one time fast so the material seems doable and the words recognizable.
-one time for concepts.
-one time for details.
-one time again fast right before the test.

sometimes I don't finish 3, sometimes I do 4 and then some. sometimes I get the detail part from a book.

Yeah bodonid's method doesn't scare me as much. 4X through the material before an exam seems possible. How the hell do you have the time to go through it 10X?

 

[bodonid]

So is this all it takes for you to memorize the necessary material for the exams? Or do you go over notes 5+ times with an applicable review book (Netters for anatomy, Lippincott for biochem) and find that after all that repitition you've memorized all of the necessary things?

8 weeks of Biochem and Cell Bio start in August and I'm starting to be scared out of my mind that my brain just won't let that much information "stick" in that amount of time. Especially if I have to memorize the structure of.. well.. everything.

there are very few structures you are expected to know. that is the least of your worries. If you can get all the amino acids and bioactive steroids down, that's more than half the structures.

you got where you are because you are smart enough for this. You don't need to worry about everything 'sticking' in your brain. Much more important is whether you posess the motivation to do what it takes to make sure it sticks.

as far as study methods- your core should be the lecture notes, but variety is the spice of life! you will have tons of resources available to you, so change it up once and awhile to see what works best for you. Don't try to do just the lecture notes nine times over. Do questions with friends, quiz each other, write review sheets for yourself, and be open to new ideas.

 

[bodonid]

Thanks for the encouragement! I'm gonna start memorizing amino acid structures now, it'll make me feel better.

honestly that isn't a total waste of time (if it makes you feel better), and it wouldn't take long, but make sure you try to have some fun too!

oh, and don't waste your time with the steroids, that is probably toward the end of your class and it is easier to remember the enzymes than the structures anyway.

 

[psammomabody]

Thanks to everyone for their advice. Now my question is how many of you felt that you could grind things out monday through friday, stow away the books on the weekend and still do well?

I should clarify that this definitely worked for me first year, but our exams were a good 5 weeks apart. Some schools have big exams every 3 weeks, so I'm not sure weekends off would work too well.

Second year I studied every single weekend, and studied most weekdays until at least 8pm. Usually cleared 8-12 hours on Sat and 6-8 hours on Sunday. I did well first year (mostly honors, a couple high passes) but I did better second year (all honors)... at the expense of talking to friends/family, going home, etc. 2nd year really sucks the life out of you if you want to do really well. I'm honestly not sure right now if the grades were worth it, but that's something you'll have to decide for yourself.

 

[Anotherface]

I should clarify that this definitely worked for me first year, but our exams were a good 5 weeks apart. Some schools have big exams every 3 weeks, so I'm not sure weekends off would work too well.

Second year I studied every single weekend, and studied most weekdays until at least 8pm. Usually cleared 8-12 hours on Sat and 6-8 hours on Sunday. I did well first year (mostly honors, a couple high passes) but I did better second year (all honors)... at the expense of talking to friends/family, going home, etc. 2nd year really sucks the life out of you if you want to do really well. I'm honestly not sure right now if the grades were worth it, but that's something you'll have to decide for yourself.

 

[waitwhat]

How much more difficult are the courses in medical school than undergrad? Say, classes like biochem and anatomy?

I had a year of biochem and a semester of anatomy and did pretty well. The teacher who taught anatomy/nueroanatomy also taught it at UCI. That probably doesn't make a a difference, but is there any comparison?

 

[psipsina]

How much more difficult are the courses in medical school than undergrad? Say, classes like biochem and anatomy?

I had a year of biochem and a semester of anatomy and did pretty well. The teacher who taught anatomy/nueroanatomy also taught it at UCI. That probably doesn't make a a difference, but is there any comparison?

I took anatomy in undergrad with a full cadaver lab and it still had nothing on medschool. The secondary and tertiary questions are what get you in medschool. In UG they'd say "whats the name of this foramina in the skull". In medschool they say "if you were to damage the nerve that runs through this foramina what would be the most likely clinical presentation".

Mostly the difference is pace. We covered an entire undergraduate immunology course in 2 weeks (I know it was the same depth because a friend had used the same textbook in her semester long UG class!!). That wasn't the only thing we were taking at the time of course either.

 

[psipsina]

It took me a few weeks to figure out how to keep up and what worked for me. I continuously evolved this method throughout the first two years. Everyone I know does things differently. Some people make their own notes on the computer, some people draw all over the white boards, some people use flash cards, some people make up songs and dances, some people just read to themselves over and overagain. Some people use textbooks and some people never crack even review books. Its all about experimenting and finding out what works for you. You should have some idea about how you learn so start there and keep trying new things until you are time efficient.

 

[MossPoh]

Hell, sometimes they tell you what muscle or nerve is damaged and expect you to know what it'd lead to as well. My favorites are the "pin questions" as we called them. Some poor schmuck always seems to be stabbed or have a pin inserted into a random spot and you have to say all the layers that it'd go through in order. Not hard, but it is just getting it straight in your head during the test when you have 60 other questions to do too.

 

[Temple2013]

... I'm starting to be scared out of my mind that my brain just won't let that much information "stick" in that amount of time. Especially if I have to memorize the structure of.. well.. everything.

As an older applicant, I have a friend my age who graduated near the top of his class (AOA 3rd year, etc.)

His advice to me was that the information doesn't stick and not to get down because you need to study like crazy (his study habits were just like psammobody except he went to lecture and he wasn't able to get honors in 2 classes) Basically, most of the time was spent completely relearning what he forgot (not reviewing) and doing well is all about cramming the details into your head faster than they can fall out.

 

[MossPoh]

Its just repetition. I prefer a building approach to studying. I try to get the skeleton of the knowledge and build my vocab up so I'm familiar with it. Using different methods, whether flash cards or talking it out I slowly add details on each go around. After the third or fourth go through I really begin to link things together. I always try to keep the big picture in mind, otherwise I just have a panic attack with the amount of small details.

 

[utorontograd]

For anatomy:

first time - skim to get overview and a hold of the terms
2nd time - do the same, but with Netter open
3rd time - make sure everything makes sense and all the relationships are filled in (example: parasymp/symp nerve routes to the various head ganglia)

4th time - third time repeat
5th thru how many ever times I can possibly do it before the test - memorize as much as possible.

We usually have about 4 lectures per region of the body, plus about 1 clinically-oriented anatomy lecture (usually a radiologist or surgeon). Materials to study from... ppt slides, typed notes, whatever notes we take in class, Netter.

I did this exact thing religiously and it worked like a charm. Let me add that there should be a specific cycle for doing this.

First pass - the day you've had the lecture
Second pass - the next day.
Third pass - on the weekend where you go over every lecture for the week and try to integrate across different disciplines.
Fourth and fifth passes - right before the exam to get some last minute points.

I found the multiple pass approach worked for all subjects. You add new details every time you go through the material. You will transition from having a superficial understanding, to a really deep understanding of the material. It's really cool.

 

[tco]

My medical school has already given us our class lists for module 1. Should I buy every textbook (all required AND recommended books)?

 

[KeyzerSoze]

My medical school has already given us our class lists for module 1. Should I buy every textbook (all required AND recommended books)?

No.

 

[tco]

No.

So buy the required books and what everyone says is the best study guide material?

 

[KeyzerSoze]

So buy the required books and what everyone says is the best study guide material?

Don't buy the required books before finding out whether they are actually necessary.

 

[anonMD]

I haven't seen pre-reading suggested yet on this thread. Is it worth scanning the lecture notes the night before class?

 

[tco]

Don't buy the required books before finding out whether they are actually necessary.

What do you mean? Some classes don't actually require the required books?

 

[KeyzerSoze]

What do you mean? Some classes don't actually require the required books?

Haven't you ever taken an undergrad course where the "required" textbook was not especially helpful or necessary?

 

[tco]

Haven't you ever taken an undergrad course where the "required" textbook was not especially helpful or necessary?

Yep, but sometimes I would have been screwed had I waited on the classes that did have required reading that was helpful or necessary.

 

[justdoit31]

Yep, but sometimes I would have been screwed had I waited on the classes that did have required reading that was helpful or necessary.

Does your school have a big sib program??? Mine gives us a big sib who is an MSII (if you want one). My big sib and I have talked and she told me which books weren't needed (first block was embryo) and which were... she also told me which of the review books not listed were useful. Oh and the best part some of the books she said are important she will just let me borrow.

If I were you I would wait to get some of the books til you were at school. Also if you are going to have a roomate you might consider sharing a few things (like medical dictionary, big and baby Moores, etc.)

 

[waitwhat]

I took anatomy in undergrad with a full cadaver lab and it still had nothing on medschool. The secondary and tertiary questions are what get you in medschool. In UG they'd say "whats the name of this foramina in the skull". In medschool they say "if you were to damage the nerve that runs through this foramina what would be the most likely clinical presentation".

Mostly the difference is pace. We covered an entire undergraduate immunology course in 2 weeks (I know it was the same depth because a friend had used the same textbook in her semester long UG class!!). That wasn't the only thing we were taking at the time of course either.

Thanks. Exactly what I was looking for.

 

[tco]

For anatomy:

first time - skim to get overview and a hold of the terms
2nd time - do the same, but with Netter open
3rd time - make sure everything makes sense and all the relationships are filled in (example: parasymp/symp nerve routes to the various head ganglia)

4th time - third time repeat
5th thru how many ever times I can possibly do it before the test - memorize as much as possible.

We usually have about 4 lectures per region of the body, plus about 1 clinically-oriented anatomy lecture (usually a radiologist or surgeon). Materials to study from... ppt slides, typed notes, whatever notes we take in class, Netter.

Do you just do this with lecture notes? When do you try to fit in reading the textbook?

Also, to the poster that says that they highlight terms/definitions/etc, do you do this in the text or notes or both?

 

[Orthodoc40]

Thanks to everyone for their advice. Now my question is how many of you felt that you could grind things out monday through friday, stow away the books on the weekend and still do well?

Everyone is different. You have to take SOME time. But you might find another way to do it - bottom line is to stay flexible since you will need to adjust to the courses as you go. Almost all of our exams are on Monday morning, so partying heavily over the weekend is generally a bad idea. Besides, you're not an undergrad anymore.

 

[kryptik]

I did this exact thing religiously and it worked like a charm. Let me add that there should be a specific cycle for doing this.

First pass - the day you've had the lecture
Second pass - the next day.
Third pass - on the weekend where you go over every lecture for the week and try to integrate across different disciplines.
Fourth and fifth passes - right before the exam to get some last minute points.

I found the multiple pass approach worked for all subjects. You add new details every time you go through the material. You will transition from having a superficial understanding, to a really deep understanding of the material. It's really cool.

this is pretty much what i have found to be the most efficient for me, i would like to add one thing; doing a ton of practice questions help solidify the concepts

 

[Anotherface]

Everyone is different. You have to take SOME time. But you might find another way to do it - bottom line is to stay flexible since you will need to adjust to the courses as you go. Almost all of our exams are on Monday morning, so partying heavily over the weekend is generally a bad idea. Besides, you're not an undergrad anymore.

I will try to stay flexible. I wasn't asking because I plan on partying heavily over the weekend. It just seems that the best way to for me to make time to see family and friends is to put in the time during the week so that I can travel or go out on the weekend if need be.

 

[Tensyle]

So is this all it takes for you to memorize the necessary material for the exams? Or do you go over notes 5+ times with an applicable review book (Netters for anatomy, Lippincott for biochem) and find that after all that repitition you've memorized all of the necessary things?

8 weeks of Biochem and Cell Bio start in August and I'm starting to be scared out of my mind that my brain just won't let that much information "stick" in that amount of time. Especially if I have to memorize the structure of.. well.. everything.

As far as anatomy is concerned, yup, thats all it takes. Netter is not a review book; its an atlas - it helps you visualize the anatomical relationships that are written in the notes. This strategy works for acing coursework, but you wont remember the fine details after the year is over. The Step 1 exam doesnt have such minute details in terms of anatomy. As far as Biochem, our assigned textbook WAS the lippincott biochem review book. So, the prof's lectures were all summaries of what the book said. When I first started, I'd read the whole chapter then look at the notes, just to realize that the notes were really good by themselves. So I just read the powerpoint notes like 5-8 times for each biochem exam. If I didnt understand something, then I will open up the text. I plan on using these notes for the step 1 too, as I annotated these notes as the year went by.

You dont have to memorize the structures in medical biochem - that stuff isnt high yield, as far as my medschool profs say. At the most, you need to recognize the structures of the amino acids, but other than that, memorizing structures isnt very useful, as you will soon see.

Yeah bodonid's method doesn't scare me as much. 4X through the material before an exam seems possible. How the hell do you have the time to go through it 10X?

I do it whenever I have time - on the bus, during lunch, weekends. It's possible if you sincerely wanna learn the material thoroughly. I ended up getting honors in Anatomy, so this strategy works as far as i could tell.

I did this exact thing religiously and it worked like a charm. Let me add that there should be a specific cycle for doing this.

First pass - the day you've had the lecture
Second pass - the next day.
Third pass - on the weekend where you go over every lecture for the week and try to integrate across different disciplines.
Fourth and fifth passes - right before the exam to get some last minute points.

I found the multiple pass approach worked for all subjects. You add new details every time you go through the material. You will transition from having a superficial understanding, to a really deep understanding of the material. It's really cool.

I agree with this schedule too. I also agree that you start with big, superficial concepts/structures, and add details to your mental representation, each time you go over the notes/material again. 🙂

Do you just do this with lecture notes? When do you try to fit in reading the textbook?

For anatomy, I only did this with lecture notes. I only read the text book for specific sections that were unclear or incomplete in the notes (you'll start to get a feel of when a section of notes is complete or incomplete, trust me). Then, I'd annotate my notes from reading the textbook, so by the time im studying for exams, I'd just use my notes. I hardly ever used the textbook though (except for helpful tables, pictures, or the parasymp/symp nerve pathways).

 

[tco]

So what's the list of books that I must have for MSI?

A lot of people are saying the Step I First Aid book. Should I just study that sparringly, or will it make a difference in my understanding of the classwork I will be encountering soon. Also, since I have two years before I take the Step I exam, should I just buy a used copy of one from last year, or should I try to keep as recent as possible? If it's anything like the MCAT, the review books don't really change from year to year.

I've read "Netters" and "Goljan," but haven't seen any specific book. I'm assuming the Netters with Neuro and Goljan rapid review biochem, but I'm not positive.

Anything else?

Thanks 🙂

 

[Orthodoc40]

I don't think you MUST have any of those, honestly.
If you learn the materials during class, studying for Step 1 will be a review.
Don't stress about it til at least 2nd year.

 

[tco]

Has anyone tried the Netter's flashcards for the iPhone? Are they worth purchasing?

 

[mq123]

For me, I had to realize that missing class wasn't bad; it was, in fact, better for me. I never missed class in UG unless I was sick. I started going to class less and less this past semester because class just wasn't productive anymore for me. Turns out it was the best thing I did.

I heard this before starting med school, and upperclassmen said it all the time, but of course I didn't believe it until I lived rhrough it: students who had >90% attendance in MI now wish they hadn't gone to class as much.

However, whatever works best for you is what you should do 👍

 

[sprinkibrio]

Studying efficiently=giving yourself a limited amount of time for school-related activities (8 hours first year, 10 second year, half the amount on the weekends, for example) and NEVER going above that. You'll figure out ways to work around those limits.

 

[OPPforlife]

Studying efficiently=giving yourself a limited amount of time for school-related activities (8 hours first year, 10 second year, half the amount on the weekends, for example) and NEVER going above that. You'll figure out ways to work around those limits.

Is that 8/10 hours a day? and by school related activities do you mean class+lab+studying on your own....or just studying on your own?

 

[anon3]

Once you count 8-10 hours for eating/commuting/sleeping/showering/****ing, there isn't enough time in the day to be doing 8-10 hours study outside lecture/lab/small groups/etc.

 

[thanecyan]

I just started MS1 at SOMA and while it is still very early in the year, I don't feel like I am getting much out of the lectures. This is mainly due to the fact that class objectives and power point slides are all posted online (and the slides seem to be pretty informative and easily supplemented with google, wiki, or review books).

I am only hesitant to start skipping lecture because SOMA seems to be 'slightly' different in teaching style (it's mostly lecture though...).