Supplies medical school

[vintagedoc_]

I'm sorry if this was already discussed..I am new to SDN 😀 I was just wondering what kind of supplies we should come prepared with to medical school. Not so much medical supplies (however, if you could enlighten me on this I would appreciate it) but like notebooks, binders, etc. I always just used notebooks in undergrad but I'm not sure what is recommended to stay organized.

Thanks!!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[costales]

Just coffee and clean underwear.

 

[kami333]

Best purchase I made for medical school was a good laser printer with inexpensive toner.

 

[001100010010011]

Brother Laser Printer (no frills).
Highliters
Coffee

 

[Seth Joo]

I'm sorry if this was already discussed..I am new to SDN 😀 I was just wondering what kind of supplies we should come prepared with to medical school. Not so much medical supplies (however, if you could enlighten me on this I would appreciate it) but like notebooks, binders, etc. I always just used notebooks in undergrad but I'm not sure what is recommended to stay organized.

Thanks!!

Get a Macbook and an IPad, I found both of them extremely useful. Apples make the most reliable personal computers. Personally I do not use much paper notebooks as I make digital notes on my computer.

Although it might be a good idea to keep several binders for paper note handouts that you might get in class and and labs.

Also given that most schools are in suburban areas with little or non-existent public transportation, a reliable car would be extremely necessary.

 

[DocWinter]

No one can tell you exactly what you will need, as you will probably study differently than most.

I have a huge bag and fat binders, as I print tons of stuff out (at school, at home is too expensive) and write and highlight like a kid with a coloring book. Love it. I have 1 big 3" binder for each class, and purge after each exam, as it's maxed out by then.
What is your study style? Do you learn by writing diagrams and pathways in their entirety? Perhaps you'd like a dry erase board.
If you are visual, get ready to plug into YouTube and Khan academy with nice headphones. Love flashcards? Buy those little white squares in bulk.
I dislike macs and prefer windows. You perhaps are the opposite. Take what you studied with, how you studied, and get ready to hit the ground running. Adjust after your 1st test. Best thing you can do is stick with what you know and try other things if you want to tweak.

 

[UTsksk]

They added a macbook and iPad on our tuition where we're required to take all exams on the laptop and all quizzes on the iPad. As far as medical equipment, we were strongly advised/required to get a stethoscope, opthalmo/otoscope, reflex hammer, tuning forks, bp cuff, and I'm probably missing something else. I can tell you that maybe a handful of students that I've seen use ppt printouts. It just comes out to too many slides to print out. I still use paper from time to time when I write out pathways or whatever else.

 

[DoctorKrieger]

I feel sorry for my classmates that print all the powerpoints in black and white and have hundreds of pages of notes at the end of every single course. Get a Surface Pro 3 (or maybe 4 by the time you're in school) and have your notes, in full color, available anywhere. And get familiar with One Note before school starts.

 

[toffeecoffee]

My essentials so far:

-ipad to take notes on
-Notability app
-good stylus
-sturdy backpack
-headphones, as mentioned before
-notebooks
-dry erase board and lots of markers
-keurig and travel coffee mugs
-comfy clothes (leggings, sweats, hoodies) for long days studying

Good luck!

 

[DocWinter]

I feel sorry for my classmates that print all the powerpoints in black and white and have hundreds of pages of notes at the end of every single course. Get a Surface Pro 3 (or maybe 4 by the time you're in school) and have your notes, in full color, available anywhere. And get familiar with One Note before school starts.

Why would you feel sorry for someone who studies differently than you? If that is what works for them, than good for them. It's not because they live in the dark ages - its because it works. Any system that works for a person is a good system, archaic or new. You don't know who's getting the A's Bro.

 

[DoctorKrieger]

Why would you feel sorry for someone who studies differently than you? If that is what works for them, than good for them. It's not because they live in the dark ages - its because it works. Any system that works for a person is a good system, archaic or new. You don't know who's getting the A's Bro.

Has nothing to do with what works or doesn't for someone. I was referring to the hassle of lugging around huge binders everywhere.

 

[Seth Joo]

I feel sorry for my classmates that print all the powerpoints in black and white and have hundreds of pages of notes at the end of every single course. Get a Surface Pro 3 (or maybe 4 by the time you're in school) and have your notes, in full color, available anywhere. And get familiar with One Note before school starts.

I would not get a surface pro if they gave them out for free. The IPad is far superior. Also since MSFT introduced Windows 8, I think Macs are just plain better.

There are some people who still prefer Windows. But in my humble opinion I would go with a Mac.

 

[DoctorKrieger]

I would not get a surface pro if they gave them out for free. The IPad is far superior. Also since MSFT introduced Windows 8, I think Macs are just plain better.

There are some people who still prefer Windows. But in my humble opinion I would go with a Mac.

I don't know that the two are really in the same category for comparison purposes. The SP3 is truly a full computer with desktop processor and OS. People have preferences for Windows or Mac so I doubt a Mac person will consider a Surface to begin with, but I can say that every person in my class with the SP3 absolutely loves it.

Other than aversion to Windows 8, why the hate for SP3?

 

[MetalloBetalactamase]

My essentials so far:

-ipad to take notes on
-Notability app
-good stylus
-sturdy backpack
-headphones, as mentioned before
-notebooks
-dry erase board and lots of markers
-keurig and travel coffee mugs
-comfy clothes (leggings, sweats, hoodies) for long days studying

Good luck!

Having done my first quarter, I like this list, all good. I would add colored pencils(Prismacolor) - I download plates from all of my e-textbooks and color them for study, and a good electric sharpener. If I knew when I began what I know now, I would also get: neoprene gloves, scalpel blades 20s and 10s, combo locks, rechargeable batteries C,AA, AAA, extra charger for your iPad with as long a cable as you can find, and I would make the above ipad 64G to have plenty of idle power for everything. Your experience may differ.

 

[Bokeh]

I don't know that the two are really in the same category for comparison purposes. The SP3 is truly a full computer with desktop processor and OS. People have preferences for Windows or Mac so I doubt a Mac person will consider a Surface to begin with, but I can say that every person in my class with the SP3 absolutely loves it.

Other than aversion to Windows 8, why the hate for SP3?

My school will be giving us computers. I have an iPad that I used throughout college to take notes on. Is the SP3 something I should look into or not spend the money on? Can you describe your workflow with yours?

 

[DoctorKrieger]

My school will be giving us computers. I have an iPad that I used throughout college to take notes on. Is the SP3 something I should look into or not spend the money on? Can you describe your workflow with yours?

If you're used to an iPad, you may just prefer that and Notability. However, the SP3 is definitely something to look into. I got one essentially due to the One Note capabilities with the combination of the stylus so that I could mark up full-color slides and organize my notes from every med school class I'll take. One Note automatically syncs/saves to Microsoft OneDrive so automatically having all my notes on my desktop PC is very convenient also.

My note-taking workflow is basically downloading the powerpoint, then hitting the One Note icon to publish the file to One Note and sending it to whatever notebook the file belongs to (I organize mine by subject---just think of each folder as a gigantic three-ring binder). Then just following the lecture and writing notes, drawing arrows, etc. If that's what you meant by workflow.

They're expensive, and may not be worth it for your average person, but med students are the exact kind of people I think can get the most out of this device. iPads are not laptop replacements, so even if you have one you'll likely want a laptop too. There are a couple threads in Allo that talk about SP3 vs. Yoga vs. iPad that can give you a lot more detail and you can see how others use theirs. I have not met anyone who doesn't love theirs. If there's a Microsoft store near you, check it out in person. If you decide to go this route I highly advise waiting for the next version (assuming it will be named SP4) so you'll have the latest tech, and getting familiar with One Note before classes start. And also the extended warranty from Microsoft. It starts to really add up at that point but it's so nice knowing that I could intentionally throw this in front of an oncoming Mack truck and get a new one at no further cost for two years.

I'm assuming the school will be giving you iPads to appease the masses. If so, they may expect you to use it for various things so you need to consider that before spending the money on something built to get **** done.

 

[vintagedoc_]

Get a Macbook and an IPad, I found both of them extremely useful. Apples make the most reliable personal computers. Personally I do not use much paper notebooks as I make digital notes on my computer.

Although it might be a good idea to keep several binders for paper note handouts that you might get in class and and labs.

Also given that most schools are in suburban areas with little or non-existent public transportation, a reliable car would be extremely necessary.

Thanks so much!! Well I have a Mac and an Ipad AND I just bought a new, reliable car 🙂 The only thing is, is that the school I got into provides a dell laptop (boo) and they said they highly recommend using it because if for some reason it crashes or something breaks, you get a free one from the school to replace it. They said if you take the chance of using your own comp and something happens, you lose all of your stuff and you're pretty much SOL.

 

[vintagedoc_]

No one can tell you exactly what you will need, as you will probably study differently than most.

I have a huge bag and fat binders, as I print tons of stuff out (at school, at home is too expensive) and write and highlight like a kid with a coloring book. Love it. I have 1 big 3" binder for each class, and purge after each exam, as it's maxed out by then.
What is your study style? Do you learn by writing diagrams and pathways in their entirety? Perhaps you'd like a dry erase board.
If you are visual, get ready to plug into YouTube and Khan academy with nice headphones. Love flashcards? Buy those little white squares in bulk.
I dislike macs and prefer windows. You perhaps are the opposite. Take what you studied with, how you studied, and get ready to hit the ground running. Adjust after your 1st test. Best thing you can do is stick with what you know and try other things if you want to tweak.

I had windows my entire life and never had an issue, but now I have a mac. I am not really opposed to either one I guess! I am definitely visual and had a huge whiteboard throughout undergrad. Thanks so much for your advice!

 

[vintagedoc_]

My essentials so far:

-ipad to take notes on
-Notability app
-good stylus
-sturdy backpack
-headphones, as mentioned before
-notebooks
-dry erase board and lots of markers
-keurig and travel coffee mugs
-comfy clothes (leggings, sweats, hoodies) for long days studying

Good luck!

Thank you! 🙂

 

[vintagedoc_]

Million thanks to everyone for taking the time to help me out!

 

[Bokeh]

Thanks so much!! Well I have a Mac and an Ipad AND I just bought a new, reliable car 🙂 The only thing is, is that the school I got into provides a dell laptop (boo) and they said they highly recommend using it because if for some reason it crashes or something breaks, you get a free one from the school to replace it. They said if you take the chance of using your own comp and something happens, you lose all of your stuff and you're pretty much SOL.

I was also recommended to use the school-issued laptop where I'm going. They supposedly come preloaded with all the programs we need and so it makes sense. DoctorKrieger recommends getting familiar with OneNote. I haven't used it before, but it looks like a solid program.

 

[Seth Joo]

Thanks so much!! Well I have a Mac and an Ipad AND I just bought a new, reliable car 🙂 The only thing is, is that the school I got into provides a dell laptop (boo) and they said they highly recommend using it because if for some reason it crashes or something breaks, you get a free one from the school to replace it. They said if you take the chance of using your own comp and something happens, you lose all of your stuff and you're pretty much SOL.

A car is a given if you live in an area without good public transport, and most DO schools tend to be in suburbia or in small towns in middle of nowhere.

A reliable car and good computer are probably two of the most useful things you will need. Another is a good quiet place where you can read for 8 hours or more per day, some people cannot concentrate this way.

 

[CajunMedic]

Best purchase I made for medical school was a good laser printer with inexpensive toner.

This. You might consider a laser all-in-one as well. We have homework workbook assignments that have to be scanned to pdf and emailed to the professor.

Plenty of paper and spare toner. I'm one of those guys that prints the powerpoints-if I try to use my computer, my mind wanders and next thing you know, 20 minutes of the lecture have passed.

Cheap scrubs and an old pair of comfortable shoes for anatomy.

4X6 notecards and a box to keep them in, if making flash cards works for you for note taking.

Plenty of pens, highlighters, paper clips, the usual stuff.