Touro-COM Middletown First Semester Resources

[hgranger19]

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Hi,
I wanted to know if there are any Touro-COM students in Middletown that would be willing to talk about their first semester experiences along with relaying the books, PPTS, or any resources that I could use to start preparing beforehand. I'd truly appreciate any help I could get in relation to the material that will be tested. Any type of assistance would be very much appreciated 🙂

 

[Deecee2DO]

First things first people on here will start telling you to use first aid B&B and all these other board materials to study content first year. Unnecessary. Stick to class PPTs and supplement with anki first yr (if you find it helpful-i didnt find anki helpful and i stopped after my first exam and never did it again). Only board resource id recommend for content study for now is sketchy micro for micro its extremely helpful since micro is strictly memorization and its a lot of stuff to memorize. Bottom line dont get caught up with board resources yet for content just worry about your classes and use the PPTs. However, I will advise using board style questions after you are done studying content for exams about 3 days before your block exams for application (Pretest, kaplan, BRS, costanzo, lippincott etc). Application is so important if you want that extra boost to do really well. Ask 2nd years who did well what they did first year to succeed in each class. Get tutors- its med school now aka everyones smart/everyone had good grades, so for the first time in your life you may need help with your studies. Dont forget that even the top students use tutors dont think youre an idiot if you use them theyre really helpful. Anatomy tutors for your practicals are essential get them and lock them in early (they go fast)

 

[Hippocrates II]

I will be the first to disagree with the above. Your school very likely has middling professors. Why base your learning on them when you can base it off of great teachers like the Boards and Beyond creator Dr. Ryan? I will say that many times this first year, I gave up trying to learn a frustrating or vaguely-explained concept and loaded up a 10-15 min BAB video, only to have it clearly and succinctly explained to me.

If I could do this year over, I would start zanki day one, though I would probably sub in lightyear for biochem. Do enough new cards each day that you can finish all of the cards for a topic a few days before the test. Spend a few hours each day doing cards + flipping through the class powerpoints and taking note of things not covered in zanki. Watch boards and beyond (or sub in your favorite youtube channel or whatever) for topics you find yourself confused by. If you really want to kill it and do well on in-house tests, make additional anki cards for learning objectives not covered in zanki. In my own anecdotal experience, I scored ~15-20% above the class average on many tests when I took the time to do this. That said, it's time-intensive and just doing zanki + reading powerpoints alone always earned me an above-average grade. You can also just make your own cards from day one (which I did initially), but I found I did just as well with zanki, and saved myself hours each day making cards.

All in all, there is no one size fits all and I'm sure DeeCee2DO's plan is perfectly suitable as well. I just wish I had done zanki from the beginning because it's a phenomenal resource and the earlier you start the better it is.

 

[DameJulie]

Not from your school but also would like some "how to study first semester first year" advices. In undergraduate-level classes, I find myself very busy already reading PPTs and rewrite my notes in addition to going to office hours and tutoring.

Now with the board prep kicking in along with classes (e.g. BnB, Zanki, FA), I am just worried if I can juggle that much while doing well in class. I haven't spoke in-depth with upperclassman or professor yet, should I reach out before the semester begins and ask them "how to study"?

 

[Deecee2DO]

I will be the first to disagree with the above. Your school very likely has middling professors. Why base your learning on them when you can base it off of great teachers like the Boards and Beyond creator Dr. Ryan? I will say that many times this first year, I gave up trying to learn a frustrating or vaguely-explained concept and loaded up a 10-15 min BAB video, only to have it clearly and succinctly explained to me.

If I could do this year over, I would start zanki day one, though I would probably sub in lightyear for biochem. Do enough new cards each day that you can finish all of the cards for a topic a few days before the test. Spend a few hours each day doing cards + flipping through the class powerpoints and taking note of things not covered in zanki. Watch boards and beyond (or sub in your favorite youtube channel or whatever) for topics you find yourself confused by. If you really want to kill it and do well on in-house tests, make additional anki cards for learning objectives not covered in zanki. In my own anecdotal experience, I scored ~15-20% above the class average on many tests when I took the time to do this. That said, it's time-intensive and just doing zanki + reading powerpoints alone always earned me an above-average grade. You can also just make your own cards from day one (which I did initially), but I found I did just as well with zanki, and saved myself hours each day making cards.

All in all, there is no one size fits all and I'm sure DeeCee2DO's plan is perfectly suitable as well. I just wish I had done zanki from the beginning because it's a phenomenal resource and the earlier you start the better it is.

I hear you, I just think it overwhelms students first semester first year to try and juggle all these board resources that is why I am advising sticking to powerpoints starting out. Going into my second year as I believe you are as well, I will be incorporating board stuff starting day one of M2. Is Zanki pre-made decks? I am trying to figure out the balance for making sure I have board resources/prep as top priority this upcoming year while still passing classes. I did really well first year but I literally studied what my school taught me (PPTs etc) and used board style practice questions (pretest, BRS, kaplan) right before exams. So you basically supplemented your courses with Zanki and B&B and you thought it was a really good resource?

 

[Deecee2DO]

Not from your school but also would like some "how to study first semester first year" advices. In undergraduate-level classes, I find myself very busy already reading PPTs and rewrite my notes in addition to going to office hours and tutoring.

Now with the board prep kicking in along with classes (e.g. BnB, Zanki, FA), I am just worried if I can juggle that much while doing well in class. I haven't spoke in-depth with upperclassman or professor yet, should I reach out before the semester begins and ask them "how to study"?

Yes ask the people who went before you what they did-one of the best resources you can use in med school starting out. First semester my opinion is to stick with class PPTs just so you can get your flow down its a lot of material in a short amount of time and they move fast (it is totally doable so don't get intimidated but it just takes up a lot of your time). Another piece of advice for you and OP, don't get bogged down or intimidated by what your classmates are doing they may try and make it sound like they have it all figured out they arent stressed or they think its easy (let me tell you they are working their butts off too and they probably feel behind too because there are many times youll feel behind but youll end up being okay in the end anyway). Just focus on you not on what your classmates are doing or you'll drive yourself insane.

 

[Hippocrates II]

I hear you, I just think it overwhelms students first semester first year to try and juggle all these board resources that is why I am advising sticking to powerpoints starting out. Going into my second year as I believe you are as well, I will be incorporating board stuff starting day one of M2. Is Zanki pre-made decks? I am trying to figure out the balance for making sure I have board resources/prep as top priority this upcoming year while still passing classes. I did really well first year but I literally studied what my school taught me (PPTs etc) and used board style practice questions (pretest, BRS, kaplan) right before exams. So you basically supplemented your courses with Zanki and B&B and you thought it was a really good resource?

Towards the end of the year, I stopped paying attention to class lectures and went 100% in on zanki + skimmed powerpoints daily. Did not watch or attend any lectures. My workflow was to do all reviews + enough new cards so that I would finish whatever cards were due for that class 3ish days before a test. Every day I would do those cards (usually 2-3 hours worth of work) and then I would read the powerpoints quickly. I would watch BAB if a card/topic wasn't clicking. If I was really ambitious I would make a side deck with facts that I thought were interesting or likely to be tested from the powerpoint. In the end, I would say 95% of my knowledge was obtained from zanki, and that was enough to do well above average at my school (KCU). As probably the greatest testament to it (and why I ultimately recommend it), my last few months of med school were my lightest - done by ~5-6 pm most nights (except for a few hellish weeks of neuro), and they were all of my highest grades. Our class averages, on the other hand, were some of the lower ones we've had. I want to say it was me, but it was really just zanki. I only wish I had given up brainscape sooner and switched to anki/zanki earlier.

 

[hungrydoc710]

Main thing is to crush school ppts 3x thru... + supplement with sketchy (for micro and pharm), pathoma (path), and B&B (cell bio).

 

[KeikoTanaka]

I have all Anki cards for Touro COM - Middletown curriculum first year. If you PM me I'll send them your way. Though I haven't tried to send this many cards before in one go, so you may need to bear with me.

 

[hgranger19]

I have all Anki cards for Touro COM - Middletown curriculum first year. If you PM me I'll send them your way. Though I haven't tried to send this many cards before in one go, so you may need to bear with me.

Hey, I'm definitely interested in those Anki cards to start preparing. This is gonna sound dumb lol but what do you mean by PM? I can send you my email and you can send it there as well. Let me know in what way you'd be able to send it as my semester will be starting at the end of July. If you could send me those cards along with any other info, like PPTs, that would be great as well! Thank you soooo much for your help and hope to hear from you soon 🙂

 

[hgranger19]

Main thing is to crush school ppts 3x thru... + supplement with sketchy (for micro and pharm), pathoma (path), and B&B (cell bio).

great! Will do! Thank you so much for the advice!

 

[hgranger19]

I have all Anki cards for Touro COM - Middletown curriculum first year. If you PM me I'll send them your way. Though I haven't tried to send this many cards before in one go, so you may need to bear with me.

Quick question, for Touro-COM how did you study for classes? Did you stick to the PPTS, did u go to classes, and how did you review for exams? Because I've been reading the posts and some people are saying focus on class PPTs first semester, others are saying use outside resources so I'm not sure what would be the best way to study for exams in regards to Touro?

 

[hungrydoc710]

Quick question, for Touro-COM how did you study for classes? Did you stick to the PPTS, did u go to classes, and how did you review for exams? Because I've been reading the posts and some people are saying focus on class PPTs first semester, others are saying use outside resources so I'm not sure what would be the best way to study for exams in regards to Touro?

I don't go to Touro, but it's the same everywhere - it'll be a learning curve... you'll find your own groove.

Enjoy your time off. Med school isn't that crazy if you understand time management adn can study 6-8 hours a day.
Study the info as you get it, no need to get crazy and study pre-school.

 

[KeikoTanaka]

Quick question, for Touro-COM how did you study for classes? Did you stick to the PPTS, did u go to classes, and how did you review for exams? Because I've been reading the posts and some people are saying focus on class PPTs first semester, others are saying use outside resources so I'm not sure what would be the best way to study for exams in regards to Touro?

Between the power points, lectures, clicker questions (Which we practice with each class period), online weekly assessments (for physio, biochem), and BRS questions, and additional question banks, you have all the information you need there to be a successful student. The problem becomes organizing doing all these before the test 🙂 but you learn how much you need to do the first semester. It's a major culture shock of how much you're always doing. Definitely try to stay ahead on lectures prior and through October. October is hell month, if you survive it and do really well on second round of exams, you can coast more easily during finals.

 

[hgranger19]

Between the power points, lectures, clicker questions (Which we practice with each class period), online weekly assessments (for physio, biochem), and BRS questions, and additional question banks, you have all the information you need there to be a successful student. The problem becomes organizing doing all these before the test 🙂 but you learn how much you need to do the first semester. It's a major culture shock of how much you're always doing. Definitely try to stay ahead on lectures prior and through October. October is hell month, if you survive it and do really well on second round of exams, you can coast more easily during finals.

did u attend classes? Bc i met with a bunch of students at Touro and many said they don't go to classes because the lectures are recorded online. Did u use the zanki cards as well? i heard these flashcards are also really good for preparation

 

[KeikoTanaka]

did u attend classes? Bc i met with a bunch of students at Touro and many said they don't go to classes because the lectures are recorded online. Did u use the zanki cards as well? i heard these flashcards are also really good for preparation

Classes are 100% mandatory. Any missing of classes directly impacts your GPA. It sucks, but you just get used to it. Classes are only Tuesday-Thursday. Tests are Mondays. Some weeks there will be tests on Mondays AND Fridays. With OSCEs or OMM Practicals on Wednesday and Thursday, giving you a 3 test week. It's very intense, but all 135 of you do it together! haha

 

[hgranger19]

I have all Anki cards for Touro COM - Middletown curriculum first year. If you PM me I'll send them your way. Though I haven't tried to send this many cards before in one go, so you may need to bear with me.

The Anki cards would be great if you could send them to me! That would be extremely helpful, lmk what info you need to send it and I'll let you know 🙂 😊

 

[ThatgirlG]

Hi guys ! I will be attending TOURO COM this fall doing the MS program and hopefully get into the DO school. Did anyone have materials for the MS program. My email is [email protected] and I would like the required books too. Thank you!

 

[ES671]

Please do not start "prepping" in the summer. Enjoy, go drink, have fun. There is absolutely 0 point in starting studying before school starts. Trust me you will thank yourself later.

 

[djseabas]

First things first people on here will start telling you to use first aid B&B and all these other board materials to study content first year. Unnecessary. Stick to class PPTs and supplement with anki first yr (if you find it helpful-i didnt find anki helpful and i stopped after my first exam and never did it again). Only board resource id recommend for content study for now is sketchy micro for micro its extremely helpful since micro is strictly memorization and its a lot of stuff to memorize. Bottom line dont get caught up with board resources yet for content just worry about your classes and use the PPTs. However, I will advise using board style questions after you are done studying content for exams about 3 days before your block exams for application (Pretest, kaplan, BRS, costanzo, lippincott etc). Application is so important if you want that extra boost to do really well. Ask 2nd years who did well what they did first year to succeed in each class. Get tutors- its med school now aka everyones smart/everyone had good grades, so for the first time in your life you may need help with your studies. Dont forget that even the top students use tutors dont think youre an idiot if you use them theyre really helpful. Anatomy tutors for your practicals are essential get them and lock them in early (they go fast)

what do you mean by 'get tutors'? How and where do you get tutors from??