What I wish I did before I started

[TILalot]

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Hi everyone:

I just started about two weeks ago and we have our mid-blocks coming up on Monday (less than three full weeks of school starting! 😱). It's covering a bulk of Anatomy, and Biochem. Also included is Radiology, Histology, and Embryology.
If there's any advice I can give you on starting med-school it's this:

Primary Advice:

• Take an Anatomy course the year before you start. Preferably in the Spring so it's fresh in your head. Even if you already have taken anatomy, take it again. It won't cover as in depth as it is in your OMS I courses, but it'll sure help a lot. It's one of the biggest challenges and biggest foundations that need to be made; Anatomy brings about understanding for all your other courses. I hate anyone and everyone who told me last year to just relax (with this regard) and not worry about anatomy so much.

Secondary Advice:

• If you can, take BioChem; especially if you've never taken it before. But remember, the Anatomy is more emphasized (by me, at least).
• Take a nice vacation or go to a place to relax. I had worked about 80-100 hours per week before starting and wish I had taken the last month of work or so off in order to relax and unwind before my classes started.

If there's anything else, I'll go ahead and add it on to this thread later.
Also, if you've started your journey and would like to add to this advice, please do.

 

[fiznat]

I'm just starting also, and like you we've got our first exams coming up this week.

I understand what you're saying about taking anatomy and biochem, but I'm not sure I agree that pre-meds should be doing this stuff before they come to school. Anatomy is tough, no doubt, but it is doable. There is something to be said for learning anatomy from a clinical perspective and through the direct experience of a cadaver. Not to mention raw anatomy is one of the least tested subjects on the COMLEX/USMLE. As far as biochem, I study with a bunch of biochem majors and they are always saying that the stuff we cover in med school (at least at my school) is nowhere near as in-depth as their undergraduate courses. The focus is on clinical relationships and overall concepts, not minute detail. You should be able to grasp those things in MS-1 without needing a full preparatory course. In fact, I think it is possible that a "full" biochem class might distract you from the core concepts that will be relevant to medicine.

Different things work for different people, of course. I just wanted to offer some contrast for the few over-anxious premeds who might otherwise think med school cant (or shouldn't) be done without extra pre-reqs. It can. There's a reason why anatomy and biochem aren't required. You learn what you need to know once you're here.

 

[group_theory]

I think there is a bit of bias here. You just started med school and are in the midst of anatomy and getting used to how medical school works (large volume of material to memorize in a short period of time). Would taking anatomy prior to med school help? - maybe.
But you can say the same thing about biochemistry, or histology, or microbiology, or immunology, pharmcology, etc. You can't pre-take all of the med school courses before medical school.

With time, you will feel more comfortable with the volume of material, the speed, and also fine-tune your learning/study habbits.

I do agree though that students should take a break before med school start.

I would also advise you to enjoy the weekends and breaks while you are in med school - it's going to be all over once post graduate training begins

 

[scummie]

I am an M2, so take everything I say with a grain of salt. Also become familiar with inverse log.

What I really wish I did before I started was watched more movies, vegged out more, took a vacation somewhere, spent more time with family, played more poker, found a hobby...blah blah. ANYTHING BUT READ A BOOK FOR SCHOOL. There are so many fiction books I want to read but never have the time now.

What you cover in your undergrad courses will be covered in like 2 hours of med school. Everyone says it's like drinking out of a water hose and it's completely true. Not hard, just a lot of stuff to know. I did not take undergrad biochem and got an A in med school. n=1 so YMMV.

I've said this before, but you should talk to your upperclassmen. Lots of old TQs float around and you can ask them how they studied for exams. It's good to hear from people that have had your specific professor.

You're going to find out a lot about yourself and what you do and don't like. I loved anatomy and visualizing all the structures. Absolutely despise physiology. Figure out what works and what doesn't.

Get a few friends and study with each other. Quiz each other. Make up fake patients and try and figure it out.

Also, last but not least, do not compare yourself to other people. This ties into knowing the inverse log stuff. People that are all like "Bro, I only studied 2 hours last night...Hope I passed." are total liars. They've been studying since before the class started. And just because someone seems like a total slacker and made a better grade than you doesn't mean you're stupid and don't belong in med school. Grades do not correlate to your actual intelligence.

Good luck guys!

P.S. Do not wear your white coat outside of school. You look like a tool. And don't hang it up in your car like you're hot crap either. DON'T BE A TOOL. /end rant

 

[Rollo]

P.S. Do not wear your white coat outside of school. You look like a tool. And don't hang it up in your car like you're hot crap either. DON'T BE A TOOL. /end rant

Agreed. And don't introduce yourself as, "Hi, I'm ____ medical student" at the bar on weekends. Because if you live in a city with tons of medical students like I do, NOBODY is going to be impressed by dropping the medical student line except for the horny, fat chick who will either do you or a cucumber by the end of the night.

 

[amistret]

HAHAHA dude this is a savage quote.

 

[Kuba]

Congrats on starting school, new M1's.. now, breathe. I have to politely disagree with your opinion. To be fair, it's been 4 years since I took any basic science courses, however, I think my longitudinal perspective is valuable. Pre-meds, take the necessary pre-requisites and then fill in your schedule with Renaissance Art, German Film, etc.
Med school is hard, adjusting to med school is hard, but there's not much you can do to truly prepare. Learning how to appropriately study would be crucial, so focus on that in your pre-reqs.
Newly minted, uber-excited, terrified m1's: Focus on the important, fundamental, clinically-applicable points of your classes. Med school is a layering of information. The stuff you were supposed to learn in biochem but didn't, will be repeated multiple times in the next couple of years. You can't catch it all, focus on the basic understanding of the fundamentals to start and you will come out super prepared. Don't sweat the small stuff. Go out on weekends, it's ok as long as you are truly focused on learning the fundamentals during the week.

/endrant

 

[Kuba]

P.S. Do not wear your white coat outside of school. You look like a tool. And don't hang it up in your car like you're hot crap either. DON'T BE A TOOL. /end rant

Disagree on the car thing, who wants to bring that nasty MRSA, VRE, CDiff infested POS into their home.

Edit: Realized we're talking pre-clinical. Yes, the only appropriate place for your white coat m1/m2 is in the bottom of your closet.

 

[scummie]

Disagree on the car thing, who wants to bring that nasty MRSA, VRE, CDiff infested POS into their home.

Edit: Realized we're talking pre-clinical. Yes, the only appropriate place for your white coat m1/m2 is in the bottom of your closet.

Yeah, the short white coat. I don't know about you guys, but I hate wearing it. It's like, "Hey everybody! Look at me! I'm the M1/M2, please crap on me!" It would be much better to wear scrubs and blend in.