Which year in Med School is easier/hardest ?

[kornphan]

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I am in MS 1, and since I started, nothing but studying night and day and weekends. We do two weeks worth of classes, Pharm, Histology etc.. and final exams every 2nd Monday and then we start a brand new subject. .. We get into Anatomy right before Thanksgiving and 4 hour exam the Monday after so that blows my Thanksgiving !...

Are all four years like this or does it ease up a bit after the 1st year ?.. for the Seniors on here, which years did you think were the hardest and easiest (if thats possible 🙂 .... Thanks..

 

[nuclearrabbit77]

from what i hear, it only gets harder. significantly so.
it's all about time efficiency, selective reading skills, and a big line of speed. (j/k)

nuclearrabbit

northwestern - 2006

 

[jackjinju]

Well, I think 1st and 2nd year are about equal in difficulty. Here's my thinking....I think 2nd year is tough because you have the boards hanging over your head, but the material is more interesting. First year material is dull and you have to adjust to how to study for this. Maybe I'm talking myself into saying that first year is harder, but slightly so. Third year is OK because you're in the hospital, and that's why you're going into medicine. Shelf exams are challenging, but once you get the hang of them after your first one or two, they're easy to predict and study for. Fourth year so far has been easy. We have a neurology shelf exam, and Step II, neither of which people are overly stressed about. The big concern is residency apps, which are actually going pretty well. I think the only people really stressing are those in competitive matches or who really have certain places in mind. Otherwise, you just show up, smile and go home in fourth-year.