Desperately need help with how to study. All criticism (even harsh) welcomed

[Drezz]

New to SDN, and thus desperate to reach out to an online audience.

I haven't been doing well in my studies since I nearly failed twice. In undergrad I rarely read textbooks and did fine, graduated with a 3.7 GPA-- I mostly watched Khan academy and memorized powerpoints (via willpower, no anki) by going over them 6-7 times. Upon entering med school we mostly use powerpoints/lectures and sometimes classes are mandatory, but my studying style hasn't been very fruitful. There's some assigned reading in classes. I'm beginning to think reading is not how I study well. I can't even read a full page without going back at least 3-4 times and this is time consuming--- I can't focus for some reason no matter how hard I try to read the texts and textbooks. In undergrad, the best way I learned is with me usually watching videos like Khan Acadamy or Hasudangan (however you spell his name) for Anatomy or o-chem classes.
I'm a visual learner, not a reader-- never was. I like to do practice questions. I love teaching. I am unsure about anki, but so far I really like the spaced-algorithm thing-- I'll give it a shot. My studying so far consists of only FA, lecture/notes, assigned readings. I'm super poor so I wanna spend my money on the right resources.

How do I fix the way I'm learning? What do you suggest for someone with my learning style? Any criticism-- harsh even-- is appreciated. Thanks

~Drez P.

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[super-scribe]

If you're interested in anki, I've used the Bros deck along with most of my classes this year with success. And it's free! You can find it on reddit

 

[backside_attack]

As someone who is also a visual learner, and whose school also relies heavily on power points, it took me a long time to figure out how to go through things.

One of my biggest changes (and an obvious improvement in my grades followed this change) was to start putting the actual PPT slides into Anki. It takes the same amount of time - or less - to either screen shot or ctrl+a the text and figures I want and put it into image occlusion and it has really helped. There are things I can close my eyes and picture to answer questions because it came across in my Anki deck and I have gotten good at using image occlusion on the important steps/details/facts that are relevant to the slide.

This is not the only way I study/review, but it is a daily way to run through the slides for the current block and keep visualizing the the material. (I do NOT put every slide in there - I'm sure you know there are fluff slides and slides that have way too much information - so I am strategic about it).

It may not work for you, but it's a thought!

[edited to make it more apparent that English is actually my first language...]

 

[Light at end of tunnel]

RITALIN

Seriously, its a focus issue

The fact that you needed multifaceted stimuli in the form of "videos" makes me think ADHD

Im not a psychiatrist, just my 3 cents

 

[Drezz]

RITALIN

Seriously, its a focus issue

The fact that you needed multifaceted stimuli in the form of "videos" makes me think ADHD

Im not a psychiatrist, just my 3 cents

You really think I have ADHD? :/
I mean, I can focus on videos pretty well... I never thought about me having ADHD. I always thought that textbooks were too dense and boring to read so hence the lack of focus...

 

[Light at end of tunnel]

You really think I have ADHD? :/
I mean, I can focus on videos pretty well... I never thought about me having ADHD. I always thought that textbooks were too dense and boring to read so hence the lack of focus...

Textsbooks suck major dong. But we all manage, ya know?

Being diagnosed with ADHD is something that would need to be done by a specialist. I am not a psychiatrist nor do I mean to diagnose you with anything.

I read your post, and made note of some "symptoms" and so my prefrontal cortext starting firing off some ideas, one of which was ADHD.

If its a problem to the point where you are on SDN asking for help, may not be a bad idea to consider it.

Regarding your ability to focus on videos - if I recall, ADHD folks can typically focus, even hyperfocus (paradoxically) on a couple of things that they find "stimulating," like video games, videos, night clubs with loud music and shiny lights, etc. Your affinity for videos would not necessarily be inconsistent with ADHD, IMO.

 

[Domperidone]

Plenty of people without ADHD including medical students have the same issue.
I had the same issue with focussing and I definitely do not suffer from ADHD.

OP if you feel that you have a genuine mental health issue or learning impediment - seek professional help in person.
I would be hesitant to diagnose anyone over a few lines of text over the internet without a proper evaluation, not to mention duty of care ethics and the ability to follow-up.

With regards to the main/original query:
It's a universal thing that your study habits will change on starting medical school and they will constantly evolve from year to year.
If you browse through the medical student threads, you'll see that you're not alone. there's many ways to approach studies.

To start out with, what resources are you using outside of class materials like lectures?

ideally, use a variety of things. Not one thing alone.

There are videos available that many of us relied on. I never relied on textbooks alone, it was one of many things I used.
I started my studies on any particular subject with the very basic videos first, such as Pathoma. Just don't go using only pathoma. For instance, after you go through Pathoma, move onto questions like bros/anki and then your class materials. Use good textbooks for basic understanding if the rest don't make sense and you're short on time. (when I say "good" I mean - not simply recommended or required texts, but texts that make it easy for you to understand without having to read it multiple times, go to the library, try multiple texts if you must till you find it). Or alternatively, read the texts last - as way of seeing the material presented in a different way, and add more the 'foundation' you've laid via the videos/questions you did before getting to this step. That'd be a suggested approach. Tweak it as you go along. Never ever spend more than a few days to a week on a particular method as a trial time. You'll know it's working - you'll be able to do questions faster and easier and it'll be easier to recall things after a week or so.

Everyone has a different method, you just have to experiment, try new things.
Don't continually bash your head against a wall using a method that is failing you, come up with new things. drop it if it's not working.
ask your classmates what works for them - it may not work for you. Try Backside_attack's idea for instance, that's a damn good idea too.

if your school offers peer tutoring or mentoring from upper year student, try that. see if they can help you modify your study habits.

if you do a search, look for past threads on how to study in medical school and what resources to use, and how.

 

[sholamd]

Check out Picmonic (though I don't necessarily endorse it) and the memory palace technique (which I strongly endorse) - both great for visual learners.

 

[Light at end of tunnel]

Plenty of people without ADHD including medical students have the same issue.
I had the same issue with focussing and I definitely do not suffer from ADHD.

OP if you feel that you have a genuine mental health issue or learning impediment - seek professional help in person.
I would be hesitant to diagnose anyone over a few lines of text over the internet without a proper evaluation, not to mention duty of care ethics and the ability to follow-up.

With regards to the main/original query:
It's a universal thing that your study habits will change on starting medical school and they will constantly evolve from year to year.
If you browse through the medical student threads, you'll see that you're not alone. there's many ways to approach studies.

To start out with, what resources are you using outside of class materials like lectures?

ideally, use a variety of things. Not one thing alone.

There are videos available that many of us relied on. I never relied on textbooks alone, it was one of many things I used.
I started my studies on any particular subject with the very basic videos first, such as Pathoma. Just don't go using only pathoma. For instance, after you go through Pathoma, move onto questions like bros/anki and then your class materials. Use good textbooks for basic understanding if the rest don't make sense and you're short on time. (when I say "good" I mean - not simply recommended or required texts, but texts that make it easy for you to understand without having to read it multiple times, go to the library, try multiple texts if you must till you find it). Or alternatively, read the texts last - as way of seeing the material presented in a different way, and add more the 'foundation' you've laid via the videos/questions you did before getting to this step. That'd be a suggested approach. Tweak it as you go along. Never ever spend more than a few days to a week on a particular method as a trial time. You'll know it's working - you'll be able to do questions faster and easier and it'll be easier to recall things after a week or so.

Everyone has a different method, you just have to experiment, try new things.
Don't continually bash your head against a wall using a method that is failing you, come up with new things. drop it if it's not working.
ask your classmates what works for them - it may not work for you. Try Backside_attack's idea for instance, that's a damn good idea too.

if your school offers peer tutoring or mentoring from upper year student, try that. see if they can help you modify your study habits.

if you do a search, look for past threads on how to study in medical school and what resources to use, and how.

If there ever were a thread in which I would strongly recommend posting less than textbook length responses, it may (ironically) be this one.

Just a thought.

Also, OP can't run and hide from textbooks all his life. Eternal avoidance (even with a worthy substitute) is rarely a long term solution.

It may be time for OP to face his literal demons, with the hopes of coping and eventually learning to incorporate textbooks/journals, etc. in the remainder of his professional life. He can't watch videos or have funzy-wunzy flash cards for everything, right?

 

[Med student 18]

New to SDN, and thus desperate to reach out to an online audience.

I haven't been doing well in my studies since I nearly failed twice. In undergrad I rarely read textbooks and did fine, graduated with a 3.7 GPA-- I mostly watched Khan academy and memorized powerpoints (via willpower, no anki) by going over them 6-7 times. Upon entering med school we mostly use powerpoints/lectures and sometimes classes are mandatory, but my studying style hasn't been very fruitful. There's some assigned reading in classes. I'm beginning to think reading is not how I study well. I can't even read a full page without going back at least 3-4 times and this is time consuming--- I can't focus for some reason no matter how hard I try to read the texts and textbooks. In undergrad, the best way I learned is with me usually watching videos like Khan Acadamy or Hasudangan (however you spell his name) for Anatomy or o-chem classes.
I'm a visual learner, not a reader-- never was. I like to do practice questions. I love teaching. I am unsure about anki, but so far I really like the spaced-algorithm thing-- I'll give it a shot. My studying so far consists of only FA, lecture/notes, assigned readings. I'm super poor so I wanna spend my money on the right resources.

How do I fix the way I'm learning? What do you suggest for someone with my learning style? Any criticism-- harsh even-- is appreciated. Thanks

~Drez P.

Good news and bad news.

Good news; there are so many youtube channels and video lecture websites that you can really minimize the interaction you have with books. Many are affordable and many are free. This is up to you to look into which ones you like and can afford.

Bad news; You have to read your book at some point.


What I do, (I am also a visual learner) read the lecture notes and complete them from a video that I like. With those two I have a basic foundational study guide. I study that guide and do some quizzes, all this gives me a clear idea of what is important and what I need to focus on. Only after all of this I go to the book and complete any information I deemed important enough (a lot of the times I don't have to add anything else). This helps because it takes away the guess work of what is important from what I read. I know the basic concept, and I know what is important, what is left is to complete any details that was missing from the book (that is relevant).


On another point, how are you reading? This is a strange question but in essence, you have to understand that reading is a passive way of learning and you have to transform it into an active process. Now what does active learning mean? It means that you take the information presented to you and manipulate it in some way. Example; thinking about and coming up with questions as you read, writing a book summary, drawing a concept map, pausing after reading the subject and trying to explain it (without looking at the material) outloud, etc. There are many many ways to make the learning process active, you gotta find what works for you.


If you read and really process the information using whatever method you like, it's really just reviewing from there.


As for anki, it's great but not for everyone. I never really got into it. Learning how to use it seemed really complicated. I always used spaced repetition but kind of planning it on my own. I would take something I learned and review it; the same day studied, the next day, at the end of the week and every other week. Now reviewing is also an active process, I suggest active recall which means literally from memory trying to remember what you reviewed and writing it down, explaining it to someone (real or imaginary--this is called the feynman method and is what I use and love), taking a quiz on it, whatever. If at any point you can't remember, can't explain it, get it wrong on a quiz, everything goes back to the beginning of the cycle (reviewing it the same day, the next day, at the end of the week, every other week).


Final and fundamental point; are you focused while reading/studying/ reviewing? So focus is not something we are all born with, it's sort of like a muscle that needs exercising. What I found to be the best way to practice focus; meditation. Honestly (and without sounding too preachy) this changed my life. You literally work out but for your focus. Also, realize that we have a limited amount of focus, most people can't concentrate after 45 minutes of studying (including myself). Small breaks, in fact, are recommended at set intervals to keep you on your focus game.


So a lot of info but it really all boils down to this, do what is good for you. If reading your textbook isn't up your alley, don't rely on it. Thankfully the year is 2017 and we are not limited to books anymore. So find your study method and stick to it. This takes some effort but once done it will change your med school experience.


Cheers

 

[Domperidone]

It may be time for OP to face his literal demons, with the hopes of coping and eventually learning to incorporate textbooks/journals, etc. in the remainder of his professional life. He can't watch videos or have funzy-wunzy flash cards for everything, right?

I'm saying order it differently.
I'm saying, don't purely do textbook or reading only. to this day, I do not rely on textbooks alone. it is one of many things I use. Also, how I use textbooks now after a few years in medicine, is completely different to how I used them in first year when it was completely new.

And there is a way to approach textbooks that is efficient, what OP is stuck on is not currently working. It is okay to use other resources to build at least a foundation. I never said abandon books.

And telling OP they're doomed if they can't use books and may have a learning impediment is not something I agree with nor is it advice they can actually use. when it is practical advice that is being sought.

Telling someone on the internet they have ADHD is not helpful - if you really think that, the advice is to see someone in person and get professional help. Not random internet suggestions that are 'just thoughts'. Hallway diagnoses are never advisable.

they're not funzy wunzy flashcards if they help some learn the material. Everyone has a different way. I don't think putting them down is going to help them. Given how widely anki is used, I wouldn't down play their utility. Also where has the OP said that they are eternally avoiding anything? they're asking for practical advice.

Anyways, I'm done responding!
I'm only responding to OP if they are seeking help.
I'm not doing a thread within a thread.

 

[Moose A Moose]

Drop Anki. It's a joke.

Stop using FA. You don't need a review source at this juncture.

All you need are your lecture PPTs. Repetition. You're visual? Find a room with a white board. Profit.

 

[Ismet]

RITALIN

Seriously, its a focus issue

The fact that you needed multifaceted stimuli in the form of "videos" makes me think ADHD

Im not a psychiatrist, just my 3 cents

Textsbooks suck major dong. But we all manage, ya know?

Being diagnosed with ADHD is something that would need to be done by a specialist. I am not a psychiatrist nor do I mean to diagnose you with anything.

I read your post, and made note of some "symptoms" and so my prefrontal cortext starting firing off some ideas, one of which was ADHD.

If its a problem to the point where you are on SDN asking for help, may not be a bad idea to consider it.

Regarding your ability to focus on videos - if I recall, ADHD folks can typically focus, even hyperfocus (paradoxically) on a couple of things that they find "stimulating," like video games, videos, night clubs with loud music and shiny lights, etc. Your affinity for videos would not necessarily be inconsistent with ADHD, IMO.

How about we not dispense medical advice on SDN? Thanks.

 

[IslandStyle808]

Check out Picmonic (though I don't necessarily endorse it) and the memory palace technique (which I strongly endorse) - both great for visual learners.

Concur with memory palace, it pretty amazing. It takes a while to build the palace, but you won't need as many repetitions once you do. However, I do use it sparingly since I take a really long time to build each palace.

 

[Drezz]

I'm confused. I'm getting conflicting advice from people on here. Some say abandon anki others say its great. For the record, it isn't like I'm gonna completely abandon my texts or textbooks, I just need new strategies. I want to avoid reading textbooks all day since the main cause of my lack of focus is that its boring and I tend to not retain anything after spending 3-4 passes on a single page, I need something more active. I really don't think I have ADHD.

EDIT: I'll try picmonic next. Perhaps I might even seek psychiatric help if my lack of focus is a mental health problem.

 

[MrChance2]

Ritalin isint really used for adult ADHD much. This is often ADHD or depression. Though. Could just be med school adjustment. It's really hard to tell someone else how to study without getting to know them and their study habits well.

I've also never met a student that discovered *this amazing* 3rd party study tool that increased his class rank 50%. I'd be interested to hear success stories if they exist but while I think 3rd party study tools are helpful I don't think the key to med school is choosing the right one.

 

[Affiche]

I'm confused. I'm getting conflicting advice from people on here. Some say abandon anki others say its great. For the record, it isn't like I'm gonna completely abandon my texts or textbooks, I just need new strategies. I want to avoid reading textbooks all day since the main cause of my lack of focus is that its boring and I tend to not retain anything after spending 3-4 passes on a single page, I need something more active. I really don't think I have ADHD.

EDIT: I'll try picmonic next. Perhaps I might even seek psychiatric help if my lack of focus is a mental health problem.

Hey OP.

I study almost exclusively from textbooks, but I found that the working in practice problems helps tremendously. There are really great problems and case studies for Costanzo, plus you can do Qbank physiology questions after reading. With path, you can read robbins and then jump to robbins questions in the review book. This really helped me break up my studying so I wasn't just reading all the time, but also actively applying things.

I'm huge Anki fan, but I realize it's not for everyone. Maybe don't rely on it exclusively, but use it for the things you really are having trouble remembering. Works for me anyway.

 

[SmurfTurf]

I am very similar to you, I learned a lot in undergrad from Kahn academy and YouTube videos. We have a systems based curriculum, and I bit the bullet and bought a boards and beyond membership over Christmas break. It's seriously the best choice I've ever made

His videos are similar to pathoma if you've used those, but it covers physiology, pathophysiology, biochem, etc. basically my studying consists of taking notes from boards and beyond and pathoma and glancing at the class power points to make sure I didn't miss something that looks important. It's worked great for me, and saves me time too since his videos are like 10-30 minutes where my class lectures are an hour each. I would check it out. He has some sample videos on the website so you can see what it's like before you buy it.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[Goro]

New to SDN, and thus desperate to reach out to an online audience.

I haven't been doing well in my studies since I nearly failed twice. In undergrad I rarely read textbooks and did fine, graduated with a 3.7 GPA-- I mostly watched Khan academy and memorized powerpoints (via willpower, no anki) by going over them 6-7 times. Upon entering med school we mostly use powerpoints/lectures and sometimes classes are mandatory, but my studying style hasn't been very fruitful. There's some assigned reading in classes. I'm beginning to think reading is not how I study well. I can't even read a full page without going back at least 3-4 times and this is time consuming--- I can't focus for some reason no matter how hard I try to read the texts and textbooks. In undergrad, the best way I learned is with me usually watching videos like Khan Acadamy or Hasudangan (however you spell his name) for Anatomy or o-chem classes.
I'm a visual learner, not a reader-- never was. I like to do practice questions. I love teaching. I am unsure about anki, but so far I really like the spaced-algorithm thing-- I'll give it a shot. My studying so far consists of only FA, lecture/notes, assigned readings. I'm super poor so I wanna spend my money on the right resources.

How do I fix the way I'm learning? What do you suggest for someone with my learning style? Any criticism-- harsh even-- is appreciated. Thanks

~Drez P.

Read this:
Goro’s guide to success in medical school-v.2016

 

[Astra]

Drop Anki. It's a joke.

u wot m8

 

[ortnakas]

The general wisdom says not to write notes because they're time consuming, but in a PBL textbook curriculum I found making notes in my own words during my second pass through the book really helped me to remember things. First pass was reading quickly with highlighting to get a big picture idea without trying to really memorize. Third pass I reviewed my notes instead of the book.

I was not a superstar, but I got through pre-clinical with solid Bs and that's what worked for me.

 

[bananafish94]

OP,

I think I studied very similarly to you in college. I would study the class powerpoints over and over again and eventually absorb enough information to do well on the exams. I realized pretty quickly that this approach would not work in medical school--there is simply too much to learn!

I'm currently doing well in school (~top 1/3) and I attribute that mostly to Anki. A lot of people use it to memorize a lot of very small bits of information, which can certainly be extremely helpful. I have also found that using it to understand big concepts helps me (I am a visual/reading learner). So I have cards that will say something like "explain the steps of the classical complement pathway," or "draw this diagram," which helps me review the big concepts at a frequency that Anki determines is necessary, along with the easily digestible facts like "What enzyme catalyzes A --> B?" For anatomy and histology in particular, the image occlusion is immensely helpful.

I also love practice questions, and there are many to be found if you have access to some of the classic textbooks. I probably did a couple hundred questions from Gray's during my neurology unit.

Personally, I go against the majority with this opinion, but I actually don't think First Aid is all that great for learning. It has helpful mnemonics and it's awesome for reviewing key concepts (some topics better than others), but it doesn't go into enough detail/explanation to help me actually learn concepts.

By and large, I think a lot of people struggle with the adjustment from college to medical school--I definitely did at first. I believe that one of the keys to success is, as FDR once said, "bold, persistent experimentation" to figure out exactly what is best for you.

 

[Domperidone]

I'm confused. I'm getting conflicting advice from people on here. Some say abandon anki others say its great. For the record, it isn't like I'm gonna completely abandon my texts or textbooks, I just need new strategies. I want to avoid reading textbooks all day since the main cause of my lack of focus is that its boring and I tend to not retain anything after spending 3-4 passes on a single page, I need something more active. I really don't think I have ADHD.

EDIT: I'll try picmonic next. Perhaps I might even seek psychiatric help if my lack of focus is a mental health problem.

for boredom:
try the reverse. do a bunch of questions first cold.
freak yourself out into feeling dumb. then do a bit reading directed at the thing you didn't know.
try the new strategies as the other posters have suggested. anki, flashcards, writing notes, mind maps and whiteboards. stick to the ones that are fun. if you know videos keep you interested, start your studies with those.

for conflicting advice:
That's because there's no "one golden strategy" out there. Everyone has their own individual one that helped them succeed.
The responses you're getting here are no different to real life, if you were to ask your upperclassmen or do a poll you'll get the same myriad of responses. You could probably distill it down, and find that really there's a dozen or 20 different ways. But your job for you - is to trial the different systems to find the one in a dozen that fits you.

For starters, filter through the stories and strategies you've collected. See what seems most appealing or what might fit you. You're kinda doing that already. thinking about giving picmonic a try.

There is no easy way around this part. actually 'fixing' or adjust your learning for med school can be frustrating and hard work. particularly if you're having to try multiple things because the first few don't work.

But the sooner you attack this and put in the work of trying things, the quicker you'll start doing better at school. the better you'll feel. And the new strategies you set up for yourself now, last the rest of your chosen career. (well roughly - but the hardest part is adjusting in the pre-clinical years because it's the first time you've been exposed to medical school and it's expectations).

And when you try things, give them a trial period.
Set a fixed time. I'd suggest 3-5 days. See if it's helping you retain things.
test your new strategy is working if you're able to recall things well and do questions without having to look things up.

For focus - try focus techniques like Pomodoro

re: Anki
great for some, but not everyone. This is what this thread is telling you.
if they don't work for you, that's fine. But you won't know until you try. Have you tried them?
If you haven't, give it a go. if you hate it, drop and move onto the next thing being suggested.

Picmonic costs a bit of cash, Anki doesn't. Give both a go. Just don't try both at the same time. Try one at a time first. Don't subscribe to Picmonic for a full year. just do the free trial first.

finally, read Goro's guide as post above by Goro
that's a must before you go further. It sets up the big picture you should have about learning in medical school.

Good luck!

 

[Light at end of tunnel]

New to SDN, and thus desperate to reach out to an online audience.

I haven't been doing well in my studies since I nearly failed twice. In undergrad I rarely read textbooks and did fine, graduated with a 3.7 GPA-- I mostly watched Khan academy and memorized powerpoints (via willpower, no anki) by going over them 6-7 times. Upon entering med school we mostly use powerpoints/lectures and sometimes classes are mandatory, but my studying style hasn't been very fruitful. There's some assigned reading in classes. I'm beginning to think reading is not how I study well. I can't even read a full page without going back at least 3-4 times and this is time consuming--- I can't focus for some reason no matter how hard I try to read the texts and textbooks. In undergrad, the best way I learned is with me usually watching videos like Khan Acadamy or Hasudangan (however you spell his name) for Anatomy or o-chem classes.
I'm a visual learner, not a reader-- never was. I like to do practice questions. I love teaching. I am unsure about anki, but so far I really like the spaced-algorithm thing-- I'll give it a shot. My studying so far consists of only FA, lecture/notes, assigned readings. I'm super poor so I wanna spend my money on the right resources.

How do I fix the way I'm learning? What do you suggest for someone with my learning style? Any criticism-- harsh even-- is appreciated. Thanks

~Drez P.

Hey OP, hoping you are doing well.

Might you update us when you get a chance?

 

[Drezz]

Hey OP, hoping you are doing well.

Might you update us when you get a chance?

Hey thanks for checking in. In fact, thank you to everyone here. I actually went to the psychiatrist lol I don't have ADHD but I have mild anxiety and he gave me a beta-blocker for it. Since then I've been doing pretty well. I've switched my learning style up. I am currently using Anki, and with reccomendations from classmates, I opted for a subscription for pathoma/board and beyond, and doing a test trial with Picmonic to see how that goes. I really like Anki... I'll update you after I'm done with tests.

 

[Light at end of tunnel]

Hey thanks for checking in. In fact, thank you to everyone here. I actually went to the psychiatrist lol I don't have ADHD but I have mild anxiety and he gave me a beta-blocker for it. Since then I've been doing pretty well. I've switched my learning style up. I am currently using Anki, and with reccomendations from classmates, I opted for a subscription for pathoma/board and beyond, and doing a test trial with Picmonic to see how that goes. I really like Anki... I'll update you after I'm done with tests.

That is wonderful news. Best of luck.

Clarification: It is wonderful that you are doing better.

 

[Necr0sis713]

I just got accepted into MD school, but I got a 4.0 on my SMP with the same curriculum as the M1 students minus the clinical stuff. What helps was anki (bro's deck) and BRS books, and a LOT of practice problems. Practice problems are key because you need to understand the material in the context of a question and scenario.

 

[futuremdforme]

Anki works great for me - it's a short focus time per question. I don't use the spaced repetition though - I just try to go through everything once or twice before the exam and mark the ones that are hard.

I screenshot a lot of powerpoint slides and use image occlusion too. Tables are good because you can put 3 things there, and use the visual to remember what goes where.

I don't use textbook readings but they're rarely tested at my school so it didn't matter. if you're tested directly out of the textbook on things that aren't in the PPT, then you should probably read the textbook.

There are a few books on how to study in med school that might be useful to you.

 

[Drezz]

Anki works great for me - it's a short focus time per question. I don't use the spaced repetition though - I just try to go through everything once or twice before the exam and mark the ones that are hard.

I screenshot a lot of powerpoint slides and use image occlusion too. Tables are good because you can put 3 things there, and use the visual to remember what goes where.

I don't use textbook readings but they're rarely tested at my school so it didn't matter. if you're tested directly out of the textbook on things that aren't in the PPT, then you should probably read the textbook.

There are a few books on how to study in med school that might be useful to you.

What sort of books? thanks

 

[Necr0sis713]

What sort of books? thanks

Buy BRS books for all your subjects as the bare minimum, and use their online practice problems

 

[futuremdforme]

What sort of books? thanks

Medical School 2.0 is good. There's one from these guys who went to Duke too but I don't remember what it's called.