Question Regarding Course Readings in Clinical Psych

[MrPsych]

Here's my question:

Do you study the readings or do you just read them? In other words, do you read, highlight, then go back and take notes (or any variation of such)?

In undergrad, people loved to take notes (I personally just read over the material once then read it quickly a second time; this worked wonders for me), but I am wondering whether time will allow for that in an intensive clinical psych program with lots of course readings.

this question might depend more on personal preference and the testing style of the classes (my method works well for MC tests, but doesnt work well in short answer, essay tests). Anyways, let me know.

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[erg923]

You should do whatever you feel is necessary to "master" the material. If you read over an article and feel that you understand the subject matter, its results, it implications, its limitations, and can intelligently discuss the article in class, then this is enough.

 

[Ollie123]

Depends on the course. In my eyes, one of the beauties of grad school is that I'm given more freedom to get what I need out of courses. If an article is interesting/relevant, I read it thoroughly. If its not, I'll read it quickly, potentially skimming for relevant points. Frankly, there is more material to learn then there is time and energy for, so you have to prioritize. Reading a class article 3x means I'm not doing other things. Research > all for me.

I've always done well in class, but I often feel like I have pretty poor long-term retention of material. Then again, I'm not sure what the "baseline" level of retention is, so its entirely possible I'm well within normal limits. I certainly don't seem to be any worse off than other people when it comes time to use things I've learned.

I'm endlessly impressed with people that can practically reproduce a lit search from memory. I think they are very rare though - I focus on getting a solid understanding and a broader picture, and remembering where I need to go for information and trust that it will come with time. Very few situations require a decision on the fly, so I figure I can almost always look something up if I need a refresher.

 

[psychmama]

Me -- I skim what's assigned first, and then decide how much to read in depth based on how much time I have, how demanding the class is, or how interested I am in the topic. The exception to this was stats, where I had to read it all in order to understand what was going on.

When it came time for tests, papers, or comps, I printed out or retrieved in hard copy whatever I needed to get the job done. Sometimes I go back even now and re-read journal articles or books assigned from first or second year. I find I often get more out of them the second time around, when I'm at a different stage of my training.

 

[JockNerd]

As far as class work goes, I think it's a pretty good strategy to focus on doing the minimum amount of work possible to get a good mark in the course, then go do the other things that are important to your actual future. Spending 2 hours pouring over a paper to get 5/5 instead of 4/5 on a thought paper is a ridiculous waste of time.

 

[psybee]

This is going to be so difficult for me -- not being able to pour myself 150% into stuff I just find interesting, because I need to get everything else done overall, including the duller stuff, and carve out enough time to develop my research. Everyone says that in grad school you finally get to study what you're really interested in, but I don't think you have enough time for it all!

 

[psychmama]

It gets easier as you go along. At least for me, I started to see the same theoretical points and lines of research cited over and over again. As I became more generally familiar with the subjects, it was easier not to want to read everything thoroughly. In the beginning I wanted to soak it all in like a sponge! If this happens to you, don't worry. It means you're passionate about what you're learning. It will sort itself out as you progress through the program. Enjoy!