Your daily schedule during MSI

[jamo0001]

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[bodonid]

Hey all-

I'm starting med school in the fall, and I'm curious how much time everyone ended up allotting for studying/class during a typical, non-exam week. (yes, I know "everyone's different"; that's why I'm curious)

At my school, we're supposed to have lecture in the mornings from 8 'til noon and then (what I assume will be) an open lab all afternoon for the study of gross, histo, etc.

What is/was your experience as far as total daily time spent in class and/or studying? 4 hours of lecture and then 4 hours in the afternoons in front of a cadaver or a book? No lecture and 6 hours at the library?

Just trying to get a feel for what's coming so that I know just how much of an adjustment it's going to be from my current 30-minutes-of-cramming-per-week undergrad routine...

non exam week? a couple hours a day. ask specific questions. I didn't study at all today, but some days I study 5+ hours.

 

[FrickenhugeMD]

It will be different every day, at least it was for me. Depending on several factors (when class was, who was teaching it, how good the notes are, if there was any required attendance that day, ect.) I would decide if it was worth it to either go to class or video stream it after it had been posted. Studying for me was also similar to the above. I would study the same day for anatomy what we had covered in class, but in biochem I didnt start studying ANY thing till about 10 days before the test.

Start off studying WAY more than you think you need for the first test, and then scale it back if you can get the grade you want with less effort. You may have to accept being average if the work it takes for you to get honors is going to drive you crazy. 6 hrs at the library may work for you, but I personally benifited from studying an hr or two at a time a couple time through the day. This kept me sharp when I was studying, and it also was easier to take a few smaller bites than to try to sit down and gut through it all at once.

Here is an example of a day for me during anatomy and histo at the beginning of this year:

Class time ~ 3-5 hrs a day (varies)
Lab time ~ 3 hrs every other day (some times more)
Study time (normal week) ~ 2 hrs MAX
Study time (exam week) ~ 4-6 hrs or till I was bored with the material, which usually meant I would do well on the exam.

 

[Aesculapius]

Normally, 4 hours of class Mon-Thurs. 1 hour of class, then PBL on Friday, which can run from 1.5 to 3 hrs, depending. One day of outpatient clinic for 4-5 extra hours after class. One day of "clinical skills" for 4 hours. If taking an elective, a couple extra hours once a week for that too. Enough time to read the material suggested in the syllabi (and sometimes the syllabi themselves). Put the material into electronic flashcards. Do the electronic flashcards every day. Watch TV, relax, cook dinner. Sleep.

Before a test, I don't study by time, but just by setting goals on the material. 1 week of material per day (and I begin studying at an appropriate day for that). Keep doing flashcards. Not that much difference from normal schedule, except a little more studying.

 

[Fiddlergirl]

Not to burst anyone's bubble here, but my first year schedule is a little different.

None test week:
4 hours of class
(depending on the day, I might have an afternoon session which can run as late as 6PM)
4-6 hours of study (which includes studying for class and writing patient encounter notes, etc.)

My school has tests about every other week, so my test week schedule is pretty much the same.

 

[tideleonheart]

I study about 3-4 hours / night during non-test time... but then about a week before tests, I ramp that up to 6+.

During the weekend before and the week of tests, I easily put in 12 hours / day.

 

[MedMan25]

I study about 3-4 hours / night during non-test time... but then about a week before tests, I ramp that up to 6+.

During the weekend before and the week of tests, I easily put in 12 hours / day.

About the same for me.

 

[badasshairday]

Wake up around 8, 9, 10, 11, or whenever I feel like. Don't go to class, so I have extra time to goof around since I don't have to commute or listen to lectures in real time. Listen to lecture audio and follow the powerpoint at 1.5-2x speed, blow through the BS announcements or whatever in the beganing of the lectures to save more time and skip stuff I know pretty well from previewing the lecture. Then I review stuff from the current day and the day before.

All in all it is about 4-6 hours of work per day. I highly reccomend not going to class. Also after exam week (we have block exams) I usually veg out for like a week and fall a little behind, but then subsequently catch up by listening to lecture audio at fast speed and not going to class. 1st year is nice, since you have your own schedule. I'm loving it.

 

[bodonid]

i wonder how accurate these self assessments really are. I would think that a lot of people probably inflate the amount of time they say they spend studying unintentionally.

And I have friends who lie and say they never study, but they make high As...

take what you hear here with a grain of salt. And like I said, ask more specific questions.

 

[apricotattack]

We have tests every Friday, so every week has all the fun and magic of test week. It is quite horrible.

8:30-12:30 - class
12:30-1:30 - sob quietly in bathroom while eating lunch
1:30-2:30 or 3:30 - more class (not every day)
3:30 - 10:00 - study for that week's test; fall behind in every other class.
It's a great system.

 

[bodonid]

We have tests every Friday, so every week has all the fun and magic of test week. It is quite horrible.

8:30-12:30 - class
12:30-1:30 - sob quietly in bathroom while eating lunch
1:30-2:30 or 3:30 - more class (not every day)
3:30 - 10:00 - study for that week's test; fall behind in every other class.
It's a great system.

oh, but that means you have class-based exams, right? So you don't have the joy of integrated exams? At least each exam doesn't count all that much.

Don't get me wrong, I def. prefer our system. I know dental students that have 2 or 3 exams every week, and I would HATE that.

 

[apricotattack]

oh, but that means you have class-based exams, right? So you don't have the joy of integrated exams? At least each exam doesn't count all that much.

Don't get me wrong, I def. prefer our system. I know dental students that have 2 or 3 exams every week, and I would HATE that.

Yes, class based exams... although tests still count more than I'd like.

For the record, I was joking about the sobbing (usually).

 

[illixir]

My class schedule is 8-12 4 days a week (all but thursday), you end up going to all of it since the first half every day is small group and required. I then probably spend I'd say an average of 3-4 hours in the rest of afternoon/evening doing work for the stuff that's going on in class, and I'm also taking a graduate path class on the side that meets for two hours twice a week. Not too awful, plenty of time for other stuff.

As it gets closer to exam week, that probably goes up to more like 7 hours in addition to the classes, and then I start studying on the weekends as well for 6 or 7 hours each day. We're only tested three times over the course of first year though, and the exams are pass/fail, essay, pretty low stress.

 

[AFDOCtobe]

I am at school from 7 am to noon streaming lectures and studying the syllabus. I hit the gym every afternoon and then study for an hour or two at night. When exams come around (every 4 weeks) I study maybe 3 or 4 hours a night instead.

 

[Lanvin]

I study about 3-4 hours / night during non-test time... but then about a week before tests, I ramp that up to 6+.

During the weekend before and the week of tests, I easily put in 12 hours / day.

My study habits are very similar.

 

[badasshairday]

I am at school from 7 am to noon streaming lectures and studying the syllabus. I hit the gym every afternoon and then study for an hour or two at night. When exams come around (every 4 weeks) I study maybe 3 or 4 hours a night instead.

Nice, I may start doing this next block.

 

[SB100]

For those of you who ramp up your studying to 6-12 hours a day near exam time, don't you feel like you're hitting a wall sometimes? Like, do you feel after a few hours you can't process anymore information and just need to stop studying for the day. I can't seem to study more than 3-4 hours a day without this happening to me.

 

[bodonid]

For those of you who ramp up your studying to 6-12 hours a day near exam time, don't you feel like you're hitting a wall sometimes? Like, do you feel after a few hours you can't process anymore information and just need to stop studying for the day. I can't seem to study more than 3-4 hours a day without this happening to me.

take an hour, do some exercise. then try again.

 

[bcat85]

Hey all-

I'm starting med school in the fall, and I'm curious how much time everyone ended up allotting for studying/class during a typical, non-exam week. (yes, I know "everyone's different"; that's why I'm curious)

At my school, we're supposed to have lecture in the mornings from 8 'til noon and then (what I assume will be) an open lab all afternoon for the study of gross, histo, etc.

What is/was your experience as far as total daily time spent in class and/or studying? 4 hours of lecture and then 4 hours in the afternoons in front of a cadaver or a book? No lecture and 6 hours at the library?

Just trying to get a feel for what's coming so that I know just how much of an adjustment it's going to be from my current 30-minutes-of-cramming-per-week undergrad routine...

Here's how it went down for me: Anatomy sucked a huge one. I probably studied 3 hours a day plus lab and lecture. Everything else... chill. we're on block schedule though. now I probably average 2 a day and 5-8 a day on test weeks.

 

[medking]

Wake up around 8, 9, 10, 11, or whenever I feel like. Don't go to class, so I have extra time to goof around since I don't have to commute or listen to lectures in real time. Listen to lecture audio and follow the powerpoint at 1.5-2x speed, blow through the BS announcements or whatever in the beganing of the lectures to save more time and skip stuff I know pretty well from previewing the lecture. Then I review stuff from the current day and the day before.

All in all it is about 4-6 hours of work per day. I highly reccomend not going to class. Also after exam week (we have block exams) I usually veg out for like a week and fall a little behind, but then subsequently catch up by listening to lecture audio at fast speed and not going to class. 1st year is nice, since you have your own schedule. I'm loving it.

.....how are your grades?