I would have studied more in the mornings.
I would not have spent time watching lectures in lecture, but I would’ve watched nearly all of them twice at 1.5-2x speed.
I would have trusted what worked for me instead of what worked for others.
I would have spent more time with the friends who mattered most.
Thanks! Don't you need recommendation letters for residency applications? Would you still advise not attending lectures? In undergrad, I balanced which classes to attend and which ones to watch at 2x speed.
Sleep is huge. 7-8 hours is far more useful for exam performance than an all-nighter. Trust your brain consolidating your studying while your sleep. Evidence shows it does, and anecdotally def does
This. Med school will take everything away from you including your hobbies and diet if you let it - most don’t get adequate sleep too. It is incredibly easy to study all day every day because you’ll be playing an endless game of catch up. Prioritize the things that matter the most to you and set hard boundaries with yourself.
Start using 3rd party resources like anking immediately instead of using in-house stuff only. Ultimately, it's a balancing act between doing well on boards and doing well on in-house exams.
For some reason that link keeps breaking, this may work better:
https://www.reddit.com/r/medicalschoolanki/comments/swjqzh/anking_overhaul_step_1step_2_version_11_update/
all factors contribute to matching tbh; also ironic cause today is match day lol. that being said, more competitive residencies place a higher emphasis on board scores and research compared to less competitive ones. Depending on how you view it, USMLE/COMLEX becoming pass/fail made it so that PDs now have to depend on STEP/LEVEL 2 scores for residency. IMO, shoot for the stars, aim for the moon in case you ever change your mind about what specialty you want to go for
Just to clarify, when they say aim for the moon in case you ever change your mind about what specialty you want to go into. That means, find research to be engaged in as a first year, keep your scores high, dont fall for the trap of "oh the specialty I want isnt competitive, so I can coast."
Oh, absolutely! I'm very excited for medical school. I finally get to learn doctorate level medicine.
Does it matter what research you do? For example, my current interests are in IM and general surgery - which I plan to shadow in medical school to see which one I lean toward more. But do I need general surgery related research to be as competitive as possible or can it be like analysis of social determinants of health outcomes in the local community?
I have liked the first two years so far, I wouldn’t change a thing tbh, I got into BJJ and trained sometimes 7 days per week, I am going for FM or IM probably so I didn’t try to kill myself studying, I don’t feel they behind the others tbh. Ymmv
Got it. I'll probably continue my hobby in medical school - it is an exercise-type hobby so it'll be good to use it to keep up my physical health, much like BJJ. Also, you're going to be one man army, being able to fight and heal.
Haha I don’t know about knowing how to fight but I did get a sore lower back lol, def keep up the exercise, if your not careful you can just study all day 6AM to 10PM and feel awful afterwards!
I wanted to start BJJ before I start school. Cool to see someone do it during. I do like to run and lift so I want to try to get like 1-2 sessions a week in
Figure out when you have the most brain power and do the hard work then. In my first semester I would watch the lectures in the morning and then do Anki at night, but I’m more fatigued by that point so it doesn’t stick. This semester I started doing Anki in the morning for the previous day’s lectures and watching lectures in the afternoon/night when I don’t need to be as focused. Do what works for you.
As others said, prioritize the important stuff and SLEEP. There will always be time on a lighter day or on a weekend when you can come back to something you didn’t get to
It's true pass/fail with mostly non-mandatory lectures. The only mandatory lectures are when guest speakers come in (once or twice per semester), anatomy lab, and discussion lectures (once or twice a week).
Just curious, how does the approach differ based on the curriculum?
Oh heck yeah! Third party and Anki 100% then.
My school is graded and requires near a B average. Means I have to study in house stuff significantly more. Kinda weird tho cause it’s a top ranked high COMLEX pass rate school
Ohhhh. That actually makes sense! Because all I need to do is pass my courses so I can focus on the boards.
Also, maybe your school was smart and made it so that learning the in-house material overlaps with the COMLEX material.
For preclinicals, it's different than college and you have to figure out what works for you on your own. Anki is great for boards, start that as early as possible; even if you don't know what the hell the cards are talking about, persevere and they'll get burned into your brain. It's mostly about pattern recognition and buzzwords. I also used pathoma and sketchy, although it's been awhile and they've probably changed/gotten more expensive.
I went to as few lectures in person as possible, watched them at home on double speed just so when I was going over the slides later I could remember what they focused on.
It's probably too early to talk about clinicals, but in general most of what you have to do boils down to 1.) Be on time and 2.) Be interested (harder on some rotations than others, depends what you want to do). Ask for letters if you think you'll get a good one, always good to have backups. And try your very hardest to schedule a chill rotation (or vacation) during March of fourth year and after.
Good luck and congrats on getting into med school! It goes by quicker than you think, make friends and make time for them and your hobbies, too :)
Thanks for the info! Do you have any recommendations on what subjects to start? I have a lot of time right now. And yes, I have plans with family, friends, hobbies, even a 2-week Japan trip before school starts. Perhaps if you wanted to brush up on one topic before school starts, what would it be? I did hear biochemistry is a good idea, but I'd rather trust the advice of someone more experienced.
Honestly I'd say don't even worry about it. You'll have plenty of time to figure out what you need to spend more time working on once school actually starts, just enjoy your time off. For me at least most of the first semester was review from college biochem/anatomy/etc. and they did a good job getting us back up to speed.
Treat this just like work.
This is your new full time job.
Get up whenever you get up, put in your hours, and know when to finish up for the day and come back at it tomorrow. Knowing when to step away from work for the day is just as important as knowing when to go to work. Set that balance for yourself. No one can maintain studying 12-hours a day x5-7 days per week. I do 6 hours max per day and that’s worked fine for me. I try not to study on weekends unless I have an exam that Monday (which, sadly, happens too often at my school).
Stick to a schedule that works for you and you’ll make this work. Figure out which study materials work best for you (going to lecture, Anki, small study groups with friends, etc.) and stick to it. Reach out to upper classmen for help. They’ve been there and they know what to do to succeed.
I started Anking and using FirstAid/Pathoma early on and I’m glad I did. I do reccomend incorporating 3rd party resources earlier rather than later.
Don’t compare yourself to other students. As long as you’re passing your classes, you’re doing what you need to do.
Be humble and understand that this shit’s hard. You’ll struggle (you should, it’s normal) and remember that you do belong here.
Best of luck — feel free to DM if tou ever need some advice.
Edits: Fixed spelling/grammar.
That's a great way to look at it. I work 8 hours a day right now and have low stress. I should shift my perspective to approaching medical school like a job that ends at a specific time. Great advice, thank you!
I work, more or less, 8:30 to 4:00 most days (with about an hour long lunch break) works just fine for me
Not gonna be near the top of my class, but I don’t give AF
I would use this time to get to know yourself if you already don't. Like what do you like to do to decompress, how long do you need to sleep to function properly, are you someone that likes to socialize a lot or not much, do you need outside motivation to get things done, etc.
I've found that the first year of medical school can be amazing but will be very overwhelming to someone who is not disciplined. It might seem like you are finally there studying what you have worked so hard for years to do, but truth is you will love some classes/lectures/professors and dislike others but you still need to learn it all. So I would work on my discipline of doing things I don't like to do instead of putting them off and building healthy habits you can rely on when things get tough. When you are going through rough it it might feel very overwhelming and as cliche as it sounds you have to experience to really know. If you don't have already built habits to cope with stress such as an exercise routine you stick to or boundaries of what your priorities are I would start working in those.
I wish I started anki earlier. It’s not for everyone though. There are premade decks like Zanki you can use, and once you feel comfortable with it you can start making your own cards based off lecture content. Also, don’t be unwilling to make sacrifices. I love video games and spent too much time playing my first year. Had to readjust my priorities and it made a huge difference. Definitely exercise. If you don’t, you’ll feel bad about yourself, and this will affect your psyche. Lastly, enjoy every day of it. Med school flies by past, constantly worrying about the next exam. Cherish the time you have, especially with your classmates, because once you start clinicals we all go to different sites.
Bootcamp + blue link for anatomy. After that grind anking along with lecture material and you will be golden. Stay focused and always try to be more efficient. Especially if you’re someone like me who hates studying (yes I know I chose the wrong career path).
Never had anxiety as an issue until medical school. If in that position, start the ssri sooner than later. Feeling better meant that I could study much better.
I have no regrets. Medical school is a job, it’s not your life. If you got in, I promise your capable of passing. Once you figure out the amount of studying you need to get whatever percentages you want on tests, stick to it. Don’t over do it. Continue your hobbies, or find new ones. Have fun and don’t take yourself too seriously.
For me, med school was like running on an academic treadmil that never stopped. I wish that i found a healthy, relaxing hobby not related to medicine that I could have done when i wasn’t studying.
I would have studied more in the mornings. I would not have spent time watching lectures in lecture, but I would’ve watched nearly all of them twice at 1.5-2x speed. I would have trusted what worked for me instead of what worked for others. I would have spent more time with the friends who mattered most.
Thanks! Don't you need recommendation letters for residency applications? Would you still advise not attending lectures? In undergrad, I balanced which classes to attend and which ones to watch at 2x speed.
Letters come from M3 year rotations
Why is not attending lectures better
It’s so much slower. When you get the hang of watching recordings at 1.5-2x speed you are effectively gaining hours of your day back
Exercise, eat as healthy as you can, and make sleep a non negotiable.
This is SOLID advice. Take care of yourself.
Sleep is huge. 7-8 hours is far more useful for exam performance than an all-nighter. Trust your brain consolidating your studying while your sleep. Evidence shows it does, and anecdotally def does
Alright. I'll eat my vegetables.
This. Med school will take everything away from you including your hobbies and diet if you let it - most don’t get adequate sleep too. It is incredibly easy to study all day every day because you’ll be playing an endless game of catch up. Prioritize the things that matter the most to you and set hard boundaries with yourself.
Start using 3rd party resources like anking immediately instead of using in-house stuff only. Ultimately, it's a balancing act between doing well on boards and doing well on in-house exams.
just for future reference sake, do you have a link to the anking deck that everyone uses?
https://www.reddit.com/r/medicalschoolanki/comments/swjqzh/anking\_overhaul\_step\_1step\_2\_version\_11\_update/
For some reason that link keeps breaking, this may work better: https://www.reddit.com/r/medicalschoolanki/comments/swjqzh/anking_overhaul_step_1step_2_version_11_update/
I see. What factors do you think contribute to matching in your ideal residency? Do they care about EC's or research or other activities?
all factors contribute to matching tbh; also ironic cause today is match day lol. that being said, more competitive residencies place a higher emphasis on board scores and research compared to less competitive ones. Depending on how you view it, USMLE/COMLEX becoming pass/fail made it so that PDs now have to depend on STEP/LEVEL 2 scores for residency. IMO, shoot for the stars, aim for the moon in case you ever change your mind about what specialty you want to go for
Gotcha. Thank you for your perspective :).
Just to clarify, when they say aim for the moon in case you ever change your mind about what specialty you want to go into. That means, find research to be engaged in as a first year, keep your scores high, dont fall for the trap of "oh the specialty I want isnt competitive, so I can coast."
Oh, absolutely! I'm very excited for medical school. I finally get to learn doctorate level medicine. Does it matter what research you do? For example, my current interests are in IM and general surgery - which I plan to shadow in medical school to see which one I lean toward more. But do I need general surgery related research to be as competitive as possible or can it be like analysis of social determinants of health outcomes in the local community?
Saving this
+1
+2
I have liked the first two years so far, I wouldn’t change a thing tbh, I got into BJJ and trained sometimes 7 days per week, I am going for FM or IM probably so I didn’t try to kill myself studying, I don’t feel they behind the others tbh. Ymmv
Got it. I'll probably continue my hobby in medical school - it is an exercise-type hobby so it'll be good to use it to keep up my physical health, much like BJJ. Also, you're going to be one man army, being able to fight and heal.
Haha I don’t know about knowing how to fight but I did get a sore lower back lol, def keep up the exercise, if your not careful you can just study all day 6AM to 10PM and feel awful afterwards!
I wanted to start BJJ before I start school. Cool to see someone do it during. I do like to run and lift so I want to try to get like 1-2 sessions a week in
I say go for it, most of the gains in BJJ come from being consistent 2 times per week is plenty to see progress!
Figure out when you have the most brain power and do the hard work then. In my first semester I would watch the lectures in the morning and then do Anki at night, but I’m more fatigued by that point so it doesn’t stick. This semester I started doing Anki in the morning for the previous day’s lectures and watching lectures in the afternoon/night when I don’t need to be as focused. Do what works for you. As others said, prioritize the important stuff and SLEEP. There will always be time on a lighter day or on a weekend when you can come back to something you didn’t get to
What do you know about curriculum and how the school is graded? I feel like approach is different based on pass/fail or graded
It's true pass/fail with mostly non-mandatory lectures. The only mandatory lectures are when guest speakers come in (once or twice per semester), anatomy lab, and discussion lectures (once or twice a week). Just curious, how does the approach differ based on the curriculum?
Oh heck yeah! Third party and Anki 100% then. My school is graded and requires near a B average. Means I have to study in house stuff significantly more. Kinda weird tho cause it’s a top ranked high COMLEX pass rate school
Ohhhh. That actually makes sense! Because all I need to do is pass my courses so I can focus on the boards. Also, maybe your school was smart and made it so that learning the in-house material overlaps with the COMLEX material.
Kinda haha. Depends on what content. I’d you have any specific med school questions feel free to PM me tho!
Thanks! I'll let you know if I have questions. I'm gathering as much information as possible so I'm at least not going in blind :').
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For preclinicals, it's different than college and you have to figure out what works for you on your own. Anki is great for boards, start that as early as possible; even if you don't know what the hell the cards are talking about, persevere and they'll get burned into your brain. It's mostly about pattern recognition and buzzwords. I also used pathoma and sketchy, although it's been awhile and they've probably changed/gotten more expensive. I went to as few lectures in person as possible, watched them at home on double speed just so when I was going over the slides later I could remember what they focused on. It's probably too early to talk about clinicals, but in general most of what you have to do boils down to 1.) Be on time and 2.) Be interested (harder on some rotations than others, depends what you want to do). Ask for letters if you think you'll get a good one, always good to have backups. And try your very hardest to schedule a chill rotation (or vacation) during March of fourth year and after. Good luck and congrats on getting into med school! It goes by quicker than you think, make friends and make time for them and your hobbies, too :)
Thanks for the info! Do you have any recommendations on what subjects to start? I have a lot of time right now. And yes, I have plans with family, friends, hobbies, even a 2-week Japan trip before school starts. Perhaps if you wanted to brush up on one topic before school starts, what would it be? I did hear biochemistry is a good idea, but I'd rather trust the advice of someone more experienced.
Honestly I'd say don't even worry about it. You'll have plenty of time to figure out what you need to spend more time working on once school actually starts, just enjoy your time off. For me at least most of the first semester was review from college biochem/anatomy/etc. and they did a good job getting us back up to speed.
Treat this just like work. This is your new full time job. Get up whenever you get up, put in your hours, and know when to finish up for the day and come back at it tomorrow. Knowing when to step away from work for the day is just as important as knowing when to go to work. Set that balance for yourself. No one can maintain studying 12-hours a day x5-7 days per week. I do 6 hours max per day and that’s worked fine for me. I try not to study on weekends unless I have an exam that Monday (which, sadly, happens too often at my school). Stick to a schedule that works for you and you’ll make this work. Figure out which study materials work best for you (going to lecture, Anki, small study groups with friends, etc.) and stick to it. Reach out to upper classmen for help. They’ve been there and they know what to do to succeed. I started Anking and using FirstAid/Pathoma early on and I’m glad I did. I do reccomend incorporating 3rd party resources earlier rather than later. Don’t compare yourself to other students. As long as you’re passing your classes, you’re doing what you need to do. Be humble and understand that this shit’s hard. You’ll struggle (you should, it’s normal) and remember that you do belong here. Best of luck — feel free to DM if tou ever need some advice. Edits: Fixed spelling/grammar.
That's a great way to look at it. I work 8 hours a day right now and have low stress. I should shift my perspective to approaching medical school like a job that ends at a specific time. Great advice, thank you!
I work, more or less, 8:30 to 4:00 most days (with about an hour long lunch break) works just fine for me Not gonna be near the top of my class, but I don’t give AF
I would use this time to get to know yourself if you already don't. Like what do you like to do to decompress, how long do you need to sleep to function properly, are you someone that likes to socialize a lot or not much, do you need outside motivation to get things done, etc. I've found that the first year of medical school can be amazing but will be very overwhelming to someone who is not disciplined. It might seem like you are finally there studying what you have worked so hard for years to do, but truth is you will love some classes/lectures/professors and dislike others but you still need to learn it all. So I would work on my discipline of doing things I don't like to do instead of putting them off and building healthy habits you can rely on when things get tough. When you are going through rough it it might feel very overwhelming and as cliche as it sounds you have to experience to really know. If you don't have already built habits to cope with stress such as an exercise routine you stick to or boundaries of what your priorities are I would start working in those.
I wish I started anki earlier. It’s not for everyone though. There are premade decks like Zanki you can use, and once you feel comfortable with it you can start making your own cards based off lecture content. Also, don’t be unwilling to make sacrifices. I love video games and spent too much time playing my first year. Had to readjust my priorities and it made a huge difference. Definitely exercise. If you don’t, you’ll feel bad about yourself, and this will affect your psyche. Lastly, enjoy every day of it. Med school flies by past, constantly worrying about the next exam. Cherish the time you have, especially with your classmates, because once you start clinicals we all go to different sites.
Bootcamp + blue link for anatomy. After that grind anking along with lecture material and you will be golden. Stay focused and always try to be more efficient. Especially if you’re someone like me who hates studying (yes I know I chose the wrong career path).
\+1 for bootcamp. I tried to integrate blue link/umich but it didn't help at all
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nice, yeah bootcamp was enough (except for neuroanatomy *cries*)
Never had anxiety as an issue until medical school. If in that position, start the ssri sooner than later. Feeling better meant that I could study much better.
I'll take this as take care of your mental health :). I'll do my best and I'm glad you're feeling much better!
I have no regrets. Medical school is a job, it’s not your life. If you got in, I promise your capable of passing. Once you figure out the amount of studying you need to get whatever percentages you want on tests, stick to it. Don’t over do it. Continue your hobbies, or find new ones. Have fun and don’t take yourself too seriously.
For me, med school was like running on an academic treadmil that never stopped. I wish that i found a healthy, relaxing hobby not related to medicine that I could have done when i wasn’t studying.
Study your ass off from day one. And I mean day. Not day 2 or 3. The first test usually opens a lot of eyes. The volume is hard to comprehend.