llamariffic Posted June 4, 2008 Report Share Posted June 4, 2008 hey all! so i have no shame about it..i have TERRIBLE study skills. while i have seen worse, i haven't seem much worse. i don't have "terrible" grades - but they definitely vary. i get my fair share of A+s and i also got a D in my second stats course, in my last semester. "it will all be okay because you got in" - is what i keep hearing, but the truth is i am terrified! i am going to try my hardest, and hope to hell that the incredibly exciting material will motivate me to study daily..or something. but i also am scared that you 'can't teach an old dog new tricks' is going to screw me somehow. i have tried to go see the school counsellor. the problem is, as a "high achiever" they don't have any suggestions for me. ('whatever you are already doing seems to work! har har!'....) halp!!! how do i learn to study? i have a feeling my streak of luck will crash rapidly when i hit med school in the fall. and more.. i really really want to be a good doctor and i don't want to cram my material (and not remember it later). advice???? llamariffic PS yes, i "formally" have ADHD. and no, taking ritalin is not an option for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaka84 Posted June 4, 2008 Report Share Posted June 4, 2008 My advice is to keep up or you will be buried alive. There is an incredible amount of information presented and if you slack off you're dead, just ask a few of my classmates! There is no substitution for hard work. the shaka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supafield Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 I find my studying is at its best when I have a good atmosphere to do it in... I've accepted by attention span lasts about a few hours and then is no good without a decent break.... for the MCAT studying I was typically 9:30-12:30 and then took an hour or two for lunch and resumed and got another 3 hours in.... If I tried to power through... my studying became useless That's more of a "how I study" not why I study in the first place... but possibly you dislike studying because you haven't found an effective way to do it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jelly31 Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 I'm a visual learner, so I study the best with diagrams and visual organizers. I will have huge tables and webs and charts all over the place. Once I can organize all the incoherent thoughts into a web, it is easily committed to long-term memory. Ah, all the learning styles and learning techniques you learn in ed Exactly where I learned about my learning style too. I have to read things but do something at the same time to avoid spacing out. Therefore, I have to compulsively take notes of everything that I'm reading while I'm reading it, including the practical applications, thereby organizing it in a concise, coherent way. Oh man, it's been a while since I've taken hardcore science courses but at least this material has practical applications and I've never had trouble with practical stuff. That is how I study. My ability to cram info is also rather useless after 11 pm. My advice is to find out what your learning style is and use your strengths to your advantage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noncestvrai Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 Sometimes I wonder how I passed medschool...perhaps by osmosis from the books accumulating dust while I'm sleeping next to them (especially during clerkship)? I think I crammed most of medschool except for board exams... Don't worry dude, you'll be fine. noncestvrai Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darla Posted June 6, 2008 Report Share Posted June 6, 2008 I also need to do things while studying but found taking notes too time consuming when done with little time b/f the exam. Usually I read the notes aloud to myself then at appropriate times stop and repeat the high points back to myself/teach it to my teddy bear to make sure I'm actively learning it not just letting it wash over me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lostintime Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 Do people do study groups in med? I always had trouble finding people in undergrad for some reason. I kind of like it since I like group studying (as long as it's targeted and not just slack time), but most people in my classes preferred to study on their own and it was hard as hell to even find people to compare past exam answers to. I'm hoping there's more collaboration in med? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darla Posted June 8, 2008 Report Share Posted June 8, 2008 Lostintime - there's definitely a lot of collaboration at UWO but I can't speak for other schools. We've put together official type study groups and more ad hoc ones as well. One of the (many) benefits of a pass/fail system is that there is little competition so we help each other out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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