Medical schools are one of the toughest institutions for students who want a successful professional life. To achieve this goal you have to be sincere and dedicated in your study life. It is impossible to gulp all the courses of medical school.
But you can revise the subject you have studied for the day at least two times for better understanding. This will help you memorize the subject and score well in exams.
GPA plays an important role in a medical career. So to achieve that you need a well-designed study table. You should follow this routine seriously if you want to score well.
Here are some tips on how to plan your medical exam schedule. So have a look!
Highlights:
- Recognize your study pattern
- Pay more attention to important topics
- Follow your schedule anyway
- Review your studies before and after classes
- Use study tools
- There is a life outside of studies
- Take a break
- Don’t overburden yourself
- Conclusion
1. Recognize your study pattern:
Every student has a unique style of learning which helps him/her learn things according to their convenience.
But every medical student has a common goal, which is grasping too much information in a short period of time.
As time flies fast, students need to follow their course properly so that they won’t miss anything until exams.
If it seems easy for you to learn through videos and animations, then follow that pattern. Likewise, some can choose to learn through textbooks, flashcards, and illustrations.
You have to stick with your preferred pattern until your test comes. Studying according to your convenience will enhance your learning process and help you cover your course fast and easily.
2. Pay extra attention to important topics:
When you are preparing for USMLE exams you have to pay attention to certain subjects more than others
So give more priority to those subjects in your prepared medical school exam schedule. This will help you score well in exams because of their high chances of coming in the test.
So make your timetable based on important subjects to cover. This process will ease your learning and boost your confidence.
3. Follow your schedule anyway:
A medical career is a long road. You will definitely feel exhausted at certain times. But remember that this is totally natural to feel this way sometimes.
But you also have to remember that following your exam schedule is part of your lifestyle. You cannot leave it.
No matter what happens, you should always stick to our schedule. You can make some changes to it if necessary. You can add time for quizzes, extracurricular activities, etc.
Your study schedule should not be so tight that you start to feel pressurized while following it.
It should be more like a loose schedule that is flexible and easy to follow.
4. Review your studies before and after classes:
Always be punctual in your lectures. Don’t rely much on self-study. Pay attention to your classes and maintain discipline.
Before attending any lecture, preview the topic you are going to learn. This will give you an overview of the upcoming class.
So when your professor starts teaching it will be easy for you to grasp the knowledge and accelerate your learning process.
After the lecture, you should review your notes and see if you have any doubts. Then discuss it with your professor.
This habit will help you memorize faster and in the long term. In this way, you will not be overburdened by your studies.
5. Use study tools:
In this modern age, technology plays an important role in everyone’s life. Medical students are not devoid of it.
There are some free as well as paid online tools you can use to speed up your preparation for exams.
Prognosis, online medEd, BMJ examination, Brainscape, U-world, Amboss, etc are some popular online tools to prepare MCQs and other types of questions are used by students during exams.
These apps help students to analyze their strengths and weaknesses so that they can prepare themselves for exams well.
6. There is a life outside of studies:
There is a misconception around people that medical students have no social as well as personal life. But that’s not true.
No one can live a life without being socialized for a long time. It is necessary to have a life outside the studies.
While planning your medical exam schedule make room for personal and social life.
Doing yoga, meditation, and exercise to refresh your mind and body is essential to function as a human being.
Maintaining physical and mental health is very important to live a healthier life. Hang out with friends, talk to your loved ones, and go for outings once in a while.
All these activities will ultimately help you study well and score well in exams as you will not be bored by your studies but rather enjoy all aspects of them.
7. Take a break:
It is a common misconception among students is that they think if they revise a chapter one night before an exam they can score high in the exam.
But it does the quite opposite. The more you try to memorize just before an exam, the more your brain will be pressurized and this will cause stress and anxiety.
Because of these side effects, you could forget the things you have actually studied. So avoid this kind of study pattern
Take a complete break from studying the night before the exam and sleep the whole night. This will revive your brain and help you remember all the things you have studied for the exam
Try this trick and you will surely be benefitted from it.
8. Don’t overburden yourself:
There is no doubt that becoming a doctor is academically hard to accomplish. But it is not impossible.
Remember that you are not alone in this. Every student goes through this phase at some point in their life. If they can do it, then so are you.
Accept the fact that you cannot know everything. Give your hundred percent. But never beat yourself down if something gets left out in the process. It is completely okay.
Do not overburden your brain beyond its capacity. Keep your pace steady and maintain consistency. This will surely take further without even you noticing.
Conclusion:
There is no doubt that medical exams are tough. Preparing for exams is tougher than that. You have to plan a solid and reasonable exam study schedule that will help you ace your upcoming exams like USMLE Step 1.
Make it simple, functional, and flexible. There is no particular style of exam schedule. You have to figure it out by yourself and make it according to your taste and convenience.
Give more time to your weak subjects and know that you cannot know it all. So just follow the schedule and give your best.
Don’t overthink and overburden yourself with extra studies. Just follow the pattern which works best for you.
MedSmarter helps Medical Students pass their USMLE Step 1 & Step 2 CK Exams and provide Live and Live Online Review Courses as well as 1:1 Tutoring.
