Dec 7, 2023 7 min read

3 Strange study tactics I used to pass Medical School

Keep it simple

Here’s the truth. I took zero notes in medical school.

Zero.

School doesn’t really teach you how to study.

You’re encouraged to handwrite notes. Highlight things. Summarise texts.

Generally speaking, none of these techniques work as well as we all think they do.

As a medical student, you’ll be bombarded with vast amounts of information from textbooks, lectures and clinical placements.

You have to absorb and understand a ridiculous amount of anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, pathology and biochemistry. And a lot of this information can be relevant and therefore important when you’re treating patients.

For instance, I had an elderly patient that came into hospital and was admitted to my ward.

Their main issue was some difficulty breathing.

Immediately you think about the anatomical structures involved in breathing like as the lungs, trachea, bronchi and alveoli.

You consider the role of the respiratory system in gas exchange and how oxygen is transported to tissues while carbon dioxide is eliminated.

I reviewed the medical history and they informed me that a fever and cough had been bothering them for the last few days. The nurse simultaneously took some observations including temperature, oxygen saturations and breathing and heart rate.

I performed a respiratory exam which involved assessing the hands, face, eyes and mouth as well as obviously listening to their breathing with my stethoscope. I noted some abnormal breath sounds - which can indicate areas of lung consolidation or infection.

Based on the history and findings, I suspected that this patient had a pneumonia (an infection in the lungs).

So from an understanding of pathology, you know that bacteria or viruses cause inflammation in the lung tissue, leading to symptoms like cough and shortness of breath. This then guides your investigations and management plan.

I ordered a chest x-ray, took bloods, some nasal swabs and asked for a sputum sample, which can help determine the causative agent.

Microbiology is also relevant here because the lab identified the presence of Streptococcus pneumoniae, a common bacterium responsible for community-acquired pneumonia.

As part of bloods I took, we also checked liver function because the antibiotic I wanted to give - amoxicillin, is primarily metabolised in the liver. Highlighting the importance of biochemistry and pharmacology.

From this - you can see that medicine can be quite complex and involve lots of different topics and areas.

To manage this overwhelming volume of content effectively, I adopted a strategic approach. Obviously it’s important to pass your exams but retaining the knowledge for the long term is probably more important.

A caveat - your ideal study method may be different to mine.

If you like taking or rewriting notes and that helps you to remember things, then that’s fine. It might work for some and not for others. There’s not one blanket revision or study method that will work for everyone.

Regardless of what methods you choose to incorporate, don’t forget to have a structured timetable, take regular breaks, eat healthy and nutritious foods and exercise every day.

You should also be specific with your learning so instead of just saying "I’m going to study Chemistry today", your goal should be “I’m going to go over chapter 5 & 6 in the textbook, make 50 flash cards and do 40 practice questions.”

Be purposeful with your learning.

This will also make you less anxious about learning whole topics or subjects. Break it all down into smaller, more digestible chunks.

Remember, focus on understanding topics and concepts first, and then switch your attention to memorising things.

Ok so - why did I not make notes?...

It was a huge waste of time. I did this lots in my first degree at King's College London - especially in my first year. It was the standard thing to do.

You’d go to your lectures and 500 people would be in this massive lecture theatre. Some with the notes printed off in advance, some with their laptops and others with their notepads. They’d all be taking notes when the lecturer would be rambling on about the Krebs cycle.

Lots of distractions. People learning at different speeds. A great education...

And then when it came to exams some people would try and duplicate the notes onto paper and magically hope that everything stuck.

I know because I was “some people.”

My plan was that I would go to the lectures, try to pay attention, then go to the library and then try to make notes and re-write the lecture slides as well as supplementing it with a textbook, and then just re-read them a couple of times for exams.

Needless to say this didn’t really work.

Just reading things over again isn’t actually that effective for studying - this is because it amplifies the Dunning-Kruger effect.

The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias that suggests that individuals with limited knowledge or expertise often overestimate their own abilities, leading to a false sense of competence.

In my case, the act of repeatedly reviewing and rewriting notes gave me a superficial sense of understanding, which actually masked the gaps in my knowledge.

When it came to the exam, I struggled to recall the information.

So what techniques did I use at med

#1. Spaced repetition

The clue is in the name. You focus on learning things at different time intervals to optimise memory retention. I used Anki. This app probably saved me.

There’s plenty of YouTube tutorials on Anki so check them out if you aren’t sure where to start.

It's a powerful tool for managing the vast amount of information you had to understand. I created digital flashcards with Anki for important medical concepts, drug names, anatomical structures, and disease presentations.

The algorithm automatically scheduled the cards based on my performance in recalling the information. Cards that I struggled with would appear more frequently, while those I knew well would be reviewed less often.

If you using it consistently, you can reinforce your memory in a systematic and efficient manner. It also prevents information overload and it helped me to retain long-term knowledge.

As I progressed through medical school, Anki became an integral part of my daily study routine, helping me prepare for exams and ultimately pass with confidence.

5-10 minutes a day well in advance of your exams can help maintain your knowledge.

And then closer to your exams you can spend more time testing yourself and making new cards.

As well as Anki, I sometimes made paper flash cards with a keyword or concept and on the back it would have the answer. (I don’t know about you but continuously staring at a screen for hours doing Anki can get a bit repetitive).

Having something tangible like flashcards can help.

#2. Active recall

Active recall is an evidence-based technique that actually works.

The basis of this technique is that you’re retrieving information from memory by essentially testing yourself at each stage of the revision process.

The act of recalling information and data from our minds not only enhances our capacity to retain knowledge but also enhances the neural connections between various concepts.

This was a game-changer for my memory retention and conceptual understanding.

I used a whiteboard and a pen to practice drawing diagrams, mind maps, and visual aids that represented medical concepts. For instance, when studying anatomy, I sketched out detailed diagrams was really useful.

One particular area that challenged me was the anterior & posterior compartments of the forearm.

It contains lots of muscles, nerves, and blood vessels responsible for flexing and extending the wrist and fingers. To start with I began by creating a diagram of the anterior compartment on a piece of paper.

I drew the bones of the forearm, the radius, and ulna, and marked the relevant muscles.

I included the median nerve, which provides motor and sensory innervation to the muscles in this compartment and the ulnar and radial arteries, which supply blood to these structures.

I then did the same for the posterior compartment of the forearm.

It really helped to visualise relationships between the various structures, appreciate their functional significance, and comprehend how they work to produce specific movements. And this can be particularly helpful in terms of remembering pathology, an example in this particular compartment is carpal tunnel syndrome.

This is where the median nerve becomes compressed as it passes through the carpal tunnel in the wrist, leading to symptoms such as pain, tingling, and weakness in the hand.

To grasp the pathology of carpal tunnel syndrome, I made a separate diagram focusing on the median nerve's course and its relation to the carpal tunnel.

I drew the normal position of the median nerve and its surrounding structures, as well as the changes that occur in cases of compression.

By visually comparing the normal and compressed pathways of the certain nerves, it helps you to see things clearly and understand the consequences of the pathology.

And this knowledge can help to identify potential clinical presentations.

I would then draw the structures onto the whiteboard from memory.

Which helps to reinforce your memory through visual and kinesthetic learning.

The process of creating these visual representations allowed me to see the interconnectedness of anatomical structures, which facilitated better retention and recall during exams.

I also utilised the whiteboard for recall sessions. I would go over a topic or something I’ve just learned.

And then close the book and then write down the key terms, disease processes, and management protocols from memory, with the book closed. This practice was really important in identifying areas where I needed to understand more or revise further.

Side note: If you want to know how to learn things fast, check out the video below:

Ultralearning Secrets

#3. Practice papers

Some people don’t like doing them but for me, the questions normally mirror the format and difficulty level of actual exams, giving you a realistic sense of what to expect.

And by attempting practice questions, you can simulate exam conditions and this can help reduce test anxiety by familiarising yourself with time constraints.

They’re a valuable self-assessment tool.

Once I went through a bunch of questions on Passmed, I reviewed my answers and looked at the solutions. This process helps you to identify strengths and weaknesses and you can take this information and focus your efforts on areas that need improvement.

If I got a question wrong, I would make a flash card on it.

Essentially - do lots and lots of practice questions, there’s plenty of resources online, from your teachers, in the back of your textbooks and make sure you time yourself when you do them.

On top of these 3 main methods I also used other techniques like mnemonics and teaching friends topics - I actually found that explaining concepts to someone else can really help to solidify my understanding and identify knowledge gaps as well.

Ultimately, it really just depends on your preferences and study style.

Try out these techniques out and see if they work for you. Get experimenting.

Usually a mix of techniques work best.