As a med student, you can make your life so much easier if you learn how to get organized in medical school. There are some students who can fly by the seed of their pants. However, their chaotic lifestyle may not fit everyone. Other students prefer a plan for a more organized approach. I am definitely one of those students, and pride myself on my organizational skills. So, continue reading to learn how to get organized in medical school in 5 simple steps.
1. Review your syllabus
The first step in how to get organized in medical school is to review the syllabus. The syllabus is not just a stack of paper with random words. It is a document that includes all of the information you will need for the course. The grading policy, absence policy, and the schedule are all normally included in the syllabus. You also will find information regarding required textbooks and other resources that are handy for the class.
As soon as you have access to the syllabus, it’s important for you to review it so you know everything you need to know about the class. Of course you don’t have to read it verbatim and cover all of the policies. But the information pertinent to that class is going to be what you really want to know – especially the schedule. You’ll know when your quizzes, tests, and any assignments are due. This will help you plan ahead If there are any discrepancies in the syllabus, you’ll want to bring those to your professor’s attention as well.
2. Identify your resources
The second step in how to get organized in medical school is to identify the resources that you want to use for that class. There are a million resources, each with their own pros and cons. DO NOT DROWN IN RESOURCES. Choose a couple, and decide how you want to incorporate them into your study schedule. If you want to rely solely on your class material, that is absolutely acceptable. However, other resources may be used to supplement that information, as well as prepare you for board exams.
Some great outside resources include:
- OnlineMedEd – Lecture Notes and Video Resource
- UWorld – Practice Questions
- Kaplan USMLE – Lecture Notes and Practice Questions
- Boards and Beyond – Video Resource
- Lecturio – Video Resource
- First Aid – Test-specific Overview
- Pathoma – Pathology and Oncology
- Sketchy – Microbiology and Pharmacology
- UMich – Anatomy
- KenHub – Anatomy
3. Map out your passes and active review
After you determine which resources you want to use, the next step in how to get organized in medical school is to map out your passes. Passes are the number of times you review the information. This could be your lecture material and your outside resources. Repeated passes are the best way to retain the information and improve your grades. If you only get through all the material one time, you are going to have a hard time answer test questions. But the rule of four passes should help you improve your test scores.
Not only are passes important, but also so are reviews. The manner in which you review is important, and there are two types: passive recall and active retention. Passive review is when you just glance over the information. Active review in when you intentionally try to recall the material without viewing it. This exercises your brain, and creates new neural pathways. Spaced repetition is when you actively learn something with more and more time in between.
For example, if you learn something on Monday, review it actively on Tuesday, and then Friday, and then a week later, followed by two weeks later. The more space you put in between reviews, the easier it will be to forget and then work harder to recall it. Forgetting is good because it forces your brain to work harder.
Pass trackers are the best way to keep up with your passes and review sessions. These are excel sheets in which you put the item name on one side and the number of passes, along with continued problem areas. You can find a free template below to download for you own personal use! Just plug in the lecture or outside resource you want to review and check it off after every pass. In order to keep up with this, it’s going to be important to schedule when you’re going to do each one.
4. Determine your optimal study time
After you have gathered your resources, it’s time to determine your optimal study time. Learning how to get organized in medical school is not just about the materials you use. It’s also about setting up yourself for success by working at your optimal study time. For example, I know that I do not function well after 9pm. Therefore, I’m not going to save my hardest tasks for that time. I like to do my best work earlier in the morning, so I’m going to tackle those harder subjects earlier in the day.
Determine what time of day are you most focused, efficient, and productive. For some people, that is the middle of the night, so they sleep in and just stay up all night. For others, they like to work in the middle of the day. It’s all about knowing yourself and being self-aware. Once you determine your optimal study time, then create a study schedule that centers around that time. A sample daily schedule is below:
5. Create a study-break schedule
Once you have gathered all of your materials and created a study plan, the final step for how to get organized in medical school is to create a study-break schedule. This means creating a schedule that shows how long you are going to study, and when you are going to take a break. You may think it’s best to plan for a five-hour power session. However, that’s often not realistic. And it can lead to either feelings of burnout, increased wasted time, or both.
There are established methods, like the Pomodoro method, which structure productivity and break time. The scheduled breaks give you something to look forward to, as well as a structured time to do things you enjoy. This can include social media breaks, getting some physical activity in, and grabbing snacks or meals. If you plan out these breaks ahead of time, you may be more successful in using your study time to actually study.
Key Takeaways
Learning how to get organized in medical school is a key way to get ahead instead of playing catch up. The key to planning and being organized is to not overplan, and to be flexible. Hiccups are going to happen. And something is going to disrupt your schedule. Your schedule cannot be so rigid that it doesn’t allow for time off or interruptions. Always plan to have one day of no studying, so you can use it to recoup, or catch up in case you got behind on other days.
Also avoid overplanning, so much so that you don’t actually get anything done other than creating a schedule. General to-do lists and blocks of time allotted for those activities are realistic are going to be the best way for you to increase productivity. If you are a medical student, please leave your tips in the comments for other students to learn from!
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