Preparing for university: Top tips for Medical students

So, you got into medical school. First of all: congratulations! Take a second to let that sink in. You beat the odds, survived the admissions gauntlet, and you're officially on your way to becoming a doctor! So do you give yourself some pat on the back. You may have heard stories about the insane amount of workload in medical school and started wondering if I should start reading Gray’s Anatomy now.

Instead of reading Gray’s, let me share with you 3 things that I wished I have done during my summer before entering medical school.

1. Learn to cook

Firstly, learn to cook. I really can’t stress this enough. Before moving to the UK, I have never switched on the hob for any serious cooking. (other than making instant noodles) Therefore, when I first moved over, I took quite a while to learn how to dice up chicken, peeling onions and not overcook my pasta. Eating out every day is just not sustainable. Even though there are quite a lot of food options in Selly Oak and on campus, but nothing beats your grandmother’s secret recipes. Also, they are slightly pricey in my opinion. I simply cannot afford to eat out all day. Over the next few summers when I was homed, I took the time to learn from my nan, hoping that I could replicate her signature dishes here in UK. I won’t say that I am a chef now, but my culinary skills have improved tremendously since year 1.

2. Find your study method

Secondly, familiarize yourself with Anki or any other flashcards applications. If you haven’t heard of it yet, you will. Anki is a flashcard app that uses spaced repetition algorithms to test your brain right before you're about to forget something. It is free for all to use as well. (I am not affiliated to them) In year 1, when we are learning a lot of the foundation sciences, flashcards system really comes in handy. Understanding the concept is important but using flashcards to review my lecture notes alongside were helpful in helping me to retain knowledge learnt. As you have heard, there are quite a lot of content to go through in medical school. If you do not religiously revisit some of the older concepts taught earlier in the year regularly, you will struggle towards the end of the year. I learnt it the hard way especially in anatomy. If you already have a preferred study method, that’s fine. However, if you are just as clueless like me, maybe giving this a shot is something to consider.

3. Pre-university materials

Last but not least, if you are really really really keen to learn some of the contents in advance, I will suggest looking at videos produced by Ninja Nerd and Osmosis. Videos produced by them aided my learning throughout my pre-clinical years. They made concepts easier to understand with graphics that aid understanding and learning. However, this is just my personal take, so do take it with a pinch of salt.