tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post4487896226704967217..comments2023-12-11T08:19:00.272-05:00Comments on DoctorMama: If You Don't Think Studying Is Hard, You're Doing It WrongDoctorMamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05187502628715846144noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-16985832481040672612009-12-07T10:28:25.237-05:002009-12-07T10:28:25.237-05:00Just found this post - awesome. I had the same ex...Just found this post - awesome. I had the same experience in my first semester of college when I got a D on my calculus midterm. And then a A+ on the final.<br /><br />I studied like one whackass mother on the LSAT (got into Top 10 school) and in law school. Currently in practice, it's a mix of gist and memorization. Tax law needs more than a gist. Marketing needs just the gist.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10207346299129996890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-78073793543920519182007-12-29T02:46:00.000-05:002007-12-29T02:46:00.000-05:00Hello doctor, I don't know if you have time to loo...Hello doctor, I don't know if you have time to look at these comments or not, but how do you deal with a course or part of a course that is absolutely disinteresting. I am in engineering right now and I do well in engineering courses, but I dont like the math courses.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-22692666046464148532007-05-23T23:39:00.000-04:002007-05-23T23:39:00.000-04:00Adding this to my favorites. I often laugh at myse...Adding this to my favorites. I often laugh at myself over my moments of tantrum & depression on weekends about how I will never be able to be a normal college student and have a regular (read: party-filled) college life. It's a worthwhile sacrifice though. Thank you for the excellent post.Alyssahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00588888454448349484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-13981138865414395982007-04-30T14:04:00.000-04:002007-04-30T14:04:00.000-04:00Hi Dr. Mama,I write a resource blog for medical st...Hi Dr. Mama,<BR/>I write a resource blog for medical students & I think your study plan is fabulous (if I could only stop procrastinating long enough to adopt it). Anyways, I have linked you post from my blog, but I was wondering If I could copy & paste the bulleted list part (citing you with a link of course)??? See my blog <A HREF="http://med-source.blogspot.com" REL="nofollow"> here</A> & let Med-Sourcehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01012731834301555074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-24081221406151029522006-12-31T15:11:00.000-05:002006-12-31T15:11:00.000-05:00Just popping by to wish you, TH and HB a very happ...Just popping by to wish you, TH and HB a very happy new year!<br /><br />Fiona xoAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-16630852485093835212006-12-26T20:37:00.000-05:002006-12-26T20:37:00.000-05:00Sigh. I know you weren't trying to make it sound f...Sigh. I know you weren't trying to make it sound fun, but oh, you did. What can I say--every few months I have to restrain myself from looking into med school...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-20647178763693465902006-12-24T11:39:00.000-05:002006-12-24T11:39:00.000-05:00If you had said this to me 15 years ago, I would'v...If you had said this to me 15 years ago, I would've nodded, agreed, and continued to cram everything in the night before with my OCD highlighters and colored tabs. And cruised through with my C average. Because there's no med school after you get your BS in chemical engineering. Just work, and they don't really give a shit about your grades, or so I found.<br /><br />But I'm planning a return to Mignonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07716330276288396317noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-37893953375142576312006-12-23T21:20:00.000-05:002006-12-23T21:20:00.000-05:00I was reading this and thinking "there's no way th...I was reading this and thinking "there's no way that someone would get an A- in my class with that attitude". But then again, I was teaching an upper division mathematics course this term. Clearly you're not accounting for your natural abilities either. I worked my ass off in the humanities courses I took to get my B+, or A- if I was lucky. Take it from me, a lot of college students cannot Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-77190317056081532862006-12-21T22:30:00.000-05:002006-12-21T22:30:00.000-05:00I completely failed my first biochem test in med s...I completely failed my first biochem test in med school because I thought I "had the gist of it" going into the exam. I ended up doodling on the pages and turning it in. I'm embarassed to this day about that. <br /><br />I actually took a year off of med school after that, and I really thought agonizingly hard about whether I would go back--knowing that such a choice meant that I was going to Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-44884845574692795862006-12-21T09:54:00.000-05:002006-12-21T09:54:00.000-05:00Your story is so close to mine...I cannot believe ...Your story is so close to mine...I cannot believe it. I was a Fine Art major for 3 years many moons ago. I always wanted to get into medical school, but never really thought of myself as "smart" enough. Well, I changed my mind and decided that I can do anything I set my mind to so now I am finishing my college degree in biology / premed. Switching to science from art is a whole different worldPeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07485034020872866402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-38504390135331987372006-12-20T17:32:00.000-05:002006-12-20T17:32:00.000-05:00Very timely advice as I just finished an intermedi...Very timely advice as I just finished an intermediate accounting course (online, but still the real deal) and got a gentleman's (gentlewoman's) "B" even though I studied, by my sights, very hard. All of your tips were things I did almost, but not quite - hence the B (not an A or a C). Accounting is not rocket science, or even pre-med, but it is deceptive in that you read something through, Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-90718601922042805182006-12-20T14:42:00.000-05:002006-12-20T14:42:00.000-05:00For me, it's all about the cue cards. I put an ope...For me, it's all about the cue cards. I put an open question on one side (list and describe all the types of anemia, including causes and treatment), and a very detailed answer on the back. I then make myself recall it from memory. I go through teh cards over and over until I can do them all without looking at the answers. It's time consuming, but it definitely pays off! If you make the questionsXEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02522455400636588309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-52464076381672136852006-12-20T11:41:00.000-05:002006-12-20T11:41:00.000-05:00Anonymous again,
And thanks to old MD girl for her...Anonymous again,<br />And thanks to old MD girl for her additional tips. Very helpful.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-21599654526638130602006-12-20T11:23:00.000-05:002006-12-20T11:23:00.000-05:00This is [another] great post DM! It actually give...This is [another] great post DM! It actually gives me hope that I may pull my OWN head out of my butt; I can pull those dusty textbooks off the shelf & study for those board certification exams...Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03152215204773184788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-48524673851068888272006-12-19T17:44:00.000-05:002006-12-19T17:44:00.000-05:00My field of the liberal arts can be technical and ...My field of the liberal arts can be technical and so the gist often doesn't cut it. Still, I admit that you can't flunk everyone and so there is a fudge factor I do sneak in to save the slackers like your young self. The technical and the right/wrong answer is there in some other humanities fields as well but I admit that there's a reason they call them the hard sciences. For precision and the Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-36966877400024679032006-12-19T11:45:00.000-05:002006-12-19T11:45:00.000-05:00Heh wish I'd read this BEFORE six years of med sch...Heh wish I'd read this BEFORE six years of med school. I boned my way through undergrad and even a lot of med school. It shows though, especially on the real chemistry courses. <br /><br />And yes - MEMORIZE. Fuck understanding. That one got me every time. At some point, you just can't make sense of it anymore.Sarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15606922510495018342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-75479156568321444102006-12-19T10:47:00.000-05:002006-12-19T10:47:00.000-05:00Thanks for reminding me why I don't return to scho...Thanks for reminding me why I don't return to school! <br />Exhausting just reading about it!Ottoettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04642495388582484595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-69500244977265746062006-12-19T09:42:00.000-05:002006-12-19T09:42:00.000-05:00So true. I went for a graduate degree in chemical ...So true. I went for a graduate degree in chemical engineering after a liberal arts bachelors. I had the math but had to take undergrad science classes/labs, as well as the grad courses.<br /><br />The upside to these killer classes was that results were usually directly proportional to the effort put in. Lots of studying = great grades. <br /><br />In the working world, I would get lauded for Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-82620957988728887812006-12-19T06:55:00.000-05:002006-12-19T06:55:00.000-05:00Great tips! I am a doc too and your comments are s...Great tips! I am a doc too and your comments are soo true. It always seemed like my nonpremed friends had way more free time then I did and I spent hours upon hours studying for my hard core science classes. I love your site !Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-44384073411351790692006-12-19T04:34:00.000-05:002006-12-19T04:34:00.000-05:00Interestingly, I did really poorly at science in m...Interestingly, I did really poorly at science in my one year of a medical degree (this is an undergraduate course in the UK) but then started doing really well when I switched to a biology degree, and am now an academic in a science subject. The difference was the way things were taught - understanding versus memorisation.DrSpousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07259337858075146058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-32022074169585085342006-12-18T22:36:00.000-05:002006-12-18T22:36:00.000-05:00Thanks DM, I was in Universty Science for two year...Thanks DM, I was in Universty Science for two years before I pulled my head out of my butt and figured out that the "recommed readings" weren't actually recommedations, but "Get your ass to the libary and memorize every last word if you want to pass" readings. <br /><br />Good advice!Jackiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14698364720372038332noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-83284468549324276142006-12-18T19:30:00.000-05:002006-12-18T19:30:00.000-05:00oh how i wish i had read these suggestions 6 years...oh how i wish i had read these suggestions 6 years ago! as someone who graduated in the top 10 of her high school class just by showing up and getting the gist of things, i too had a very RUDE awakening in college. i gave up on *my* career in science, but now i advise undergraduate biology students. you better believe i'll be including these tips in my spring semester advising. thanks for anotherUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03995603057556679825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-54236823972235090102006-12-18T18:04:00.000-05:002006-12-18T18:04:00.000-05:00Too many people worry that they're not "naturals" ...Too many people worry that they're not "naturals" at science, and give up way too easily. Some concepts you'll get right away, and some you'll just have to grind out. This is true for everyone -- even the people who make you feel stupid by telling you how easy they found the subject. If I was struggling in a subject, I memorized it first (all the while memorizing my rationalizations for why OMDGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17937425894428802591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-83039977381281648772006-12-18T17:49:00.000-05:002006-12-18T17:49:00.000-05:00hi Doctor Mama
I'm an RN, big busy hospital, with
...hi Doctor Mama<br />I'm an RN, big busy hospital, with<br />residents on our floor.(don't ya know we just luv em). Your site is great, I thoroughly enjoy it and always learn something new...Just wanted you to know I'm out here..Digi Rebelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08352685068412429209noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15583952.post-74003777549880729602006-12-18T16:23:00.000-05:002006-12-18T16:23:00.000-05:00Dear DM,
You've raised some interesting issues wi...Dear DM,<br /><br />You've raised some interesting issues with your how-to-study guidelines. As a hard science undergrad student, I often struggled with (and wasted time thinking about) whether it was more important to be someone who "got it" as in the gist, or the concept, or someone who memorized everything and understood very little of the big picture.<br /><br />For example, in studying the Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com