When starting PA school, they tell you it’s like a fire hose. Information from right and left nonstop. I feel like I didn’t get to experience this until my second semester when the information was so overwhelming that I had to change the way I studied because I only had 3 days to study for an exam that was about 8-10 lectures worth of material. That’s when you realize something needs to change. During my first semester, I used to make written notes of most of my lectures and I had enough time for that, but that quickly changed and there was no longer any time to do that. I also realized I had to study differently for each course.
Studying for Pharmacology
As I began taking different exams in PA school and learning a bunch of material, I quickly realized the way I studied for pharmacology vs anatomy was completely different. For example, for pharmacology you will want to memorize a lot of things and it takes a bunch or repetition in order to recall medications and know literally everything about them. I would make my own written notes including charts of the medications with the mechanism of actions, the adverse effects, contraindications, classifications, etc. then I would go over it again and again in my head until I memorize it. But to make sure I was ready for an exam I would quiz myself by creating quizlets and saying each medication in my head in random order.
Studying for Anatomy
Depending on the type of learner you are, you might want to change the way you study. For me, going to the cadaver lab and spending extra time there helped me a bunch. I also realized that repetition is key in remembering things, the more you do it, the more it will stick and the more you will understand it. Luckily I was blessed with a textbook material body which I am super thankful for because I learned SO SO MUCH. I would teach other students what different body parts were and doing this helped me tremendously, because I would just repeat it over and over again.
I have seen plenty of people draw very nice looking diagrams for various body parts like arteries and muscle groups etc, but to be honest you do not have time to be doing this. You need to make the most out of your time. Maybe making charts, easy diagram to memorize terms and how they relate to one another, but that’s about it. Also PNEMONICS ARE LIFE in anatomy, there are so many out there and they help A TON when memorizing information. You can find some of the most helpful ones I used in the second link below.
Try to preview the material from your dissection the day before and get an idea of what you will be learning, this will help you during your dissection and reinforcing the material. There are plenty of helpful resources out there for anatomy, such as your cadaver lab, textbooks, apps, and the ones I will write about.NetAnatomy was one of the most helpful websites I used. You can only access this if your institution has a subscription, but if they do not I would encourage speaking to them to get it. This website has dissections of real bodies and it allows you to quiz yourself and seeing everything as if you were there dissecting it. Never study for anatomy the day before, it can be an overwhelming amount of information so make sure you study little by little and things will begin to fall into place.
Resources for Anatomy:
http://www.netanatomy.com/nosubscription/notvalidip.htm
http://myweb.fsu.edu/ls10f/anatomy.htm
Studying for Clinical Medicine
During this class, that’s when I realized what the fire hose was like. We would have about 10 lectures or about 2 weeks’ worth of material and many exams for other classes in between. All of a sudden you only have the weekend to prepare for an exam “OMG, FREAK OUT MODE”. You quickly realize how much material you have to go over and you only have Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to study. I would get super stressed for these clinical Medicine exams because the exams were not only about knowing the material, but also applying it to real clinical scenarios. How do I study for that? I would ask myself during my first Clinical Medicine course.
There was no time to make hand written notes, so what I decided to do for this class was creating charts either hand written when I had more time or typed. I created tables that included the particular disease or condition, something unique about that disease, the symptoms, the labs or tests needed to diagnose, and the medication or treatments required. This would help me tons when it came putting all the diseases together and distinguishing one from another. I would either go over my lectures or sometimes create study guides with my classmates and we would share our study materials. Even though you think it’s impossible to think as a clinician when you are just becoming one, you will be surprised at how you can critically think when being presented with different patient scenarios and you have to think of the right diagnosis, treatment, or what the best next action should be.
Changing studying skills
As you can see, it’s important to be adaptable and realize that change is part of being in PA school. You will need to study a little different for each course and that’s something you will find out for yourself along the way. You will also realize what your weaknesses are and how you can better approach those weaknesses and work on them. Most of the other courses in PA school such as physiology and pathology just require time and repetition and sometimes creating pathways or drawing out mechanisms to better simplify material and understand the physiology of the human body. PA school is not impossible, it’s just A TON of material so having good study habits, balancing your time, and having tons of motivation will help you get through.
What finals week looks like
Well this is basically the worst week of each semester. Preparing for one exam itself in PA school is overwhelming so imagine preparing for 5 finals of all the information you covered the entire semester? GOSHHH, I have so many feelings about this week, I basically feel like they kill us slowly during this week. However, don’t let the amount of information get to you, or the thought of “Finals week” kill your mood. You already know everything they are going to test you on, and I am so serious about this. All that studying the entire semester, you know it ALL. You only need to review a bit, to refresh a little, but you will be surprised how much you can remember and how it all comes back together.
Make sure you get enough sleep, meal prep or eat nutritious food, take vitamin C to prevent any sicknesses, do something besides locking yourself to study, like small study breaks, go outside for a walk or out to eat, and just tell yourself that you are almost at the finish line for that semester. I usually create a study schedule for this week because if you don’t it’s easy to fall behind and not balancing your time evenly for all your finals. For me, having a great vacation or something to look forward to after finals week is what keeps me going and gives me motivation.
Sharing is caring
Even though studying in PA school is an individual effort, having the support of your classmates will get you a long way. Try not to be competitive, there is no point on being better than anyone during this time, you are all here to graduate and become future PA-Cs, so help each other out. Share study guides, quizlets, and any resources you find. For example, my class has quizlet for every single one of our courses each semester and different people share flashcards for all of us to review. Some of us share study guides, or other helpful videos for everybody to see. Whatever it is that you are good at or that can help you, make sure you share it as it can help the entire class.
Good luck to all of you starting PA school, this is an exciting time, but I know it can also be very stressful because you have no idea what to expect. Just remember you got in for a reason, and you have all the ability to succeed just work hard, figure out what works, and remember to reach out for help if you are struggling.
<3 Dani