itsartipatel

[Hell week? More like hell month]

Semester 3 was known to be the most brutal for the first month. We had 2 exams scheduled within the first month, and there weren’t any study days given besides our usual one day before test day. I heard so many upper semester students say that Microbiology was going to be a killer for the majority of us. But, I was super excited to start out this semester because I knew I had seen the material before. As I had mentioned in my earlier post, MERP was the most helpful during Semester 3. Having my notes to look back on was very helpful and having that additional knowledge helped me learn the material better. Although the material was familiar, I kept telling myself that I need to study like I’m seeing it for the first time. I didn’t want to become overconfident and lose the motivation to keep going. I stuck to my schedule and daily routine to make sure I stayed on top of my game. Mini 1 & Mini 2 went super well and it felt amazing to be starting off the semester on the right foot. 

[A well-deserved weekend off]

Mini 2 finished on a Friday and let me just say that all of us in Semester 3 were beyond thrilled to have a full weekend off. I hear a lot of people say that there is no “day off” in medical school. And that is absolutely correct. But, it’s also important to enjoy the few moments when we have a little more free time. And this weekend was one of those moments. For me, having some free-time means relaxing by myself for a bit. I decided to take Friday night off to de-stress, watch movies, and re-connect with my family. It felt blissful to have the night to myself. The following day, my best friend and I decided to do some sight-seeing since a bus was being provided by RUSM. It felt different yet nice to be doing something other than studying for once. A couple of us friends ended the night with dinner at Café de Sol, a common Mexican restaurant for Rossies. Sunday was another day of relaxation and getting prepped for the next Mini. The day before starting a new module, I would always look at the schedule and plan ahead on what I need to do and what the next few weeks will look like. Although it could make someone stressed out by seeing how much needs to be done, it did the opposite for me. Having a plan helped me map out what I need to be doing and when I need to be doing it. 

[Motivation to Mini 3]

Mini 3 was filled with lots of old and new material together. It was on the Renal module and was definitely a little tougher than usual due to our kidneys being so complex. 3C had a 1.5 week study block period built into the schedule and I took complete advantage of it. Not only did I study for Mini 3 during that study block, but I was also able to go back and do some brief review on Mini 1 & 2. Having my sister’s baby shower to attend in July was the cherry on top for me. I used this mid-semester break as motivation to keeping pushing through and improving my scores at RUSM. Knowing that I’ll get to see all of my family made me want to work harder so that I can enjoy my time back at home instead of feeling guilty the entire time. 

[A mini getaway]

I flew back to states for 1.5 weeks and it was much needed. I got to spend time with my sister and enjoy some quality family time with everyone. Being in the C-track, I was lucky enough to have a study block period during my time back at home, so I didn’t have to worry about any new lectures and material to review. I had caught up on my lectures within the first couple days of being at home so that I wasn’t falling behind on my schedule. Although I did have more studying scheduled, it was a lot more difficult to follow it with so many people around me. The last few days, I decided to take a break from school overall and spend that time with my family. I didn’t want to force myself to study because I knew I wouldn’t retain anything and would have to repeat everything all over again. As my mini getaway came to an end, I flew back to Barbados with a couple days left before the last module of the semester began. I used the following day to catch up on some sleep and make a study schedule for the last 23 days of the semester. 

[Homestretch before heading home]

Semester 3 was a lot less heavy on the clinical science portion for the C-track. Although we did have biweekly cases to practice, there was no clinical exam for the semester. And it was a blessing in disguise. We were packed with 4 exams in the last 2 weeks of the semester, and it was dreadful. Mini 4 had 2 parts to it. One for the Digestive module and the other for the Reproductive module. And yes, these were scheduled back-to-back. Learning the material was not as stressful as trying to figure out what module I wanted to study for and give priority to. I didn’t want to focus all my attention on one and forget about the other. So, I decided to schedule my days in half so that each module could be reviewed efficiently. The results for both exams were great. The final exams were even more stressful due to the fact that one final exam was written by the school while the other was a NBME. I was juggling back and forth, switching between study resources. I was using lecture material to study for the RUSM final and used the First Aid for Step 1 book for the NBME final. The worst part about the NBME finals is that it takes about a week for us to get our scores. I did very well throughout the semester and wasn’t worried about failing but it would have been nice to at least know what my final exam scores were before I went home. Overall, the semester went very well for me compared to the first two. I was happy to see improvements, especially with the fact that Semester 3 was not straight forward when it came to our schedule.

[3C curriculum]

Going into each semester, I didn’t know what the schedule would look like and wished I had a heads up on what to look forward to. I have decided to layout the curriculum for all the semesters here on out for the C-track. I know that the curriculum could have possibly changed, and this is not a permanent schedule. 

Basic Sciences

Clinical Sciences 

[Lesson learned from Semester 3]

Taking a break from the world is just as important as taking a break from technology when it comes to self-improvement. 

I had taken so many “days off” during Semester 1 and feared that was the reason behind me almost failing. But, that wasn’t true at all. We often think that being productive and successful means “no days off” and we have this “go, go, go” mentality. Sometimes we even forget why we’re doing something in the first place because we’re in this constant race that we call ‘life.’ In the end, we’re still humans, not robots. It’s healthy to take time out for ourselves so that we can re-energize, de-stress, and enhance our productivity. Taking a small break does not mean we’re giving up or slowing down. It’s a small pause to take in the accomplishments you’ve made so far and bringing everything back into perspective.