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Medical School Advice for 1st & 2nd Year Students
Basic Science Textbooks You Absolutely Cannot Do Without
History and Physical - Bates' Guide to Physical Examination and History Taking
Anatomy - Netter's Atlas of Human Anatomy + an Anatomy Dissector text + Doctors In Training Gross Anatomy and Radiology Study Guide
Pharmacology - Lippincott's Pharmacology and Solid Pharmacology
Biochemistry - Lippincott's Biochemistry
Histology - Wheater's Functional Histology (color atlas)
Microbiology - Clinical Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple
Immunology - Blackwell’s How the Immune System Works or Lippincott’s Immunology
Pathology - Robbin's Pathologic Basis of Disease and either
Neuroscience - Nolte's The Human Brain
Other First Year Texts You Will Not Regret Buying
General - Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Planning - Iserson's Getting Into a Residency
Embryology - The Developing Human (Moore and Persaud)
Pocketbooks - Tarascon's Pharmacopoeia + Sanford Guide to Antimicrobial Therapy
Advice for Anatomy Class
- Before lecture and lab, know the anatomy. Use Netter's along with the Doctors In Training Gross Anatomy and Radiology Study Guide, and/or your lab dissector to identify structures you should know.
- If you cannot identify the anatomy in Netter's, then you will not be able to identify it in lab.
- Take notes in your Netter's during lecture. Simply highlighting a structure you should know is much quicker than trying to write it down. Additionally, when you go over your lecture notes you won't have to keep switching back and forth from your notes to your atlas.
- Review your Doctors In Training Gross Anatomy and Radiology Study Guide before your anatomy exams for quick memory jogs on high-yield clinical and radiological correlations.
Building Your CV
This is probably the last thing you want to think about right now, but it is important. You are probably thinking that since you finally made it to medical school, you can relax a little on the resume building. Well, unfortunately everyone else is going to be building their resume, and you need yours to look good also. Here is a list of categories that you will have to address on your residency application:
- Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) status
- Grades and Scores
- Work Experience
- Volunteer Experience
- Research Experience
- Publications
- Honors and Awards
- Hobbies
Now is the time to start or continue building your CV in each of these categories. If you have an interest in research, contact your school’s research director and start seeking research opportunities now. If your school is limited in opportunities, then seek out public options or opportunities at other medical schools. The more competitive your career path of choice, the greater the emphasis should be on your CV!
What is AOA?
Alpha Omega Alpha is a medical honor society. Students are elected into this honor society in their 3rd and 4th years of medical school based on academic standing (at least top 25% of class), strength of CV, and peer evaluations. You need to know about this honor society because many competitive residency programs won't even look at you unless you are a member! For more information, check out the AOA website.
What Should I Do During the Summer Between First and Second Years?
In the summer after first year, you could choose to relax, volunteer, work, travel, shadow a physician in an area of interest, research—or do some combination of these. If your CV needs some bulking up, now is a good time to focus on at least one area.
Volunteering Opportunities
- International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA) Clinical Exchanges
- International Medical Volunteers Association
- “Medical Volunteering Abroad,” Powered by Serve Your World
- Operation Smile
- Amigos de las Américas
- Disaster Volunteers of Ghana (DIVOG)
If you’re looking for something within the US, there are two very good databases for volunteering opportunities, both medically-related and not:
Research Opportunities
Even more so than with volunteering opportunities, your school is the first place you should check for research opportunities. Most schools have an office specifically for placing students with ongoing research projects and their researchers. The protocol for going about getting started on your research will vary from school to school. One method to find a potential mentor is to browse your school’s website and read about what is going on in the various labs.
Once you have a mentor in mind, you should contact them, either by email or phone, and discuss potential projects and define your role in the research. Keep in mind that not every researcher makes a good mentor. It may be tempting to work with a famous researcher that publishes frequently, but just because they are a good researcher does not necessarily mean they are a good mentor. If you can, try to find a mentor with good communication skills, who enjoys working with students, and who is open to letting you be a part of the publication of the results of the study in which you participate.
Many institutions conduct research in cycles (e.g., 10 week cycles). Keep in mind, however, that your mentor may be hoping you will work on this project for longer than just the summer, so it is the most professional thing to do to be honest with your mentor and with yourself about how much time you wish to commit to the project.
Every research project and student-mentor relationship is different, but some basic guidelines apply to every student. Be on time, be a good communicator, work hard, seek out and welcome feedback, and always maintain academic integrity. You will gain valuable knowledge and experience through your time researching. This experience will come in handy when it comes time to apply to residency!
What About Second Year?
- Keep up the hard work—do not become lazy now!
- Continue to work on your CV—you might have discovered a new interest over the summer that carries into 2nd year.
- Join a club that grants you access to a clinical experience (even if it’s just observing or volunteering)—you will be glad to have had some patient exposure prior to 3rd year. No shaky hands on your first patient encounter!
- If you haven’t already, buy the current edition of First Aid for Step 1 and read it along with your classes. Read more of it in your spare time. Take notes directly into the book. Make this book a part of you.
- If you want to boost your USMLE or COMLEX score, then check out the Doctors In Training Step 1 Review Course.
- If you need help with a study plan—a plan that fits your specific study style and study timeline—then contact our team of student advisors at support@doctorsintraining.com
Things to Consider When Scheduling Third Year Courses
Before you know it, it will be time to schedule your 3rd year clinical rotations. Here are some important things to keep in mind:
- The hardest courses, from most demanding to least demanding, are usually: Surgery > Internal Medicine > ObGyn > Pedi. Don't schedule these courses when you need free time (e.g., for moving, wedding planning, family stuff). Some people like to get harder courses out of the way, space them out, or to delay them. Choose whatever suits you best.
- Your first rotation should NOT be in a field that you know you will be interested in. Transitioning into 3rd year can be quite a shock, and you won't look very adept your first rotation.
- You should rotate through the field you are most interested in before winter break. This gives you time before 4th year to evaluate your decision.
- Know that Pediatrics is more demanding in the winter months because more children are sick during this time than any other time of year. If you are interested in Pedi, maybe you want to do this rotation in the winter. If you are not interested in Pedi, you may want to avoid a Pedi winter rotation.
- Taking Internal Medicine soon after taking Step 1 will help your Internal Medicine grade. But taking Internal Medicine as your last 3rd year rotation will help your Step 2 score.
- Taking Internal Medicine before Surgery will boost your score on the Surgery shelf exam.
- Psych and Family Medicine tend to be easier courses. Schedule these courses when you need more time for other things.
If you are a medical student and have additional information that you think 2nd year medical students would find helpful or questions about success in medical school, please send your comments/questions to support@doctorsintraining.com.
