FELLOW BATCHMATES! Advice for Incoming 2nd Year

SUPERULTRAMEGA THANK YOU TO ONE GENEROUS, SELFLESS INCOMING 3RD YEAR STUDENT WHO WISHES TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS. 

YOU. ARE. A. LIFE SAVER!!!!

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Disclaimer: Each student has his/her own strengths and weaknesses. Some tips mentioned here might or might not work for you. The tips are based on what I experienced last school year, and there could be changes this school year (such as number of evaluation exams, coverage, etc.).

PATHOLOGY

·         There are only 8 evaluation exams the whole school year, plus 2 semestral exams and 1 final exam. The coverage of each evaluation exam is usually very long. Better prepare several days before the actual exam.

·         You need to see the specimens/slides to understand what is being described in the lecture. Just reading the PPTs or your books might just confuse you.

·         Past evaluation exams could be helpful if you ‘dissect’ each exam. Some questions could be repeated as is, but they usually change the pattern of the questions even if they are based on questions asked in the past evals.

·         Exams are usually based on the lectures. The chapters in the Pathology book are very long, so if you don’t have much time, use the latest PPTs or handouts they give. Do not rely on past ‘tranx’ if you have the updated lectures with you.

·         Watch out for Doc Renan Navarro’s exams because they are very confusing, so you need to study EVERY detail.

·         Answer your laboratory manuals whenever you have time. Most students answer them when the deadline is near, adding unnecessary stress.

·         In Pathology lab sessions, have an atlas available (or other resources) so that you know what to look for in the slides.

·         Study your evaluation exams for the semestral exam. Dissect them for better understanding. For the final exam, study all your evaluation exams and your semestral exams.

MICROBIOLOGY

·         Evaluation exams are usually based on the lectures given. The coverage varies per exam (there could be as high as 9 lectures, and could be as low as 3 lectures)

·         They do not give their PPTs but they give handouts.

·         Watch out for Dra. Padla’s and Dra. Mendoza’s exams. They are usually difficult and confusing. Dra. Mendoza usually gives questions based on cases, therefore do not rely on memorizing information.

·         Dra. Barzaga’s exams are usually the “life savers” because she frequently gives easy questions.

·         Every after Dra. Padla’s lecture, there will be a 10-item quiz.

·         The semestral and final exam questions usually are NOT based on past exams.

·         They RANDOMLY check the laboratory manual during lab sessions. Answer them as soon as possible. Once the names of the ‘lucky’ students are announced, they are required to pass the lab manual on the same day or the following day.

PHARMACOLOGY

·         Exams are mostly based on the lectures. Watch out for questions from Dra. Dela Cruz and Dra. Alvero. The questions (and choices) are usually tough and confusing.

·         Attend each lecture. They give bonus points for attendance and add them to the evals scores.

·         Dra. Aguinaldo usually gives the relatively easier questions, but you still have to master her lectures because usually her lectures involves a lot of drugs.

·         They usually do not ask about dosages. Focus more on their classification and primary action.

·         Exemption from the final exams if you reach 85%

·         The amount of material you have to study may be very overwhelming. Try to utilize various strategies in studying instead of just doing passive reading, such as tables and flash cards.

·         Do not study overnight. It may work in the other subjects but in Pharma, it simply won’t.

·         Keep quiet during the lectures of Dra. Dela Cruz. She does not tolerate distractions during class.

COMMUNITY MEDICINE

·         Do NOT take this subject for granted. That was the mistake of most of my batchmates, and ended up getting low grades. This subject is totally different from Commed in the first year.

·         Get a copy of the past evals and try to answer the questions on your own. Familiarize yourself with the process, the computation, etc. Do not just read passively.

·         There are only 6 evaluation exams.

·         Exemption is 80% (including the research paper grade)

·         Do not rely on the research paper to pull your grades up. The bulk of the grade is still based on your evaluation exams.

·         Attend all of your preceptorials. They check the attendance. Preceptors also base their grade on the attendance and performance during the preceptorials.

·         Quizzes about the research paper may be given before the schedule preceptorials.

BIOETHICS

·         Analyze the past evaluation exams to familiarize yourselves with the pattern of the questions. They may or may not repeat the questions as is.

SURGERY

·         Exams are usually based on the lectures, but some professors get their questions from the book. Dissect past evaluations. They are usually helpful.

·         Exemption is 85%

·         Watch out for the topics about Physiologic Monitoring and Surgical Complications – they are the most difficult topics (at least for me) in 2^nd year Surgery.

·         Most students choose to not attend Surgery classes because they consider it a “minor” subject (and prefer to do something else), but if you really want to learn and not just get a passing mark, do attend. Learning should not only be for exam purposes.

MEDICINE

·         Most exams are based on the lectures, but if you have time supplement it with your book. They may or may not repeat questions.

·         The neuro module is the most difficult based on my experience.

PHYSICAL DIAGNOSIS

·         Dr. Versoza once said that no one fails in PD (except one who was caught cheating during a return demonstration). Do not take this one for granted, though.

·         Exams are usually based on the lectures, but other professors may use other resources. If s/he did not mention the resources s/he used, you may just ask him or her about it.

·         There are practical exams wherein you demonstrate physical exam techniques to a preceptor. Beware of ‘terror’ preceptors. Some preceptors though remain silent all throughout the practical exam and just observe.

·         Master the techniques and be familiar with the rationale behind each technique.

OBSTETRICS

·         We had pre-tests and post-tests almost every meeting.

·         They usually change topic assignments for professors every year, so do not rely on past evaluation exams. They usually do not repeat questions.

·         Use your book when studying. The lectures are usually not enough to get a decent grade in the evaluation exams.

·         There are only 3 evaluation exams.

·         Exemption is 85%

·         They give refresher exams for those who fail, but the total number of items is reduced by 50% and you have to pass the refresher to get 75%. If you fail, you retain your previous score.

·         They do make several new questions for the final exam.

PEDIATRICS

·         We had only 2 evaluation exams. Our first evaluation exam covered 9 long lectures, so study beforehand.

·         You have to memorize a lot of normal values (ex. head circumference depending on age, weight depending on age, etc.).

·         Past evaluations could be helpful to determine the pattern of the questions, but they usually do not repeat questions as is.

PSYCHIATRY

·         Three evaluation exams and one final exam.

·         Usually exams are based on the lectures, while some questions may be lifted from the book.

·         Make sure to attend special activities they hold (film showing, role play, etc.) to avoid the hassle of being rescheduled to perform those activities.

·         Final exam: study your past evaluation exams

General Tips:

·         Do not rely on past ‘tranx’. Use the latest lectures if available. Past tranx could be incomplete or may contain factual errors. Better yet, use your books if you do have the time.

·         Past evals, if used correctly, could help a lot for your evaluation exams (except Microbiology and Obstetrics). Do not just memorize the questions and answers.

·         You do not have to purchase all of the books, because usually there is not enough time to read through them. I recommend having the Internal Medicine (Harrison’s), Surgery (Schwartz’s), and Obstetrics (Williams) books for the 2^nd year. Better yet, just get ebooks and be used with studying on a tablet or PC. I used to prefer studying using a physical book or a printed handout, but eventually I got used to studying using the digital formats. It saved me a lot of money, paper, ink, and space.

·         Subjects with exemption from final exam: Pharmacology, Community Medicine, Bioethics, Surgery, Obstetrics

·         Exams are usually given within a week. Some days might even include four exams in one day. Manage your tasks wisely.