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Best Way To Study Pharmacology & get high grades ~ tips & advice
In this video, I finally tell you how I study pharmacology.
I have had to study pharmacology 1, 2 and 3 over 3 terms in pharmacy school and I had definitely been among those who struggled with it so I analysed why I felt that way and I found that it all boiled down to having to memorise meds' names that seemed impossible to memorise at first.
I struggled for a bit until I came to a conclusion, that I despise having to sit down and actively memorise anything let alone complex names so I came up with a way that is more long term and gradual but is definitely much more effective for me and I am going to break it down to you, hopefully you're going to find it helpful.
Pharmacology study tips and advice for a high GPA / better grade:
1. Make sure you understand the main principle
In pharmacology 1 we studied hypertension and naturally, before we were introduced to the different meds and treatment approaches, we were given an introduction to hypertension which was the foundation upon which drugs were based and although many pharmacology exams wouldn't focus that much on the disease itself, rather the medications and their mechanisms, there's no way you'll be able to properly study and understand how anti-hypertensive medications work without understanding hypertension first. So make sure you don't skip the disease, it makes a huge difference.
2. Divide the subject into smaller topics
If we're studying hypertension, then I split into:
introduction
B-blockers
Ca channel blockers
Diuretics
and then study each topic separately. This way it is much easier and less intimidating to study as opposed to studying hypertension as a whole.
3. Expose yourself to information multiple times
One of the best ways to memorise information in general to guarantee that it sticks around for long is to study it over a long period of time. While cramming can seem like a nice option before an upcoming pharmacology final, I don't recommend it because you'll forget everything once you get out of the exam hall if not sooner.
I once had to study a pdf of more than a 100 slides before a pharmacology final and that was just one part of many other topics I needed to study. It was about different classes of antibiotics, so throughout the the term I would study what I scheduled for myself and then at the end of the day before bed I would dedicate enough time to visually go over the slides but I would make sure that I gave each slide enough time to read it well and I would make sure I went over the entire pdf EACH day. Think of it like thoroughly scanning the slides repeatedly.
4. Active reading
while reading the slides I would write down the parts I struggled to give them extra attention the next day. If I came across a term I didn't know I would look it up online and while I'm reading, if I noticed that maybe two drugs had similar characters, I would write them down so they don't get mixed up. So if two meds had neurotoxicity as a potential adverse effect I would write that down in a notebook to go through later.
5. Read out loud
One of the many things I struggled with was being familiar with meds' names. To get used to a medication name, you need to say it out loud many times to both practise saying it as well as hear it over and over again. Also, attending lectures and/ or listening to lecture records helps a lot.
6. Break it down
Divide medication names into smaller parts and memorise them one by one. Many meds under the same pharmacological class share the same suffix. Which makes it easier for you to recognise the class without memorising the entire name.
So, definitely keep an eye out for that.
7. Write down and recite
The night before the exam I would finally sit down and recite with pen and paper and by reciting out loud what I've learned during the days I was actively reading the slides to consolidate the information even better.
8. Revise and summarise
As I told you before, I would make little mind maps or summaries for myself as I was reading and in lectures throughout the term. They weren't so fancy they were just some scribbles either in my lecture notebook or on the margins of the textbook but I would make sure I went over them quickly on the days leading up to the exam.
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