LMSS SPHINCTER vol.81 issue 1 Sphincter Issue 1 | Page 22

How not to fail exams.... Hello All! As your Academic Rep, I’m here to talk you through the most boring and dreaded (but vitally important) part of medical school – exams. I know, I know, we don’t like talking about the E word, especially before Christmas, but they are coming and it’s best to be prepared! This is where I let you in on a deep dark secret about myself. I have failed exams (pause for audience gasp). I have even failed one of my finals! However, the fact that I am currently in fifth year, and have never had to repeat a year, shows how this is NOT the end of the world! So, these are the tips I would recommend so that you do not end up like me! Kevin Harkin, 5th Year Medical student (and LMSS Academic Rep!) 1. Keep on top of things from the start of the year – generic advice I know, everyone says it, but it really does help. What this doesn’t mean is staying in the Library every evening and every weekend from the start of the year, it just means making sure that when you finish a block, or a clinical placement, that you are comfortable with the topic you’ve just covered. If you’re the type of person that takes notes, make sure you have your notes ready so that you can just review them before exams, without having to learn the information from scratch. 2. Find a study group – I acknowledge that this won’t work for everyone, but for me I found that doing some group work really does help. Not only does it mean you get to steal your friend’s excellent notes, but it really helps to show your own gaps in knowledge. Everyone has different ideas of what’s core and essential info (damn that lack of curriculum), so having a group come together should tie in most if not all of the stuff you need to know. 3. Create a revision list – For the same reason’s as above, this works better if you do it as a group, to make sure you cover most things! 4 . Questions, Questions, Questions – I used passmedicine (www.passmedicine.com) a lot, and also past papers. There tends to be a lot of past papers out there, passed around from student to student, so make sure to ask around. 5. Older years help – One of the best sources of help is from older years! Most of us have had teaching from older years and are happy to repay the favour when we can. This can be either through your mentor, at LMSS teaching events, or just through friends you have met in other ways (sports teams etc). Even just approach some older years in hospital, we are generally a friendly bunch!