Anatomy II

Stay on top of this material - especially if you have not taken anatomy before. It's not necessarily hard, but I was definitely reaching for mnemonics to keep testable points tidy e.g. Neurocranium Bones = F.PESTO (frontal, parietal, ethmoid, sphenoid, temporal, occipital). We had small reading assignments, but they aren't always on the test. The teaching style was about the same as last semester except that the professor provided testable identifying questions in advance which was much more efficient. I typically review those first before diving into the word content so I don't get stuck reviewing the same Anki flashcard 10 times before moving on.

Best Advice: The tutoring sessions worked well up to a limit for me, so I began supplementing with Osmosis for additional flashcard questions. It typically goes into more detail than necessary for exams, so sprinkle in as needed to get different practice. Take a look at PicMonic if you want a creative way to know cranial nerves solid. 

Human Physiology II

Everything in this class is a familiar topic for most premed students (hormones, digestion, hearing, reproduction etc.), so the challenge for me was simply over-confidence in the material. You may think you know it, but Dr. Fitch can be tricky with answer options that are VERY similar. A careless mistake can cost you points on an exam, so remember that your entire grade is based on only three exams without any points from quizzes or extra credit.

Also, consistently work on the assigned readings. It can be really cumbersome if you put this off to the last week before exams, so start writing notes by doing one assignment a week. Also, the professor tried something different this semester by providing questions, and I personally found it more time consuming to answer his prompts than to just focus on my own notes. 

Best Advice: Outline the assignment with Headings and subheading titles, provide 1-2 bullet statements as needed per subheading (in your own words), and add screenshots of all the tables/figures. Talk through and compare notes with study partner and you should be fine.

Biochemistry

Do what ever it takes to have your amino acids down. I started converting anything into the single letter version to eliminate confusion between three letter abbreviations that gave me trouble e.g. Gln(Q)/Gly(G)/Glu(E). Here's an example of a cute way to remember my essential and non-essential amino acids for testing purposes: FILTH.VW.MKR = Essential vs. CANDY.Q.PEGS = Non-essential. I understand this will probably not make any sense but if it works, it works. You're going to need quick and dirty ways to remember things sometimes. 

Best Advice: Anyone familiar with this professor understands that she will most definitely quiz and test you on anything tricky without remorse. I only started using First Aid a couple months into the Spring semester when the latest digital version was released in March 2022 and wish that I started using it sooner. The professors provide a lot of detail and this book helps with cutting through the noise to identify the testable points likely to show up in one form or another on an exam. 

Immunology

Immunology is a hot, complex mess of pathways that follows no rhyme or reason. Most professors will test on approximately the last four weeks of material per exam, but it seems like everything was fair game from day 1 and his review questions were not sufficient preparation for exams. You need a study partner for this class to help with processing the information and to be a soundboard to verify comprehensive understanding and verifying any mistakes in lecture slides. More often than not, he did not get through the material in lecture and I ended up spending a few hours after class reconciling the details that were glossed over in lecture. 

Best Advice: Get creative with memory anchors to recall specific receptors, cytokines, lymphocytes and pathways. I still remember how he described Unconventional 𝛾𝛿 T cells as Janus, the two-faced god. Also, I only learned about and started using AMBOSS after exam 1 to keep track of cytokines (see below for example) and for practice questions.

Bioinformatics

I almost said no to this class when I read that the exams were going to be all short answer, but hear me out. I found this course to be a rare opportunity to get more exposure to Institutional Review Board Approval process, Digital Pathology, Machine Learning, and local industry scientists working at Garmin and MRIGlobal. As long as you have a conversational understanding that you can summarize in 3-5 sentences you'll be fine for the first two exams. 

It's a refreshing but dense series of lectures that also requires submitting an Abstract based on analysis of publicly available data and bioinformatics software (Partek) and participation in the school's annual research symposium. You get an abstract for your resume, poster presentation experience, and a break from core science classes. What's not to love?

Best Advice: Start that abstract earlier than later (as usual) when the time comes and meet with Dr. Kibiryeva to refine your analysis for Submission. Dr. Schaffer's material is a bit technical for anyone new to coding so definitely take advantage of his office hours to assist with troubleshooting any difficulties. Unfortunately this class will take precious time away from studying biochemistry or immunology, so recommend doing same day review to consolidate the information. My study partner and I sprinkled in discussions about 1-2 lectures a week to take a break from other topics.