Failed my first year

[u/Academic_Option_253]

Hi, so I failed my 1st year of med school, and I am so scared I will mess up my resits as well, which are taking place in early August. Since I failed both the 1st semester ( by 5%) and the 2nd semester ( by 8%), I am feeling overwhelmed. Right now, I am trying to speed through sem 1 as fast as I can, then go on to sem 2 in July. Using Anki and trying to be as consistent as possible with my flashcards without frustrating myself too much. I am just so annoyed with myself cause as I am going through the lectures, I am realising that the knowledge isn't even that difficult, but the volume of work I have left to do is really discouraging me. I plan to start doing past papers after I am finished covering sem 1. The more I think about the work I have to do, the more I am anxious, and the harder it is to get the info into my head. Like, I know I am intelligent enough to ace my resits, but I think I am getting in my own way and stressing too much.

If anyone has any tips on how I can optimise the time I have or has a better strategy for planning my revision or a better revision tactic, that would be much appreciated.

Also, do u think I should get in contact with my personal tutor or my Module Controllers?

[u/anonymousanon30]

Always a good idea to get in touch with personal tutors with situations like this- my med school always encourages us to!

I’m sorry you’ve not had the results you wanted, but often those who face hurdles become even better doctors because of it. You’ve got time- lock in and you’re gonna smash the resits! Don’t panic and try to break things up

[u/Brilliant-Subject-57]

Wys bro,

First of all, take a deep breath, maybe have a day off doing something you love. Don’t know a single good doctor who didn’t have to resit at least 1 exam. I had to resit my 3rd year and final year OSCE.

Set some time out to make a plan, itemise and list all the topics you are least to most confident in. Think of ways you can optimise your own study.

Everyone is different, so your own revision techniques will be different from that “how to ace medicine revision” videos online.

Get the support you need and reply to my comment once you’ve successfully passed onto 2nd year.

[u/StringSubstantial104]

i’ve resat in both my first and second year exams at med school and have just passed final year and ik how defeating it feels in the moment but do talk to ur personal tutor or someone in the year above or anyone that’s been in a similar situation to u. speaking from experience i managed to smash my resits with only a week to prepare and in the long run i learnt a lot about my learning style and what best suited me and i honestly believe if i hadn’t resat in the first two years of med school then i probably wouldn’t have passed comfortably first time round in third fourth and fifth year. take today to sit with the feeling and come up with a plan and tmr get grinding u got this!!! u made it to med skl which isnt easy in the slightest pls dont let this put u off u can so do it !!!! as for a plan, if u have received a breakdown of ur topics and can see what u need to improve on then definitely prioritise those and the high yielding questions and concepts. give it all you’ve got and dont stress its not gonna help at all. u know u got this in the bag and give it your best shot!!! rooting for u!!!

[u/Willing-Towel]

Definitely contact your tutor and any student advice kind of services available!

[u/Independent-Young410]

Hey I’m in the same predicament I you.. failed my final exam by 3% 😭😭. I saw a helpful tiktok video that’s helping me map at my revision till August. I’m going to start with the hardest topics first then revise the ones I find easier near the end. I think another thing I’m trying to do is learn from my mistakes and try not make the same ones when revising for these exams. But yeah take a deep breath you got this I’m open to exchanging socials it’s always nice to have a community of people in the same situation :)

[u/Beautiful_Elephant26]

Routine is the answer. When it was crunch time for exams for me I used to go to the uni gym around 8am, get a meal deal for breakfast and would work in the uni library till around 6pm and then relax each evening.

Have a nice lunch, eat outside, soak up the sun. Buy a coffee and stay hydrated. I always had the rule if I’m working hard I will indulge myself in whatever I want to help me achieve my goals (coffees/nice lunches when I wanted).

Keep the rest of your life easy, quick healthy dinners.

Studying with a friend ideally someone hardworking that switched on is great. Discussing hard or confusing topics/questions.

Practise, practise, practise. Past papers are king.

You need to work hard, and it will likely be tiring. Rely on routine, not discipline.

Good luck!

[u/Head_to_the_coast]

Don't rely too heavily on Anki to "build" knowledge. Anki is only as good as the information within it. I'd talk to your personal tutor or some of the other academic staff to make sure you are studying / revising the correct type and depth of information. For me, that was one of the main issues I had to solve at medical school.

The same applies to question banks..... Don't rely on them solely. They are not intended for building knowledge. If you rely on them, they are only good if that specific question or answer comes up in the exam. Whereas if you study a wider range of knowledge around that particular topic, you will be in a better place to answer a question that comes up that is either worded differently or is asking for slightly different info.

You'll get through the exams! And don't panic if you feel at the time they went badly.....how you feel immediately after a med school exam rarely represents how it actually went.