It is very important to make friends while in school so that you have people who you can ask questions to and ask for help if you do not understand something. From Day 1 of the program I was lucky enough to be able to become close friends with 3 other girls in my class. We support each other through all our tests and projects and they are a big contributor to my learning. We teach each other things and always have someone around to answer a question or to vent all your stress too.
When I get ready to study for a final exam I like to write my notes out. I can write them out with my friends and we can help each other and see what one another missed on the notes and then we have something to compare to. When it comes to studying the notes for written tests I like to do that at home. I prefer to talk out loud and repeat back to myself the notes I have made, trying to memorize them. In order for me to do this, I need a really quiet area and a white board to write on. This is what has worked for me for all the classes except for Pharmacology. Pharmacology is a different language to me and it was a handful to memorize in such a short period. This is when my friends and I would get into groups and someone would lead the study. She would ask us questions out loud and it helped everyone in the group to better remember all the drugs and names.
When studying for the Lab exams I found it better for me to be working in a group. You can act out the scenarios and watch each other while giving critical feedback. This way we can memorize the scenarios and practice our skills with another person watching and critiquing us. My friends and me also have a group chat going constantly. This is where we ask each other all our questions and it benefits us because the person asking gets 3 different peoples answer. We send pictures of our notes when we have questions and we also do video calls to help better explain things. We will meet up in person and study at SFU or someone’s house and we always have snacks to keep our brain sharp.
I think that the support my friends have given me really helped me to get through these 2 semesters of the program so far. I feel comfortable asking them anything and if I am having trouble with something I know they will help me through it. Having a good support system while in school is really beneficial and has helped me through a lot. When it comes to studying for tests everyone has their own style and needs to know what works best for them. Throughout the next 2 semesters we will continue to be each others support system and try and get through the rest of school successfully!
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