I've received a delightful number of responses from my mentor-mentee application as well as personal emails! I really appreciate all of those who follow/read my posts and to all my new readers, welcome 👋 ! Please keep your questions coming - it really helps me develop pharmacy content for my blog!


1. What are your study habits? Do you have any tips?
This question was asked by approximately two-thirds of my mentees however, I find it difficult to respond. We all have different learning styles and though my method may be effective to some, it may be a bit lackluster to others.

From as early as I can recall, I've been that Type A gal who NEVER missed school - I was never absent unless it was absolutely necessary. I literally cried when I couldn't be present at school. Yes, complete freak. I know. Anyways, I attended about 99% of classes my first year into pharmacy school but once P2 year began... my attendance took a very, VERY rapid decline. How bad was it? Think stock market crash bad. I disappeared from 99% of lectures and rarely attended discussions . Talk about a complete 180.

But alas, what caused me to abandon a notion I held so dear?

My P1 year studying method consisted of attending practically every class to take notes underneath PowerPoint slides. This approach was effective as an undergrad so why would it fail me now, right?! I personally prefer, and believe, it's rather effective to be present at each lecture. But let's be real... my attention span in those 8AM classes was quite variable... 😦


I found myself putting off classes to catch up on subjects that were much more dense... and I was in this situation more often than not during P2 year since we ran on a quarter block system with the medical school. Some of our classes were only two weeks long and we'd be slapped with a final. After the first 3 or so blocks, I decided that I would opt to stay home and podcast lectures instead (none of our P1 classes were podcasted). What did I gain from this? Much more sleep. It takes me around 45 minutes to get to school each morning due to traffic and an added obstacle? I have to get there before 8AM to score parking. Whoop whoop. Cons to staying home and podcasting? It takes me double the time to get through lectures and it's easy to push things aside at home.

I recently finished my first quarter of P3 year and I'm only at school when attendance is required 😉

1. Whether you're in class or podcasting from home, take essential notes underneath PowerPoint slides or on the side of OneNote. DO NOT madly type everything the professor says word for word. Trust me, you won't have time to go over it all and it may already be on the slide itself.
2. If possible, actively review the lecture on the same day. 
3. Rewrite your notes on paper or a white board and verbally teach yourself. Tedious? Yes, but the material will stick 💯 !
4. Use colored pens and highlighters 
5. Look at LEARNING OBJECTIVES 
6. Review your notes again a few days prior to the exam. See if you can answer the learning objectives and recall important details without referring to your notes. 

If this method doesn't seem appealing to you, I would recommend carrying the same studying techniques you had as a undergrad to pharmacy school. Within the first quarter or semester, you'll figure out what works best FOR YOU. I personally study better alone but you'll find some classes much more beneficial with a buddy. I love how UCSD runs on pass/no pass - it makes the environment more inviting and collaborative! Remember, you're not the only one feeling the pressure that comes with being a student pharmacist. All of your classmates are going through the same experience 👫👬👭 !


2. Pharmacy School Essentials?
The one thing that keeps me sane is my planner/agenda which also happens to act as my life coach! Important events have a dedicated highlighter color and I draw a box in front of each one so I can ✔ once I accomplish the task. I also sit down after lectures to set achievable study goals each day. For instance, I might add under Friday to learn lectures 1- 4 in a certain class and review X,Y and Z for another class. Yeah, I'm Type A OCD.
Another important part of my life? STAYING HYDRATED! You may have noticed that I don't exactly follow the social norms about much and I like things that are unique... spark personality! The same goes for my water bottle and thermos.
     
 2. Advice about P1 vs. P2 vs. P3 Year at UCSD?

P1 year presented it's own set of difficulties but in no way was it comparable to P2 year. The integrated curriculum of medical school courses on top of pharmacy classes distinguishes UCSD from other schools across the nation. I could have a lengthy discussion about the pros and cons of taking courses with medical students but I'll save that for a later post.

For all three years of pharmacy school, I give each lecture a quick run through after they're taught in class but it is only before exams that I sit down and attempt to memorize minute details that could show up on tests. I'm an old fashioned kinda gal so as mentioned above, I have to write everything out on paper or white board.

Toughest class each year + advice:

• P1 year: Pharmacy Practice + Anatomy
• Since I came into pharmacy school with zero knowledge of generic/brand name medications and pharmacy in general, I found it hard to transition into Pharmacy Practice
• Develop a studying method ASAP
• You're on a new topic each lecture so you have to be organized 
• Anatomy is my favorite class in pharmacy school 
• I found it enlightening and gave me a new vivid perspective of life
• The hardest thing about this class was the theory portion of the exam. I really don't have any advice on how to study for it. I left that part of the exam thinking, "have I even seen this material before?" It's a lot of integration and application.
• The tag exam was easy peesy lemon squeezy! I did 90% of the dissection of my cadaver since I learn better when I have first hand experience - this gave me a better understanding of the body. It also reduced the time I spent on figuring out where each nerve, muscle, etc. was located.
• P2 Year: Cardio
• One of my favorite classes and most interesting but it went by fast and was very dense - DO NOT FALL BEHIND!
• Try to review the material right after class - you'll be thankful you did!
• I found myself scrambling last minute since I procrastinated! How bad? I only got an hour of sleep before the exam 😭
• Rewrite your notes and focus on the lecture objectives
• P3 Year: Therapeutics 
• You finally get to apply everything you've learned from school, work and IPPE's but the entire 3 quarter series is a beast. I've only finished one and I heard it only gets harder from here.
• Make SOAP or PPCP notes for each disease state
• Not only will these help you with course exams, it'll help for the comp exam at the end of P3 year and the PCOA
• Make sure your notes include:
• Subjective and objective findings, goals of therapy, monitoring and toxicity parameters, medication options (MOA, AE, labs), non-pharm options, risk factors, etc.
• It really takes a lot of time but you'll be thankful you created these documents

I sat here reflecting my pharmacy courses and this is the analogy I came up with:

Imagine Pharmacy Practice (P1 year) like riding a toddler bicycle with those training wheels on either side of the big back wheel. After a year practice, you're promoted to the adult bike (PPP: Principles of Pharmacology and Physiology - P2 year) with just two wheels. Now that you've reached a comfortable level, imagine someone yanking off your front wheel while you're riding so you're left trying to balance yourself with a terribly unattractive unicycle... that's Therapeutics...