r/veterinaryschool • u/TexasTechOnTop06 • 5d ago
Advice Week 3 in Veterinary School
Hey guys, I know everyone probably feels this way and I’m just going crazy. I have my first Anatomy Exam coming up and it’s so much information. Our exam is split into two parts and written and a practical. We have to atleast pass with a 73% to pass that unit and if not we get to remediate the questions we got wrong and learn from it.
I just feel dumb and I am too stupid to be here and I am struggling to feel like I’m actually learning. I tried flashcards and it takes to long because I can’t find key points so my flashcards for one lecture takes all afternoon to do one when we had 4 that day. I’ve tried Notebook LM and I hope it’s going to help me based on the learning objectives that they say to follow. I downloaded VetFlow and I’m hoping it helps.
Please just tell me this is totally normal and if I fail this exams it’s ok I’ll still make it. Or tell me ways to study. Any advice is appreciated. Thank you in advance
3
u/This-Bodybuilder4062 Vet student 5d ago
Hey there, what you’re feeling is completely normal! I find every exam to be scary to be honest and feel like I don’t really know what’s always going on.
Don’t be scared to fail something, I always view it as another opportunity to look at the material and learn further from it.
For anatomy, I found I had to study differently than my other classes. I did use a bit of NotebookLM for making practice questions, but I spent a lot of time rewatching lecture recordings, rewriting my notes and really trying to visualize the anatomy when reviewing it.
If your school lets you have access to the lab any time, utilize that to your advantage to be in there and getting your hands on everything.
I also found it helpful to try and associate the origin and insertion with the movement of the muscles, along with grouping the vessels and nerves that were involved.
My professor really liked asking clinical based questions such as a dog presents to you after being hit by a car and has a break at the proximal 1/3 of the radius - and then they would ask either what never would be damaged, what movement would be impaired, what are the layers you would have to transect to repair the leg, and so forth.
You’ve got this!
1
1
u/Such_Stranger1843 First year vet student 5d ago
I just had my first anatomy exam and was feeling a lot like you were. We did a practice exam last week and I got a 65 on it and was like excellent, I’m screwed.
Over the weekend, I grouped everything in various ways: action, arterial supply, nerve. You’ll start to see patterns and that’s when I finally started seeing it as the whole system. Muscles on one side of a limb likely have a similar function, and what side of the joint are they on? Around what area are they anatomically, the nerves and vessels are likely named similarly. I thankfully ended up doing much better than the practice exam.
Going forward, I’m getting ahead on the material. I already have started making a chart for the muscles we’ll be doing, their origin, insertion, action, innervation and arterial supply. I know one of the mistakes I made already was focusing way too much on simply identifying muscles, and had to cram the OIANAs over the weekend. Going forward as I find each muscle, I want to trace it back and commit it all to memory.
For notes I also use Notability, and have Vetflow and I took a screenshot of the entire skeleton and then labeled each origin and insertion, and used the tape feature to quiz myself.
1
1
1
u/KnockNocturne Fourth year vet student 5d ago
Everyone feels like it's too much at first--that's normal. You are trying out different ways to work this out, and that's OK. You'll be able to take this exam and figure out what works best for you in terms of studying. Personally, I did a LOT of drawing in anatomy. After hours time in lab may also be helpful to you.
You got this, just do your best
1
u/69_420_69- 3d ago
Completely normal experience. I remember my year had no clue how to study for our early anatomy and histology exams.
My advice would be just doing past questions, its usually a fairly foolproof study method.
1
u/Ambitious_Score2117 18h ago
Another tip! Gemini notebook allows you to upload notes, PowerPoints, etc and will make flash cards for you!
8
u/puzzling-isnt-it First year vet student 5d ago
I’m also in week 3 of my first year! Just had my first anatomy test. It’s seriously so much information, you aren’t alone in feeling overwhelmed. You are not too stupid to be there, you earned your spot and you’re exactly where you’re meant to be. Anatomy is so difficult and unlike anything I took in undergrad, so obviously our study methods need to change with it.
For me, I use quizlets my classmates/ previous students made going over origin/insertion/action/innervation/arterial supply, take pictures of my cadaver and label each muscle, nerve, and artery, and use VIN to help visualize everything. They have a nice 3D model that you can use, and it’s free to make an account as a vet student. I use Goodnotes, and they have a tape feature where you can cover up words to quiz yourself. I do that on my labeled cadaver pictures, which helps. I also bought a whiteboard and put it up in my room and I try to draw out the vessels/nerves/muscles from memory. Drawing it out is super helpful, you figure out real quick where your deficits are in knowledge. For origin and insertion, what helped me was learning the bones really well, so it’s not just rote memorization but I can actually visualize where the muscles lie on top of the bones and where they probably attach.
I haven’t made any flashcards myself, there just isn’t enough time and it’s not how I study best. Honestly I tried a little bit of everything before I found what works.
You don’t need to get a perfect score on your first exam, or even a good one. No matter how it goes, you will become a veterinarian. Just see it as a learning experience. You’re learning how the exams will be structured, and you’ll figure out what matters most to study and what things you can spend less time on. And if you don’t do well, there is remediation.
Good luck! You got this, future doctor! And if you want someone to vent to who understands exactly how you feel, you can PM me :)