Everyone told me to just "do more questions." So I did 3,000 practice questions in M1. Scored below average.

Here's what actually worked when I changed my approach in M2:

1. Teach-back method — After every lecture, I'd explain the concept out loud like I was tutoring someone. If I stumbled, I didn't know it well enough. This alone doubled my retention.

2. Spaced repetition, but strategic — I stopped doing Anki for every single card. Instead, I flagged the concepts I got wrong on practice tests and built decks ONLY from those. Quality over quantity.

3. Active recall before passive review — Before re-reading notes, I'd write down everything I remembered first. The gaps showed me exactly where to focus.

4. Study groups with a purpose — No more "let's hang out and pretend to study." We'd each take a system, teach it, and quiz each other.

My board scores jumped significantly. Not because I studied more — because I studied differently.

If you're a pre-med or M1/M2 feeling overwhelmed, you're not dumb. You probably just need a better system. That's exactly what I help with at MedMentor.

Everyone told me to just "do more questions." So I did 3,000 practice questions in M1. Scored below average.

Here's what actually worked when I changed my approach in M2:

1. Teach-back method — After every lecture, I'd explain the concept out loud like I was tutoring someone. If I stumbled, I didn't know it well enough. This alone doubled my retention.

2. Spaced repetition, but strategic — I stopped doing Anki for every single card. Instead, I flagged the concepts I got wrong on practice tests and built decks ONLY from those. Quality over quantity.

3. Active recall before passive review — Before re-reading notes, I'd write down everything I remembered first. The gaps showed me exactly where to focus.

4. Study groups with a purpose — No more "let's hang out and pretend to study." We'd each take a system, teach it, and quiz each other.

My board scores jumped significantly. Not because I studied more — because I studied differently.

If you're a pre-med or M1/M2 feeling overwhelmed, you're not dumb. You probably just need a better system. That's exactly what I help with at MedMentor.