Pacing yourself out the gate

Celebrate before you Cerebrate

If you've just completed your residency and are officially board eligible congratulations! Hopefully you're taking some time off to celebrate and enjoying the July 4th extended weekend with friends and family. You've earned it.

Planning and Mapping

If you haven't begun studying for the General Pediatric Board exam there is plenty of time between now and October. This is especially the case if you take some time out to plan your studying.

Counting backwards from 10

Just like any task investment in planning will always pay dividends in efficiency. We suggest you begin by working backwards from the exam date until today. Start counting backwards from October which is the 10th month.

Prepare with a Pretest

As you move through different topics it's important to study to the exam. This is best done by taking a pretest on the subject you will be studying. This sets your brain to exam mode so you're studying the material and automatically thinking of ways you might be tested. You should complete each section by retaking the questions you answered incorrectly. After you've done this take another set of questions and review the ones you answered incorrectly.

Strike where the iron is cold

It always feels good to answer questions correctly. It alleviates anxiety but long term it will only provide a false sense of security. It's best to focus on the areas you are weakest in and find the least interesting. Anxiety will increase as you get closer to the exam. That's the time to reinforce the areas you are strongest in and find the most interesting. If you plan this right by mid September you should be familiar and comfortable with almost all of the material. However you must start by striking where the iron is cold.

Using Apps to map and track

There are many apps that can be used to help streamline your studying schedule to keep yourself focused, organized and on schedule. Some of these are general time and project management and some are specific study aids.

We will be reviewing and suggesting various well known apps and some lesser known apps that can be helpful in organizing she streamlining your studying as you prepare for the General Pediatric Board Exams

Packing your Evernote Books wherever you go

Evernote is an app that you might already be using. There are enough features in the free version to help streamline studying.

You can create a notebook for each subspecialty covered. You can then export content to a notebook dedicated to content that you find most challenging to master.

Within each notebook you can embed voice recordings relevant hyperlinks and create checklists.

There is also an option for setting alarms to remind you to review material periodically which is crucial to reinforcing material so it's not forgotten as you focus on new material.

You can enhance notes with checklists, links, attachments, audio recordings, and more! With the free version, you can sync your notes across devices so you're can access your notes across several platforms. Evernote also has a variety of templates that you can personalize.

The premium version allows for additional features and can be reviewed through this link.

Evernote Premium 

This is an affiliate links for which we may receive affiliate points. However our review is based on feedback and our own experience with Evernote