Merck Manuals Survey: Medical Students Say Time Management is Greatest Barrier to Studying Success

More than a third of medical students describe themselves as Procrastinators

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Apr 18, 2019, 08:07 ET

KENILWORTH, N.J., April 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- In preparing for exams, today's medical students are turning to multi-tasking and multimedia content to manage overwhelming amounts of studying material, according to the findings of a survey released by the Merck Manuals. The survey of 161 medical and pre-medical students at the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) Annual Convention in March aimed to uncover students' study preferences and personalities.

The Merck Manuals interviewed 161 medical students about what they do to balance the challenges of med school, daily life and studying for the boards.

When asked about the greatest barrier to success in studying for the board exams, 41 percent reported challenges in managing their time effectively and 38 percent said they struggle to navigate information overload while studying. As such, students are seeking strategies to maximize their study time.

Multi-tasking Through Medical School

Students at the conference expressed challenges with balancing coursework, studying for the board exam, maintaining healthy lifestyles and sustaining personal relationships. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many students engage in multi-tasking to achieve balance. Nearly three in four students (73 percent) said they considered themselves effective multi-taskers and most indicated they regularly study outside of an academic setting.

When asked about alternative study locations:

58 percent said they study at restaurants and coffee shops
45 percent said they study in bed before going to sleep or after waking up
31 percent said they study during their commute
19 percent said they study in front of the TV

Students were also asked to define their "studying personality" from a list of provided options. While 42 percent classified themselves as a "Planner," 36 percent selected "Procrastinator" and 19 percent selected "Prioritizer."

"Since I started medical school, my study habits have changed tremendously," said a fourth-year student at Saint James School of Medicine. "In your first year, there is a lot of information thrown at you at the same time, and you feel like you need to learn it all. Over time I've learned tactics to focus on high-priority subjects in more efficient ways, as opposed to trying to cover everything."

Mastery Through Multimedia Material

As the availability of multimedia content continues to expand, medical students are taking advantage of visual and audio material to supplement textbooks and lectures.

When asked to classify their learning style, 55 percent of students reported being visual learners, defined as preferring pictures and images. Accordingly, 77 percent of students said they supplement and tailor their studying techniques with videos. Students reported using a variety of multimedia content in their studies:

52 percent said they take online quizzes
23 percent said they use virtual labs and 3D modeling
17 percent said they use cases
16 percent said they use mobile apps
Nine percent said they listen to podcasts

"Our survey reinforced that medical students are constantly looking for reference material that is credible, easily digestible and suited to their learning styles," said Robert S. Porter, M.D., Merck Manuals Editor-in-Chief. "At the Manuals, we remain committed to continuously expanding our library of multimedia resources, from videos and cases to quizzes and podcasts."

Medical students can explore a variety of free reference material and multimedia resources at MerckManuals.com.

About The Merck Manuals
First published in 1899 as a small reference book for physicians and pharmacists, The Merck Manual grew in size and scope to become one of the world's most widely used comprehensive medical resources for professionals and consumers. As The Manual evolved, it continually expanded the reach and depth of its offerings to reflect the mission of providing the best medical information to a wide cross-section of users, including medical professionals and students, veterinarians and veterinary students, and consumers. In 2015, The Manuals kicked off Global Medical Knowledge 2020, a program to make the best current medical information accessible by up to three billion professionals and patients around the world by 2020. For access to thousands of medical topics with images, videos and a constantly expanding set of resources, visit MerckManuals.com or MSDManuals.com and connect with us on social media:

For Consumers in the U.S. and its territories: Twitter and Facebook
For Professionals in the U.S. and its territories: Twitter and Facebook

Methodology
The survey of 161 medical and pre-medical students was conducted at the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) Annual Convention in March 2019. For details on survey methodology, please contact Jamie Kloss at [email protected]. Learn more at MerckManuals.com.

About Merck
For more than a century, Merck, a leading global biopharmaceutical company known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, has been inventing for life, bringing forward medicines and vaccines for many of the world's most challenging diseases. Through our prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products, we work with customers and operate in more than 140 countries to deliver innovative health solutions. We also demonstrate our commitment to increasing access to health care through far-reaching policies, programs and partnerships. Today, Merck continues to be at the forefront of research to advance the prevention and treatment of diseases that threaten people and communities around the world - including cancer, cardio-metabolic diseases, emerging animal diseases, Alzheimer's disease and infectious diseases including HIV and Ebola. For more information, visit www.merck.com and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.

SOURCE MerckManuals.com