3 Keys to Academic Success (Dental Graduate's Guide)

My 3 keys simply follow the mnemonic PTS (“Plan To Succeed”)

1. PLAN, PLAN, AND PLAN

I know you’ve probably already heard (perhaps too many times) that diligent planning is the best way to effectively manage time and to help prevent all the stress that comes from last-minute cramming for exams. I am also guilty of not diligently planning throughout my high school and university years, but I am going to have to emphasize the importance of planning for the millionth time. If you don't really plan at the moment and you are in high school or university, don't fret because I only really began to plan things when I got started in dental school. It's never too late to start.

Now, the greatest benefit from beginning to plan was the peace of mind I had in knowing exactly what to expect throughout the week or month whether it be preparing for exams or submitting assignments. This peace of mind helped me stay confident in my daily routine, and my positive energy radiated to others, benefiting my social interactions as well. Another great benefit is that you can allocate time towards pretty much everything else other than studying. I remember in my undergrad years when I used to turn down many of my friends’ invites to events, parties, and hangouts simply due to my lack of planning. But don’t do this, because I believe setting aside some time for hobbies and fun activities is just as important as studying itself. It not only helps you lead a more dynamic life, but it refreshes your brain so that when it comes time to study again, you are able to focus better and study more efficiently. A couple examples of what I did outside of studying in dental school are being on a call with my friends, grabbing coffee and snacks, working out at the gym, or even going for a game of tennis.

You may be wondering, ‘how do I actually plan?’ ‘is there a costly app I need to use to build my schedule?’ My answer is to always start out simple. I started out using a whiteboard, then later moved digital using Google Calendar. Nothing fancy, nothing costly, but either one works great. In terms of how you should plan your day, week, or month, I always recommend starting with macro-level planning meaning you look at the entire month and write down all the due dates for exams, assignments, quizzes, etc. Once that’s done, you can go micro-level by detailing how much time you will spend to prepare for each deadline as seen in the sample whiteboard below.

2. TRAIN, TRAIN, AND TRAIN

One of the most important things for academic success is to develop the mental capacity and stamina to endure through the long hours of studying. I know “endure” makes studying sound like a painful process, but there certainly will be times when you must study something you are not exactly interested in. And it is in these cases where your well-trained mental stamina helps you stand out from everyone else. Now, just like how we can improve our physical stamina by going to the gym everyday, we can train to improve our ability to concentrate (aka mental stamina) by practicing everyday as well.

At first, I was only able to focus on studying for 10 minutes without getting distracted by my phone and various social media. But each time I got distracted, I knew that I was using up more of my mental energy in regaining focus rather than actually studying the material, significantly lowering my overall efficiency. This is where I decided to set a goal and increase my attention span from 10 minutes to 1 hour without getting distracted. It was unbelievable how hard this was especially because we all know how quickly an hour can go by when we are scrolling through Youtube or Instagram. It took me several weeks before I was able to consistently perform, and I noticed a significant improvement in my efficiency. Now, as ambitious as I am, I decided to set a new goal and increase it to 2 hours. It took me a good couple months before I became consistently good at it. To this day, I implement this 2-hour intense focus session in most of the work I do before I take a break, and I am quite satisfied with the efficiency I produce.

We all know that a healthy, fit body is obtained through dedicated hours of physical training. It is the same with our mental capacity. We need to practice and train everyday to obtain a “fit” mind that will enable us to complete and excel in the tasks given. Trust me on this one, because obtaining the fit mind produces just as much satisfaction as obtaining the dream body.

3. SAMPLE, SAMPLE, AND SAMPLE

One thing I can confidently say that helped me survive dental school is doing all the sample questions before the exams. Too often we focus solely on understanding and memorizing the material given without putting the knowledge to the test. What I recommend to all my students is to do the exact reverse of what most people do. Go through the previous exams (if available) first before you begin to study the material. Just like how a table of contents in books and presentations gives us a rough idea of what to expect, going through previous exams and sample questions will give you the general sense of what to study and help you study more effectively. This marks the final key of the 3 keys to academic success.