The firstulas' chest

"Life is a mirror and will reflect back to the thinker what he thinks into it".

On that note KemUnited warmly welcomes Batch2011-2016 to King Edward Medical University - The den of the Kings and Queens. You've paid the dues, time after time. You did the sentence, You've had your share sand kicked in your face, but you've come through. YOU ARE THE CHAMPIONS, my friends. And you will keep on fighting till the end !

So here's a breakdown of the life of a 1st Year at KEMU!!

KEMU Timeline :-

The Beginning:

First 2 Months: Expect the following not necessarily in the same order.

-Fooling - Its fun and make sure you get your share or you will feel left out and wont have any story to tell your kids!

-A visit to Anarkali - For Harry Potter fans, consider it like this. You get an acceptance letter from KEMU (Not via an owl but via the postal service) You head toward Anarkali! That is like the Diagon Alley of the Kemcolians! There is union bookstore, which will be one of the places you will have to go to whether you like it or not. The prices of the books are good. Then you will have to get a white labcoat from there as well. Skip the magic wand and just get some gloves for dissection. (I invested in a box of latex gloves in first year and I'm still using the same box in final year) for dissection you need a scalpel and about 5 blades along with a good forceps.

The March’s Sports week!! The university life before this is in a mere mild tincture! It is the sports week when you see the flamboyant colors in university, the swamped, energetic routine and the societies spreading their wings, setting off to a year’s flight. The sports week being followed by spring holidays (so that’s the only time of the year to be looked forward to!) With your medical calendar marked according to holidays and society events ;) that’s how life at KEMU begins.

In the subsequent months, academically, you are meant to fend two points:

a. grasping the basics and

b. earning a good internal assessment card!

Lets get down to business

Here is a lil guide on where to focus on during tests and how to avoid draining too much energy in the non-prof season.

Enjoy :)

Physiology:

Lets start with Pre/Post tests. They are merely meant to make you count the topics of your upcoming test! All you require for them are 20 mins and a person with lecture notes.

Then comes unit wise written tests. The key is to grasp the concepts. Preparation time varies according to your stamina and your interest in the subject. Try not to flung any unit since your prof viva will then revolve around it. If you flung a major unit(Renal, respiration, CVS) and don't feel like earning HOD's intense glare for prof viva, appear in its re-test somewhere b/w sendups and prof.

As for the objectives section, keep a record of the MCQs you are asked in these tests. Roughly 45% prof MCQs are the ones already asked at various places. If you additionally want to strengthen this section go for the book PRETEST.

With a good grip over concepts and MCQs, consider this monster annihilated!!

Anatomy:

Anatomy is said to constitute 60% of the prof exams!! This is because of its many popping portions viz. GA, Histo, Embryo and Gross.

To talk about the books, go for Tassaduq in GA(my preference over Ghulam), it is easier to retain, it has the required figures (so you don’t have to refer to KLM.) and there is an MCQ section at the end! Then there is KLM for Embryo, Difore’ atlas for Histo figures and Laiq for theory and Netter/McMinnin for gross spotting, KLM for clinical and ofcourse (our very own) BD!

As for their preparation periods, in Gross, there is no escaping the jam packed substages schedule!! Give 2 or 3 days to each with especial focus on clinical section. Before spotting, go for Youtube spotting videos and ofcourse a keen look at the atlas. Embryo’s entire syllabus (full year’s) requires a week, GA and Histo 3 days (in total). You don’t need to distress for these sections throughout the year. Just spare them 1.5 week before sendups and they are done!

Biochem:

Mushtaq. Period.

Lectures:

Jotting down the lectures definitely gives you an edge. Pre tests are not to be bothered about, objectives are better cleared and the prof vivas are more secured since the HODs mostly ask the same topics that they cover during lectures. But the legacy stands where most of us(and our seniors too :P) never penned down a word of these and did just fine ;), hence they may be expedient but certainly not a must!

Practicals:

Times to put those white overalls to work! Focus on two things while performing the practicals, Get the copy signed, Have the attendance marked!! :P and leave the rest for profs!!

Histo Slides https://plus.google.com/photos/114564228406603860810/albums/5592789794153607873?banner=pwa

Gross Models https://plus.google.com/photos/114564228406603860810/albums/5592785155478461841?banner=pwa

Embryo Models https://plus.google.com/photos/114564228406603860810/albums/5592792706824035441?banner=pwa

Past Papers

http://www.kemunited.blogspot.com/2012/01/past-papers-and-viva-questions-2010.html

http://kemunited.blogspot.com/2011/01/1st-year-past-papers.html

Societies:

A Must Do.

Joining societies in KEMU is not merely about showing what you possess, its about learning what you don’t!! So don’t hesitate, don’t consider living in the equilibrium world an option. Join any society according to your taste, step in KEMU’s underlife and behold the core, invisible otherwise.

Take your pick http://kemunited.blogspot.com/2011/01/societies-at-kemu.html

As for the most substantial part, the Kemcolians:

Not turning its vast leafs, the intro here is only to the epicly studious but (with due apology) makes-me-wanna-bang-my-head-type!! Unfortunately most Kemcolians inherit an in-built sensation of dissatisfaction under all conditions. See them top or see them flung, you will always hear them complaining about the cruelty of their teacher or sleeping the preparation time away and giving a ‘below average’ viva. Don’t jaw-drop when you see them ruling the marks sheet. Some people find it very hard to grow up and are found in every batch (EVERY year)!! Hence if you hear the much-loved :P theeta-song, enjoy their vulnerability and be someone who minds his own business! Also stay at a safe distance from them. They get unbelievably irritating in profs and no, you don’t wanna waste that precious time on people who possess all knowledge but zero confidence. Grooming failure. (No offence, if the reader finds any similarity to any content pls remember, better LATE than never!! )

The key to the crux of a Kemcolian's life resides in nothing but the very spirit of living!! Live to the point of tears and that’s that! See your view from the edge, don’t fear to fall and don’t hesitate to get up! Have a good life! :)

P.S. If you have any questions, pls feel free to ask them on Kemunited FB page. Ciao