5 Effective Ways to Stay Motivated Through the Exam Season

There is possibly no other time that is as stressful as preparing for the medical school entrance exam or UCAT. And, sometimes, staying focused and determined through it all can be a struggle. You constantly juggle between medical school interview coaching, UCATpractice exams, daily chores and more, forgetting to channel your efforts in the right direction. Having the desire to improve your exam score is definitely not enough. You must work hard and push yourself to do better.

Strategies to Stay Motivated Through Exam Preparation
Motivation not only helps you study harder but can also help you get rid of negative thoughts while you are trying to solve the UCAT tests. Here are 3 simple ways to keep your motivation up through those long days of exam preparation.

Ø  Reward Yourself

Set small goals, like solving one part of the UCAT practice exam, and appreciate yourself for doing it well. Self-motivation goes a long way to have a positive impact on your self-confidence while keeping your spirits high. Start comparing yourself with yourself, rather than with others. Track your progress to find out how much you have improved over the course of time and reward yourself with a movie or your favorite meal for doing better than last week.

Ø  Try Out New Study Approaches

There is no harm in the trial and error method to find out which approach works best for you. During the medical consultant interview course, take breaks, draw pictures to remember things, try to teach a friend and so on. Doing various productive activities can keep you from getting bored and, in turn, make you look forward to your study sessions.

Ø  Stay Well Organized   

Break down cumbersome parts of the course into smaller chunks. This way, completing each part of the larger whole can give you a sense of accomplishment. Make charts, to-do lists, and timetables. This way the entire syllabus becomes more manageable. Keep crossing out the list as and when you complete each task. It is quite a satisfying feeling to be able to work towards your goals step by step.

In addition to all this, enroll in a reputed coaching institute like ICanMed for the best medical school interview coaching. They offer free UCAT workshops and help medical aspirants with well-structured preparation courses.

Ways to Calm Your Mind Before Your Medical School Interview

Are you stressed about answering the med school interview questions? Anxiety can affect even the best of us, but it's not all bad. Some degree of anxiety can actually work as motivation, giving you the required push and keeping you on your toes. But if the level of nervousness rises, it could impact your memory and have a negative impact on your medical school interview performance.

Here are some way to calm your mind and ease the stress.

1.    Note Down Your Thoughts

Writing down thoughts or any worrying questions asked in the medical school interview can help ease your mind. It is one of the most therapeutic things you can do to lower your anxiety. Putting down your thoughts on paper helps you revisit them at a later time. Also, it changes your thought pattern from chaotic to organised. You can also choose to record them in a digital format to get the pressure off your mind.

2.    Practice Cognitive Distancing

You can control your mind’s pessimistic tendencies by finding positive alternative scenarios. This is known as cognitive distancing. It is based on the concept that our mind worries about things that it feels are true, even if they are not. Remember that the worst-case scenario isn’t the only possibility.

3.    Try Breathing Exercises

When you’re feeling anxious, your breathing becomes shallow and rapid. To counter this, breathe in for 4 seconds, hold for 2 seconds, and then breathe out for 4 seconds. Slow and mindful breathing activates the hypothalamus to send neurohormones that inhibit the stress hormones and lead to a relaxation response.

This will relieve any anxiety through the physiological effect of the hypothalamus on the nervous system, allowing you to practice the medical school interview questions in a better way.

4.    Chant a Mantra

Mantra is a word or a phrase that you can repeat to calm yourself. It can be something like, “Everything will be okay,” or “I’ve got this,” or any other phrase that speaks to you. Research shows that chanting mantras reduces the activity in the part of the brain that is responsible for self-judgement. This is the same part of the brain makes you worry about the future and fret over the past.

Just repeat your mantra and focus your thoughts on it. If you find yourself getting distracted, return to the mantra. This will go a long way in helping you deal with the medical interview questions.

5.    Mind Your Diet

Make sure you eat a balanced diet in the weeks leading up to your UCAT interview. Some foods that can help reduce anxiety are salmon, yogurt, bananas, oats, green tea, dark chocolate and chamomile tea.

Although these techniques can help you to relax, what will clinch the deal is preparing for UCAT medical school interview under the guidance of a reputed institute like ICanMed, which will help you prepare for the med school interview questions in a systematic way

Choosing Medicine Speciality Based On Your Personality Type

Compassion, emotional stability, good communication skills and patience are the most common traits of physicians. Service to the patient in an organised and scientific manner is the core value and guiding principle of medical practitioners. However, the medical profession has its own stresses and different specialisations require a different set of skills and personality traits.
The questions asked in medical school interviews often revolve around how the applicant will behave in tough situations.

Myers-Briggs Personality Test (MBTI)

A self-report questionnaire, based on Carl Jung’s theory of psychological type, the Myers-Briggs Personality Test (MBTI) helps you identify your perception of the world and of people. It also helps you determine how well you know yourself and can make decisions when required.

Personality can be divided into four types, according to the MBTI, which are:

1. Extraversion (E) vs. Introversion (I): where do you focus your attention?
2. Thinking (T) vs. Feeling (F): How is your decision-making ability?
3. Sensing (S) vs. Intuition (N): How well do you take information?
4. Judging (J) vs. Perceiving (P): How do you deal with the environment?

According to the MBTI, people can be sorted into one of 16 different personality types. Based on your answers to the questionnaire, you will be assigned a combination of four letters that depict your personality type.
Elements of the MBTI are used in medical school interviews to better understand the candidate’s personality. The way you answer the med school interview questions can help you present your personality in the best light and create a personal brand.

Personality Type & Medical Speciality

The Myers-Briggs Personality Test can be easily used to determine what kind of medical specialty will suit your personality type too. For instance, anyone who received “Introverted–Sensing–Thinking–Judging (ISTJ)” in their test results, are more suited for Dermatology, Obstetrics-gynaecology, Family practice, Urology and Orthopaedic Surgery. On the other hand, those with Introverted–Sensing–Feeling–Judging (ISFJ) on the test might be better at Anaesthesiology, Ophthalmology, General practice, Family practice and Paediatrics.

There are 14 more combinations that can be created from the MBTI, which can help you determine whether your personality is suited for a particular specialization.
The med school interview serves a similar purpose, checking for your social skills. The question asked in the medical school interview also allows the interviewer to know if you will be able to connect with patients and other doctors in highly complex social environments.

Medicine Interview Preparation: How to Make a Good Impression

Have you started your medicine interview preparation? There are typically two rounds of medical school interviews that you’d need to clear – the MMI interview round and Panel interview. The multiple mini interviews (MMI) aim at accessing how you manage your time and remain calm in stressful situations. On the other hand, panel interviews access your skills and traits. Here are ways in which you can prepare for different types of medical school interview questions and make a good impression.

Make an amazing first impression

The first impression is crucial, as interviewers tend to begin accessing you right from the second you walk in through the door. Your interaction begins even before they’ve started asking you med school interview questions. What you wear and your body language are very important, as they convey a great deal about your personality. So, your medicine interview preparation must include deciding what you wish to wear and should involve practicing to stand straight and appear confident. Work on your handshake, as it should be firm, and practice maintaining eye contact while taking. All these seemingly trivial things contribute immensely to creating your first impression.

How to answer questions during the med school interview

The way you communicate is as important as the answers you provide for various medical interview questions. Remain calm and smile softly while answering the panel. Make sure you speak clearly and put across your views politely, even when you don’t agree with the interviewers. Modulate your voice, as a monotonous tone makes your answer sound boring. It’s okay to move your hands when proving answers to medical questions. However, avoid moving them too much, as this is often interpreted as lack of confidence. Be candid with your answers and avoid trying to project a false image about yourself. Remember, even with the best medicine interview preparation, there might be some unexpected questions. And, if you’re being sincere and candid, you’d be more comfortable while answering. 

How to leave after your interview is finished

Small gestures make you stand out of the crowd. Thank the interviewers when the interview is over. Make sure you smile before leaving the room, as this can create a good impression right before the panel members give you their scores. 

When you answer medical questions, remember that your composure matters immensely. You may consider online medical school training programs to answer med school interview questions and for tips to exude confidence.