Studying in 2nd and 3rd year of medical school

The competitive exam is behind you, and yet the volume keeps growing. In 2nd and 3rd year (P2 and P3), there is no ranking: teaching units to pass every semester, semiology starting, the first hospital rotations, and a curriculum that already prepares the clinical years. Here is what changes, year by year, and what Mnemesia does for you.

By Raphaël, engineer and medical student · Updated

What changes after PASS

Together with PASS or L.AS, the 2nd and 3rd years make up the first cycle of medical school in France (DFGSM2 and DFGSM3). The selection is behind you: there is no ranking left to win, but teaching units (UE) to pass, semester after semester.

  • Courses change shape: at many universities, they are organized by organ system (cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, renal, neurological…), and each system mixes anatomy, histology, physiology and the first notions of semiology.
  • University exams come back every semester, most often as MCQs, sometimes with written questions depending on the university. A failed unit can be retaken, but it piles up with the next one.
  • What you learn now is the foundation for the clinical-year items: the renal physiology of 2nd year is what you will miss in front of kidney failure in 5th year.

The classic trap is to ease off after the competitive exam. With no ranking to worry about, everything gets pushed back to the exams, and the units pile up. The method is the same as in PASS, only more regular.

In 2nd year (P2): keeping going without a competitive exam

2nd year is often the year of basic sciences by organ system: a lot of anatomy, histology and physiology, some biochemistry and genetics depending on the university, and the first steps in semiology. It usually includes a first rotation, an introduction to nursing care.

You prepare for your university's exams, unit by unit. The difficulty is pace: with no single deadline, you have to set your own. Three habits are enough:

  • Make your cards on the day of the lecture, as in PASS: one idea per card, and anatomy diagrams as image-mask cards.
  • Review each handout with the J method (J0, J1, J3, J7…), so it is still there on exam day.
  • Practice your university's MCQs (past papers, your classmates' exams) in the last weeks, timed.

In 3rd year (P3): semiology, and heading for the items

3rd year goes deeper into semiology, system by system, and adds, depending on the university, pharmacology, immunology, microbiology or pathology. Hospital rotations take up more room: you learn to take a history and examine a patient. The year closes the first cycle.

The second cycle that follows is organized into items: the R2C reform splits them into rank A knowledge (what every doctor must know) and rank B knowledge (more specialized). Many universities already link their 3rd-year courses to these items. This is the time to pick up two habits:

  • Name your cards and MCQs after the item they relate to, when your university gives it: you will find them again in the clinical years.
  • Try MCQs in the EDN format: multiple answers, short answers, clinical cases with a shared context, scored with the EDN rules. The point is not the grade but getting used to the format.

University exams remain the year's deadline: the J method and mixed review before exams apply just as in 2nd year.

How to study your units without pushing everything back to the exams

Start from the exam dates, put them in your planner, then work backward. Every day: the day's cards (twenty to forty minutes), the J-method reviews, and yesterday's lecture turned into cards. In the last weeks, mix the decks of all the units in the same exam and sit timed exams.

For details, see our pages on spaced repetition, the exam study planner and practicing MCQs.

What Mnemesia offers in 2nd and 3rd year

  • A library organized as Years › Semesters › Units › Subjects: each organ system, each unit has its place, in a real folder on your computer.
  • Annotated PDF handouts (highlighter, pen, sticky notes), text recognition for scanned handouts, and cropping an image from the handout into a card: an anatomy diagram becomes an image-mask card.
  • Spaced repetition cards (FSRS), cloze or image masks, import of Anki (.apkg) and Quizlet (csv, tsv) decks, deck sharing with classmates, mixed review before exams and difficult cards.
  • MCQs written by you or received as a file: single answer, multiple answers, multiple answers with a set number, short answer, clinical cases with a shared context, figures. Timed exams, scored in points or with the EDN rules, corrected papers and mistakes to go over again.
  • A planner for your exams with a countdown, your university timetable imported (.ics), the workload spread over the days left, and the J method on your handouts or chapters.
  • On iPhone, review your cards or sit an MCQ between two lectures or on a rotation; courses are prepared on a Mac or iPad and arrive through iCloud.

Frequently asked questions

Should you already work on the EDN items in 3rd year?

Not learn them all, but start finding your way around them, yes: many 3rd-year courses already link to items. Naming your cards and MCQs after the item will save you time in the clinical years. Mnemesia's Items tab opens with the Medicine › Clinical years (EDN) setting, which you can choose whenever you need it.

Are my PASS decks still useful?

Often, yes: physiology, biochemistry and anatomy come back throughout medical school. Keep them, and archive the subjects you no longer need in Mnemesia, so they stop showing up in your reviews.

Can you practice with the EDN scoring from 2nd year?

Yes: each exam is scored in points or with the EDN rules, chosen when you sit it. In 2nd year, your university's scoring matters more; in 3rd year, sitting a few exams with the EDN rules gets you used to the format.

How do you study during rotations?

With the iPhone: the day's cards and MCQs take a few minutes, and everything you prepare on a Mac or iPad arrives there through iCloud.

Getting started in Mnemesia

  1. Install Mnemesia on your computer or iPad (links below).
  2. On first launch, the app asks about your studies (“My setup”, later in Settings): choose Medicine › 2nd and 3rd year.
  3. In the Library, organize your courses as Years › Semesters › Units › Subjects, and import your handouts as PDFs.
  4. Add your exams to the Planner, then put the handouts or chapters that resist you on the J method.
  5. Keep your PASS decks if they still help, and import your classmates' decks (.apkg, csv) or MCQ exams.
  6. When you reach the clinical years, or earlier if your university already links its courses to the items, switch the setting to Medicine › Clinical years (EDN): the Items tab appears.
Linux and Android tablets

No account and no ads. On iPhone, Mnemesia is for reviewing cards, taking MCQs and following your planner: courses and cards are prepared on a Mac or iPad and arrive through iCloud.