Hi, my name is Marrium and I am currently in my second year of my MBChB (Medicine) programme. Having been at university for a few years, I have gotten into a routine that I find supports me in achieving my academic goals as well as ensuring I am able to get the best out of my day as possible. This routine of daily activities is centred around the tenets of productivity, mindfulness and relaxation – I hope that this is a helpful insight into my daily life and a way that you can gain inspiration on how to base the structure of your day!
7:30am
The time that I usually wake up in order to feel well rested and prepared for the day ahead. Over time, I have learnt that developing a morning routine to delve into as soon as you wake up is critical as it sets the tone for the rest of the day. By ensuring that you have a morning routine, it allows you to start your day with intention as well as incorporating mindfulness practices to enhance productivity during the day. This can look like meditating, going to the gym, journaling etc. For me, I aim to do stretch exercises in my room to begin the day with physical activity to refresh myself. Another aspect to my morning that I enjoy is making a latte or cup of tea for myself. Whilst this is an ordinary aspect of most people’s mornings, I try to focus only on the process to slow my mind down before the busyness of the day ahead.
9am-5pm
During an average day for me as a medical student, I am usually in lectures for the majority of the day due to the content of my course being so heavy. Whilst I sit in lectures, I try to write up all of my notes for all the sessions by the end of the workday. This is primarily to ensure that I do not have a lot of work to complete by the end of the day as there are usually a lot of other assignments to hand in that are outside of lectures. This does not always get done, but it is more important to aim for consistency rather than perfection, which is much more attainable on a daily basis. My day can also consist of clinical skills sessions, placements or other activities if I am not in lectures, providing some variety every now and then.
5-6pm
With the bulk of the day being over, it is a habit of mine to allow myself time to recharge and relax. It can be very easy to fall into the tendency to overwork yourself, especially as the year comes to a close with deadlines approaching but it is important to make time to give yourself a break. I try to pepper these in during the day so that I am able to be more consistent with my workload by alternating work and breaks. During this break in particular, I focus on eating a meal and spending time with my flatmates to step away from work for a short while.
6-7:30pm
This time during my day is usually dedicated to revision or study time, as I am more than likely to have a backlog of tasks to complete as well as having lecture notes to type up and learn. I aim to learn the hardest topics during this time as it is when I am able to fully engage with the material to the best of my ability. If I am not spending time engaging with course material, I attend society meetings, go to the gym or attend my weekly Mandarin lessons.
8-11pm
This time is reserved to further study as well as being able to cook a good meal for myself. I enjoy cooking and baking very much, and love to spend time creating a delicious dinner for myself. Because it is enjoyable to me, I am likely to spend a decent amount of time in the kitchen – this is also the time that I am able to socialise with my flatmates who are usually in the kitchen as well. I would recommend that this time should be dedicated to study or the development of your own hobbies. With the way that university life can become increasingly busy throughout the year, the balance between self-care and development and your studies can be hard to manage. I find that slotting in specific times to pursue interests of your own means that you are less likely to burn out. It could also be a time to socialise – whether that be with friend or within the structures of a society to provide a healthy distraction from work.
11-12pm
Perhaps the most important time of the day as well as the time that I look forward to the most. During this time, my priority is to wind down from the likely busy day that I’ve had. Establishing a night routine is just as important as a morning routine, as it sets the tone for the night and allows you to relax. Being able to be relaxed right before sleeping means that you are more likely to get a full night of sleep, allowing you to be well-rested for the next day. My night routine consists of getting myself ready for bed, finding a series or movie to watch on Netflix and writing down my to-do list for the next day as I watch. This works best for me as I am able to reduce stress as well as being able to be prepared and plan for the next day that creates a sense of stability.
I hope that this has been helpful, or if not, at least a good insight into the daily life of a medical student. Bye for now!