Studying for your clinical rotations can be difficult. Learn how Sketchy Clinical has all the content to cover you on your clinical rotations.
Before I started clinical rotations as a third-year medical student, Sketchy released their clinical courses. And boy, was I excited. As a loyal Sketchy fan during my pre-clinical years I knew that Sketchy would help me learn new concepts faster while retaining them for longer. Over the course of the year and through the busy and not-so-busy rotations, I was able to trial different ways of using Sketchy in tandem with other resources. My goal is to present how Sketchy can fit into your clinical schedule, study routine and help you succeed in the last two years of medical school, both on the shelf exams and for those pesky attending questions.
Third-year is a whole different ball game. No longer do you have most of the day to study. Now rotations are taking up most of your day and the norm for studying has become a busy team room and late at night before you pass out from sheer exhaustion. You will have less time to study, so you need to make the most of the time you have. To make it even more daunting, the shelf exams can sometimes be very difficult and take up much of the grade percentage. But have no fear, Sketchy is here to help!
Back in pre-clerkship, using Sketchy likely meant lounging at home or sipping coffee at your favorite café, with nothing but time on your side. Now, fast forward to rotations—you're in the hospital, juggling patients, notes, and shelf prep. The beauty of using Sketchy Clinical during this phase is its familiarity. If you used it for micro or pharm, you’ll recognize the same symbols, jokes, and storytelling style that made those topics stick. Even better, you already know how to get the most out of it. What changes now is the why—you're no longer just studying for Step 1; you're connecting those memory palaces to real patients. Sketchy Clinical keeps doing what it does best: turning complex topics into vivid, unforgettable scenes—only now, it’s helping you learn faster and apply it where it matters most.
I happened to start with the Internal Medicine rotation. During this rotation I would watch the Sketchy videos, and then try to find or make Anki cards with the same material. Some people stop using Anki during rotations, and I cannot blame them. It takes a lot of motivation and time to go through reviews every day, but I found that even if I only did the reviews for my current class, it was very helpful to keep the information in mind for the shelf exams. I also found that I was well prepared for Step 2, even before I started my dedicated time.
There are a lot of videos for IM, so prioritize the high yield videos first. A few I’d recommend include: Acute Decompensated Heart Failure SOAP, Syncope DDX, Acute COPD Exacerbation SOAP, Emergent Indications for RRT (Dialysis), Acute Upper GI Bleed: Esophageal Varices, and Acute Pancreatitis. During this time I focused solely on Sketchy and neglected my UWorld questions. On rounds I found that I knew more than my peers, and when questions came my way I was confident that I knew the answer. At one point I remember listing the Duke criteria for endocarditis while my classmates wondered how I could ever have those memorized. Sketchy.
My next rotation was Surgery. There were less Sketchy videos for Surgery so I found I had time to do both Sketchy and UWorld questions. I would highly recommend doing both if you have the time. Both create a strong foundation and make the shelf exams less daunting. Watch Sketchy videos first to get a strong foundation, then answer questions to fill in the gaps and cement the knowledge.
During Surgery I found it was best to leave the med student room and go to the surgery suite really early. In this way I was both well prepared for the case, and I could take time in the empty suite to watch Sketchy videos or do questions. A few I’d recommend include: Postoperative Surgical Fevers, Abdominal Surgical Emergencies (although you can’t go wrong with any of the videos from the Trauma, Burns, and Critical Care section), Cholelithiasis & Acute Calculous Cholecystitis, Small Bowel Obstruction, and all of the quick hits from the Lessons From the OR section.
Rotations like Family Medicine and Psychiatry are generally easier rotations that also have more free time for studying. For Family Medicine, I found that reviewing some of the preclinical sketches was an excellent way to relearn relevant material, especially the Sketchy Pharm for anti-hypertensives, diuretics, and dyslipidemia.
For Psych, I reviewed the antidepressant, mood stabilizer, and antipsychotic sketches which were immensely valuable and very high yield for the shelf exams. Sketchy just dropped a brand new Neurology section, so go ahead and check that out as well!
Specific to Sketchy Clinical, a few videos I’d recommend in the Family Medicine category include: Dyslipidemia: Ambulatory Concerns, Adult Male & Female Health Maintenance, Approach to Abdominal Pain, and Approach to Headache. Within Psychiatry, take a look at Bipolar 1 Disorder and Schizophrenia & Related Disorders.
Since the publishing of this blog originally, Sketchy has made massive additions and updates to the Sketchy Clinical library. We urge you to take the tips mentioned above into consideration while applying them to the content within the Pediatrics, Neurology, and Obstetrics & Gynecology clerkship videos.
The Pediatrics library is incredibly detailed and fleshed out and pairs well with learning about what happens to baby before birth (A.K.A OB/GYN!). And, in my opinion, just as people joke about whether you are a surgeon vs. not, the same can be said for whether you are a brain (neuro) person or not.
Use the Neurology library of videos to help with those concepts that hit above their weight on the shelf including Spinal Cord Diseases & Syndromes, Neurodegenerative Disorders, and the stroke neurologist’s favorite topic, neurovascular issues.
Beyond Sketchy Clinical, there are a ton a free resources like Sketchy's clerkship guides and patient presentation guides that can help you succeed on rotations. Brand new to Sketchy is DDx. This resource will prove to be one of your highlights on any rotation! This case-based AI-integrated platform allows you to not only practice your H&P skills from the comfort of your own home but also comes jam-packed with learning points, management tips, and helpful resources and evidence-based medicine citations.
One recommendation would be to focus on Sketchy Clinical videos early in the rotation to build up your fund of knowledge and then, closer to the end of the rotation or possibly an OSCE, utilize DDx to put your learning to the test.
Third year is full of new patient and clinical experiences. It can be incredibly fulfilling while at the same time incredibly exhausting. Rotations are unique because of the flexibility needed for how and what to study for each rotation. For some rotations you might have plenty of time to complete all of your practice questions, Sketchy videos, and outside course requirements while for others you will need to choose what works best for your learning style. Either as a main focus or as a supplement, Sketchy is here to help you look your best on your shelf exams and during rounds all through your clinical years.
Contributors:
Tyler Whitney, PGY1
Konnor Davis, PGY1
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