Anatomy gets a lot of credit for being the course people struggle with the most in first year, however, histology is one of the other courses people tend to struggle with. Hence, a list of things I found helpful to do to make histology less stressful.
First off, let me tell you that if you have the opportunity to take histology in undergrad DO IT! It’s difficult to learn but if you put in the effort while you’re still taking an undergraduate course load, you’ll have a much easier time in vet school when your also learning one billion other things. I took it in my undergrad and while most people were freaking out, I was sitting there watching shows or something. Just kidding, I still reviewed my notes, but I had already been there done that so I could focus on other things. 10/10 would recommend.
For those of you who don’t/can’t/shit I saw this to late/still want tips here are some tips I have for you to survive, nay, thrive in histology:
Go to the labs. If your school is anything like mine they will have all the slides you need digitalized so you can look at them at home. It may be tempting to just go through everything on your own. Try not to do this. The profs/TAs will be in the labs, they may even walk you through some of the slides. Plus they are there to help make sure you are looking at the right thing. Also try to prepare for labs
Read the lab manual. Just do it. Sometimes profs can’t go over everything in lecture and histology is just as much about function as it is structure.
Try to find the object you’re looking for on your own first, then make sure you confirm with a prof/TA. This is where going to the labs comes in handy.
Always try to relate structure to function. It will not only help you with this course, but with physiology and anatomy. Integrated learning in vet school is key.
Google is your friend. Need another example of what you’re looking for? Google image that shit. Not only will it help you figure out or confirm what your looking at, it will also show variability in the thing your are looking for.
You will probably never find a basophil on your own. Try not to confuse them with neutrophils and then snap a picture to all of your friends saying you found one… It’s just embarrassing.
Know your four basic tissue types. Know them well. The four basic tissue types are love. The four basic tissue types are life.
Helpful/Recommended Textbooks (you can find both as PDFs online):
Ross histology text and atlas — I didn’t use this book in phase one, but I found it very helpful in my undergrad, when I was taking histology for the first time. I’ve heard that this text is better then the veterinary histology one, but I never bought that one so I couldn’t confirm that.
Veterinary Histology — I never bought this but you can find free PDFs online to check out before you commit.
VMRCVM Site: http://www.vetmed.vt.edu/education/curriculum/VM8054/Labs/labtoc.htm
Shotgun Histology videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD7882068A01C370F
U Penn Histology: http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/histo/Index.htm
Cheesy histo poem time:
Protein is pink,
Nucleic acid is blue,
Histolgoy isn’t that bad,
I believe in youuuuuuuu
theartofmadeline
snowghoul
kianamaiart
tangentwithtanner
annaxmalina
ellievsbear
romaincrisis
vaporwave
prguitarman
