The second year in the College of Medicine is a challenging level for many crossovers in UNEC.
The problem is that many crossovers get little or no concrete guides on how to succeed in College.
I remember my experience a few years ago when I got to Enugu Campus.
Upon crossing over to UNEC, my senior colleagues emphasized only reading lecture materials.
Looking back, I wish they gave me specifics on each of the second year College courses.
In this post, I will walk you through all the courses you will offer in your second year here at UNEC.
This guide will give you the academic prowess to succeed in UNEC.
This post aims to guide you to get A’s in all your college courses.
Yes, it is possible to get a perfect CGPA in your second year in UNEC.
Also, check out my post on the UNEC Crossover Guide for UNEC College of Medicine students.
Let me know in the comment box below if you have any questions. I will get back to you as soon as possible.
Table of contents
First Semester
Here are the courses for the second-year first semester at the College of Medicine;
- General Histology and Cytology (ANA 225)
- General and Blood Physiology (PYS 201)
- Gross Anatomy I (ANA 201)
- Excitable Tissues and Autonomic Nervous System (PYS 203)
- Chemistry of Biomolecules (BIC 201)
- Enzymes, Bioenergetics and Biological Oxidation (BIC 211)
- Embryology (ANA 213)
- Logic, Philosophy and Human Existence (GSP 207)
General Histology and Cytology (ANA 225)
General Histology and Cytology is the less demanding College course that you will take in your first semester.
The course ANA 225 will give you an A in UNEC.
Also, it is the first College exam you will write in UNEC.
Many times lectures for the course are inconsistent. I mean that the classes for Histology will not be rigorous like other College courses.
At some point, you may even forget that you will write an exam for the course.
In all this, you must not lose touch with the course.
Many students abandon reading Histology till few days before the exam. Trust me. This approach will not give you an A grade.
The topics in UNEC Histology and Cytology is;
- Epithelial Tissues
- Histology of Muscle Tissues
- Blood and Lymphatic Vessels
- Histology of Connective Tissue
- Histology of Bone Formation
You must know that your knowledge of Histology is what will help you to pass excitable tissues.
Histology Materials
To pass ANA 225, you must read your lecture materials back to back.
All your exam questions will come from the lecture slides.
During my time, I made the mistake of reading elaborately, accumulating unnecessary information.
Histology Online Study
In addition, you should use the website Kenhub to supplement your materials.
The learning platform Kenhub will make you understand Histology with ease.
You do not necessarily need to watch YouTube videos to understand General Histology.
But, you must go online to check out unfamiliar topics to get an understanding.
Histology Past Questions
Practising Histology past questions is the key to pass the histology exam in UNEC.
The thing is that the Anatomy department does not give a new set of questions every session.
They lift out questions from past questions for students to solve in the exam. So, what you will encounter is nothing but past questions.
Now, the problem is that these past questions are not at the disposal of students.
But anyways, study and practice past questions that you come across. You can get some past questions at IJ Airport.
Continuous Assessment (CA)
Most of the time, there is no continuous assessment for Histology. The exam is over 100.
Histology Exam
Histology exam is multi-choice questions (MCQ).
The exam is pencil shading and not CBT.
See the guide on how to shade in UNEC College exams.
General and Blood Physiology (PYS 201)
General and blood physiology is a bulky course for second-year students.
The course deals with topics on cells, components of blood and abnormalities.
It is easy to read and understand General and blood physiology. Though, the course can be challenging with some topics like platelets and homeostasis.
Here is the catch.
Type topics or concepts that you do not understand on Google. Read the results from Wikipedia and Lumenlearning to get an understanding.
Further reading on the internet will make you understand the course with ease.
Also, tutorials on YouTube will enhance your understanding of physiology.
Like other College courses, the key to getting an A is to read your lecture materials.
You can also read other of the recommended College of Medicine textbooks on Physiology.
Continuous Assessment (CA)
General and blood continuous assessments are for students in Health Sciences and Basic Medical Science.
MBBS students do not write CA for physiology.
For the CA, you will answer two questions in your test. Each from Blood and General Physiology.
During my time, the question on general physiology was to write on Cell organelles and the red blood cell.
Practising with likely CA questions is the best way to prepare for the test. You must attempt the questions by answering them on paper.
Do not assume that you know and understand the course by reading it alone.
In addition, you can explain topics in the course to your friends. It is an effective way to master Physiology.
Physiology Examination
The nature of the Physiology examination is different for MBBS and other College of Medicine students.
MBBS Students
MBBS students write the exam as a test. The exam will be like a continuous assessment for Health Science students.
You will answer about four essay questions in the exam.
Good knowledge of the course will help you out in your examination.
Health Science and FBMS Students
Multiple choice question is the nature of physiology exam for Health Science and FBMS students.
The exam questions are pretty straightforward. All you have to do is to read your Physiology Materials inside out.
Wrong shading is the reason why many students get poor grades in General Physiology.
Get the recommended pencil and shade very well in your exam.
Gross Anatomy I (ANA 201)
Men, Gross anatomy is one hell of a bulky course.
The Gross Anatomy covers topics in the Upper Limb, Thorax and Abdomen.
The annoying thing about the course is that it is volatile. You will forget a topic after studying. Except you keep on revising it over and over again.
For ANA 201, it is normal not to understand what you read at the beginning of the semester.
Topics like Brachial Plexus and Muscles of the Arm can be challenging to understand.
But, you must be persistent to read the course over and over again.
Studying the course materials all the time will help you to pass the course.
Atlas Anatomy
Atlas anatomy will help you to study anatomy. The atlas of anatomy is compulsory for students using the Last Anatomy textbook.
You do not necessarily need to use an atlas if you study with textbooks like Virsham and Vasudevan.
TeachMeAnatomy
TeachMeAnatomy is the best online platform to study and understand Gross Anatomy.
Using the learning platform will make you enjoy studying Anatomy.
I recommend that you combine reading your lecture materials, textbook with the TeachMeAnatomy.
Past Questions
Studying with Past Questions is necessary for Gross Anatomy.
It is the past questions that will help you to know your understanding of a topic.
For example, after reading a topic, practice past questions related to the topic.
You will see some of the past questions in your main exam.
Continuous Assessment (CA) and Examination
There is no continuous assessment for Gross Anatomy in UNEC.
The exam is over 100. The format is MCQ by shading.
Excitable Tissues and Autonomic Nervous System (PYS 203)
Excitable Tissues is the most dreaded course for second-year students in the College of Medicine.
In my case, I had heard horrible things about the course from my first year at Nsukka Campus.
My senior colleagues threatened me with how it is almost impossible to pass excitable tissues.
Looking back as I write this post, they were wrong.
Excitable is an easy course to read and understand if you use the correct study technique.
The challenge is that many students use the wrong approach to study the course.
First of all, you must erase every misconception you have about the course.
Worst case scenario, you should target a B for the course.
Excitable tissue is not like other courses that you read and move on.
You need to dedicate time to study the course. It involves reading your course material, textbooks and online materials.
For example, it is best to move from reading Histology to Excitable Tissues. There is some similarity between the two courses that will help your learning.
Here is a flow chart on how to read excitable tissues from Histology;
- Histology of Connective Tissues
- Histology of Muscle Tissues
- Histology of Nervous Tissues
- Excitable Tissues
These three histology topics will boost your understanding as you enter to study excitable tissues.
Online Learning
Understanding Excitable Tissues need you to read topics online.
Here are the online platforms to understand excitable tissues;
- Lumen Learning
- Wikipedia
- YouTube
Reading the excitable tissues on Lumen Learning and Wikipedia will give you a complete understanding of the course.
Watching YouTube videos is compulsory to understand the course.
Do not make the mistake of being a lazy student. You must go the extra mile to pass excitable tissues.
Past Questions
Practising past questions will sharpen your understanding of the course.
Do not make the mistake of waiting till the night before your exams to practice questions. It will end in premium tears for you.
I know that Excitable Tissues past questions are tiring to practice.
Do not relent, but rather persevere, pay the prize to pass the course.
Continuous Assessment and Examination
The continuous assessment is for Health Science and FMBS students.
It depends because you can answer one question for your CA.
For example, the question for my set was to outline the mechanical properties of skeletal muscle.
You must read and understand every topic in the course materials to do well in the test.
Like General Physiology, the examination is MCQ.
It is only students who have a deep understanding of the course that can pass the MCQ exams.
MBBS students write an essay on both the General, Blood and Excitable Tissues.
Biochemistry (BIC 201 & 211)
The BIC 201 and 211 are three and two credit unit courses.
BIC 201 deals with the Chemistry of Biomolecules. Here, you will learn about Carbohydrates, Proteins, Amino Acids, etc.
BIC 211 deals with Enzymes, Bioenergetics and Biological Oxidation.
The two courses are straightforward.
It is easy to get an A in both courses by reading the course materials and past questions.
You can checkout topics online to enhance your understanding.
Outside that, all you need is to read the course materials over and over again.
Do not waste your time reading irrelevant materials or textbooks.
It is from the lecture materials that all your exam questions will come out.
Study and understand the Chemistry of Nucleic Acids. It is the stress area where you will see many questions in the exam.
Logic, Philosophy and Human Existence (GSP 207)
Many students in the College of Medicine see GSP 207 as a kind of distraction.
But, the course is interesting if you put your mind to study it.
Reading the GSP textbooks about three times will give you an A in the course.
Also, ensure that you take part in your seminar presentation to get a good CA score.
Embryology (ANA 213)
Embryology is like Histology and Gross Anatomy.
You must memorize all the dates in Embryology to have an A in the course.
It is necessary to get a journal for the dates in embryology. I mean a book where you would write all the important dates.
The practice of past questions will also help you to pass the course.
Students of Medical Laboratory Science do not offer embryology.
Second Semester
Here are the courses that you will offer in your second semester;
- Gross Anatomy II (ANA 202)
- Systemic Histology I (ANA 226)
- Systemic Embryology I (ANA 214)
- Metabolism of Carbohydrates & Lipids (BIC 222)
- Metabolism of Protein, Nucleic Acids & Mol. Biol. (BIC 232)
- Renals & GIT (PYS 202)
- Cardiovascular and Respiratory Physiology (PYS 204)
- Nigerian Peoples and Culture (GSP 208)
The academic requirements for the second semester are way more challenging than the previous semester.
The second semester is shorter with bulky courses.
Students call it the METAB semester.
By this time, you must have gained a lot of experience from your first semester.
Here are the helpful tips to guide you through the second-semester courses.
Read how to pass the MBBS exam in UNEC.
Gross Anatomy II (ANA 202)
ANA 202 is a continuation of ANA 201. You will learn topics on the Pelvis and Lower Limbs.
The anatomy for the second semester is more challenging. You will encounter a lot of unfamiliar topics.
Students do neglect Anatomy for Metabolism in the second semester.
So, reading Pelvis and Lower Limb a few days before the exam ends in tears.
The best way to pass the course is to create time to study ANA 202 alongside other College courses.
Also, TeachMeAnatomy will help you to understand Pelvis and Lower Limb.
The format for the exam is the same as the first semester.
Systemic Histology I (ANA 226)
Systemic Histology is an exciting course for the second semester.
The best part is that the course content is like Gastrointestinal Physiology.
Studying your lecture materials and using Kenhub will ease your understanding.
Reading with past questions is the key to get an A in ANA 226.
You will also need to do a lot of Google searches on the topics in systemic histology.
Systemic Embryology I (ANA 214)
Systemic embryology is like ANA 213.
Studying and taking notes of dates is the key to pass embryology.
Also, make use of past questions during your study.
Metabolism (BIC 222 & 232)
Metabolism is the most dreaded course for second-year students in the College of Medicine.
I can bet that you have heard a lot about the course, how students fail the subject year after year.
Well, METAB is a bulky course that students find difficult to assimilate. Like Anatomy, it is volatile. You need to keep reading METAB over and over again.
BIC 222 deals with the metabolism of carbohydrates & lipids.
BIC 232 deals with Metabolism of Protein, Nucleic Acids & Mol. Biol.
Students in Nursing and Radiography do not offer BIC 232.
The key to passing METAB exams is to attend lectures. The truth of the matter is that lecturers give out likely examination questions in class. You must take note of these questions while studying.
Also, you must study to understand as you work with the past question.
Past questions will help to check if your study technique is effective or not.
There is a METAB summary booklet that you must get at IJ port. The material will help you to know how to answer questions during the metabolism exam.
METAB CA & Examination
The format for metabolism CA is subjective questions.
MBBS students do not write CA for METAB.
The format for the METAB exam is an essay.
Physiology
There are four physiology courses in the second semester;
- Renals Physiology
- Gastrointestinal Tract
- Cardiovascular
- Respiratory Physiology
MBBS students write Respiratory Physiology in the first semester. Other students take the exams in the second semester.
The physiology courses are a continuation of the first semester. For example, cardiovascular physiology is an extension of excitable tissues.
Attending lectures is the first step to passing your physiology exams.
Also, get Dr C.J Ossai textbooks on the different parts of physiology for the semester.
The Fundamental Multiple Choice Questions in Physiology will help to prepare you for your exams.
Ensure that you shade well. Make use of the recommended pencil – 6B.
Nigerian Peoples and Culture (GSP 208)
Nigerian Peoples and Culture is an extension of GSP 207.
You will do a term paper for this course.
Ensure that you read the textbook at least two times to stand a chance of getting a good grade.
Wrapping Up
I would love to hear from you. Let me know if you have any questions or need help with any of the courses?
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Welcome to the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus (UNEC).
I wish you success in your academics.
Greatest Lions and Lionesses
See also:
What about the first year?
Rita,
See the UNN first year course outline here.
Please the course outline for Medical Radiography is not here.
You can get the departmental course outline from your department.