Tips on managing reading for 1st semester (Clin Psych PhD)

[Psyche007]

With less than two weeks before it all starts, I've built myself a spreadsheet to enter all my readings for the semester, with all kinds of bells and whistles to format based on due date, length, etc. This may or may not be useful, but it's the kind of thing I enjoy... 

 

Does anyone have any tips on managing the reading load? With what looks to be 4-6 chapters and perhaps 15-20 journal articles per week (based on 2 syllabi I have so far out of 7 classes), I imagine you're just reading something every day.

[PsyDuck90]

I big part is learning how to skim properly. You don't need to read every single word of every single reading. Skim through and read the parts that seem most important. 

Also, during particularly heavy weeks, my cohort and I will sometimes split readings up and take notes/write summaries and share them with the rest of the cohort.

[PianoPsych]

For journal articles, I found the "three-pass approach" very helpful for saving time while still giving me the opportunity to add meaningful contributions in discussions.

"The key idea is that you should read the paper in up to three passes, instead of starting at the beginning and plowing your way to the end. Each pass accomplishes specific goals and builds upon the previous pass".

For the amount of reading you are required to do, it might only be possible to do a "first-pass" for each article:

- Title

- Abstract

- Introduction

- Skim through other headings/subheadings without reading their content

- Conclusion

[PsyDuck90]

1 hour ago, PianoPsych said:

For journal articles, I found the "three-pass approach" very helpful for saving time while still giving me the opportunity to add meaningful contributions in discussions.

"The key idea is that you should read the paper in up to three passes, instead of starting at the beginning and plowing your way to the end. Each pass accomplishes specific goals and builds upon the previous pass".

For the amount of reading you are required to do, it might only be possible to do a "first-pass" for each article:

- Title

- Abstract

- Introduction

- Skim through other headings/subheadings without reading their content

- Conclusion

Interesting. I usually skim differently. I will read the abstract, skim the lit review, read the hypotheses, skim methods, read results, and skim discussion. If it is an experimental paper, my class discussions usually focus more on the methodology and results and how the findings are relevant to whatever the topic at hand is. 

[PianoPsych]

24 minutes ago, PsyDGrad90 said:

Interesting. I usually skim differently. I will read the abstract, skim the lit review, read the hypotheses, skim methods, read results, and skim discussion. If it is an experimental paper, my class discussions usually focus more on the methodology and results and how the findings are relevant to whatever the topic at hand is. 

That's a good point- our class discussions (at least at my level) focus on the field, its theories, concepts, and applications rather than methodology, probably we don't use methods described in our assigned papers in our own projects. If you are doing research in the same field as your assigned readings, I think discussions about methodology/results are very important (though they can definitely get dry!).