Histology at RSU: How I study, exams, example questions

Before I started histology in semester two, I was super nervous. I had heard all these horror stories about how the colloquiums have a million answer options and they're super difficult.

Regardless, I finished semester two histology with a grade average of 9. I'd call that a decent grade!

So how on Earth did I manage that when histology is so horrible..?

Truth is, in my opinion, histology is not that difficult of a subject as long as you study. Sounds too simple to be true, but it is. I think many people who spread horror stories, in truth, did not study for the colloquiums.

So in this blog post I will be going over how I studied for the colloquiums, how they are like, and some example questions.

The structure of histology colloquiums

Histology colloquiums in structure, are a lot like anatomy colloquiums. If you haven't read my blog posts on anatomy colloquiums yet, read them here.

So the colloquium consists of two parts: theory and practical.

Theory

The theoretical part is based on the slideshows from the DemoLabs, just like in anatomy. If you've heard horror stories that there are questions from some textbooks, that is not the case anymore. You can find a list of the topics in e-studies in the following section:

As long as you know how to answer those questions somewhat, you will be fine. I'd even suggest that after you've studied the topics, upload that file to ChatGPT or Gemini etc. with the DemoLab slide shows and ask it to make MCQs for you to practice. That is how I studied for my first colloquium and got a 9.

Here are some example questions that I remember from some of my histology colloquiums:

Nerve cells might contain:

a) melanin inclusions

b) glycogen inclusions

c) lipofuscin inclusions

Amitosis is characteristic of:

a) nerve cells

b) liver cells

c) kidney cells

d) epithelial cells

In my opinion, they aren't that bad. As long as you've watched the DemoLabs, you'll be fine.

Practical

The practical part is based on the 'Learning outcomes - slide descriptions' section you find in e-studies.

Each practical class section has its own list. As long as you feel like you can point out all of those structures, you'll do well.

Some people say you should go to Anatomikum a few days before to look at the slides and sure, you can do that. I, personally was too lazy to do that so I'll share a little tip with you.

In each practical class section you can find a folder called 'Digital photo library of microscope slides'. These slides are the same ones you have in the colloquium. Within that folder is another folder called 'DESCRIPTIONS of microscope slides'. It has most of the slides. I'd say it has around 95% of all the structures you need to know.

I usually just take all the pictures from the folder to Anki and use image occlusion enhanced and create an Anki deck. (If you haven't checked out my post about using Anki for medical studies, check it out here.) Then I learn those structures 3 days before the colloquium. I've always gotten a 10 on the practical part. Just make sure you also go through the slide pictures without descriptions to see if there are any structures missing.

In the practical exam, you will be asked to come into the same room you have your practical classes in. You'll go in small groups of around 12 students at a time. You have to show your student ID. You'll also need a pen with you. You'll sit down in front of a piece of paper and write numbers from 1 to 10. The professor will then show different structures on the slides and you will have around 30 seconds to write the name of the structure on the paper. You can ask the professor to zoom in or out during the exam. Honestly it's a very chill exam situation, so no need to worry. You have to correctly name 4 structures from 10 to pass.

Resources for studying histology

YouTube channels

I watch a lot of YouTube before colloquiums, because usually the explanations are better and more clear than in the DemoLabs. And sometimes I just don't have the energy to focus on the DemoLab.

Some useful YouTube channels:

Down The Scope Microscopy: Good for theory and practical
Anatomy Hero: Good practice for practical, she has practice videos on epithelium, cartilage, etc.
Histology helper: Good for theory