In France, the first year of medical school was a “concours,” a “contest exam.” That meant that slots in the second year class went to those who scored the highest on the exam. There were 650 of us in the first year. There were 110 in the second.

It was obvious, that even with a chance to repeat the spring exam in the fall, and a chance to repeat the year, if a student did not turn up in the top 1/6 or so of the class. Read more on Studying And Actually Learning…