Greetings Gang 😈😜 Raise your hand if you've ever looked at a parasite egg or a mold on a slide and thought, "I KNOW you... I just can't remember your name." 🙋🏽‍♀️ That's exactly what parasitology and mycology are on the exam: a picture and four names. It's not a memory problem. You've just been studying names, and the exam tests faces. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱. Here's how to do it with my Ultimate Parasitology Quick Guide, my Ultimate Mycology Guide and LabCE. 1. Cover the words, look at the picture Both guides have a picture column for this reason. Cover everything except the picture with a sheet of paper, then say the name, the category and ONE feature that gave it away. Slide the paper over and check. If you can't name it from the picture alone, you don't know it yet. That's okay. That's the point of the exercise. 2. Give every organism a nickname Your brain remembers pictures with a story attached. Some of my favorites: Iodamoeba bütschlii = "ball in socket" nucleus Giardia trophozoite = the "smiley face" looking back at you Trichuris trichiura = football with polar plugs or pinwheel cake egg Schistosoma haematobium = spine on the END Schistosoma mansoni = spine on the SIDE Blastomyces = lollipops Paracoccidioides = mariner's wheel Trichophyton rubrum = birds on a fence Epidermophyton floccosum = bunch of bananas, club shaped, p3nis shaped LOL If a nickname makes you laugh, even better. Write your own in the margins of the guide. 3. Study the look-alikes side by side The exam LOVES to put two similar organisms next to each other. So study them in pairs, not alone: Entamoeba histolytica cyst (up to 4 nuclei, blunt chromatoid bars) vs. Entamoeba coli cyst (up to 8 nuclei, splintered chromatoid bars) Ancyclostoma/Necatur larva (long buccal cavity) vs. Strongyloides larva (short buccal cavity, big genital primordium) Blastomyces vs. Chrysosporium (both have "lollipops") Histoplasma vs. Sepedonium (both have knobby macroconidia) Ask yourself: "What's the ONE thing that tells these two apart?" That one thing is usually what the question tests.

Hello My Little Gang of Nasties 😈👅 We’ve got another FREE study session coming up this week, but I need your vote! 👇🏾 ⚠️ Quick note: Tuesday is a United States Federal Holiday, so keep that in mind when voting! Drop your vote in the comments: Which day works best for you? 👉🏾 Tuesday (Veteran's Day Holiday) 👉🏾 Wednesday Then comment your preferred time + time zone (Example: 4PM CST / 5PM EST). Once I see what works best for most of you, I’ll lock in the schedule and post the Zoom link! 🎥 We’ll be going over ASCP-style questions and breaking down strategy, so come ready to learn and laugh like last time. xoxo, Marilyn 🫶🏽

Greetings my Little Gang of Nasties 😈😜 I will be hosting a FREE Live Study Session this week inside the Microscope Views Community! 📅 When: Wednesday, August 27th, 3PM PST (make sure you figure out what time zone you’re in) ⏰ Length: 1 hour This is your chance to get a taste of what we do EVERY single week inside the Inner Circle of Microscope Views. Here’s what’s going down: 🔬 We’ll tackle practice questions together 🧠 I’ll show you my personal study strategy, live and uncut ✍️ You’ll take notes, see the breakdown in real time, and walk away with a system you can use immediately If you’re serious about passing this exam, this is where you need to be. Come ready to laugh and LEARN. Because once you see how we do it in here…you’ll never want to study the boring way again 😏 Be there. Take notes. Get value. Pass this exam. - Marilyn 🧪✨ ✨ And if you’re ready to stop guessing and actually have me in your corner every week breaking this stuff down with you… Book a 1:1 call with me today and let’s get you inside the Inner Circle. 👉 https://calendly.com/microscopeviewsyt/45min That’s where you get weekly live sessions and direct coaching that takes you from “overwhelmed” to confident and CERIFIED!

Hellooooo my little Gang of Nasties!😈😜 If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed about where to even start with studying for the ASCP exam, and maybe the MLS Review book isn’t resonating with you, I got you with another one! This is one of the most widely used study resources out there… Board of Certification Book (PDF version). 🧪 It’s packed with: - Review questions by subject - High-yield explanations (some people might have a different opinion about it’s explanations, but it’s up to you to decide) - Content that closely mirrors what you’ll see on the ASCP exam (Both MLS and MLT) 📌 Use it to: - Track weak areas - Practice daily questions (you should be hammering out 50 questions per day) - Get used to ASCP-style phrasing (yes, the ones that feel like they’re intentionally tryna trick you 😭) Whether you’re just starting or reviewing one section at a time, you gotta have this in your toolkit. Get a free Scridb account and download it, then cancel your free trial so you don’t get charged LOL https://www.scribd.com/document/704140796/BOC-7th-Edition ✅ Already feeling stuck? Or not sure how to use this resource effectively? Book a 1:1 call with me and I’ll help you map out a study plan that works for your schedule, learning style, and brain. 📅 https://calendly.com/microscopeviewsyt/45min Let’s get YOU ALL certified. We not doing this alone. 💪🏾🧬