owlegrad
Uncontrollable Sarcasm Machine
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Just some friendly advice from your neighborhood owle. Also, tl;dr.
It's a roller-coaster. The trick is to enjoy the highs and get through the lows. Adjusting to grad school is ridiculous. Humbling to say the least. What you (generic you) need to remember is that you are not alone. Most people put on a brave face because really who wants to admit how hard it is or how badly they are doing? So don't get down just because you seem to be having a worse time at it than others. Others are suffering at least as much as you. Make friends in your class, they are the only ones who really know what you are going through.
Some things that I find helpful:
Stop comparing yourself to your classmates. Nothing good will come of this. Everyone is unique, so don't think about how so-and-so is better than you (or does better than you) at such-and-such. Just focus on doing the best you can.
Don't tie your sense of self-worth into your academic performance. I had no idea what a large percent of my identity was tied to my grades until I started really struggling. Learn to separate yourself from your grades or make them a small part of your overall self-esteem.
Aim high, but don't let it get to you when you fail to live up to your expectations. I might be getting repetitive here, but it is important to not let it get to you when are struggling more than you ever have before. It is quite an adjustment to go from being at the top to struggling to swim. Which leads me to my next point:
Speaking for myself, I never thought that I had an attitude or anything like that, but damn once I started failing behind I learned how I viewed myself. I never really struggled before in work or school and did not appreciate what that experience would be like. You learn a lot about yourself and get a better sense of your own attitudes when you stop being at the top of the pack for the first time. I realized that I really did have an attitude that was tied directly to owning at school and work (unrelated to pharmacy). I think I have done a pretty good job reining it in now (because I am so awesome like that), but that was a very hard thing to go through. You learn to adjust to the new curve and perhaps grow as a person.
I am not sure if I typed this up for anyone reading or for myself. It was therapeutic typing all that out. Sorry I made it so long, but you were warned at the top!
Anyone else want to share some advice to the incoming class? Also, if you are an incoming student, feel free to ask me/us anything!
It's a roller-coaster. The trick is to enjoy the highs and get through the lows. Adjusting to grad school is ridiculous. Humbling to say the least. What you (generic you) need to remember is that you are not alone. Most people put on a brave face because really who wants to admit how hard it is or how badly they are doing? So don't get down just because you seem to be having a worse time at it than others. Others are suffering at least as much as you. Make friends in your class, they are the only ones who really know what you are going through.
Some things that I find helpful:
Stop comparing yourself to your classmates. Nothing good will come of this. Everyone is unique, so don't think about how so-and-so is better than you (or does better than you) at such-and-such. Just focus on doing the best you can.
Don't tie your sense of self-worth into your academic performance. I had no idea what a large percent of my identity was tied to my grades until I started really struggling. Learn to separate yourself from your grades or make them a small part of your overall self-esteem.
Aim high, but don't let it get to you when you fail to live up to your expectations. I might be getting repetitive here, but it is important to not let it get to you when are struggling more than you ever have before. It is quite an adjustment to go from being at the top to struggling to swim. Which leads me to my next point:
Speaking for myself, I never thought that I had an attitude or anything like that, but damn once I started failing behind I learned how I viewed myself. I never really struggled before in work or school and did not appreciate what that experience would be like. You learn a lot about yourself and get a better sense of your own attitudes when you stop being at the top of the pack for the first time. I realized that I really did have an attitude that was tied directly to owning at school and work (unrelated to pharmacy). I think I have done a pretty good job reining it in now (because I am so awesome like that), but that was a very hard thing to go through. You learn to adjust to the new curve and perhaps grow as a person.
I am not sure if I typed this up for anyone reading or for myself. It was therapeutic typing all that out. Sorry I made it so long, but you were warned at the top!
Anyone else want to share some advice to the incoming class? Also, if you are an incoming student, feel free to ask me/us anything!