an academic challenge

[farmgrl00]

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Hi guys
I really need help thinking of good things to write about to "discusss an academic challenge and how you overcame it; and the lesson learned from it if any"

I can't really think of anything great at the moment besides the usual, I overcame my fear of lab work, or getting better at ochem and doing well as the year progressed.. I had one academic challenge with one of my independent research projects .. but I only overcame it by stopping to work in the lab..

Can anyone think of anything good that I should think about.. ? Just things that will help me brainstorm would be good too.
Thank s!

 

[MALA]

I think the Independent Research topic would be a good one. They probably see the essays that tell them "how I overcame physics" or "how I overcame organic chemistry". Unless something stupendous and near miraculous occurred during the semester you were taking those classes (and I don't mean pulling an A against all odds either), those topics wouldn't set you apart from the crowd. To me, it's very vanilla and bland.
But I like the Independent Research topic. Hopefully, you have some time to do this before you submit your app. I would treat this as I would if I were applying for a job that I really wanted: don't lie about what you did in the lab (if they've worked in labs they will know if it's a lie), sound enthusiastic (use great action verbs) and let them know that you've learned so much that Indie Research isn't an issue for you any longer.
Again, just my thoughts, perhaps some pharm students that had this same question could shed more light on this for you.

 

[farmgrl00]

my experience wasn't so much that I realized how I didn't want to do research... research can be fun if you work in the correct labs..
It was alot about the way I was treated in the lab. I had worked in various labs before this one and had wonderful experiences .. but I never picked those labs, they were assigned in programs or they were jobs that I applied for.. but I picked This lab specifically because i thought I d finally be able to work in a lab that was researching the topic i was interested in, however, the experience was not what I had expected. I was misled, i gave up alot of stuff to work in this lab and I was bitter about it. i just don't know how to make this into a *positive* experience so that I can talk about it!.. some help plz..

 

[Leah27]

my experience wasn't so much that I realized how I didn't want to do research... research can be fun if you work in the correct labs..
It was alot about the way I was treated in the lab. I had worked in various labs before this one and had wonderful experiences .. but I never picked those labs, they were assigned in programs or they were jobs that I applied for.. but I picked This lab specifically because i thought I d finally be able to work in a lab that was researching the topic i was interested in, however, the experience was not what I had expected. I was misled, i gave up alot of stuff to work in this lab and I was bitter about it. i just don't know how to make this into a *positive* experience so that I can talk about it!.. some help plz..

UCSD maybe? I wrote this same essay for them. I wrote about the semester I decided to be a science major, and how I learned valuable lessons, and learned to succeed despite being scared by some C grades. No one can tell you what your positive spin was.. you have to decide/make it up for yourself (lol) Perhaps you learned lab skills you consider valuable to know, and help you understand the process of research, however you learned it wasn't what you wanted to do for the rest of your life and dedided X aspect of pharmacy practice would better suit you. and when you found this out you got a job/internship/read more about x aspect of pharmacy.. just an idea.

 

[Tuck]

Just a point, but it does not have to be a challenge that occurred during your college years. I had to write something similar and focused more upon general learning strategies and coping with and overcoming dyslexia. Much of that actually occurred even before high school, let alone college. I think a lot of the people I know that wrote excellent essays focused on the development of life-long learning strategies. Essays of this type are also helpful because they indicate an ability to adapt to different learning environments. Determining your ability to adapt to the rigors of pharmacy school is in part what this essay is trying to accomplish. Hope that helps a little bit.