Anyone almost always do bad on the first exam??

[NoRegretslol]

Not sure if i'm slow or just "normal". I don't feel too normal though because I just failed my Physics midterm...well everyone did but even with a curve I still managed to score lower than the slacker in my class who copy my paper during lab and homework. A lot of problems I did on the test I was super confident about but reality slapped me in the face hard. Now I have learned the hard way that you can't cram Physics.


The problem is I only have one more chance to redeem myself with the final and then it's over. Of course I’m aiming for an A, anything lower than that will ruin my 4.0 science GPA and so my future goals.


But for most of my science classes I get a C or lower on the first test. I try not to but I still do poorly on the first try even if I study. Then I have to stress and tear my hair out the whole quarter until I catch up and do a surprise good grade in the end. But i'm definitely not so sure about Physics now; the materials just keep getting harder and harder and I only have a month left; I'm not feeling confident about my abilities after this huge blow to my confidence.

Anyone have similar stories or words of wisdom you want to share to make me (and everyone who can relate) feel hopeful again?

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[GUH]

Not sure if i'm slow or just "normal". I don't feel too normal though because I just failed my Physics midterm...well everyone did but even with a curve I still managed to score lower than the slacker in my class who copy my paper during lab and homework. A lot of problems I did on the test I was super confident about but reality slapped me in the face hard. Now I have learned the hard way that you can't cram Physics.


The problem is I only have one more chance to redeem myself with the final and then it's over. Of course I’m aiming for an A, anything lower than that will ruin my 4.0 science GPA and so my future goals.


But for most of my science classes I get a C or lower on the first test. I try not to but I still do poorly on the first try even if I study. Then I have to stress and tear my hair out the whole quarter until I catch up and do a surprise good grade in the end. But i'm definitely not so sure about Physics now; the materials just keep getting harder and harder and I only have a month left; I'm not feeling confident about my abilities after this huge blow to my confidence.

Anyone have similar stories or words of wisdom you want to share to make me (and everyone who can relate) feel hopeful again?

You can only call it a failing grade if it is failing after the curve. And by failing, I mean an F. An 80% not bad if the highest score in the class was an 85. If you have a 4.0 sGPA you're in very good shape. Stop knocking yourself and get back to work. Also stop letting people cheat off of you. Unlike a B+ in a single science class, getting caught cheating will mess up your chances at going to medical school.

 

[youmed]

Not sure if i'm slow or just "normal". I don't feel too normal though because I just failed my Physics midterm...well everyone did but even with a curve I still managed to score lower than the slacker in my class who copy my paper during lab and homework. A lot of problems I did on the test I was super confident about but reality slapped me in the face hard. Now I have learned the hard way that you can't cram Physics.


The problem is I only have one more chance to redeem myself with the final and then it's over. Of course I’m aiming for an A, anything lower than that will ruin my 4.0 science GPA and so my future goals.


But for most of my science classes I get a C or lower on the first test. I try not to but I still do poorly on the first try even if I study. Then I have to stress and tear my hair out the whole quarter until I catch up and do a surprise good grade in the end. But i'm definitely not so sure about Physics now; the materials just keep getting harder and harder and I only have a month left; I'm not feeling confident about my abilities after this huge blow to my confidence.

Anyone have similar stories or words of wisdom you want to share to make me (and everyone who can relate) feel hopeful again?

My advice is to start strong. Just think about how much of an easier time you will have if you receive a good grade on the first midterm. Then you won't have to spend so much time and effort on subsequent midterms. And don't worry too much about not maintaining a 4.0 science GPA. It's a good goal to have but don't stress too much over not maintaining it until you graduate.

 

[kyamh]

My advice is to start strong. Just think about how much of an easier time you will have if you receive a good grade on the first midterm. Then you won't have to spend so much time and effort on subsequent midterms. And don't worry too much about not maintaining a 4.0 science GPA. It's a good goal to have but don't stress too much over not maintaining it until you graduate.

I agree, for inspiration you should look at some active MDApps profiles of students who are either already in medical schopol or are currently applying. I felt a lot better seeing people get interviews and acceptances at all schools with a 3.6-3.8 while before I was comparing myself to premeds at my school who insisted that you need a 3.9-4.0.

 

[NoRegretslol]

You can only call it a failing grade if it is failing after the curve. And by failing, I mean an F. An 80% not bad if the highest score in the class was an 85. If you have a 4.0 sGPA you're in very good shape. Stop knocking yourself and get back to work. Also stop letting people cheat off of you. Unlike a B+ in a single science class, getting caught cheating will mess up your chances at going to medical school.

Well, it's not cheating since we are in a group so I do majority of the work while they do the easy part. But they're also getting same good grade for my work since it's required group work. Oh wells, I'm just an unfortunate soul.

 

[NoRegretslol]

I agree, for inspiration you should look at some active MDApps profiles of students who are either already in medical schopol or are currently applying. I felt a lot better seeing people get interviews and acceptances at all schools with a 3.6-3.8 while before I was comparing myself to premeds at my school who insisted that you need a 3.9-4.0.

Yeah but once you're in med school it'll be ten times harder than prerequisites so your GPA will just keep going down thereafter maybe.

 

[kyamh]

It's a good thing that all the schools I am applying to don't calculate GPAs so that their students can focus on learning to be great physicians instead 🙂

 

[Stormpelt]

Yeah, I also do really bad on my first exams. Last spring, I got B- on all of the exams in one class (WITH the curve! And the curve was pretty generous, meaning that without the curve I would have had like a C-), and then got an A on the final, and got an A on all the assignments, and in the end I got an A in the class. Bam yeah. But yeah, don't let the grade of one exam get you down. Improve your study strategies, and go to the professor's office hours and ask them what the material on the exam will mostly focus on, and what you should really study and know. That way, you can focus on studying that, instead of trying to memorize and learn all the little details that you won't even need on the exam. This is what I found helpful when studying for exams. Know what to study for, don't study the useless part. Know what to study to get an A.

 

[Jennyfishy]

While in undergrad, I'd sometimes do "meh" or mediocre (~B+ with/without curves) on the first exam on a lot of my classes just because I had a tendency to underestimate what I need to know/not study (different testing styles, I was kind of cocky since I had a fairly high GPA at the time). But I wouldn't stress about my final grade either - I'd just go back and look at what I did wrong and prepare more efficiently for the next time/set a routine that would make sure I reach my benchmark goals for the following exams/finals. Always worked out in the end 🙂

Also, a 4.0 sGPA won't guarantee an acceptance anyway. Tons of people get in with 3.5-3.8s as well 😉

 

[Goro]

A C in one course won't kill your medical career either, so chill.

Not sure if i'm slow or just "normal". I don't feel too normal though because I just failed my Physics midterm...well everyone did but even with a curve I still managed to score lower than the slacker in my class who copy my paper during lab and homework. A lot of problems I did on the test I was super confident about but reality slapped me in the face hard. Now I have learned the hard way that you can't cram Physics.


The problem is I only have one more chance to redeem myself with the final and then it's over. Of course I’m aiming for an A, anything lower than that will ruin my 4.0 science GPA and so my future goals.


But for most of my science classes I get a C or lower on the first test. I try not to but I still do poorly on the first try even if I study. Then I have to stress and tear my hair out the whole quarter until I catch up and do a surprise good grade in the end. But i'm definitely not so sure about Physics now; the materials just keep getting harder and harder and I only have a month left; I'm not feeling confident about my abilities after this huge blow to my confidence.

Anyone have similar stories or words of wisdom you want to share to make me (and everyone who can relate) feel hopeful again?

 

[Pacna]

The problem is I only have one more chance to redeem myself with the final and then it's over. Of course I’m aiming for an A, anything lower than that will ruin my 4.0 science GPA and so my future goals.

Ah, no. I got a 3.5 in both calculus and statistics (yes, statistics. The class that is basically "can you work a calculator?") as well as a few other classes and am very pleased with my application cycle.

Now, don't get me wrong, your chances significantly decrease when applying if you have straight B's, but one isn't going to kill your application.

Here's my advice about first exams: Use old exams to measure your readiness. I bought old ones from people on the internet if they weren't posted by the prof. Take them like you'd take the actual exam. That score is usually very representative of what you're going to get. Past that, it's all obvious. Study your weak points and know why you got stuff wrong.

Hope that helps, and good luck!

 

[NoRegretslol]

Yeah, I also do really bad on my first exams. Last spring, I got B- on all of the exams in one class (WITH the curve! And the curve was pretty generous, meaning that without the curve I would have had like a C-), and then got an A on the final, and got an A on all the assignments, and in the end I got an A in the class. Bam yeah. But yeah, don't let the grade of one exam get you down. Improve your study strategies, and go to the professor's office hours and ask them what the material on the exam will mostly focus on, and what you should really study and know. That way, you can focus on studying that, instead of trying to memorize and learn all the little details that you won't even need on the exam. This is what I found helpful when studying for exams. Know what to study for, don't study the useless part. Know what to study to get an A.

But you see, the problem with Physics is that EVERYTHING is key points. You need to understand EVERY detail, there are no short cuts. I shall bother the professor everyday from now on.

That feel when you ask professor what to focus on and professor says "everything"...

 

[eizeral]

I either do badly on the first exam and kill the rest, or I do badly on the second exam because I was too cocky from my first exam score, and then kill the rest.

 

[papi89]

You must do really well on the follow-up exams to have a 4.0, since if you get a C on the mid-term and that's the first exam wouldn't you have to get like an A++++ to get an A in the class? Or maybe I'm missing something...

 

[yanks26dmb]

Not sure if i'm slow or just "normal". I don't feel too normal though because I just failed my Physics midterm...well everyone did but even with a curve I still managed to score lower than the slacker in my class who copy my paper during lab and homework. A lot of problems I did on the test I was super confident about but reality slapped me in the face hard. Now I have learned the hard way that you can't cram Physics.


The problem is I only have one more chance to redeem myself with the final and then it's over. Of course I’m aiming for an A, anything lower than that will ruin my 4.0 science GPA and so my future goals.


But for most of my science classes I get a C or lower on the first test. I try not to but I still do poorly on the first try even if I study. Then I have to stress and tear my hair out the whole quarter until I catch up and do a surprise good grade in the end. But i'm definitely not so sure about Physics now; the materials just keep getting harder and harder and I only have a month left; I'm not feeling confident about my abilities after this huge blow to my confidence.

Anyone have similar stories or words of wisdom you want to share to make me (and everyone who can relate) feel hopeful again?

Isn't this what they call, pot calling the kettle black?

And I think what you learned is that YOU can't cram for physics. Other people certainly can. Just start studying and stop being lazy and waiting til the last minute and odds are you'll do better. Simple solution.

 

[NoRegretslol]

You must do really well on the follow-up exams to have a 4.0, since if you get a C on the mid-term and that's the first exam wouldn't you have to get like an A++++ to get an A in the class? Or maybe I'm missing something...

I usually get A in lab and then get A in final which bumps up my crappy first test score up to an overall A. Or i'm just lucky because I suppose when teachers see improvement they help out in the end.