Are work ethic and study habits enough?

[HopefulNotBlind]

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Okay so I've seen the threads asking about how hard the course work is and I understand that it is hard.

My question is- Does it take previous knowlege and/or skills to get through the pre med requirments or will good work ethic and study habits be enough to keep up?

I just don't want to get into pre med and end up, as many, quitting. I'm no good at science so I would like to know now what it really takes to succeed in pre med. Thanks in advance. 🙂

 

[45408]

You'll just have to do it and find out. We could all make predictions, but who knows what will happen until you try?

 

[tjquinn]

I am a firm believer in hard work and diligence. From my experience, if you were able to make it into college, then you should be perfectly capable of completing the pre-med requirements. The best advice I can give is to try your best to seek enjoyment in your studies and good grades will come. Try to weave your classes together into a coherent understanding of the natural world.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

The question is, what is the reason you are bad at science courses? Was it you or was it your previous teachers.

College courses have prerequisites for a reason, so you are prepared to take the course. Obviously, this path starts with courses with no prerequisites and this is probably where you should start.

While the practice of medicine is mostly detached from the basic sciences they are an important step along the path. There is no way around this.

A possible course of action would be to take some of the basic science courses, biology 1 and chemistry 1, to see how well you do. No one is going to be able to determine how successful you'll be in premed coursework unless you give it a shot. This whole process is about taking risks (~50% of the people that apply to medical school in a given year don't get in).

 

[iceman55]

Okay so I've seen the threads asking about how hard the course work is and I understand that it is hard.

My question is- Does it take previous knowlege and/or skills to get through the pre med requirments or will good work ethic and study habits be enough to keep up?

I just don't want to get into pre med and end up, as many, quitting. I'm no good at science so I would like to know now what it really takes to succeed in pre med. Thanks in advance. 🙂

Good work ethic and study habits and also time management will get you by fine. I justed finished my sophomore year of college and that is exactly what I have been going by. You also have to be smart in choosing your professors, this does not necessarily mean choosing the easier one.

 

[MidnightSun32]

I started college when I was 23 years old. I have never taken any type of chemistry and I definitely couldn't remember any biology or math.

My first day was intimidating in biology because the professor was talking about simple concepts we should already know and I was lost. We earned our points on tests only, no homework assignments, so that alone kind of freaked me out too. The lowest grade I had on a test was a 100% (he offered 5 pts extra credit + a curve on everyone's test depending on how the class did). I have a good memory so I think that contributed to my good grades in biology. I don't think it was hard once I started learning the information. Math just started coming back to me once class started.

Chemistry though, was a bit more difficult for me. Since I didn't take it in high school, I studied more than in biology and asked questions when I was confused. I also took the intro chem course to get a better background before starting gen chem. I don't really think I needed it, but at the time it was very comforting. Anyway, since I'm rambling, I really think that you just need to be willing to put in the study time. If it comes easy for you, you probably won't have to study a lot. If you have a harder time, make sure to study well and maybe get a tutor. Just don't give up.

 

[Vadoff]

It depends what you mean by good work ethic and study habits.

If you mean just attending class, understanding the concepts, doing homework, and then some reading - then no, it might not always be enough to get an A.

Sometimes you have to go beyond just that. You have to be extra passionate, stay on top of the game, read in advance, practice more problems than you need to, find old quizzes/tests, consult with the teacher, form peer groups, and constantly work to make sure you understand anything and everything. On test day you have to make sure to manage your time well, make sure you're reading everything asked by the question, and double-check to make sure you haven't made any stupid mistakes.

A large part does have to do with your iq, personality, test taking skills, but if you're willing to put in as much effort as needed, you will succeed.