Bad Grades

[Tacha]

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I am almost certain that I am in the wrong place posting this, but I fell upon this forum while searching the web and I thought it would be a perfect place to ask the following questions and that maybe some of you can please help me out with sharing some of your thoughts, experiences, tips and advice on this subject.

Right now I have only finished high school and took some time off but am now going to be returning to school to become a veterinarian. I've learnt that it's quite hard to get in to vet school and that your grades have to be next to perfect?...
My problem is, that in high school, I wasn't great in math or science, I was forced to give up my lunch hour for science to have some one on one time and in doing so I did a complete 180 and got great grades, but as soon as I slacked off and lost interest my grades went lower as usual... the same in math. I know that with becoming a veterinarian math and science are greatly involved and I'm afraid that I wont be smart enough. It scares me because something I LOVE animals and I can't see myself doing anything other but the ONLY two things I didn't do so great in, school are the two things I need to be good at in becoming a veterinarian.

In high school, I didn't care much about my future or where I was really heading... I just couldn't wait till the school day was over, 😴 but now that I've had some time to think and look at my life I look towards what I want to do in the future and for the rest of my life.

I guess school grades for some people it just comes naturally but with me I have to give 110% ALL the time non stop... some people just get it... some quick learners, where with me I have to re-read and absorb it in to get it .... and I understand that and I'm ok with it.
I just want to know if anyone had/has the same problem, if they went from having a poor grade in math or science or anything else to getting really good grades. How they did it...as in tips or advice...anything that could help.

Should I re-take my high school math and science classes over to get near perfect grades? 😕

I apologize if I am in the wrong forum,
Thank you in advance for replying, I greatly appreciate it.

Natacha

 

[pressmom]

High school grades won't show up on vet school applications. You can list your high school awards (like if you lettered in a sport or got any other kind of award) and any animal or veterinary experience hours (kennel work, doctor shadowing, animal rescue, etc).

The best thing you can do is prepare your study methods for college. Some colleges offer a study skills class or seminar for incoming students/freshmen. If you could take or go to one of these, that would help you tremendously. College grades are very important on your application. Don't overload courses your first semester, just take 3 or 4 and take some that don't have labs. Start out at community college if you feel like smaller classes will help.

The good news is that you don't have a bad college GPA to try to raise. See if you can address your study issues and do your best to make mostly As with some Bs in college and you should be fine. (But don't forget to get the animal and veterinary experience hours!)

 

[Emio]

hey Natacha -

i was in a similar situation in high school. i did alright, but i HATED school with a passion. it was all i could do to go every day. i just knew my mom would have me sell my horse if i dropped out, lol. that being said, there wasn't a chance in hell that i was going to college afterwards. i was so soured on school, i couldn't even muster community college while living at home.

so, i packed up and moved several states away with myself, a suitcase, and my horse. long story short, that wasn't what i dreamed it would be, and i came to the realization that i wanted to be a vet. i went from no school, to signing up for 8 years! making the decision myself, however, made all the difference in the world. i knew WHY i was doing it and that it needed to be done. my first semester was all Bs and a C, but i did well after that, and voilà, im almost done with 6 of the 8 years 🙂-0).

what i'm saying, is that you might be surprised with yourself now that you've had some time off and really want this. also, like pressmom said, you're in a good place to get a good start, so get in there, find the learning resource center and get tutors, schedule studying time into your day, and git'erdone! heh. infinivet also posted some really helpful study/life skillz that help her get through vet school in the vet forums if you can find that.

sorry that was so long, i'm not usually long winded, lol. hopefully some of it was helpful.

 

[DVMorBust]

hey Natacha -

i was in a similar situation in high school. i did alright, but i HATED school with a passion. it was all i could do to go every day. i just knew my mom would have me sell my horse if i dropped out, lol. that being said, there wasn't a chance in hell that i was going to college afterwards. i was so soured on school, i couldn't even muster community college while living at home.

so, i packed up and moved several states away with myself, a suitcase, and my horse. long story short, that wasn't what i dreamed it would be, and i came to the realization that i wanted to be a vet. i went from no school, to signing up for 8 years! making the decision myself, however, made all the difference in the world. i knew WHY i was doing it and that it needed to be done. my first semester was all Bs and a C, but i did well after that, and voilà, im almost done with 6 of the 8 years 🙂-0).

what i'm saying, is that you might be surprised with yourself now that you've had some time off and really want this. also, like pressmom said, you're in a good place to get a good start, so get in there, find the learning resource center and get tutors, schedule studying time into your day, and git'erdone! heh. infinivet also posted some really helpful study/life skillz that help her get through vet school in the vet forums if you can find that.

sorry that was so long, i'm not usually long winded, lol. hopefully some of it was helpful.

So, I was just about to post an answer and thought I'd see what others had wrote...then I went 😱

With a few minor adjustments (finished freshman year before packing off, taking a couple years after to sort out what I wanted to do) that was pretty much what I wrote.

Ah, horses. What is it about them that makes high school seem unimportant?

 

[shelterURIgirl]

Hi Natacha,

I was a horrible high school student. I failed math and science courses, and I had to give 110% just to maintain C's. I was so miserable, I left high school early with a GED and began working full time (Funny thing, I also had a horse to support, lol.)

ANYWAYS, I found that college was completely different than HS. I am a free-spirited "outside the box" thinker, and I struggle to learn in a restricted, controlled thinking environment. I found the college environment to be more suiting to my style of learning.

So the point is, how you did in HS doesn't mean jack. So I say forget high school, and focus on your future. Don't dwell on the mistakes you made in the past or try to re-do things to fix them. Learn from those mistakes and move forward. And remember, your not alone!

 

[sumstorm]

Another key point is to find a college that really suits you. I transferred after my freshman year because I HATED the small, liberal arts college I was at (excellent professors who were extremly knowledgeable about thier fields but who told me on a regular basis that my only 'job' was to go to school....that I couldn't/shouldn't work and around students who had never worked.) I transferred to another small, liberal arts college where nearly every student worked and the professors supported the mixture of school and work, and it made every bit of a difference. I went from feeling always stressed and alone to feeling exhausted but part of a dynamic learning community.

Other key differences, for me, included a heavy focus on research based learning at my alma mater, along with a tri-mester system that encouraged work with longer breaks that didn't tend to match the break's of other schools. An extremly open-door, supportive administrative faculty, and an attitude of mutual growth. Schools vary so much that finding a good match is probably the most important thing you can do to excel in college.

 

[Caninerepro]

I would pretty much second everything said here so far. Also, you are most welcome to post/hang out here on the list -- you are what this place is for! High school has pretty much nothing to do with college and beyond. I believe you said that you have taken a bit of time off since HS and I think that is probably the best thing anyone could ever do before trying college. Me, I allowed myself to be pushed straight into college, and I floundered big time because of it. I did not really want to be there, nor did I have any clue just how important higher education really was -- I had no real world, on my own make it or break it experience. So, I dropped out of school after about two years, and ran off to bush Alaska! Subsequently, after trying to make my way in the world without a college degree, I learned just how important having even a bachelors degree is to being able to make a decent wage. Had I taken a year or so off between HS and college I would have learned that earlier, and probably been more driven to succeed as well as emotionally mature, which it sounds like you now are. 😎

It took me a while to get my butt back in school, plus to make up for all those earlier horrible grades first time through. Fortunately you do not have that handicap, and can now just do excellent from the start! No holes to dig yourself out of. So, if this is something you REALLY want to do, work hard and do it! I think community college is a great way to ease back into academia, it is cheaper that a 4 year school, and if things where you are are like here in Colorado, the classes transfer directly to a regular university. Go for it! Hey if I can do it (just accepted to vet school), you can too. Sorry, but I am almost always long winded. 🙂

Kai

 

[Airplay355]

I went to community college first and if you don't have to I would not recommend it. While you do save A LOT OF MONEY you end up being behind unless you're absolutely sure on what school you want to go after. 3 classes I took transfered in, but they did not transfer in as anything I needed so I have a pile of electives that aren't helping me graduate on time. Also, upper level science courses don't always transfer in as easily as lower ones so you generally have to take 2 years of crappy liberal arts type stuff and then 2 years of straight science. Last semester I took cardiovascular physiology, organic chem 1, physics 1 and a stupid 400 level humanities course. Now I'm taking bio chem, cell bio, physics and ochem II. So unless you absolutely need to save the cash or you definitely know what school you are going to get into after so you can coordinate your your classes I would advise against community college. I'm a medical biology major and I won't be graduating on time because of 1 class that my college has deemed I NEED, that class is a liberal arts english history class. Even though I have 9 extra elective credits they won't let me substitute anything or take any CC classes at home over the summer to replace it.

If you want to get a 4 year degree, go to a 4 year school. 🙂