Different study method from H.S VS College?

[pinkmedicine]

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Hello I was just wodnering... people are always saying you cannot use the high school study method when you are in college...
But I feel like I'm still using the same method and my grades are not as good as how I want them to me...
What kind of study methods do you guys use or have suggestion to me ^^;
I want to make a lot of improvements when I go to my second year but I'm just not really good at coming up with my own new study method....

 

[Notecard]

How are you studying now?

 

[ChemistWiz]

Hello I was just wodnering... people are always saying you cannot use the high school study method when you are in college...
But I feel like I'm still using the same method and my grades are not as good as how I want them to me...
What kind of study methods do you guys use or have suggestion to me ^^;
I want to make a lot of improvements when I go to my second year but I'm just not really good at coming up with my own new study method....

Welcome to SDN

As far as your question, it really does depend on how you are studying now, but usually people tend to not be prepared for college, so you study more, or differently there. Like colleges don't really assign homework, they recommend things that you should do, but you don't have to do them, you of course should though.

 

[R2pharmD2]

Hello I was just wodnering... people are always saying you cannot use the high school study method when you are in college...
But I feel like I'm still using the same method and my grades are not as good as how I want them to me...
What kind of study methods do you guys use or have suggestion to me ^^;
I want to make a lot of improvements when I go to my second year but I'm just not really good at coming up with my own new study method....

Using the same methods is one thing, but are you devoting more time to studying? There are plenty of college courses that require a large time commitment, and there aren't any clever study tricks that are going to change that. Not that you shouldn't try to find ways to study efficiently though.

For me, there isn't a one size fits all approach that I can take to studying. If I'm learning a chemical pathway, I'll diagram it out repeatedly. If I'm just memorizing definitions, I'll use flashcards. For math, practice problems are a must. Ditto for O-chem. For simple courses, just re-reading powerpoints a few times was usually enough. When all else fails, writing things out repeatedly usually works.

You'll have to try out different techniques to see what works for you, keeping in mind that you probably need to up your time commitment more than anything.

 

[cjflahave]

Using the same methods is one thing, but are you devoting more time to studying? There are plenty of college courses that require a large time commitment, and there aren't any clever study tricks that are going to change that. Not that you shouldn't try to find ways to study efficiently though.

For me, there isn't a one size fits all approach that I can take to studying. If I'm learning a chemical pathway, I'll diagram it out repeatedly. If I'm just memorizing definitions, I'll use flashcards. For math, practice problems are a must. Ditto for O-chem. For simple courses, just re-reading powerpoints a few times was usually enough. When all else fails, writing things out repeatedly usually works.

You'll have to try out different techniques to see what works for you, keeping in mind that you probably need to up your time commitment more than anything.

👍

This reminds me I need a new dry erase board. My old one is too messy from too much use for O-chem and biochem.

 

[pinkmedicine]

How are you studying now?

Hey there~

So usually for memorizing I use flash cards and for course such as math or chem I tend to do a lot of practice problems. For the classes that I seem to struggle with, I receive tutoring that my school offers but my grade always seem to be on the slightly below average... what could I be doing wrong?

 

[pinkmedicine]

Welcome to SDN

As far as your question, it really does depend on how you are studying now, but usually people tend to not be prepared for college, so you study more, or differently there. Like colleges don't really assign homework, they recommend things that you should do, but you don't have to do them, you of course should though.

Yeah I hear a lot of people telling me that you cannot use high school study method but... what kind of other "methods" are out there? 0_0 usually for math classes for any classes that needs solving, I just do a lot of problems from the previous midterms or finals and for classes that need memorizing I use flashcards. I am pretty much devoted to my timing I think. I usually come to school around 8 in the morning and stay in the library until 6 and then leave (I commute haha^^😉 But my grade is still around average or sometimes even below! ....I think I am doing something terrible wrong here....

 

[pinkmedicine]

Using the same methods is one thing, but are you devoting more time to studying? There are plenty of college courses that require a large time commitment, and there aren't any clever study tricks that are going to change that. Not that you shouldn't try to find ways to study efficiently though.

For me, there isn't a one size fits all approach that I can take to studying. If I'm learning a chemical pathway, I'll diagram it out repeatedly. If I'm just memorizing definitions, I'll use flashcards. For math, practice problems are a must. Ditto for O-chem. For simple courses, just re-reading powerpoints a few times was usually enough. When all else fails, writing things out repeatedly usually works.

You'll have to try out different techniques to see what works for you, keeping in mind that you probably need to up your time commitment more than anything.

Yeah maybe I can try out the repetition by writing out that might seem to help to get in carved into my memory >.< Usually for math or memorizing course, I use the similar method just like you. But maybe I can try to focus more and make the repetition part more effective....???

 

[pinkmedicine]

👍

This reminds me I need a new dry erase board. My old one is too messy from too much use for O-chem and biochem.

Haha maybe I should get one too when I'm memorizing things. (Hang the formulas on the wall and stare at them every morening 0_0 that might not be such a bad idea )

 

[Rouelle]

Personally, high school taught me nothing about effective studying. I could spend an hour (maybe) the night before a test and come out ok. In college, I found that MUCH more time was required, at least for the "hard" classes. It was not at all uncommon for me to start studying for an ochem or physiology exam a week or more in advance. Study time needs to be quality, uninterrupted time where you can focus. Some may disagree with me, but I could never do the study group thing because all the people were too distracting to me. I found it worked out best to find a remote corner in the library and hide for a few hours.

 

[170]

Hello I was just wodnering... people are always saying you cannot use the high school study method when you are in college...
But I feel like I'm still using the same method and my grades are not as good as how I want them to me...
What kind of study methods do you guys use or have suggestion to me ^^;
I want to make a lot of improvements when I go to my second year but I'm just not really good at coming up with my own new study method....

High school did not prepare me for college... AT ALL... In college I found the best way to study is to read the book. Most professors are lazy and just teach whatever the book says (there are exceptions though)...Besides, why spend 200$ on a book you aren't going to read?

Also I found that you have to study the professor... try to analyze the lecture styles, usually professors hint during lectures on what they feel is most important... and what is probably is going to be on the exams...

 

[lllix]

Personally, high school taught me nothing about effective studying. I could spend an hour (maybe) the night before a test and come out ok. In college, I found that MUCH more time was required, at least for the "hard" classes. It was not at all uncommon for me to start studying for an ochem or physiology exam a week or more in advance. Study time needs to be quality, uninterrupted time where you can focus. Some may disagree with me, but I could never do the study group thing because all the people were too distracting to me. I found it worked out best to find a remote corner in the library and hide for a few hours.

Agreed. In high school, I sailed by with honours every year (not that it is really hard to achieve honours in high school, but anyways...) and I probably spent the first two years of my undergrad figuring out how to study "properly." As such, a lot of my pre-req courses like calc and o-chem have really poor grades despite the fact that I took much more difficult courses in my upper years and got really good grades in them.

Study groups do not work for me at all. Unless I am already one hundred percent confident in the material and am just getting a partner to compare answers to a practice final that doesn't have an answer key or having them quiz me on my flash cards in a *non-distracting setting* there is no way I can study in a group. Even studying NEAR other people can distract me. You literally have to find the right study conditions for you where you focus with minimal distractions. that means having a bathroom nearby and plenty of snacks so that you can't make excuses about needing to go buy food or something. And also avoiding the computer as much as possible (i know this is hard to do when powerpoint slides and resources are often found online, but if you don't need a computer to do what you need to do, then make sure that it is off and completely out of sight, otherwise you will end up on facebook or playing minesweeper for hours. true story.)

As someone else also mentioned, the strategies for different classes always vary, but I definitely say that practice problems are key for most classes especially math and chemistry based courses. I also always try to review my notes AS SOON AS POSSIBLE after every lecture (like even five minutes later). This reinforces the material and calls to attention any bizarre notes that you either can't read due to bad handwriting or that just don't make sense to you. That way you can go online or talk to the prof right away to clear up your understanding. Then when you go back to review for an exam you don't have to fight to form a basic understanding and can get straight to memorization and internalization of key concepts and practice applying them.

 

[LazyMooch]

High school did not prepare me for college... AT ALL... In college I found the best way to study is to read the book. Most professors are lazy and just teach whatever the book says (there are exceptions though)...Besides, why spend 200$ on a book you aren't going to read?

Also I found that you have to study the professor... try to analyze the lecture styles, usually professors hint during lectures on what they feel is most important... and what is probably is going to be on the exams...

100% agreed! Knowing your professor as far as how they test/teach is probably more important than knowing the material (as far as GPA is concerned).

Besides that, prioritize classes. Not every class deserves the same amount of studying. Freshman classes as a whole don't generally require much studying.

 

[lllix]

High school did not prepare me for college... AT ALL... In college I found the best way to study is to read the book. Most professors are lazy and just teach whatever the book says (there are exceptions though)...Besides, why spend 200$ on a book you aren't going to read?

Also I found that you have to study the professor... try to analyze the lecture styles, usually professors hint during lectures on what they feel is most important... and what is probably is going to be on the exams...

One hundred percent agreed. I spent my first 2 years buying all the books and not even touching them. My grades drastically improved when i realized that they are actually useful.

And studying the prof is so true too. Sometimes you literally have to tailor your assignment/exam/whatever writing style just to suit the instructor. Pay attention to all the details they have regarding format and if they show you an example for writing a paper, writing out a problem, etc., mimic their style as much as possible.

 

[phathead]

I never studied in high school for anything, so college was a bit of a rude awakening.

One of the things that you have to get out of your head is that you can simply memorize everything and regurgitate it. While that will work for some classes, especially lower level ones, it will eat you alive when you get to like a second semester biochem course or, to a lesser extent, Orgo.

Focus on understanding the conceptual concepts from classes like calc, chem, etc. Don't just memorize a reaction, but try to understand why that reaction is occurring. Developing that higher level of thinking will, as I have learned in the past year, greatly help you during pharmacy school.

It's a PIA at times, and occasionally its the harder route, but it will pay off in the end.

 

[ttpharm]

Use past midterms, if given, to understand what types of questions as well as how the professor asks them. Do every possible scenario for a type of problem. For example, 1st row transition metals could be low or high spin whereas 2nd and 3rd row are all low spins. Practice for all scenarios.

 

[JADpharm28]

Since high school was a joke, I never really studied. I would cram the night before and pass with an A or B on exams. When I got to college I decided to really start out strong & buckle down.

Personally, I take very detailed notes in lecture so I can get as much of the information as possible. About a week before the test I go through the notes, rewrite the things in an "outline" format of what I am supposed to be studying. I review this and sometimes I even type it up and print it out. I have found that re-writing and typing it helps a lot in classes such as bio, chem, psych, soc, classes like that where they have a lot of note taking.

I am also a fan of notecards because even if you don't use them a lot, atleast you took the time to rewrite the information, which helps sink it into my head a little more. You just need to try a variety of different ways of studying. It may take some trial and error, but in the long run it will help.

 

[pinkmedicine]

Personally, high school taught me nothing about effective studying. I could spend an hour (maybe) the night before a test and come out ok. In college, I found that MUCH more time was required, at least for the "hard" classes. It was not at all uncommon for me to start studying for an ochem or physiology exam a week or more in advance. Study time needs to be quality, uninterrupted time where you can focus. Some may disagree with me, but I could never do the study group thing because all the people were too distracting to me. I found it worked out best to find a remote corner in the library and hide for a few hours.

THank you for the reply! Actually I agreewity you as wel. I'm not good at studying in groups unless I actually know the material and I am just there to review for myself by teaching others ^0^

 

[pinkmedicine]

High school did not prepare me for college... AT ALL... In college I found the best way to study is to read the book. Most professors are lazy and just teach whatever the book says (there are exceptions though)...Besides, why spend 200$ on a book you aren't going to read?

Also I found that you have to study the professor... try to analyze the lecture styles, usually professors hint during lectures on what they feel is most important... and what is probably is going to be on the exams...

Wow I guess studying your professor is really important since a lot of the people mentioned it before. I guess doing well in college is not ust about how much you can study but also how well you can adapt to the different teaching style and different environment. Thank you so much for your reply!

 

[pinkmedicine]

Agreed. In high school, I sailed by with honours every year (not that it is really hard to achieve honours in high school, but anyways...) and I probably spent the first two years of my undergrad figuring out how to study "properly." As such, a lot of my pre-req courses like calc and o-chem have really poor grades despite the fact that I took much more difficult courses in my upper years and got really good grades in them.

Study groups do not work for me at all. Unless I am already one hundred percent confident in the material and am just getting a partner to compare answers to a practice final that doesn't have an answer key or having them quiz me on my flash cards in a *non-distracting setting* there is no way I can study in a group. Even studying NEAR other people can distract me. You literally have to find the right study conditions for you where you focus with minimal distractions. that means having a bathroom nearby and plenty of snacks so that you can't make excuses about needing to go buy food or something. And also avoiding the computer as much as possible (i know this is hard to do when powerpoint slides and resources are often found online, but if you don't need a computer to do what you need to do, then make sure that it is off and completely out of sight, otherwise you will end up on facebook or playing minesweeper for hours. true story.)

As someone else also mentioned, the strategies for different classes always vary, but I definitely say that practice problems are key for most classes especially math and chemistry based courses. I also always try to review my notes AS SOON AS POSSIBLE after every lecture (like even five minutes later). This reinforces the material and calls to attention any bizarre notes that you either can't read due to bad handwriting or that just don't make sense to you. That way you can go online or talk to the prof right away to clear up your understanding. Then when you go back to review for an exam you don't have to fight to form a basic understanding and can get straight to memorization and internalization of key concepts and practice applying them.

Yeah I know avoiding computer as much as possible. I think I have to admit to myself that when there is computer right in front of you it can be really distracting. I'm not a huge fan of facebook but I tend to read interesting articles or go to blogs to read and things like that haha. But also, I think rewriting note does help because at first I didn't believe in whole re-writing the note because I thought it was a waste of time but when I started recently for the summer session, I noticed that it might have some benefits because when I re-write the note, my mind automatically think back to the lecture. Thanks for the advice~

 

[pinkmedicine]

I never studied in high school for anything, so college was a bit of a rude awakening.

One of the things that you have to get out of your head is that you can simply memorize everything and regurgitate it. While that will work for some classes, especially lower level ones, it will eat you alive when you get to like a second semester biochem course or, to a lesser extent, Orgo.

Focus on understanding the conceptual concepts from classes like calc, chem, etc. Don't just memorize a reaction, but try to understand why that reaction is occurring. Developing that higher level of thinking will, as I have learned in the past year, greatly help you during pharmacy school.

It's a PIA at times, and occasionally its the harder route, but it will pay off in the end.

yeah in high school I was a huge fan of ust memorizing and producing the results when the tests come because it is really easy to simply memorize then to actually know the concepts behind the material. I guess one way for me is to also change how I think when I'm studying for these materials. Thank you for your reply by the way~!

 

[pinkmedicine]

Since high school was a joke, I never really studied. I would cram the night before and pass with an A or B on exams. When I got to college I decided to really start out strong & buckle down.

Personally, I take very detailed notes in lecture so I can get as much of the information as possible. About a week before the test I go through the notes, rewrite the things in an "outline" format of what I am supposed to be studying. I review this and sometimes I even type it up and print it out. I have found that re-writing and typing it helps a lot in classes such as bio, chem, psych, soc, classes like that where they have a lot of note taking.

I am also a fan of notecards because even if you don't use them a lot, atleast you took the time to rewrite the information, which helps sink it into my head a little more. You just need to try a variety of different ways of studying. It may take some trial and error, but in the long run it will help.

Me too! I'm a huge fan note notecards of flash cards haha. But I think re-writing lecture note right after the lecture can be very beneficial because at first, I thought rewriting notes is a huge waste of time but when I tried it out recently during my summer session... I think it seems to have a pretty good impact on my studies. I actually have midterm tomorrow and this thursday so I guess I'm going to see how well I am going to do after I took a lot of advices. Thank you very much!

 

[JonWin]

Hi there!

I am about to be in my second year as well.

This is how I have studied so far. I am not sure if it'll work for you but feel free to give it a try!

1. If you find yourself getting too distracted at home or in your dorm room because of the TV, fridge, or your bed, I would suggest going to the library. If you're going to the library to study, try your best not to pull out your laptop while studying unless you HAVE to use it. Spend a good amount of time in the library. Perhaps 2 or 3 hours just reviewing lecture notes repeatedly or reading a chapter or two. Bring a snack and a drink as well because you might get tired after an hour of studying.

2. I find that most of the time, studying in a group fails. My friends usually end up getting way too distracted by their laptops and I tend to end up studying on my own. Unless the exam has questions over topics that you completely have no idea about, group studying is not recommended. However, if you trust that your group of friends are dedicated to review/study and get it over with as soon as possible, then studying in a group is fine.

3. If you have an exam coming up and your teacher has provided links to old practice exams over the same kind of stuff, I would print them out and try them. First, study over the material for a bit. Take the sample exam. For all the questions you missed, just review your notes again and try to do them again. If that fails, try to talk to your professor during office hours.

4. As another poster said above, learn how to study for certain subjects. For math, repetition is key. Re-work and solve problems over and over until you feel comfortable. For biology, I'd say read the material and try to remember the terms/diagrams and such by using flashcards and diagrams.

5. If you're the type of person who ends up cramming on the night before the test, try to change the habit! A lot of people recommend that you start studying a week prior to an exam. If you find that you aren't able to do that, try to study 3-4 days prior to an exam first and just work your way from there.

Hope this helps! 🙂