Feeling a little unmotivated

[masterMood]

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Hi all i make this brief and ask for some suggestions and what you did to pull along. I did pretty well my first semester, and I think this has played a big reason as to why i'm being really lazy right now. Last semester I went hardcore study (i'm a 2nd semester freshman), but now I feel really lazy and unmotivated. I'm not sure if its the distaste to reading a lot right now (I enjoy the stuff don't get me wrong, but my attention span is really short), or that once winter break began I shut my brain off 'permanently.'

I'm sure many of you were in this type of situation or in the opposite (bad 1st, really picked up 2nd).

Maybe another factor is the weather? It's been pretty sh*Tty the past couple of weeks as well.

 

[youngnflyy]

I understand where you're coming from, I'm now a 2nd semester Sophomore, so I've been where you are. I think that all of us "Hit the wall" eventually. Really what helps me get out of it is a stern kick in the.....For instance really bombing an exam usually is all the help you need considering most of us as pre-med's are ultra competitive even if we won't admit it openly. Just try to take some time to yourself to really relax and clear your mind.

 

[Chris127]

I can relate somewhat to this...I guess. I am a 2nd semester freshman as well, and I cant seem to shake my procrastination habits. I mean it is seriously becoming a major issue with me. I didnt do so hot my first semester, so I really need to get things going this time around. I know I can, and I realize I am not living up to my abilities. Its just that, I come back from class, and I know I should look over the material, so I do. For chem, lets say, its like a few equations/concepts. I look it over for 5 minutes, and realize that, hey, this is pretty easy. So then I naturally blow it off. Two weeks later I am freaking because I havent kept up with the class.

Even now, if I had one piece of advice for anyone about to enter college, it would be to keep up with your courses. Everyday. And I feel wrong saying this because this is something I have never done. Ever. Grade school, high school, and even now. I could breeze by in previous years, now I cant, and I took a hit my first semester. One semester isnt the end of the world though, but if I do this for 3-4 semesters, I may have screwed myself over for med school.

Am I unmotivated? Maybe. I am always thinking about my courses, always attending, paying attention, and taking excellent notes in class. Even outside of class, I am thinking about test dates, future quizzes, etc. But, do I do any physical work outside of class? No. This needs to change.

Its not that I am unmotivated, but maybe that I am in a habit that I have been in since grade school. A habit that consists of doing absoutely nothing outside of class. My first semester of undergrad, I would read all the chapters of my Geo/Socio class the night before, for Chem/Bio I would start reading the book 1.5-2 days before the test. It just doesnt work. And when you leave all this work and studying to do a few nights or so before the exam, and leaves you kind of depressed. BUT, I am confident that if I can break this current habit that I have, and actually just DO some work when I get back from class each day, that I could be the student I want to be. I've heard it plenty of times before, its what seperates the top of the group from the pack. Now I just need to do it.

Maybe a little motivation here for the freshman, any of you out there bombed your frosh year and really became motivated and slam dunked the rest of undergrad (eventually getting into med school)?

 

[Boon Doctor]

Man, I'm glad I am not the only one going through this. I'm a second semester freshman here also, but I blame myself for visiting SDN too often. I discovered SDN after my Fall semester and that's when I hit the wall. I don't study like I used to, and I spend most of my time thinking about getting into medical school -- forgetting that studying is what's gonna get me in there. Also, last semester, I kept striving for such perfection that my lowest A was a 96 but what I shortly learned is that on a transcript, an A is an A! OMG, I nearly burnt myself out for nothing. For instance, in Cal I, I could've made a 58 on the final and still escape with an A, but guess who still spent 3 days studying for the final? You got it, me.

The GPA just really doesn't have as much weight as I had originally thought. Just keep it above a 3.5.

 

[Chris127]

The GPA just really doesn't have as much weight as I had originally thought. Just keep it above a 3.5.

Really? How so?

 

[Conqueror]

Don't misconstrue - GPA is still important. However, in my experience, med schools would rather you have a 3.5 and lots of good ECs than a 4.0 and very few ECs. That's how to get into most good schools. Of course, if you're shooting for Harvard/Hopkins, you need a 4.0/42/AND good ECs. If you want schools outside the top 10 though, they'd rather you sacrifice .3 on your GPA and have some really outstanding activities IMO.

FYI I have a 3.5 overall, 3.32 BCMP, and I am still very satisfied with my application/acceptance experience.

CQ

 

[Zoom-Zoom]

Stay motivated, you have a long way to go...



If you need some inspiration, just think about how bad it would be to start your upper div classes with a low(er) GPA. It's kind of like taking a final when you did poorly on the midterm(s)... you know you have to ace it just to pass. When I decided I wanted to go pre-med I had ~2.0, and I can say from experience that it is super, super stressful knowing I need straight A's from now on to even be considered by most schools....especially since I really want to be a doc.

On the flip side, you have every opportunity to start off with super-good grades and give yourself some leeway later on if you get a bad teacher in orgo or something. There are plenty of annoying little things that will happen outside your control to bring down you GPA (unfair tests, an abnormal number of braniacs in your section ****ing up the curve, angry professors, professors who tell you you don't have to know X for the test and they put it on anyway, etc.).....so don't let the things you can control bring you down.


Just my 2 cents.

 

[Rafa]

Second-semester blues are indeed the suck. I have my orgo textbook here, and part of me knows I should be flipping through it since the class (and the spring semester) starts next week...

but I've been going to work during the day and reading short story collections (currently John Cheever) during the afternoons. I already have an idea of what I'm going to get in my classes this semeseter (with the exception of Orgo, which might be an A, a B, or a C), so I'm pretty much waiting for September. This past semester, I raised my gpa from a 2.7 to a 3.3, so I'm officially 'competitive'. By all my calculations though, even if I aced most of my six classes this semester, the most I'd have would be a 3.4x - so I'm finding it really hard to pump up some motivation. :^

 

[Jaykms]

Yeah, motivation is hard sometimes. Just keep in mind that the better you do now, the less you'll have to worry about doing later, like Zoom-zoom said. You still have to keep up your grades, but you'll be less stressed since you know you'll be OK even if you end up with some slightly lower grade due to uncontrollable circumstances.

 

[JSK44]

Wow! You guys are so good. I found out about SDN as I was GOING to my interviews. If you're finding and receiving encouragement and support from premeds on here, I don't think you have anything to worry about for the next 2.5 years. I'm sure you've heard, but if you want it bad enough, you'll get there, don't worry! But definitely don't forget to have fun and enjoy college while you're here! 😳

 

[USArmyDoc]

Don't misconstrue - GPA is still important. However, in my experience, med schools would rather you have a 3.5 and lots of good ECs than a 4.0 and very few ECs. That's how to get into most good schools. Of course, if you're shooting for Harvard/Hopkins, you need a 4.0/42/AND good ECs. If you want schools outside the top 10 though, they'd rather you sacrifice .3 on your GPA and have some really outstanding activities IMO.

FYI I have a 3.5 overall, 3.32 BCMP, and I am still very satisfied with my application/acceptance experience.

CQ

34 MCAT....Realllll average! Man, you SDN people have a sense of humor.

 

[Conqueror]

I never claimed to be average anywhere. Don't put words in my mouth.

I said I have a 3.5/3.2BCMP, which is average. But the main thrust of my post was that a student with a just-OK GPA can still get in with other good stats, which is what I did. If you deny that GPA is overrated, you're hopeless. 🙂

CQ

 

[Rafa]

I never claimed to be average anywhere. Don't put words in my mouth.

Re-read your signature at the top.