How smart should you be to stay competititve?

[theapplicant]

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I'm concerned about a grade I received as a first-year student in Open Studies program. I just got my grade back for first-year Chem, which fortunately turned out to be A. After a moment of relief, I started to look at the details of the grade and I started to worry. My midterm and final were just above 80% (my course demand 88% to meet A requirement) but I still managed to get 88% overall because of labs and tutorials, which are not hard to ace through if you're diligent enough to do the work in advance and ask lots of questions from the TAs. Basically, I got the grade because of hard-work, not because I had the skill. This isn't organic chem; the concepts in Chem shouldn't be that hard, but I still didn't get good grades for the major tests. And yes, I did actually study and put some effort in preparation. (BTW, my prof's pretty good... so it's not his fault)

Even if I do manage to meet the admission's requirement, I'll be playing in a completely different playground when I'm competing against pharmacy students who are all intelligent and skilled. Things will get a lot more tougher when I compete for industry-field jobs in pharmacy, where the competition would be even more intensive.

And this is not taking global recession into consideration.

You could laugh and say this is a typical shock period for first year students, but I'm genuinely concerned. I should be at peak, and I'm 100% sure that I won't get smarter or anything like that. I'm in a small college that just changed into university, so it's not like I'm competing against hundreds of students. (We have about 50 people, give or take)


I'm nerve-wrecked and I don't even know how to end this conversation. At this trend, I'm probably getting B+ at best in Organic chem and biochem courses. (Which sucks as most pharm schools want 3.5 GPA to be competitive, which is BS as more people are pouring into pharm... so I'd imagine A- or higher is probably the real target)

Am I overthinking this or is this a sign for me to reconsider the pharmacy? Help.

 

[Indypharm]

You are totally over thinking. However, if you are concerned you didn't learn the topics in the general chem course, study on your own. See how you do next semester, maybe more things will "click." Just because you got the score you did on your exams does not mean that you didn't do well. That was my worst chem grade. I don't like inorganic and I didn't find the concepts "easy." Just because you are taking intro level science courses does not mean that they should be easy. At my school, those classes are deliberately difficult to weed-out those who can't handle so they don't delude themselves into thinking they have a shot at medical school.
As far as pharmacy school, your GPA (while very important) is not the only consideration schools will look at when you apply. Volunteer. be a member of a club or better yet an officer in the club. Get a job as a tech if you think you can handle the hours. You need to demonstrate your ability to maintain a good gpa while being a well-rounded candidate. They want to know if you can balance several responsibilites at one time and still succeed. Good luck, don't get discouraged...save that for Organic 1.

 

[Indypharm]

I also wanted to highlight this:

"but I still managed to get 88% overall because of labs and tutorials, which are not hard to ace through if you're diligent enough to do the work in advance and ask lots of questions from the TAs. Basically, I got the grade because of hard-work, not because I had the skill."

This is a VERY important quality that you are dismissing. I don't think you realize just how uncommon this is.

 

[theapplicant]

As far as pharmacy school, your GPA (while very important) is not the only consideration schools will look at when you apply. Volunteer. be a member of a club or better yet an officer in the club. Get a job as a tech if you think you can handle the hours. You need to demonstrate your ability to maintain a good gpa while being a well-rounded candidate. They want to know if you can balance several responsibilites at one time and still succeed. Good luck, don't get discouraged...save that for Organic 1.

May sound like a silly question, but it's sorta important to me. Is pharm admission weigh volunteer experience more than work experience? I could volunteer as a pharm tech or I could keep on working as PT lab technician with decent pay and occasional commission (not much, but they add up in the long run). The tech position deals with generating lenses. It's not pharm field, but the responsibilities are sorta similar to pharm tech in a way. (Following accurate steps in timely manner in lab-setting environment. Reading the prescription/order form in detail is important so that you don't screw up with the order... etc.)

But yes, I'll see how well I do next time. Strange thing is, I'm pretty sure I got the concept under control. I'm going to see if I can see my final even though it's been over a week since they graded the paper.

I also wanted to highlight this:

"but I still managed to get 88% overall because of labs and tutorials, which are not hard to ace through if you're diligent enough to do the work in advance and ask lots of questions from the TAs. Basically, I got the grade because of hard-work, not because I had the skill."

This is a VERY important quality that you are dismissing. I don't think you realize just how uncommon this is.

Pretty sure that kind of quality is common in a field where GPA of over 3.5 is considered competitive... unless you're a genius, but that's beside the point.

 

[xtsukiyox]

This isn't organic chem; the concepts in Chem shouldn't be that hard, but I still didn't get good grades for the major tests.

I reject this premise. First, you pulled an A - you would have had a B without the "hard work points." First year chem is generally a weed out class. It's not necessarily tough because of the material, it's tough because of the pace / harsh grading / any number of other gimmicks pulled in a weed out class. Often, these sorts of classes have standardized curricula and/or tests, which results in either the prof teaching to the test or the students being surprised because the prof didn't teach to the test.

Tell you a secret: I got a B in Gen Chem II & the lab. Still ended up with a 3.91 science GPA and an A in O Chem I & II and labs.

Even if I do manage to meet the admission's requirement, I'll be playing in a completely different playground when I'm competing against pharmacy students who are all intelligent and skilled.

Pharmacy students put their pants on one leg at a time, just like you.

You could laugh and say this is a typical shock period for first year students, but I'm genuinely concerned. I should be at peak, and I'm 100% sure that I won't get smarter or anything like that. I'm in a small college that just changed into university, so it's not like I'm competing against hundreds of students. (We have about 50 people, give or take)

I think you're downplaying the first year college adjustment. A lecture hall of 50 students is completely different from a high school class. You will have an adjustment period. Profs teach different at University than the teachers in high school, and it takes time to learn to play the game. You'll get it. Even very bright people bomb the first semester or two for various reasons - and I wouldn't call an A even close to bombing it.

If you feel you understand the content and you got a good grade (an A or B), count it as a win.

At this trend, I'm probably getting B+ at best in Organic chem and biochem courses.

O Chem / Biochem are not Gen Chem. They do not translate.

(Which sucks as most pharm schools want 3.5 GPA to be competitive, which is BS as more people are pouring into pharm... so I'd imagine A- or higher is probably the real target)

What school are you looking at..? Many schools have a minimum of 2.5, and their matriculating classes are somewhere in the low 3s. A 3.5+ is very competitive, and it's admirable to aim high, but do the best that you can. If you can honestly say when the final's done, "I did my best," try to let that be enough - if not, regroup for next semester.

After you've settled into the college rhythm, I would highly suggest looking for things to round your application out - volunteering, or pharmacy experience. Yes, pharma schools are looking for good students - but they're looking for well-rounded people, too.

Am I overthinking this or is this a sign for me to reconsider the pharmacy? Help.

You're overthinking. If you make As & Bs in your science classes, with maybe a few more of the former than the latter, you'll be fine.

To address your "hard work points" comment - an objective of the Gen Chem series is to get you to produce good lab reports, and you obviously do that.

Here's an alternate explanation for your A: What if they add more points to the grading syllabus BECAUSE good students usually score low on tests? They want to separate not only the students who don't get it / lack study skills, but perhaps they also want to separate the students who breeze through tests & blow off homework. They want someone who will stick it out. I tend to think this might be the case, since they curved your 88% to an A.

 

[theapplicant]

What school are you looking at..? Many schools have a minimum of 2.5, and their matriculating classes are somewhere in the low 3s. A 3.5+ is very competitive, and it's admirable to aim high, but do the best that you can. If you can honestly say when the final's done, "I did my best," try to let that be enough - if not, regroup for next semester.

After you've settled into the college rhythm, I would highly suggest looking for things to round your application out - volunteering, or pharmacy experience. Yes, pharma schools are looking for good students - but they're looking for well-rounded people, too.

Is the admission in general favor volunteer over work, or it doesn't matter? I have the option of volunteering as pharm tech or PT lab technician at Lenscraft. (Pay's decent, and my so-called manager has Xbox 360 in the break room... the awesomeness)

I'm looking for Canadian universities, like UofA or UofWaterloo. UofA pharm website recommends 3.5 GPA with letter of intent and extracurricular lists. (They don't look at PCAT. I suspect this may be why the GPA recommendation is high... maybe?

Here's an alternate explanation for your A: What if they add more points to the grading syllabus BECAUSE good students usually score low on tests? They want to separate not only the students who don't get it / lack study skills, but perhaps they also want to separate the students who breeze through tests & blow off homework. They want someone who will stick it out. I tend to think this might be the case, since they curved your 88% to an A.

Haha, that's flattering. But no, the GPA scaling for this course is A starting at 88%.

100 - 95% = A+
88 - 94% = A
81 - 87% = A-
....

But I think I get the point. Thanks.

 

[ben30856]

Also take this into account: As you go up in your education you will learn how to learn, how to deal with harder materials. It means the organic chemistry is tougher than general chemistry but you know how to digest it this time.

good luck

 

[Corpseman]

I reject this premise. First, you pulled an A - you would have had a B without the "hard work points." First year chem is generally a weed out class. It's not necessarily tough because of the material, it's tough because of the pace / harsh grading / any number of other gimmicks pulled in a weed out class. Often, these sorts of classes have standardized curricula and/or tests, which results in either the prof teaching to the test or the students being surprised because the prof didn't teach to the test.

Tell you a secret: I got a B in Gen Chem II & the lab. Still ended up with a 3.91 science GPA and an A in O Chem I & II and labs.



Pharmacy students put their pants on one leg at a time, just like you.



I think you're downplaying the first year college adjustment. A lecture hall of 50 students is completely different from a high school class. You will have an adjustment period. Profs teach different at University than the teachers in high school, and it takes time to learn to play the game. You'll get it. Even very bright people bomb the first semester or two for various reasons - and I wouldn't call an A even close to bombing it.

If you feel you understand the content and you got a good grade (an A or B), count it as a win.



O Chem / Biochem are not Gen Chem. They do not translate.



What school are you looking at..? Many schools have a minimum of 2.5, and their matriculating classes are somewhere in the low 3s. A 3.5+ is very competitive, and it's admirable to aim high, but do the best that you can. If you can honestly say when the final's done, "I did my best," try to let that be enough - if not, regroup for next semester.

After you've settled into the college rhythm, I would highly suggest looking for things to round your application out - volunteering, or pharmacy experience. Yes, pharma schools are looking for good students - but they're looking for well-rounded people, too.



You're overthinking. If you make As & Bs in your science classes, with maybe a few more of the former than the latter, you'll be fine.

To address your "hard work points" comment - an objective of the Gen Chem series is to get you to produce good lab reports, and you obviously do that.

Here's an alternate explanation for your A: What if they add more points to the grading syllabus BECAUSE good students usually score low on tests? They want to separate not only the students who don't get it / lack study skills, but perhaps they also want to separate the students who breeze through tests & blow off homework. They want someone who will stick it out. I tend to think this might be the case, since they curved your 88% to an A.

I posted this earlier, but I guess the server was down at the time.

This post is spot-on!

You really need to be a motivational speaker! I always feel more confident after reading your posts and they are not even directed at me!!

 

[Notecard]

Even if I do manage to meet the admission's requirement, I'll be playing in a completely different playground when I'm competing against pharmacy students who are all intelligent and skilled.

Here is your problem. Stop worrying about what other people can do and focus on how you can bring your B- test grades up to an A. Pharmacy students really aren't much different than regular students. There are a few clever students who get it without trying but I'd say the majority are hard working kids like yourself. They are doing fine and you will too if you keep at it and leave your inferiority complex behind.

A big part of going to college is figuring out how you learn. Focus on that part and you'll be fine.

 

[owlegrad]

I had no idea we pharmacy students were expected to be a different breed of human; I am going to have to step up my game. 😉

But seriously, there is no difference (or very little difference) in the actual students, the only difference is at this level you learn to deal with a crazy, ridiculous workload. The sooner you start learning how to do that, the better. 👍

 

[xtsukiyox]

Is the admission in general favor volunteer over work, or it doesn't matter? I have the option of volunteering as pharm tech or PT lab technician at Lenscraft. (Pay's decent, and my so-called manager has Xbox 360 in the break room... the awesomeness)

I'm sure it depends on the school. The rule of thumb is that they want well-rounded students. Personally, I'd take the pharmacy related job, then maybe volunteer somewhere I was passionate about on the weekends or something, regardless of whether it's related to pharmacy or not. I'm biased though - I've always worked & gone to school.

I'm looking for Canadian universities, like UofA or UofWaterloo. UofA pharm website recommends 3.5 GPA with letter of intent and extracurricular lists. (They don't look at PCAT. I suspect this may be why the GPA recommendation is high... maybe?

Yes, Canadian universities are a different ball of wax, from what I understand. Most people on here are talking about US pharma schools. You're right, btw - from what I've seen, if the school doesn't look at the PCAT, they have a somewhat higher GPA for matriculating classes.

For now, concentrate on doing the best you can in your classes and aim for the prereqs for your top choice schools. When you get to the point of applying, then you can reevaluate if you need to.

 

[xtsukiyox]

This post is spot-on!

You really need to be a motivational speaker! I always feel more confident after reading your posts and they are not even directed at me!!

😀 Thanks for the kind words. Glad it's helpful!

 

[Indypharm]

No decent school is going to fault you for working. You are going to have to volunteer though, but you can do that here and there over the next few years. Work at a soup kitchen on thanksgiving. We have a day of service at our school, if you have that do it. Find a way to volunteer once a month or for a few hours once a week. I would take the job and find other volunteer opportunities. You are going to need the money.

Is the admission in general favor volunteer over work, or it doesn't matter? I have the option of volunteering as pharm tech or PT lab technician at Lenscraft. (Pay's decent, and my so-called manager has Xbox 360 in the break room... the awesomeness)

I'm looking for Canadian universities, like UofA or UofWaterloo. UofA pharm website recommends 3.5 GPA with letter of intent and extracurricular lists. (They don't look at PCAT. I suspect this may be why the GPA recommendation is high... maybe?




Haha, that's flattering. But no, the GPA scaling for this course is A starting at 88%.

100 - 95% = A+
88 - 94% = A
81 - 87% = A-
....

But I think I get the point. Thanks.