I just feel like giving up!

[Danyelle1]

I just got my grades for the semester, I got a C+ in organic I. I definitely was expecting somewhere in the B range so that was a huge dissapointment for me. I just feel like I am never going to do well enough to get into a school and stay in the school. I am aiming towards MCPHS worcester and I am planning on applying this summer.

Right now, after this horrendous semester, I only have a 3.1 GPA.
I am a CPhT, with 5 years of experience as a tech, including 2 years retail, one year as an IV tech, and a hospital tech for the past two years.

I have been volunteering at Make a wish foundation, but only have around 25 hours so far.

Do you guys think I have any shot at all? I was a business major before, with a 2.9GPA. I pulled a 3.7 my first two semesters as a bio major, but they were fairly easy classes. Now that I am into the more difficult subjects, I got a 2.5! I dont know what to do.

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[atticus27]

maybe

 

[Passion4Sci]

Well it'll be tough. There's obviously something you're lacking... be it the appropriate time spent studying, or the correct type of studying, or the focus (freedom from distractions) necessary... Or the fact that some people simply are not "science people." You were driven toward business from one reason or another, probably your enjoyment of other people / extroversion?

If you feel like you're sticking a square peg into a round hole then you might very well be. Have you considered seeking some help from a chemistry / biology tutor to see if it's a fundamental problem? A 2.9 GPA in a business program to a 3.7 in easy classes, then a 2.5 in hard classes seems to indicate you're not doing something right... The usual culprit in my experience is a lack of time management.

So... give us some insight into how you prepare yourself for your classes?

 

[crazybob]

I just got my grades for the semester, I got a C+ in organic I. I definitely was expecting somewhere in the B range so that was a huge dissapointment for me. I just feel like I am never going to do well enough to get into a school and stay in the school. I am aiming towards MCPHS worcester and I am planning on applying this summer.

It's worth a try.

Right now, after this horrendous semester, I only have a 3.1 GPA.
I am a CPhT, with 5 years of experience as a tech, including 2 years retail, one year as an IV tech, and a hospital tech for the past two years.

You have good work experience, so you can definitely discuss that in your personal statement and possibly your interview.

I have been volunteering at Make a wish foundation, but only have around 25 hours so far.

Again, you can talk about what you have learned from this. Also, try looking into volunteering with other organizations where you can have direct interactions with patients.

Do you guys think I have any shot at all? I was a business major before, with a 2.9GPA. I pulled a 3.7 my first two semesters as a bio major, but they were fairly easy classes. Now that I am into the more difficult subjects, I got a 2.5! I dont know what to do.

If you keep working hard and putting your mind to it, then you can get a good GPA and get accepted. If you're struggling with your pre-requisites now, go talk to your classmates, professors, and tutors to get help.

 

[marcj]

Don't give up. You just need to try harder in your pre-reqs! You should take a smaller class load, and focus on those courses.

Honestly, the cumulative GPA is not as important as your GPA in pre-reqs; the reason is that a lot of people slack off during their undergraduate studies, they wise up after a few years, and want to become professionals. These students may end up being great doctors, pharmacists, etc., and have just as much potential of success as a honor student coming from a local college. Just my .02

 

[nicolemsm]

I just got my grades for the semester, I got a C+ in organic I. I definitely was expecting somewhere in the B range so that was a huge dissapointment for me. I just feel like I am never going to do well enough to get into a school and stay in the school. I am aiming towards MCPHS worcester and I am planning on applying this summer.

Right now, after this horrendous semester, I only have a 3.1 GPA.
I am a CPhT, with 5 years of experience as a tech, including 2 years retail, one year as an IV tech, and a hospital tech for the past two years.

I have been volunteering at Make a wish foundation, but only have around 25 hours so far.

Do you guys think I have any shot at all? I was a business major before, with a 2.9GPA. I pulled a 3.7 my first two semesters as a bio major, but they were fairly easy classes. Now that I am into the more difficult subjects, I got a 2.5! I dont know what to do.

First, may I ask how in the heck you managed to get a 2.9 as a business major? Did you party too much or something? Second, it's great you have 5 years experience, life experience is better than a GPA any day. Have you taken the PCAT? It seems since you have taken orgo you're probably going to take it or have taken it- that should be a deciding factor whether or not you want to go into pharm. How many more pre-reqs do you have to take- also tying into that, what schools are you currently looking ? If you look those schools up at Pharmcas that should help narrow down prospective schools b/c they have minimum & avg GPAs of accepted students.

 

[rxlea]

I just got my grades for the semester, I got a C+ in organic I. I definitely was expecting somewhere in the B range so that was a huge dissapointment for me. I just feel like I am never going to do well enough to get into a school and stay in the school. I am aiming towards MCPHS worcester and I am planning on applying this summer.

Right now, after this horrendous semester, I only have a 3.1 GPA.
I am a CPhT, with 5 years of experience as a tech, including 2 years retail, one year as an IV tech, and a hospital tech for the past two years.

I have been volunteering at Make a wish foundation, but only have around 25 hours so far.

Do you guys think I have any shot at all? I was a business major before, with a 2.9GPA. I pulled a 3.7 my first two semesters as a bio major, but they were fairly easy classes. Now that I am into the more difficult subjects, I got a 2.5! I dont know what to do.

You can still get in. Retake Orgo though and get an A this time! Worcester likes experience, but you need to meet their 3.0GPA minimum. Like Passion4sci said, maybe you need to change your study/time management habits.

 

[Danyelle1]

Yeah, a 2.9 in business is horrible. I hated it! I thought thats what I wanted to do, so I took some classes while I was in high school and then the year after. I worked in a pharmacy at the time and enjoyed that, so I took time off of school to work full time to see if thats really what I wanted to do. It is!

By fairly easy, these include Bio 1 and 2, A+P, envionmental bio,evolution, etc. This semester I took Organic, Physics(which i got a B) Sociology(A-) and Pre calc which i already signed up to take over. I rewrote all of my organic notes, went to study sessions, and did practice exams but still ended up with a C+. Its frustrating to put so much effort into something and have nothing to show. I am thinking I really have no idea HOW to study, because I spend quite a bit of time doing it.

 

[Danyelle1]

I am planning on applying this summer, so I won't be able to retake Organic I, unless I can somehow work out a way to take it over the summer and get my grade transfered over quickly?

 

[docss26]

I just got my grades for the semester, I got a C+ in organic I. I definitely was expecting somewhere in the B range so that was a huge dissapointment for me. I just feel like I am never going to do well enough to get into a school and stay in the school. I am aiming towards MCPHS worcester and I am planning on applying this summer.

Right now, after this horrendous semester, I only have a 3.1 GPA.
I am a CPhT, with 5 years of experience as a tech, including 2 years retail, one year as an IV tech, and a hospital tech for the past two years.

I have been volunteering at Make a wish foundation, but only have around 25 hours so far.

Do you guys think I have any shot at all? I was a business major before, with a 2.9GPA. I pulled a 3.7 my first two semesters as a bio major, but they were fairly easy classes. Now that I am into the more difficult subjects, I got a 2.5! I dont know what to do.

I have a similar gpa and a decent PCAT. You have a lot of experience, which is good and those ECs are great. I had all that plus 6 months of research and I was on the executive board for 3 university organizations. I think you have a shot, just apply and see what happens. Keep your head up.

 

[rxlea]

I am planning on applying this summer, so I won't be able to retake Organic I, unless I can somehow work out a way to take it over the summer and get my grade transfered over quickly?

You can't take it in the Spring? Then stick with the C and get an A in Orgo II

 

[UES Girl]

Don't give up. You just need to try harder in your pre-reqs! You should take a smaller class load, and focus on those courses.

Honestly, the cumulative GPA is not as important as your GPA in pre-reqs; the reason is that a lot of people slack off during their undergraduate studies, they wise up after a few years, and want to become professionals. These students may end up being great doctors, pharmacists, etc., and have just as much potential of success as a honor student coming from a local college. Just my .02

That's not necesserily true, overall GPA is an important factor in admissions, sometimes even a cut off line that determines if you even qualify to apply to a certain school or not.

 

[iluvcooking]

keep trying! don't give up if it's something you really want to do. but you have to identify your problem with studying first so you can fix it now. it could be stress that is leading to bad study habits.

 

[docss26]

That's not necesserily true, overall GPA is an important factor in admissions, sometimes even a cut off line that determines if you even qualify to apply to a certain school or not.

I feel like it was true for me. My overall gpa was about a 3.2 but my major GPA (biology) was a 3.8.

 

[phathead]

Don't give up. You just need to try harder in your pre-reqs! You should take a smaller class load, and focus on those courses.

Honestly, the cumulative GPA is not as important as your GPA in pre-reqs; the reason is that a lot of people slack off during their undergraduate studies, they wise up after a few years, and want to become professionals. These students may end up being great doctors, pharmacists, etc., and have just as much potential of success as a honor student coming from a local college. Just my .02

No offense, but you are a psych major. What do you know about getting into pharmacy school?

I dug myself out of a much much deeper hole than you find yourself in right now. I did give up for a short while and it was the worst decision I made in my life.

You'll be fine, all you need to do is find that fire that keeps you motivated on your darkest days. That's how I've been plugging along the last few years.

 

[Transformer]

DON"T GIVE UP!

Took me 3 tries to get in but eventually I was accepted (Too much partying in college, my fault)

Know how you feel. I felt like giving up a lot in those 3 years and sometimes I still do. If pharmacy is truly what you wanna do as a career, you will somehow pull through.

Stay positive! Keep reading SDN forums, it will keep you focused and well informed.

Good luck!

 

[rxlea]

Yeah, a 2.9 in business is horrible. I hated it! I thought thats what I wanted to do, so I took some classes while I was in high school and then the year after. I worked in a pharmacy at the time and enjoyed that, so I took time off of school to work full time to see if thats really what I wanted to do. It is!

By fairly easy, these include Bio 1 and 2, A+P, envionmental bio,evolution, etc. This semester I took Organic, Physics(which i got a B) Sociology(A-) and Pre calc which i already signed up to take over. I rewrote all of my organic notes, went to study sessions, and did practice exams but still ended up with a C+. Its frustrating to put so much effort into something and have nothing to show. I am thinking I really have no idea HOW to study, because I spend quite a bit of time doing it.

Sounds like you need a tutor. What concepts are you having trouble with? You should do lots of practice problems. If you are having this much trouble in Orgo I, Orgo II will be much worse because you have to memorize a bazillion reagents and mechanisms.

 

[WhiskeyandXanax]

Now that I am into the more difficult subjects, I got a 2.5! I dont know what to do.

Where there is a will, there is a way.

FYI, if this stuff was easy, then everyone would be doing it! Secrete some testosterone and get it done....or don't. Your choice, your time, your investment. What does it cost to become a pharmacist? How many office hours will you be willing to attend for that extra aid? Can you honestly look into the mirror and say that you gave it your all?

I think you need to get some ass glue and drop a few friends. Your mileage may vary...

 

[MrMeowphers]

People need to stop slacking off on their studies and simply "Man-up"

Just handle your business in the class-room, and it'll be one less thing to stress about when you apply to professional schools.

 

[medicalCPA]

First, may I ask how in the heck you managed to get a 2.9 as a business major? Did you party too much or something? Second, it's great you have 5 years experience, life experience is better than a GPA any day. Have you taken the PCAT? It seems since you have taken orgo you're probably going to take it or have taken it- that should be a deciding factor whether or not you want to go into pharm. How many more pre-reqs do you have to take- also tying into that, what schools are you currently looking ? If you look those schools up at Pharmcas that should help narrow down prospective schools b/c they have minimum & avg GPAs of accepted students.

OK, I just read this and had to reply. Do you think business is a cakewalk? I was an accounting major, and some of the classes I had to take were no joke.

Do not be quick to judge a major because you think it's easy, when in reality you have no idea what it entails.

 

[nicolemsm]

OK, I just read this and had to reply. Do you think business is a cakewalk? I was an accounting major, and some of the classes I had to take were no joke.

Do not be quick to judge a major because you think it's easy, when in reality you have no idea what it entails.

Oh kind sir, I do have an idea of what it entails. I have taken "business" classes and they WERE not hard.......
I by no means think it's easy, however I know dozens of business majors (from international business to accounting, economics, etc YOU name it, I know one and they've all managed to pass with 3.3+s. The OP said they majored in business. Not accounting, not econ, not whatever. So straight business. It's not hard to go to class everyday and learn about supply/demand/marketing, etc. I'm not discrediting the business major at all, but from past experience and seeing some of my friend's work I know it's not AS hard as engineering/science majors. Take for example ASU (one of my state colleges curriculum) :
http://catalog.asu.edu/files/majormap09/AGBUABS.pdf

Here's a sample of a Business Administration degree. The only hard things I see are 2 calc classes and 2 sciences... I know for many pharm students this would be a walk in the park...... Come on we have to take orgo, chem, biology, a&p, chem, stats, etc.

Do you get my point? It's not hard to get a 3.0 by any means. Because if you notice there are SO many filler elective classes YOU'RE in control of your GPA.

To also add to that, I at one point was actually going to major in econ because the subject intrigues me--- that didn't last very long. Business is a very difficult major in terms of communication& knowing people. Sure it's all networking-- that's hard for some people & unless you go to the "right " colleges you probably won't be at the top of your game right out the gate.


Don't miscontrue my words about business being easy- it isn't. But a 2.9... that has to be a joke. YOU choose your major. Why not choose something that's "easy" for you??? Ask anyone & they'll say business is a joke degree along w/ communication majors.

 

[crazybob]

Oh kind sir, I do have an idea of what it entails. I have taken "business" classes and they WERE not hard.......
I by no means think it's easy, however I know dozens of business majors (from international business to accounting, economics, etc YOU name it, I know one and they've all managed to pass with 3.3+s. The OP said they majored in business. Not accounting, not econ, not whatever. So straight business. It's not hard to go to class everyday and learn about supply/demand/marketing, etc. I'm not discrediting the business major at all, but from past experience and seeing some of my friend's work I know it's not AS hard as engineering/science majors. Take for example ASU (one of my state colleges curriculum) :
http://catalog.asu.edu/files/majormap09/AGBUABS.pdf

Here's a sample of a Business Administration degree. The only hard things I see are 2 calc classes and 2 sciences... I know for many pharm students this would be a walk in the park...... Come on we have to take orgo, chem, biology, a&p, chem, stats, etc.

Do you get my point? It's not hard to get a 3.0 by any means. Because if you notice there are SO many filler elective classes YOU'RE in control of your GPA.

They may sound like joke classes to you, but if there's a difficult professor for any of those classes, it can be ridiculously hard. Also, if you have a family or other difficult situations that come up during the semester, there's no choice but to risk a lower GPA to take care of your situations.

Don't miscontrue my words about business being easy- it isn't. But a 2.9... that has to be a joke. YOU choose your major. Why not choose something that's "easy" for you??? Ask anyone & they'll say business is a joke degree along w/ communication majors.

You're judging the OP based on his GPA without knowing his background or what he does outside of school. You're making assumptions like: if you think it's easy for you, then other people should also think it was easy. If they don't, they're just dumb.

You think that business majors should be getting at least 3.3 or so just because the ones you know are doing that. Well, those few people you know do not make up everyone, and we see one case here that isn't like the norm.

Oh and about the "ask anyone" part, only people who are confident enough to tell you will say such a thing. Ones who don't want to discuss it might cover it up with a lie instead of being honest. Consider that too.

 

[nicolemsm]

They may sound like joke classes to you, but if there's a difficult professor for any of those classes, it can be ridiculously hard. Also, if you have a family or other difficult situations that come up during the semester, there's no choice but to risk a lower GPA to take care of your situations.

ratemyprofessors.com.... enough said

You're judging the OP based on his GPA without knowing his background or what he does outside of school. You're making assumptions like: if you think it's easy for you, then other people should also think it was easy. If they don't, they're just dumb.

You think that business majors should be getting at least 3.3 or so just because the ones you know are doing that. Well, those few people you know do not make up everyone, and we see one case here that isn't like the norm.

Oh and about the "ask anyone" part, only people who are confident enough to tell you will say such a thing. Ones who don't want to discuss it might cover it up with a lie instead of being honest. Consider that too.

I'm not trying to make assumptions however that was only one sentence of my post. I did try and ask what he was involved in, if he'd taken pre-reqs/ etc. I wasn't ragging on his GPA @ all like this is being made out by you guys. Plus he has 5 yrs exp. in pharm ... I did kudo him on that. I was trying to look @ the whole candidate. NOT just his GPA. As I said, that was only 1 sentence of my reply........ but it's being so heavily weighed upon.


Of course I understand the people I know aren't the only business majors to exsist, however it's consensus that business isn't AS painstakingly hard as chemical engineering( i use that for example b/c engineering majors usually have the worst GPAS) ..... just food for thought.

 

[crazybob]

ratemyprofessors.com.... enough said

The thing about that, is that there are lots of personal opinions in there, and you can't always trust it because you may have different opinions about the same professor after taking the course.

I've read reviews on there about good professors and I agreed with those reviews. But some reviews were negative, but I disagreed with them after taking the courses.

 

[nicolemsm]

The thing about that, is that there are lots of personal opinions in there, and you can't always trust it because you may have different opinions about the same professor after taking the course.

I've read reviews on there about good professors and I agreed with those reviews. But some reviews were negative, but I disagreed with them after taking the courses.

So far I've had great luck with rmp but another thing people do besides reading that is to socialize and ask people who they've taken. Similarly if you're a tad bit smart about your education you have friends in classes/ roommates w/ similar if not exact majors who can tell you advice/their experience with teachers. I know many people are mirror images of their friends, so if rmp doesn't work - next best step is friend's opinions. I personally have friends in every year of college so it's good to get advice for kids 4 yrs up on me, 3 yrs up on me, 2, etc. of course rmp can be taken as a grain of salt, but if your school offers Blackboard it's good to take a peak at what certain professors syllabuses are like and see the kind of work they assign. I make sure to ask around, read around and most importantly see for myself what teachers are like before signing up. It's very important to not get stuck with a crap professor @ my school b/c classes fill up FAST and I'm not being stuck w/ bottom of the barrel. Although it's a very lengthy process it pays off in the end KNOWING beforehand what you are going to be going through. That's just my 2cents and so far it's really worked for me...

 

[rxlea]

The ASU W.P.Carey School of Business is no joke. It may be no Harvard but it is ranked pretty damn high. It is ridiculously competitive and VERY hard if you are into Finance or CIS. I remember how stressed out the business majors were at ASU, especially the Honors College business majors. They never slept. The CIS students spend HOURS and HOURS on their programming projects. The students that graduate from that school get six figure job offers right out of school. My girlfriend told me that one of her professors said, "In order to get an A, you have to do something exceptional."

 

[rxlea]

The thing about that, is that there are lots of personal opinions in there, and you can't always trust it because you may have different opinions about the same professor after taking the course.

I've read reviews on there about good professors and I agreed with those reviews. But some reviews were negative, but I disagreed with them after taking the courses.

I laugh out loud sometimes when I read those ratings. Especially when students so "OMG he was soooo hard" and "She was so condescending!" I usually prefer the professors who demand a lot from their students and I usually get along well with professors that other students view as "condescending" LOL

 

[diastole]

Yeah, a 2.9 in business is horrible. I hated it! I thought thats what I wanted to do, so I took some classes while I was in high school and then the year after. I worked in a pharmacy at the time and enjoyed that, so I took time off of school to work full time to see if thats really what I wanted to do. It is!

By fairly easy, these include Bio 1 and 2, A+P, envionmental bio,evolution, etc. This semester I took Organic, Physics(which i got a B) Sociology(A-) and Pre calc which i already signed up to take over. I rewrote all of my organic notes, went to study sessions, and did practice exams but still ended up with a C+. Its frustrating to put so much effort into something and have nothing to show. I am thinking I really have no idea HOW to study, because I spend quite a bit of time doing it.

It sounds like it is way too early to give up. I don't consider A&P to be an easy class. In fact, I took the second semester over the summer and the pace and difficulty are comparable to what I'm seeing so far in pharmacy school.

Organic is just a different type of class. You can do it the easy way or the hard way. The hard way is to memorize, memorize, memorize. The easy way to understand where and why those electrons are going to move and if you have a handle on that, you can practically predict the reactions. If you can do that, then learning them is not that bad. Some people have recommended this book called Organic Chemistry as a Second Language. I haven't personally tried it but I keep seeing its name come up. Maybe you can look into it?

Regardless, you shouldn't base your aptitude for pharmacy school on this one class. Regular readers of this forum know that several people have flunked this class and are doing just fine in pharmacy school. It is way too early to give up. Just see how it goes next semester.

 

[desklamp]

I just got my grades for the semester, I got a C+ in organic I. I definitely was expecting somewhere in the B range so that was a huge dissapointment for me. I just feel like I am never going to do well enough to get into a school and stay in the school. I am aiming towards MCPHS worcester and I am planning on applying this summer.

Right now, after this horrendous semester, I only have a 3.1 GPA.
I am a CPhT, with 5 years of experience as a tech, including 2 years retail, one year as an IV tech, and a hospital tech for the past two years.

I have been volunteering at Make a wish foundation, but only have around 25 hours so far.

Do you guys think I have any shot at all? I was a business major before, with a 2.9GPA. I pulled a 3.7 my first two semesters as a bio major, but they were fairly easy classes. Now that I am into the more difficult subjects, I got a 2.5! I dont know what to do.

If it helps at all to encourage you, I just got accepted to a pharmD program with a 2.7 undergrad GPA (I had like a 1.9 one semester) and no pharmacy experience.

I think your extracurriculars are important in balancing out your GPA. Additionally find a feasible explanation in your personal statement for your grades, and then prove to Adcom that your undergrad GPA does not accurately measure your intelligence or work ethic.

It seems that applying to schools that actually look at PCATS (and doing exceedingly well on them) might help balance out GPA. Additionally, consider doing a one year masters program (IMS, etc), doing post bacc courses, or retaking classes.

No worries! Just keep on working hard. Your CphT experience is already a plus.