Just can't get the a's...

[armynavy123]

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[the duck]

Hi,

I am soon to be in 9th grade and eventually (I know somehow I may change my mind but better to prepare) I want to get into a bs/md program. Now obviously this requires 3.6+ and lately in my classes I am getting 3.2 unweighted and I only got one 3.8 unweighted this whole year. I want to do better and will be willing to sacrifice anything to get this. I have three problems...

1.I study a lot but the tests seem to have some questions that trip me up anyways.
2. Even when I do my best on homework and spend mass amounts of time on it I STILL mess up and do something wrong.
3. My brain's long term memory is horrible. When the time comes for a chapter review I am not prepared, and I don't have enough time to cover the mass amount of curriculum we are supposed to know.

I really want to get 3.8's-4.0's in high school so I have some hope of getting into a bs/md program one day or any other career I may choose to go in. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!!

Wow! I want to congratulate you on the fact that you are actually able to type coherently, unlike many of your peers, it's a skill that will really serve you well in life!

Next year, you should try studying for exams, go over the material before tests, quiz yourself, make sure you actually know and understand it when you don't have the book right in front of you, make flash cards, read over your notes and the textbook. I don't think many people can really be taught info once, and then not have to review it again before an exam.

Also though, don't forget to have fun, you're only young once, don't worry about getting into a BS/MD program, the vast majority of doctors ( including top people in their fields) go the traditional route, and apply to medical school after undergrad.

Best of luck!

 

[armynavy123]

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[the duck]

Thanks. I already study a lot but usually it is a couple days before tests. I guess I will start studying even earlier than that now--and it won't be the end of me if I one day don't get into a BS/MD program but it would be a great opportunity to be accepted into one. Yes, I have enough fun to satisfy myself .

hmm. You shouldn't really need more than a few days before an exam in high school to study, focus on learning how to study more efficiently.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Hi,


1.I study a lot but the tests seem to have some questions that trip me up anyways.
Studying is good.. but you need to refine your study methods and optimize them or simply change them even. There are different methods which are effective for different people and you will need to find which one works best for you. ( That being said.. I'd tell you that active processing is statistically the best method, so if in doubt.. bring out printer paper and summarize your notes onto that or study groups with friends).
2. Even when I do my best on homework and spend mass amounts of time on it I STILL mess up and do something wrong.
Maybe you're going around it wrong.
3. My brain's long term memory is horrible. When the time comes for a chapter review I am not prepared, and I don't have enough time to cover the mass amount of curriculum we are supposed to know.
This is more of a learned hopelessness defense mechanism. Your long term memory is probably fine for someone your age.

Overall if you feel like you are not getting the material down as well as you would like, you should go speak to your teachers. They will help you and will give you some study tips or hints about how to get the material down better. Secondly you need to really relax a bit, take it slow.. you're a 9th grader who's already interested in BS/MD programs. I'll guess that less than 5% of your school even knows about these programs. You should try to have as much fun and learn a wide variety of things in high school as possible. This is the time when you really are developing into your adult self, so don't feel the need to put too much stress on yourself or else frankly you'll turn into a lame turtle .

 

[Bowchickawowwow]

Hi,

I am soon to be in 9th grade and eventually (I know somehow I may change my mind but better to prepare) I want to get into a bs/md program. Now obviously this requires 3.6+ and lately in my classes I am getting 3.2 unweighted and I only got one 3.8 unweighted this whole year. I want to do better and will be willing to sacrifice anything to get this. I have three problems...

1.I study a lot but the tests seem to have some questions that trip me up anyways.
2. Even when I do my best on homework and spend mass amounts of time on it I STILL mess up and do something wrong.
3. My brain's long term memory is horrible. When the time comes for a chapter review I am not prepared, and I don't have enough time to cover the mass amount of curriculum we are supposed to know.

I really want to get 3.8's-4.0's in high school so I have some hope of getting into a bs/md program one day or any other career I may choose to go in. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!!

You're pretty young, and that's why I'd encourage you to look beyond BS/MD. During my early years in HS, I was really into the idea as well, but later on I realized that they basically strip you of an adequate college experience and in some cases, hold you back from reaching your full potential. If you were impressive enough to get into a GMED program at say, Meharry (I don't think Meharry has one, but it'll suffice for my representation of a "lesser" desired medical school), wouldn't you be as motivated in High School and perhaps get into a GREAT medical School?

Think about it, you have plenty of time!

As far studying goes, if you have a test, go over the stuff the night before and immediately go to bed. That way your brain will basically have time to mull over it all night, works for me. Besides that, you need to derive an adequate study plan that works for YOU, there is no definitive "plan." Besides, you're in the 9th grade, it's a transitionary period, you'll get the hang of it!

 

[armynavy123]

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[skierbum]

yeah...um see my signature And check out open course ware and khanacademy.org...they are great for reviewing and studying. You have lots of time to improve.

 

[armynavy123]

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[HH Holmes]

I posted this in another thread similar to yours, in the same forum. I admire your ambition... I was just like you when I was in 8th grade, and hard work will get you there (I just sent in my enrollment to a 7 year BS/DO program a few months back -- it feels great)...

I'm graduating from the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB) Programme in my high school, and I've learned a few valuable lessons for studying that will probably translate to all higher level (AP, IB, college level etc) classes:

1. Keep two notebooks for each course. One for class, and one for home/library. Take notes regularly in class (like normal people). Then, either every time you have the class, or before an exam, copy all the notes from that unit neatly and as organized as possible into your second notebook. Re-writing helps you study, and then at the end of the year, or for any other cumulative exam, you have a succinct, neat and organized study guide. Do not type it! Writing in your own handwriting makes you remember it a lot easier than word processed font. I don't know why this works for and a bunch of other people I've talked to, but it does.

2. Go to your professors' office hours/extra help/tutoring sessions (whatever your school calls it). In our school, every morning, starting an hour before classes begin each teacher is required to be in a specified classroom to meet with students. It helps... A lot. Don't just go when you don't understand something, or right before a test. Showing your face more often shows that you care, and you're interested (even if you're not). I can't guarantee it'll get you higher marks, but I can guarantee it won't make your grades go down. The top three kids in my school (going to Yale, Princeton and Harvard, respectively) all go to these hours routinely... Like at least three times per week. It sucks sometimes, but it's well worth it.

3. Don't cram. I hate to say it, because I usually resort to it, but it never works. If you have the time, like I said in my first tip, re-write down your notes from the class every day you have the class. Instead of studying a whole unit before an exam for a few hours and getting burnt out, you probably will only need to study less than an hour if you re-write and review for just five to ten minutes everyday.

4. For math and physics classes where there isn't wrought memorization, don't view a problem as a "note" like in history, biology or chemistry... View an equation or formula as a sequence. Memorize the steps and patterns, not individual numbers hoping that something similar comes up on the exam.

5. Consult others/books/internet/YouTube. This one a lot of people are skeptical about, but for me, it has worked wonders. I have a calculus teacher who literally has no idea how to teach. She is nice, smart and thorough, but for some reason my class and I cannot "click" into her teaching style. I found a great tutor on YouTube.com who makes videos for everything in calculus... From things as simple as the power rule to as difficult as differential equations. The same should go for physics, chemistry and so on.

Hope I helped... These are vague and seemingly simple, but are very effective if employed properly. Happy learning, and good luck with high school. Make it count!

 

[armynavy123]

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[HH Holmes]

Wow, thanks. That's pretty inspiring. Plus the study tips were just what I was looking for. My school offers an after school homework club. I think I will start doing that now.

Glad I could help... PM me for anything BS/MD or BS/DO you need -- or anything college related for that matter. I'd love to help if I could.

 

[armynavy123]

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[Mace1370]

You didn't mention what types of classes you are having trouble with (math, history, English, etc). When I tutored in college these courses required very different approaches to do well.

 

[armynavy123]

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[I'm No Superman]

Math:
I had a similar problem with math at the beginning of my high school career. I used to always make simple mistakes that would lower my grade. basically for math there are just a couple things that I used to do well.

1. Do everything, homework, EC, practice problems. The more practice you have the better you will do.
2. Always double check and re-read the question. I can't tell how many times I missed an easy question because I read it wrong.
3. If you are having trouble understanding a certain concept, see your teacher for help. Last year I had a lot of trouble with trig identities, but my teacher went through some problems step-by-step, which helped me a lot.
4. Math Always sounds harder than it is. Just make sure to figure out the equation first.

History:
I have to be honest, history was my least favorite class of all. It is mainly memorization, and none of it was particularly interesting to me. However, I studied it like this.

1. Take notes. this is sort of a given, but taking detailed accurate notes has never been detrimental to ones grade. I think that JChait's "two notebook" theory would work really well for history classes.
2. In my high school at least, there are two main history classes, World and American. World is much more broad spectrum, not going into terribly specific detail on events, While American covers a much shorter time period and goes into more detail. Chances are that you will prefer one class over the other.
3. Read the book. It's surprising how many people do not read the history book. It is not surprising whose grades are generally lower. There's not that much else that I did for history... I did not like the class at all.

English:

1. Do not put off that research paper until the last week. If you could finish your paper a few days before it is do, your teacher may proof read it, or make suggestions on how to improve it.
2. Read the stories, don't just sparknote it. Although I use sparknotes a lot, and it is moderately accurate, there are inconsistencies on sparknotes and their are often details that are left out that may be on the test (for instance, a Great Gatsby summary had east and west egg switched).
3. Take notes on the big topics. Many stories can be categorized into Literary styles such as modernism, transcendentalism, naturalism, etc. all of the stories within a certain group have many similar themes. Again, I would recommend using JChait's notebook idea in this class.

Science:

1. Take notes. This is incredibly important in science classes. Draw pictures of cell structures, make diagrams of the kreb's cycle. Anything to help memorize the information. You know what, just use two notebooks for every class, I love that idea.
2. Studying for chemistry is sort of like studying for math and history. Read about the subject, and do the problems. Detailed notes on topics like bond types and reactions would help a lot.
3. Anatomy. Memorization, take notes, draw pictures and diagrams. That's about all you can do for anatomy.

I hope this helps. I think it's awesome how dedicated you are and how important school is to you as a freshmen. I really wish that I would have came into high school with the same attitude. I'm sure you'll do fine.

 

[armynavy123]

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[I'm No Superman]

Thanks for all the information!

No problem, just remember to have fun in high school as well.