Nailing science undergrad

[entitledpremed]

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For those of you who got a high undergrad gpa

What was your study schedule like?
😴
Did you have time to enjoy yourself? drinking, parties, going on exchange programs etc.

What tips can you offer in the way of improving and then maintaining a high gpa?

 

[kcin]

I thought this was going in a different direction

 

[SOcash]

The title of this thread is misleading. 🙁

 

[h9i9j9]

lol, thought this would be a nice long article😛

but the answer your question OP, a friend of mine has a really high gpa, her schedule looks like:

1) study whenever she had time (this sounds bad, but its really not that hard if you're interested in what you're doing)
2) going to all our parties/gathering (but when she's alone, I'm pretty sure she studies quite a lot
3)...errrr...study?

lastly, I just want to ask how is the answers to this thread going to help you?
I mean, there'll be two answers. The coleontheroll answer, "smart=high gpa" (sorry cole, just trying to prove a point...not sure if you'd actually write like that😛), and the anal premed answer, "dedication ftw".....

 

[Hammergin]

Don't do it, you might get an STD

 

[LEUNIT]

Don't do it, you might get an STD

Might be true for communications or RTF, but not here. 🙁

 

[venacontracta]

For those of you who got a high undergrad gpa

What was your study schedule like?
😴
Did you have time to enjoy yourself? drinking, parties, going on exchange programs etc.

What tips can you offer in the way of improving and then maintaining a high gpa?

You study as much as you have to to get the grades you want. The amount of studying required to get a certain grade will vary based on your intellect, aptitude for the subject, and maybe most importantly, with your study skills. Therefore any answer posted here is unlikely to be directly applicable to you.

 

[MB333999]

honestly as long as you use your day efficiently you can study, workout, go out, volunteer, and essentially succeed in all aspects of your life.
so practice making use of your entire day, cause i hear its gonna be a critical skill in med school.

Here's one of my typical days to give you an idea of what i think is a nice balanced day.

Class 10:30 - 12:30
lunch 12:30 - 1:30
Lab 1:30 - 3:30 (i also study in between procedures since there is a lot of waiting time, probably 1 hour of studying)
grab a snack with friends and chill 3:30 - 4:30
Gym 4:30 - 5:30
Make/Eat dinner 5:30 - 7
Study 7 - 8 (solid studying time, not facebook-->sdn-->read page-->facebook-->sdn-->read page)
chill with friends or video games or whatever 8 - 11 (but if im going out that night obviously its 8+)
Study with light snack 11 - 12
lay in bed and watch tv shows 12 - 2
sleep


If i have volunteering to do a certain day, i'll often make a quick dinner to save time, eat quick during the day, and just take out non-necessities.
its important to be flexible.

4.0 most semesters. good luck.

 

[omgyou8myrice]

I'm not going to post up a schedule since everyone's is vastly different, but the key to my high GPA is essentially just consistent studying. Nearly without fault, I set aside 2-3 hours a day every single day to study, catch up on stuff, re-read notes, etc etc. I have a lot of friends who literally study 1-2 days before the test, and that's the first time they look at their notes. They're also the people with 3.0-3.5ish GPAs. Really just depends how much effort and time you're willing to put into it. Keep in mind that 2-3 hours a night may not even be enough.. when I was in organic, I was in the library a LOT.

And for what it's worth, I go out more or less every weekend, and many weeknights as well.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

I haven't started my pre med education yet, but I would assume that everone has different studying style, no?

What works for others may not for you, plus, I would think that you gotta understand the material in order to do well. because if u spend 5 hrs studying something you don't understand, thats not gonna lead you to anything and you might still get a low grade, or flunk.

 

[Tappinfool66]

For those of you who got a high undergrad gpa

What was your study schedule like?
😴
Did you have time to enjoy yourself? drinking, parties, going on exchange programs etc.

What tips can you offer in the way of improving and then maintaining a high gpa?

Mine isn't really high, but it's definitely solid. For my schedule, I actually got to sleep 7-8 hours a night (while a lot of my friends were only sleeping 4-5 and pulling all-nighters occasionally). Someone said study while you can, which sounds bad but really isn't. If you study when you have time and do not get behind, you'll be in a better position when more work starts to come at you later. Procrastination can do you in, so keep on top of everything.

I'm not a party-er, but I did have time to see friends, get out and do stuff. Your work should be your priority, though. If you like to go out and party, do it once in a while and after you've spent a lot of your time on schoolwork, not the other way around.

To improve/maintain your gpa, just keep on top of your work. Study for exams in advance. Don't cram. Get to know your professors - they can (usually) help a lot if you don't get something. Stay focused and remember why you're doing this. Hope that helps 🙂

 

[typicalindian]

- sleep at least 6 hours a night

- study when you are free during the week, dont set aside a time and say "oh...I still have 20 minutes until I have to study let me just watch another tv show" if you just sit down and study whenever you have time, you can stay on top of your work without having to cram for several hours at a time. Obviously you still need to set a solid 2 - 3 hours per day (if time permits) to study but just dont waste your free time doing dumb things.

- pay attention in class, I don't just mean go to class, actually sit there and pay attention, you might as well since you're there anyways.

- keep up with class work throughout the week, dont go the entire week without studying then say "oh i'll study on the weekend"

-go out and have fun when its the weekend, your only spending maybe 4 - 5 hours going to a party at most...if you study during the week during those random breaks between class etc then it will more than make up for the 4 - 5 hours you miss while having fun.

-try working out (cardio, weightlifting etc) because I have been doing it and it really has improved my ability to focus, plus it only takes like an hour per day.

-also you can try taking fish oil tablets, its a supplement (over the counter and I have yet to find anything bad about it, my doctor recommended it to me). I have been taking it for about 3 weeks and my concentration has improved A LOT. Not only is fish oil helpful for lowering risk of heart disease, it helps in building muscle and losing weight, and helps to improve brain function. I have read of studies that show fish oil having a better effect than adderall does on people with ADHD

basically what I'm saying is, always be doing something productive, lounging around wont help. and schedules kind of suck, theres always something that pops up and it just causes you more stress if you try to stick to a schedule when you know you cant.

 

[bucks2010]

honestly as long as you use your day efficiently you can study, workout, go out, volunteer, and essentially succeed in all aspects of your life.
so practice making use of your entire day, cause i hear its gonna be a critical skill in med school.

Here's one of my typical days to give you an idea of what i think is a nice balanced day.

Class 10:30 - 12:30
lunch 12:30 - 1:30
Lab 1:30 - 3:30 (i also study in between procedures since there is a lot of waiting time, probably 1 hour of studying)
grab a snack with friends and chill 3:30 - 4:30
Gym 4:30 - 5:30
Make/Eat dinner 5:30 - 7
Study 7 - 8 (solid studying time, not facebook-->sdn-->read page-->facebook-->sdn-->read page)
chill with friends or video games or whatever 8 - 11 (but if im going out that night obviously its 8+)
Study with light snack 11 - 12
lay in bed and watch tv shows 12 - 2
sleep


If i have volunteering to do a certain day, i'll often make a quick dinner to save time, eat quick during the day, and just take out non-necessities.
its important to be flexible.

4.0 most semesters. good luck.

Wow man... this is luxury. Nicely done.

I guess this a bad time for me to comment on schedules since I'm taking 6 upper-level science classes and just picked up a second job 😱 If I had declared my biology major my freshman instead of sophomore year my life would be a whole lot easier.

 

[BadHorse]

I took a very different path from most of the previous posters. I'm gonna preface this by saying that my method is NOT for everyone, nor do I particularly advocate it for anyone.

I went to class. Every class. I took notes. I paid attention. I did not read for class or do a good job keeping up with work, I went out with friends and wasted lots and lots of time on movies and the most asinine stuff. Then, two weeks before a big exam I'd realize that I knew nothing (I was wrong, paying attention in class you absorb more than you realize, when you see the information again it comes very easily). I tried to start studying right away but usually I'd end up waiting until three days before the exam and start reviewing my notes. I'd review my notes at least twice all the way through, as thoroughly as you can imagine, making absolutely sure I understood every aspect of what I was reading.

Around exam time I'd miss out on some sleep but not too much (think 4 hours of sleep the two nights before a big exam). Still, this method gets stressful and promotes bad habits that probably won't do me any favors when I start med school in August. Also, it was pretty brutal when I had multiple exams, in this case I usually started prepping a little earlier though.

I'm bad with following strict study schedules, I procrastinate like crazy and work much better under pressure. If you're like me just know, there's hope.

 

[Ignatius M.D.]

Class 10:30 - 12:30
lunch 12:30 - 1:30
Lab 1:30 - 3:30 (i also study in between procedures since there is a lot of waiting time, probably 1 hour of studying)
grab a snack with friends and chill 3:30 - 4:30
Gym 4:30 - 5:30
Make/Eat dinner 5:30 - 7
Study 7 - 8 (solid studying time, not facebook-->sdn-->read page-->facebook-->sdn-->read page)
chill with friends or video games or whatever 8 - 11 (but if im going out that night obviously its 8+)
Study with light snack 11 - 12
lay in bed and watch tv shows 12 - 2
sleep


If i have volunteering to do a certain day, i'll often make a quick dinner to save time, eat quick during the day, and just take out non-necessities.
its important to be flexible.

4.0 most semesters. good luck.

Two hours a day? I envy you. I'd have a 2.0.

OP: you have to see what works for you. I definitely agree with the person I quoted in that you need balance. Simply studying all day is less productive in my opinion, and I get a better GPA when I get active in other sorts of things. Thirty minute naps will save you when you get really run down as well.

 

[Malice]

<- 3 jobs, 17-20 credits/semester, research, volunteering, 6 pack, 4.0

I go to every class, pay attention, and take notes. I scheduled my classes so that there are no breaks, and I eat lunch (pb&J) in between classes. If I'm not in class, I'm at research or work. I have literally no downtime until 6:30 3 days a week and 11:00 2 days a week. When I get home, I watch TV shows (downloaded so no commercials) until someone texts me about dinner. I eat dinner/waste time until midnight.

At midnight, I think about how much work needs to be done. If it's 5 hours+ then I'll start it. If it's 2hrs or so then I'll go to the gym. I stay up as late as is necessary to finish work and usually get 2-4 hours of sleep a night. If I have a test the next day, I usually will start a couple hours earlier to study. I never start work/studying until the day before it's due.

On the weekends, I stay out late Friday/Saturday, but get 10+ hours of sleep a night to make up for the previous week. I usually do no work until after dinner on Sunday and I start the cycle all over again.

In short, I can put in the necessary amount of studying/work during the night when most people are wasting their time sleeping. Because I study only the night before an exam/quiz, the material is always fresh in my mind. Many people are unable to perform under low sleep conditions and wonder how I do it. Well, I've been perfecting this for the past 2-3 years and I always catch up on the weekends.

 

[bigbad]

<- 3 jobs, 17-20 credits/semester, research, volunteering, 6 pack, 4.0

I go to every class, pay attention, and take notes. I scheduled my classes so that there are no breaks, and I eat lunch (pb&J) in between classes. If I'm not in class, I'm at research or work. I have literally no downtime until 6:30 3 days a week and 11:00 2 days a week. When I get home, I watch TV shows (downloaded so no commercials) until someone texts me about dinner. I eat dinner/waste time until midnight.

At midnight, I think about how much work needs to be done. If it's 5 hours+ then I'll start it. If it's 2hrs or so then I'll go to the gym. I stay up as late as is necessary to finish work and usually get 2-4 hours of sleep a night. If I have a test the next day, I usually will start a couple hours earlier to study. I never start work/studying until the day before it's due.

On the weekends, I stay out late Friday/Saturday, but get 10+ hours of sleep a night to make up for the previous week. I usually do no work until after dinner on Sunday and I start the cycle all over again.

In short, I can put in the necessary amount of studying/work during the night when most people are wasting their time sleeping. Because I study only the night before an exam/quiz, the material is always fresh in my mind. Many people are unable to perform under low sleep conditions and wonder how I do it. Well, I've been perfecting this for the past 2-3 years and I always catch up on the weekends.

Sounds healthy and effective as a long term habit, bro.

 

[orthomyxo]

The addition of an "s" to the thread title would make it a lot more fun.

 

[deleted357625]

honestly as long as you use your day efficiently you can study, workout, go out, volunteer, and essentially succeed in all aspects of your life.
so practice making use of your entire day, cause i hear its gonna be a critical skill in med school.

Here's one of my typical days to give you an idea of what i think is a nice balanced day.

Class 10:30 - 12:30
lunch 12:30 - 1:30
Lab 1:30 - 3:30 (i also study in between procedures since there is a lot of waiting time, probably 1 hour of studying)
grab a snack with friends and chill 3:30 - 4:30
Gym 4:30 - 5:30
Make/Eat dinner 5:30 - 7
Study 7 - 8 (solid studying time, not facebook-->sdn-->read page-->facebook-->sdn-->read page)
chill with friends or video games or whatever 8 - 11 (but if im going out that night obviously its 8+)
Study with light snack 11 - 12
lay in bed and watch tv shows 12 - 2
sleep


If i have volunteering to do a certain day, i'll often make a quick dinner to save time, eat quick during the day, and just take out non-necessities.
its important to be flexible.

4.0 most semesters. good luck.

good time management right thurr

 

[apumic]

For those of you who got a high undergrad gpa

What was your study schedule like?
😴
Did you have time to enjoy yourself? drinking, parties, going on exchange programs etc.

What tips can you offer in the way of improving and then maintaining a high gpa?

I wasn't an entitledpremed to begin with.

As for studying, I studied about 1 hr/class/wk on average in addition to the req'd hw. I did (and was sure to ace) all req'd hw (generally nothing beyond that except extra credit -- which I always did, regardless of need). I went to every class. I understood every topic conceptually. I did not memorize. I paid attention to what the professor actually wanted me to know and didn't learn extraneous crap. I took good, brief notes (i.e., I did not copy down everything the lecturer said -- only what I determined to be of value out of what the prof said) -- my notes were generally only a couple of pgs typed per class or for classes w/ printable slides, a word or two or an underline or two per slide. I tutored other students.

Further, I conversed with the professor regularly (about tangential topics; not generally about the class itself). I never asked for points back, although I did occasionally argue for other students to get points back. I invited professors to grab lunch when they were around. I built relationships with professors and showed sincere (and appropriate) interest in their lives, professions, etc.

sGPA: 4.0 last 3 years (3.8 overall); top scorer most (all?) classes, so something was working for me.... I put in a lot less effort than a lot of people who did worse, which makes me suspect some (most?) people don't know how to pick out what the professor actually cares about. I suspect this in part b/c many of the good (but not great) scorers take a **** TON of notes!

So my strategy was 3-fold:
1) Understand where the instructor was coming from and base my learning upon that foundation
2) Learn conceptually w/ minimal (or zero) memorization
3) Teach, tutor & guide others


As for a typical schedule, mine changed greatly from semester to semester, but one example would have been:
MWF
8-9:15 O-Chem I
9:30-10:45 Adv Human Physiology
11:00-1:45 Adv Human Physiology Lab (Fri)/O-Chem Lab (Mon/Wed)
2:00-2:45 Lunch
3:00-12a Work at hospital (Tech)

TR
8:00-10:45 General Chemistry II (Instructor)
11:00-12:15 Cell Bio
12:30-1:45 Gen Physics III (Calculus-Based)
2:00-4:30 Gen Physics III Lab (Tues)/Tutoring (Thurs)
5:00-9:30 Volunteer (Tech at Free Clinic)
10-12a Study

Sat
Variable (work 7a-7p some weeks; otherwise, time w/ friends)

Sun
Variable (work 7a-7p some weeks; otherwise, church in the AM; friends and ECs in PM)

Also managed to fit in several fun ECs somewhere in there, but when I write it out, I'm not quite sure where... the weekends, I guess, and whenever I managed to get a day off. Oddly enough, I pulled off regular ECs.

GPA for that semester: 4.0

 

[Geneticist]

The addition of an "s" to the thread title would make it a lot more fun.

Now that is the kind of discussion I'm interested in. 😉

 

[IvyHopeful20]

From another thread:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=10029993&postcount=10

This was my schedule for my last semester. I got plenty of study done, and much of that study time on saturday, I didn't need to do and had more free time. Sunday was important to look over next week's material, and if you combine previewing next week's material, pay attention in class, study the material right after, and do a review every week, thats four times you've looked at that material and you don't ever need to look at it again until the exam. And my exam week schedule isn't much different because I've been learning the material all semester. And I have plenty of time for my research job, volunteering, and other ECs.

 

[Charles_Carmichael]

😱

I don't know if I had it easy or something. Some of these rigid schedules are so vastly different from my experience! I basically just studied a couple of days before the exams and did fine (that's with taking overloaded semesters of 20+ credits each semester). I mean, I had research and volunteering/shadowing/other ECs, but for the most part, I pretty much hung out with friends/relaxed/had a great time after 5 or 6 pm and had weekends free. Then again, I don't get much out of lectures so I skipped most classes and was productive during the day. Never needed a reason to prestudy or anything like that.

 

[IvyHopeful20]

Also....

When you study, actually study. I know plenty of people who goto the library for six hours and think they've studied when they've been on facebook for three hours, taking a coffee break for an hour, and being on the cell phone another hour. That's not six hours of studying.

I turn my cell phone OFF. I don't take my laptop with me. I'm not that important, no one has to speak to me right away. When you study, actually focus and study...and you'll have a lot more free time later.

 

[IvyHopeful20]

😱

I don't know if I had it easy or something. Some of these rigid schedules are so vastly different from my experience! I basically just studied a couple of days before the exams and did fine (that's with taking overloaded semesters of 20+ credits each semester). I mean, I had research and volunteering/shadowing/other ECs, but for the most part, I pretty much hung out with friends/relaxed/had a great time after 5 or 6 pm and had weekends free. Wouldn't trade my college experience for anything though!

Yea, I know a lot of people like that. I needed more to do well though, I didn't get stuff as easily as some others did in my major. Though I think I was probably overprepared for many exams.

Some lucky bastards just 'get it' naturally. Sadly, not all of us have that gift.

 

[apumic]

😱

I don't know if I had it easy or something. Some of these rigid schedules are so vastly different from my experience! I basically just studied a couple of days before the exams and did fine (that's with taking overloaded semesters of 20+ credits each semester). I mean, I had research and volunteering/shadowing/other ECs, but for the most part, I pretty much hung out with friends/relaxed/had a great time after 5 or 6 pm and had weekends free. Then again, I don't get much out of lectures so I skipped most classes and was productive during the day. Never needed a reason to prestudy or anything like that.

Same here...'cept I generally worked week nights so I could have weekends free. My schedule was too dynamic to be well-represented like what people have done.... (including my own representation of mine)

 

[Geneticist]

Your mileage may vary depending on major, undergrad institution, etc but thus far it has been relatively easy for me. Besides a nightmare of a Calc 1 class, I haven't had much trouble at all getting good grades and still being able to chill/hangout with the gf. Anyone who is struggling to do well is either not studying efficiently or not managing their time properly.

 

[Geneticist]

Also....

When you study, actually study. I know plenty of people who goto the library for six hours and think they've studied when they've been on facebook for three hours, taking a coffee break for an hour, and being on the cell phone another hour. That's not six hours of studying.

I turn my cell phone OFF. I don't take my laptop with me. I'm not that important, no one has to speak to me right away. When you study, actually focus and study...and you'll have a lot more free time later.

Not to be a stickler or anything, but that doesn't add up to six hours...

 

[IvyHopeful20]

Not to be a stickler or anything, but that doesn't add up to six hours...

Well, they did study for an hour....

I think most people do manage that one hour out of six.

Which, I think, is worse than not studying at all because you can then convince yourself that you actually studied, when you barely did - especially if that hour is spread out over six (e.g, you didn't focus at all).

To quote the new Karate Kid: Your focus needs more focus.

 

[Silverfalcon]

Anyone who is struggling to do well is either not studying efficiently or not managing their time properly.

I think that's true for most cases, but this is also SDN. There are people who need to study for hours (yes, I mean hours) just to get the same level of conceptual understanding that apumic or IvyHopeful20 would have after one hour of studying. It's not always the issue of concentration, but some people are just smarter than others to start off - and for those who aren't as naturally bright, they just need to spend more time studying and reviewing more than what may seem "necessary."