Not too sure....

[ChemBAmajor]

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I've just finished my freshman year at a CSU and it's not too good. The first semester, I took four classes and got all B's. Most of them were ok classes except Intro to Bio 1A, that was the only hard one, but even then I got a B. My second semester was bad though, I got all C's!!!! however, I only took 3 classes this time but they were way harder. They were Into to Bio1B, Gen.Chem 1A, and college algebra. The class that took the most time was the Bio1B. I mean, me and my friend were the only freshman in there!!! The others were mostly junior/senior. I didn't have enough time to get a higher grade in either of my other classes. But the biggest thing was, I was burnt out by finals, I could barely study. I'm still gonna try and get an A in gen.chem1B and in my o.chem classes, but I just don't know if my chances of getting into pharm school are good anymore. =( Plus, how hard is it to get an A in my future chem courses now? Should I even be majoring in chemistry? My pharm advisor says not to switch, but I dunno if im cut out for pharmacy anymore. Am I smart enough? My friends think im a genius, but I think im the dumbest out of everybody. Any advice on what I should do next would be GREATLY appreciated. Thank you.

 

[mrblah]

I wouldn't quit just yet but you should definitely learn to prioritize your life because undergrad is all about time management. If you want it bad enough, you can make it. As for next year, move on and focus on getting those A's. You can always make up those C's at a later date.

 

[ChemBAmajor]

I've just finished my freshman year in college and it's not too good. My first semester I got all B's. I took four classes, most of them ok except for BioSci1A, but still I got a B in there. The second semester I did horrible though. I got all C's!!!! I took 3 classes: BioSci1B, Chem1A, and college algebra. The Bio took soooo much of my time that I couldnt get higher grades in my other classes. However, my friend and I were like the only freshman in that class! everyone else were pretty much junior/senior. But it's mostly the C in Chem1A thats killing me. As you can tell from my sn , im a ChemistryBA major, my pre-pharm advisor says its the most compatible degree, but now that I got a C in my first chem course, I'm not sure if I should still stay as a Chem major. My advisor says to just stick with it for now, but i'm just wondering, Am I smart enough for pharmacy? , let alone for a Chem major? In highschool, i got a 2.6 GPA which wasn't good. And now my GPA is 2.5 overall, my science is probably lower cuz ive only taken 3 science classes and 1 math class. My friends say im really smart for some reason, even one of my old highschool friends who's doing the same thing as i am, (chemBA major/pre-pharm) and she got staight A's in highschool!!!!!! But I just dont believe that i am. I'm still gonna keep trying, but how bad was it that I got a C in my first chemisty class???? ANY advice would be GREATLY appreciated, thank you. 🙁

 

[hmmmmm]

2.5 is below min requirement to almost all pharm schools

either switch to another career or take more sci courses to boast it up to at least a 3.

you should also take the pcat and see what level you are capable of.

 

[mrblah]

My response to your other thread:

I wouldn't quit just yet but you should definitely learn to prioritize your life because undergrad is all about time management. If you want it bad enough, you can make it. As for next year, move on and focus on getting those A's. You can always make up those C's at a later date.

I want to add:
I dont get what your friends think have anything to do with your performance in class. Your friends usually tell you what you want to hear, just because they are well your friends. Do you want them to tell you that you are academically challenged or something? They are your friends, and is in their best interest to avoid critiquing your academic record.

What do you want us to say, we don't even know you. If you quit after only one year of college, thats your decision, and only you will live with that decision. Just remember you have 3 more years of undergrad. You have summertime to make up your bad grades. Take advantage of tutors, learning centers, and other on campus resources to bring up your grade. Learn from the students that are succeeding, and at the same time, try to improve your own study habits. Most people fail in undergrad because they get caught up with the college lifestyle.

If you don't believe in yourself, what makes you think anyone else will?

 

[Drug Doc]

well, a 2.5 is bad times but keep in mind that this was just your first year of college. You have plenty of time between now and applying to pharm school (unless you are taking the prereqs only route) to get your gpa up. Oh yeah and C's honestly aren't the end of the world, just try not to get anymore. As far as your capabilities go, I can't help you out there cause there are a gagillion factors that could have affected your performance during that second semester. The only thing that would worry me is if you studied your ass off and still got C's. Even in this case though, you might just need to work on being more efficient at studying. You know yourself best though, so weigh out how much you like chemistry with how hard it is, cause if you are going to struggle through all these courses you need to make sure you have the passion there to get you through it all. From here on out try not to get anything less than a 3.0 per semester and get yourself involved in some clubs, sports, etc. Hint: not everything you do needs to be pharmacy related so feel free to join things just for fun.

curious, what college has only juniors/seniors in general chemistry?

 

[Livingapparatus]

I've just finished my freshman year in college and it's not too good. My first semester I got all B's. I took four classes, most of them ok except for BioSci1A, but still I got a B in there. The second semester I did horrible though. I got all C's!!!! I took 3 classes: BioSci1B, Chem1A, and college algebra. The Bio took soooo much of my time that I couldnt get higher grades in my other classes. However, my friend and I were like the only freshman in that class! everyone else were pretty much junior/senior. But it's mostly the C in Chem1A thats killing me. As you can tell from my sn , im a ChemistryBA major, my pre-pharm advisor says its the most compatible degree, but now that I got a C in my first chem course, I'm not sure if I should still stay as a Chem major. My advisor says to just stick with it for now, but i'm just wondering, Am I smart enough for pharmacy? , let alone for a Chem major? In highschool, i got a 2.6 GPA which wasn't good. And now my GPA is 2.5 overall, my science is probably lower cuz ive only taken 3 science classes and 1 math class. My friends say im really smart for some reason, even one of my old highschool friends who's doing the same thing as i am, (chemBA major/pre-pharm) and she got staight A's in highschool!!!!!! But I just dont believe that i am. I'm still gonna keep trying, but how bad was it that I got a C in my first chemisty class???? ANY advice would be GREATLY appreciated, thank you. 🙁

You might not be able to get in 2 years but if you work hard enough you can certaintly do it. High school means nothing at this point of the game. If you arent as "smart" as some of the other people make up for it in diligence and hard work.

Your smart enough to be concerned! So dont psych yourself out, you just need to learn how to study which for people like us who didnt do anything in highschool will take a little while.

 

[MIkeNB]

As a freshman, it's normal to mess up the first year. The secret is to keep on trying and LEARN LEARN LEARN from your mistakes. If you are a hard worker but still did not learn from your mistakes, it will repeat it self. There is a difference between "studying, reading books and memorizing the text" and "Studying, understanding the text". Your best source are the professors and classmates. Study with classmates you believe are productive and know how to manage their time. From now on, time is money and if you can use it wisely, ur going to be fine.

As for your major, i dont know how Chemistry is the best major for pharmacy. I dont know if there is a difference between our programs at school but for Cal State Fullerton, Biology degree would be the best. It meets all the chemistry prereq (G chem, O chem) and only the prereq. Also, it will meet the biology requirements as well (G bio, Molecular, Genetics, micro, anatomy, physiology, and biochem).

Hope the best of luck for ya and pharmacy school will forgive ur screw ups if u show an obvious increase in grades. GPA is only part of the application, It's not the application as a whole.

 

[seattle1013]

I will have a better answer for you next spring, but I have a 3.2 cum. and I am worried that wont meet requirements. (prerequisite GPA= 3.9). I would focus on a bachlors if you cant maintain above a 3.5.

 

[RxWildcat]

Its still early in the ballgame for you, don't give up just yet but you definitely need to start studying/prioritizing differently.


PS The 2 threads have been merged