P1 feeling overwhelmed :(

[hoytman89]

ok pharmacy students P2's and up, what can we do to keep ourselves going? im a P1 and we really havnt had more than a few quizzes and i feel overwhelmed already. im sure im not the only one that feels this why. what do you guys do when you hit a rough spot, like 4 exams in one week!(biochem, patho, drug delivery and pharm calcs). please feel free to share a story or give some advice. thanks

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[Momus]

You'd be in trouble later if you can't handle P1 >_>; it's actually the easiest year and it still felt like undergrad classes, I just studied 1 day before the exam to get As; I couldn't pull this **** on P2 (getting some Bs), so I studied 2-3 days ahead... Just manage your time wisely... nothing is too hard if put time in

 

[SHC1984]

P1 is the easiest year in pharmacy school...Like Momus said, it's the only year in pharmacy school you could not study and still make A(s)....so you will def struggle very badly if you think the easiest year of pharmacy school is hard....

Maybe pay for some tutoring? 😕

 

[peteronfireee]

ok pharmacy students P2's and up, what can we do to keep ourselves going? im a P1 and we really havnt had more than a few quizzes and i feel overwhelmed already. im sure im not the only one that feels this why. what do you guys do when you hit a rough spot, like 4 exams in one week!(biochem, patho, drug delivery and pharm calcs). please feel free to share a story or give some advice. thanks

Hey, you go to Ferris? I took my PCATs there, haha.

As for school, try planning out your study sessions throughout the entire week, space it out. Before your next set of classes, try looking at the slides before lecture to get a brief overview of what you're about to learn - I find this helps me focus in class better. After class, review what you learned - try to recall the major concepts without looking at your notes. Do this for the next class, etc.,

For classes like biochem, try using a dry erase board to practice drawing structures and mechanisms. I found that it helps rewriting notes/random facts over and over. Its all about repetition. If you're more of an auditory learner, try recording the lecture and relisten to any fuzzy points.

After a good amount of individual study, study with other people - it helps to reinforce important concepts and helps you see different perspectives of looking at the information. This is invaluable.

Oh, and before your P2 year, get your ass in a pharmacy (if you're not in one now) and learn the important/common drugs...For classes like dosage, where they talk about stuff like ointments, suspensions, etc., it'll make much more sense when you've seen it in the real world. Having seen this stuff in work really helps me relate to what I'm learning now.

So yeah, try to make it a habit of studying a little bit everyday. Building good habits now will help you in the long run. Good luck! You can do it 🙂

 

[hoytman89]

I do study for a few hours everyday and I dont think that im behind, its just the volume of POOP! that we are given. I got thru undergrad with studying a day or sometimes 2 days before an exam and ending with a 3.62 gpa so i dont think im dumb by any standard. can anyone say how much they studied/how? group, single? old exams are very hard to come by here and you dont want to be caught with any :/ so dont say that. and pete, whered you end up?

 

[owlegrad]

I wouldn't know how to study for an exam without an old copy. 😱

Study mostly by yourself and in a group just to drive home the fine points. Too much group study will work against you. Learn to manage your time. Don't listen to people who say you should feel bad for struggling in your first year, that is so much bulls***.

"Every" pharmacy student believes whatever year they are in is the hardest year and have no sympathy for underclassman sense after all they got through it, so should you. Just tune out that noise, every person is different. Take this time to figure out what works for you.

 

[Albo]

Keep focused and it is all about time management. Don's listen to people that say they studied for a day and still got A's. Every school and every person is different, but one thing that they reinforce on us at my school is ask for help as soon as you see you are falling behind. Talk to the professors, your friends, the class president, also schools usually have tutors for every class see if maybe one helps.

We are all human beings and need some time to adapt to change but we always adapt so keep you head up and your mind focused and don't worry about past P1 right now.

 

[Lubeckd]

So far I understand a lot of things, havent been to the exam yet but I never procrastinated. Im under stress, but my classmates are worse... some of them didnt even organize their notes yet...

 

[JamesL1585]

Hoytman:

Careful which advice you choose to take. I'd first like to caution you that surely you're not the first with the same concern and you certainly won't be the last so don't feel inadequate because you're overwhelmed. Many students are overwhelmed their first year but MANY won't admit it to their peers. And all the people talking about how easy P1 year was now are saying that because they've been through 2 or more years of pharmacy school and obviously, it gets easier over time.

My advice: I felt the exact same way as you my first year, but it's kind of like excercising, the first time a trainer gets a hold of you and works you out, you feel like you're going to die by the end of the session, by session 10, it gets much more easy, or at least manageable. One thing every school has in common is that each student is going to work their butt off, much more than undergrad. But, trust me, you'll get use to it and do just fine, and hopefully you'll do great 🙂.

 

[Ackj]

"Every" pharmacy student believes whatever year they are in is the hardest year and have no sympathy for underclassman sense after all they got through it, so should you. Just tune out that noise, every person is different. Take this time to figure out what works for you.

I think popular consensus is that P1 is the easiest, barring any inability to adapt. P2 vs P3 will probably vary by school. I've heard that our P2 year is harder, but P3 is just more work (projects, presentations, journal clubs, etc). Fourth week in and I'm already agreeing.

If you're having a hard time, talk to faculty/advisors/whoever. The school doesn't want to fail students, so I'm certain they have some options for you.

 

[PharmaTope]

You'd be in trouble later if you can't handle P1 >_>; it's actually the easiest year and it still felt like undergrad classes, I just studied 1 day before the exam to get As; I couldn't pull this **** on P2 (getting some Bs), so I studied 2-3 days ahead... Just manage your time wisely... nothing is too hard if put time in

OP, this is SCHOOL SPECIFIC!!!!!!!!! it varies greatly from school to school. do not listen to people that said they studied one day before the exam. their definition of study could be greatly different than theirs and they could have been through the material multiple times before their "study day". just keep pushing hard and stay focused. try to divide work up with some friends in exam preparation of study materials it will save you time and maximize results.

get a good study group to work with. that is KEY.

 

[owlegrad]

Careful which advice you choose to take. I'd first like to caution you that surely you're not the first with the same concern and you certainly won't be the last so don't feel inadequate because you're overwhelmed. Many students are overwhelmed their first year but MANY won't admit it to their peers. And all the people talking about how easy P1 year was now are saying that because they've been through 2 or more years of pharmacy school and obviously, it gets easier over time.

qft

I think this thread may help.

 

[rxlea]

OP, this is SCHOOL SPECIFIC!!!!!!!!! it varies greatly from school to school. do not listen to people that said they studied one day before the exam. their definition of study could be greatly different than theirs and they could have been through the material multiple times before their "study day". just keep pushing hard and stay focused. try to divide work up with some friends in exam preparation of study materials it will save you time and maximize results.

get a good study group to work with. that is KEY.

When I saw how positive and encouraging this post was I almost didn't believe it was your name next to it

 

[PharmaTope]

When I saw how positive and encouraging this post was I almost didn't believe it was your name next to it

im very positive about a lot of things. unfortunately the pharmacist job market is NOT ONE.

 

[type b pharmD]

p1 is hardest in some sense and easiest in others.

its easy because most of it is material that's either extremely basic, or stuff that you covered in undergrad. hardest because it's a big adjustment to the pace of the classes , yeah p2 and p3 are more work, but once you learn good study strategies and get some practice in how to best study for the tests and manage your time, they seem less overwhelming, although more time consuming

 

[pharmboycu]

Not to worry. I was overwhelmed the first week as well. Nearly had a meltdown.

If pharmacy is what you really want to do, maybe the best thing to do is to step back, take a breath, and try to put this all in perspective. The hardest part is getting into school. Lots of folks before you made it through and lots of folks after you will make it through-- you're in good company.

These four years will fly by and you'll wonder where the time went and wonder what you were so worried about. Trust me on that.

 

[RXpert2013]

Not to worry. I was overwhelmed the first week as well. Nearly had a meltdown.

If pharmacy is what you really want to do, maybe the best thing to do is to step back, take a breath, and try to put this all in perspective. The hardest part is getting into school. Lots of folks before you made it through and lots of folks after you will make it through-- you're in good company.

These four years will fly by and you'll wonder where the time went and wonder what you were so worried about. Trust me on that.

I couldn't agree more!!!

 

[ucrx]

These four years will fly by and you'll wonder where the time went and wonder what you were so worried about. Trust me on that.

That's how I've been feeling lately. I wonder if I'll ever feel this way about residency? 🙄

 

[Cloud 9]

You will get through it, don't worry. Although I have to echo Owlegrad's advice x1000 about the study groups...my first 10% quiz I had in a hard class I did way better than I thought I would. This is the hardest class for me. I mainly studied on my own and would come home during the break in the day to study. This time around, I have a quiz tm and I'm sitting here cramming at 11 pm for it. The only difference? I decided the past 2 weeks to stay at school and "group study" and I didn't really learn as well and now I'm cramming.

 

[Lubeckd]

Im reading the textbook a lot. Patho and Biochem, I wonder if Im suppose to do that... because I dont understand like 30% of the slides >>

 

[xiphoid2010]

Im reading the textbook a lot. Patho and Biochem, I wonder if Im suppose to do that... because I dont understand like 30% of the slides >>

strange, you shouldn't need your textbook. I hardly touched it in all 4 years. You should focus on the slides and important points being taught in class rather than carpet bomb the book memorizing everything.

Couple of reason why you might have trouble with the slides are (1) the professor truly suck-balls, hopefully rare in any decent school. or (2) foundation knowledge is weak. e.g hard time in biochem might mean you didn't ace bio and chem in undergrad so now the higher concepts don't click.

 

[DYSF777]

Just know it gets easier...when you graduate.

 

[Lubeckd]

strange, you shouldn't need your textbook. I hardly touched it in all 4 years. You should focus on the slides and important points being taught in class rather than carpet bomb the book memorizing everything.

Couple of reason why you might have trouble with the slides are (1) the professor truly suck-balls, hopefully rare in any decent school. or (2) foundation knowledge is weak. e.g hard time in biochem might mean you didn't ace bio and chem in undergrad so now the higher concepts don't click.

Eh... my chem is fine, I got a 81 comp on the PCAT on the chem section and a 88 in the bio section.

A lot of what the biochem prof repeat is the same as undergrad. But he never went into the PI (understood it now by the book) and it's the diagrams I dont understand, he just goes through it.

The PharmD professors are good, and the M.D professor is a hit and miss on certain topics (A majority of my classmates like her) I got A's in both ochem, A in analytic chem. And A's in my bio. Pharmaceutics isnt bad, and ethnics. But the 2 science classes are a bit harder, and the powerpoints are just a few words (not detailed). I mean I got the amino acids down, acids and base as well.

I also would not say they suck, but it's just the material that is hard to cover.

Last question is, should I concentrate on the slides only? because sometimes the professor talks about things with outside knowledge. Also my curriculum isnt hard right now, by reading the book I managed to catch up. I dont think Im the only one reading the book at the moment, cause my friends who have 3.9's are also reading the book.

Edit: just went to his office hours, actually understood most of the things, and finally got the assignment for the PI right (assigning through a amino chain) , I knew I was on to something! he told me not to read the book, but I actually understood more by reading it, and he was surprised and called me a smart kid =3.

 

[Rutgers2015]

I'm also a p1, we have our first patho exam monday (which i'm clearly procrastinating studying for lol) and our first biochem exam on tuesday. It's been hectic, but manageable with good time management. P2 seems to be hardest at my school from what I've heard. I definitely don't think P1 is easy (I'm taking 21 credits!), but I'm definitely trying to make the most of it and most importantly to actually learn the material (because it's relevant!)!

Hang in there! We got this 🙂

 

[Ackj]

I'm also a p1, we have our first patho exam monday (which i'm clearly procrastinating studying for lol) and our first biochem exam on tuesday. It's been hectic, but manageable with good time management. P2 seems to be hardest at my school from what I've heard. I definitely don't think P1 is easy (I'm taking 21 credits!), but I'm definitely trying to make the most of it and most importantly to actually learn the material (because it's relevant!)!

Hang in there! We got this 🙂

Just your first set of exams now? We're already through our second exam cycle. Every 3 weeks for us

 

[Sparda29]

P1 is definitely the hardest year because that's when you gotta adjust. Only hard part about rotations is figuring out what to wear for the whole week.

 

[Rutgers2015]

Just your first set of exams now? We're already through our second exam cycle. Every 3 weeks for us

Well school started September 1st lol So yea, it's about that time..... 👎

 

[Lubeckd]

first patho exam on last thursday. Sep 7 is when pharmacy school in LIU started, first exam wasnt so bad ^^"". I think I got a B+/A- range.