Rant. Complain. Share your horror stories & woes

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
F

ffpickle

Thread Killer
10+ Year Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
May 7, 2008
Messages
915
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Members do not see this ad.
What better place for us to commiserate than SDN?

Whether it's undergrad classes, the PCAT, recommenders, interviews, application fees, ambivalence about your career choice, the non-stop studying, the inevitable setbacks, what is that has your knickers in a knot?
 
-There were some weekends in college that I spent the entire time studying and doing lab reports while my friends were out partying.
-The weekends when I was called into work at the pharmacy from 9-5 on saturday and 9-3 sunday.
-The hoops & hurdles of trying to get my pharmacist manager and principal investigator from research to write me LORs and constantly reminding them.
-The money i spent on App. fees, Secondary app fees, traveling expenses and hotel stays for interviews etc. (well over 3k).
-My weight loss during the intense interview process (kind of a good thing).
-Spent the entire last summer at home studying for the confounded PCATs while my friends were in the Hamptons without mee.

It was all worth it at the end.

Now it's time for the next 4 years.
 
Jdario86 said:
-There were some weekends in college that I spent the entire time studying and doing lab reports while my friends were out partying.
-The weekends when I was called into work at the pharmacy from 9-5 on saturday and 9-3 sunday.
-The hoops & hurdles of trying to get my pharmacist manager and principal investigator from research to write me LORs and constantly reminding them.
-The money i spent on App. fees, Secondary app fees, traveling expenses and hotel stays for interviews etc. (well over 3k).
-My weight loss during the intense interview process (kind of a good thing).
-Spent the entire last summer at home studying for the confounded PCATs while my friends were in the Hamptons without mee.

It was all worth it at the end.

Now it's time for the next 4 years.
Click to expand...


Seems to me your life shouldn't be THAT difficult, if you or your friends have the ability to vacation in the Hamptons. My guess is that you've lived quite the privileged lifestyle.... then again that is just a guess.
 
Underprivileged people don't have a monopoly on misery.

Smart people, rich people, successful people (none of which am I), are allowed to be unhappy.

It has been a grueling process for him/her, and they are simply relaying this.
 
Jdario86 said:
-There were some weekends in college that I spent the entire time studying and doing lab reports while my friends were out partying.
-The weekends when I was called into work at the pharmacy from 9-5 on saturday and 9-3 sunday.
-The hoops & hurdles of trying to get my pharmacist manager and principal investigator from research to write me LORs and constantly reminding them.
-The money i spent on App. fees, Secondary app fees, traveling expenses and hotel stays for interviews etc. (well over 3k).
-My weight loss during the intense interview process (kind of a good thing).
-Spent the entire last summer at home studying for the confounded PCATs while my friends were in the Hamptons without mee.

It was all worth it at the end.

Now it's time for the next 4 years.
Click to expand...

Interesting....sometimes I lose weight when stressed, other times I gain....that would be a good thread in and of itself!
 
I would so that the toughest part of the whole process for me is twofold:

1) Money (traveling, application fees, etc.)
2) Not being "sure" of myself and that nagging voice in the back of your head that makes you question if it's really the right career choice for you 😕

I don't regret the time/effort I have invested, or even all the studying, ECs, etc.
 
ffpickle said:
Underprivileged people don't have a monopoly on misery.

Smart people, rich people, successful people (none of which am I), are allowed to be unhappy.

It has been a grueling process for him/her, and they are simply relaying this.
Click to expand...

I agree. Underprivileged people do not have a monopoly on being unhappy. I am not underprivileged yet I do not have much sympathy for someone who didn't get a chance to go vacation in a place for only the privileged, or what they like to call 'PLU.'
 
ValeUC said:
I agree. Underprivileged people do not have a monopoly on being unhappy. I am not underprivileged yet I do not have much sympathy for someone who didn't get a chance to go vacation in a place for only the privileged, or what they like to call 'PLU.'
Click to expand...

Good point
 
Addition to my list:

-Dealing with people who like to judge me.
 
I have idiot classmates that complain to the DEAN about people coming to class late. Now, I'm all for being on time to class out of respect for the lecturer that day, and hell complain to the professor of the class, but this person complained that it was disrupting *their* learning process...to the DEAN!

**** you, nobody cares! What idiot complains to the dean about THAT.

Anyway, can't wait for people to fill up the 2nd class, this accessibility thing is kind of a bad thing.
 
Grr, I got the "what would you do if you knew your best friend was cheating" question in an interview. Apparently, I don't have enough integrity to rat on my friend but I have too much integrity to lie about it in an interview. I know you are supposed to say that you will turn your friend in but I couldn't bring myself to lie and say I would. That's not right. Someone with no integrity would just tell them what they want to hear. Not me. I couldn't do it. I wanted to but the words would not come out of my mouth. I hope that question isn't the difference maker.
 
More than a year ago, during first quarter of therapeutics, when we were studying hypertension treatments. In each weekly case conference session, we are given a 5 minute quiz.

The conference coordinator asked: "patient x comes in complaining of pain the 'great toe'", what do you suspect?" Everybody saw, pain in the great toe? WTF? Ha ha, must be a joke question, do nothing.

Of course the answer is diuretics, especially loop diuretics. Why? Because pain in the 'great toe' was a classic first symptom of gout, which is due to hyperuricemia can be caused by decrease uric acid excretion which is a side effect of diuretics.

Everybody had memorized that diuretics increase serum uric acid levels, but nobody has taught about gout. Everyone was like WTF?! Gout therapeutics course is more than a year down the road, and neither the professor or pharmacology has taught the first symptoms of gout. At the end of the quarter, pretty much everyone gave the case conference coordinator a horrible evaluation.
 
ValeUC said:
Nobody is passing judgment. If you really wanted that, I could have asked something along the lines of how much that $3,000.00 really set you back - one weeks worth of trust fund?
Click to expand...

Well, my comment wasn't really directed towards you. If it was, I would have written something like: Uncultured hicks from Kentucky and the midwest tend to say a lot about a place they've never visited before.🙄

And the money I used to pay for my interviews was the money I made working part-time as pharm tech and doing stroke research for Kessler Rehab.
 
Jdario86 said:
Well, my comment wasn't really directed towards you. If it was, I would have written something like: Uncultured hicks from Kentucky and the midwest tend to say a lot about a place they've never visited before.🙄
Click to expand...

I'm no expert on geography, but I'm pretty sure Kansas and Ohio aren't very close to each other. :meanie:
 
confettiflyer said:
I have idiot classmates that complain to the DEAN about people coming to class late. Now, I'm all for being on time to class out of respect for the lecturer that day, and hell complain to the professor of the class, but this person complained that it was disrupting *their* learning process...to the DEAN!

**** you, nobody cares! What idiot complains to the dean about THAT.

Anyway, can't wait for people to fill up the 2nd class, this accessibility thing is kind of a bad thing.
Click to expand...

ARE YOU SERIOUS??? What are we, in 3rd grade? He should have said "Well I'm suppose to be into work at 8 every morning but today I decided to stroll in at 10 just for the heck of it... Now are you gonna go tell the president on me... oh wait, let's try God... Are you gonna go tell the big guy on me now... does that disrupt your learning process now?"

Sometimes, I wonder about these pharmacy students... then again I wonder about people in general sometimes...:laugh:
 
confettiflyer said:
I'm no expert on geography, but I'm pretty sure Kansas and Ohio aren't very close to each other. :meanie:
Click to expand...

Geography points for the Wannabe Newyorker from the West Coast.
 
confettiflyer said:
I'm no expert on geography, but I'm pretty sure Kansas and Ohio aren't very close to each other. :meanie:
Click to expand...

Geography points for the Wannabe Newyorker from the West Coast. 🙄
 
Jdario86 said:
Well, my comment wasn't really directed towards you. If it was, I would have written something like: Uncultured hicks from Kentucky and the midwest tend to say a lot about a place they've never visited before.🙄

And the money I used to pay for my interviews was the money I made working part-time as pharm tech and doing stroke research for Kessler Rehab.
Click to expand...


richie_richcopy.jpg
 
PCAT #2.... I caught the flu, a week before the testing, drove from Gainesville to Orange Park (1hr and half) vomited twice along the way... got a 79.... Then Pearson rescaled the scores.....

PCAT #3.... I caught a cold 2 weeks before and was fine by the time of the exam. Except, during the exam my Mitral Valve Prolapse decided to rear its ugly little head and caused me so chest pains during the chemistry section (my strongest next to Biology)... I scored highly in the others... but I scored a 31 I think in the chemistry section... Wonderful.... got a 73....

PCAT #4.... I'm now on better medication for my heart (doesn't control the MVP, but it does keep me from fainting) I get up early, this time my PCATs in town... My keys are locked in my car. i call AAA, they give me an estimate of 15 minutes. I think, "Ok that leaves 25 minutes to get to campus, I live 6 or 7 minutes away from campus" I wait, and wait... Unfortunately, somehow some way the operator got a completely WRONG address... So i look for something to break my window with... nothing but week sticks. I can't break it with my elbow because I have nothing to buffer it with. It's 38 degress outside and I am without a jacket because the jacket is in the car... I'm so distraught at this point my chest starts hurting... So I fall to the ground in agony and eventually it subsides. AAA comes to me an hour and a half later. The guy tells me that I should have told AAA operators I had an important exam to get to... oh wait... I DID THAT! Needless to say I chewed them out.... That's my horror story...
 
Wow, those PCAT stories sound awful. Mine is minor stuff. I took it in January and the proctor announced that if you had a runny nose you should respect the people around you and leave to blow your nose. I was glad I didn't have a runny nose or so I thought. Sure enough, my nose started to run during the exam. Sniff, sniff, sniff all through it. But get up to leave the room during a test so I can blow my nose? No way, these tests are TIMED. I hope the people who sat around me aren't telling their PCAT horror story that includes a woman who sniffed through most of the test. I do feel bad but I wasn't going to leave points on the table to go blow my nose.
 
Jdario86 said:
Geography points for the Wannabe Newyorker from the West Coast.
Click to expand...

oh if you only knew :laugh:

What else can we rant about...oh, pre-pharms who think they're so much better because they forgo partying to study. Uhh...that's your fault if you have to study so much. Sucks for you!
 
diastole said:
Wow, those PCAT stories sound awful. Mine is minor stuff. I took it in January and the proctor announced that if you had a runny nose you should respect the people around you and leave to blow your nose. I was glad I didn't have a runny nose or so I thought. Sure enough, my nose started to run during the exam. Sniff, sniff, sniff all through it. But get up to leave the room during a test so I can blow my nose? No way, these tests are TIMED. I hope the people who sat around me aren't telling their PCAT horror story that includes a woman who sniffed through most of the test. I do feel bad but I wasn't going to leave points on the table to go blow my nose.
Click to expand...

I don't think you should be too worried. You were sick. It's not your fault. And for the proctor to tell you that... wtf..... I feel for the people around you but honestly it cant be helped half of the time. my first pcats I sat next to a girl who had a cold and she coughed and sneezed the entire time. She apologized but i didn't mind. It was what it was, I just had to focus on the test.
 
ffpickle said:
Underprivileged people don't have a monopoly on misery.

Smart people, rich people, successful people (none of which am I), are allowed to be unhappy.

It has been a grueling process for him/her, and they are simply relaying this.
Click to expand...
.

That's true..and I'm one of those very unpriviledged and unlucky ones as usual. Those who are really successful and everything tend to be the snobby, greedy jerks who just shows off. Can recount more bad days I ever had than good 🙁. Anyway that's a whole different story.

I hope getting into pharmacy school is worth for me..b/c I had so much struggles with it. Not w/ grades or anything, except for the fact I did bad in my physics class, but am retaking anyway, but the admission process. My transcript which I sent to Pharmcas was lost, so I had to request another one and Pharmcas got it weeks after it was supposed to be in. This weekend for my interview, I barely made it to my interview b/c I was stuck in traffic for more than hour even though I started two and a half hours early. I was infuriated and did not understand why it had to happen on one of the most important days! I was afraid that they won't allow me in b/c I was not in time, and then I would blow my chance! Luckily I was a min or two late and still continued w/ it. And I'm stuck w/ an overload of classes 🙁. Anyway, hope my bad experiences are worth it in the end. I've been having a rough time lately and bit unhappy, so I hope I hear some good news soon about something.
 
Pharmdapp87 said:
ARE YOU SERIOUS??? What are we, in 3rd grade? He should have said "Well I'm suppose to be into work at 8 every morning but today I decided to stroll in at 10 just for the heck of it... Now are you gonna go tell the president on me... oh wait, let's try God... Are you gonna go tell the big guy on me now... does that disrupt your learning process now?"

Sometimes, I wonder about these pharmacy students... then again I wonder about people in general sometimes...:laugh:
Click to expand...

You don't complain to the DEAN about people being late to class. The professors usually deal with them, like I said in a previous post. One of our professors basically announces to the whole class after a bunch of people walk in late, "Okay, it is 20 minutes into class already. If you're going to be late, please wait until the break to come in, or don't come to class and listen to the podcasts I put up."

Others tell the students in the class who are on time to say this in unison "We're glad you can make it, take a seat please."

Our classroom right now is a little small while the big lecture hall upstairs is being worked on. I hate it when people the first people into class take the aisle seats, this forces everyone who comes in after them to squeeze through. It's simple, if you're there early, sit on the end of the row. Leave the aisle seats open so if anyone comes in after you, they can easily sit down without having everyone to squeeze into get up. Personally, I'm one of those people that carries a crapload of stuff, so basically my bag's basically smack everyone around me.
 
I think the one thing that gets me the most are the people who ask others what they got on exams and projects only if their grade is pretty high. I've known this guy who would do this all the time, trying to coax out others' scores when he thought others did worse than him. If he didn't do well, he doesn't bother and if asked, he just says he does fine and gets annoyed if anyone pursues it further.

I suppose it may just be human nature, but I think it's a real dick thing to do.
 
confettiflyer said:
oh if you only knew :laugh:

What else can we rant about...oh, pre-pharms who think they're so much better because they forgo partying to study. Uhh...that's your fault if you have to study so much. Sucks for you!
Click to expand...


Well it all paid off at the end because I aced orgo frist time around without retaking it and I actually got accepted into fully-accredited pharmacy schools. 🙄
 
fhx06 said:
I think the one thing that gets me the most are the people who ask others what they got on exams and projects only if their grade is pretty high. I've known this guy who would do this all the time, trying to coax out others' scores when he thought others did worse than him. If he didn't do well, he doesn't bother and if asked, he just says he does fine and gets annoyed if anyone pursues it further.

I suppose it may just be human nature, but I think it's a real dick thing to do.
Click to expand...

I used to do something like that in high school. When I went on to college, I recognized when people were doing that so I would just say I did fine and not give them the satisfaction. Funny thing is now that I'm back in school after a long break, I hate talking about grades, especially if I do well. The people in my smaller classes are especially open about sharing grades so it is weird for me. I don't want to make anybody feel bad about their grades and I hate being so secretive. I guess this is a legacy of my being kind of a jerk in high school. Perhaps this guy will get a whack with the big karma stick too someday.
 
Sparda29 said:
I hate it when people the first people into class take the aisle seats, this forces everyone who comes in after them to squeeze through. It's simple, if you're there early, sit on the end of the row.
Click to expand...

I did that in undergrad! I'd come early just so I could grab the aisle seats. :laugh: Then I'd put my backpack in the seat next to me to save for a friend or just to ward people away. It sucks when I'd be stuck between two people who've never stepped in a shower before, or have to sit next to someone who elbows me and tries to invade my space!

Rant: wait period after an interview. For me it's more nerve wracking than prepping for the interview itself! Even if I came out feeling I did pretty well, with every day that passed after the interview my self-doubt would just double itself.
 
PharmDKid89 said:
.

That's true..and I'm one of those very unpriviledged and unlucky ones as usual. Those who are really successful and everything tend to be the snobby, greedy jerks who just shows off. Can recount more bad days I ever had than good 🙁. Anyway that's a whole different story.

I hope getting into pharmacy school is worth for me..b/c I had so much struggles with it. Not w/ grades or anything, except for the fact I did bad in my physics class, but am retaking anyway, but the admission process. My transcript which I sent to Pharmcas was lost, so I had to request another one and Pharmcas got it weeks after it was supposed to be in. This weekend for my interview, I barely made it to my interview b/c I was stuck in traffic for more than hour even though I started two and a half hours early. I was infuriated and did not understand why it had to happen on one of the most important days! I was afraid that they won't allow me in b/c I was not in time, and then I would blow my chance! Luckily I was a min or two late and still continued w/ it. And I'm stuck w/ an overload of classes 🙁. Anyway, hope my bad experiences are worth it in the end. I've been having a rough time lately and bit unhappy, so I hope I hear some good news soon about something.
Click to expand...

I hope everything goes well for you! I couldn't imagine having dealt with that on my interview day. How did your interview go though? When you do get your acceptance (I'm going positive for ya) those adversities will make your acceptance that much sweeter, and when you get your PharmD... even SWEETER. Try not to focus too much on Saturday (I know it's hard) and try to get your head into finishing out strong in Physics... I wish you all the best of luck, I hate that class more than anything imaginable... grr:beat:... GOOD LUCK!!! YOU CAN DO IT!!!:banana:
 
Jdario86 said:
Well it all paid off at the end because I aced orgo frist time around without retaking it and I actually got accepted into fully-accredited pharmacy schools. 🙄
Click to expand...

lol, you did? couldn't tell from your posts. better change your status to pharmacy student. haha, and i'm quite proud i failed ochem and got into pharm school. glad you remember, i haven't posted that in a while 😍

Sparda29 said:
Our classroom right now is a little small while the big lecture hall upstairs is being worked on. I hate it when people the first people into class take the aisle seats, this forces everyone who comes in after them to squeeze through. It's simple, if you're there early, sit on the end of the row. Leave the aisle seats open so if anyone comes in after you, they can easily sit down without having everyone to squeeze into get up. Personally, I'm one of those people that carries a crapload of stuff, so basically my bag's basically smack everyone around me.
Click to expand...

Eh yeah I like the aisle, can't sit anywhere else, so I'll be one of those that block the aisles. Then again, our classrooms aren't designed the same way I think...or we'd be in a giant lecture hall so blocked aisles aren't that big of a deal.

Now the real question is, if you pass someone in the aisle...do you give someone the ass, or the crotch?
 
confettiflyer said:
lol, you did? couldn't tell from your posts. better change your status to pharmacy student. haha, and i'm quite proud i failed ochem and got into pharm school. glad you remember, i haven't posted that in a while 😍



Eh yeah I like the aisle, can't sit anywhere else, so I'll be one of those that block the aisles. Then again, our classrooms aren't designed the same way I think...or we'd be in a giant lecture hall so blocked aisles aren't that big of a deal.

Now the real question is, if you pass someone in the aisle...do you give someone the ass, or the crotch?
Click to expand...

They get smacked by my laptop bag, I'll go through the aisle normally, they'll get my hip, lol.

Oh, and I want to know who is the idiot that designed the small ass desks with the chairs attached to them. How the **** am I supposed to fit my laptop, my charger, my mouse, and my books on that small area?

Haha, that's three of us who failed Organic Chem and got into pharmacy school.
 
Sparda29 said:
They get smacked by my laptop bag, I'll go through the aisle normally, they'll get my hip, lol.

Oh, and I want to know who is the idiot that designed the small ass desks with the chairs attached to them. How the **** am I supposed to fit my laptop, my charger, my mouse, and my books on that small area?

Haha, that's three of us who failed Organic Chem and got into pharmacy school.
Click to expand...

I know right...I'm in the extreme though. Half my classes are in these nice/new modern classes with giant desks and plugs at each seat (i'll post pictures later). Then we get classes in the medical school hall and it's like...welcome to 1971, biznatch. I have to put the test on my lap + scantron on the desk in order to make it work.

But yeah...aisle thing isn't a problem for us, it's ~70 students over 350 seats in the big hall. i'll have my legs hanging over the seat in front + backpack in the seat next to me.
 
confettiflyer said:
lol, you did? couldn't tell from your posts. better change your status to pharmacy student. haha, and i'm quite proud i failed ochem and got into pharm school. glad you remember, i haven't posted that in a while 😍
Click to expand...


It's okay. I'm not one of those people who parade their acceptances on the acceptance thread because i'm secure with my acceptances.
 
Sparda29 said:
We have those now but there is barely any space to walk between the rows. The official pharmacy campus is going to be complete in May-June 2009 so we'll get the kickass stuff next semester.
Click to expand...

IMO plugs @ desks = best innovation EVARR.
 
confettiflyer said:
IMO plugs @ desks = best innovation EVARR.
Click to expand...

Definitely, my laptop is a power hog and runs out of juice in 50 minutes in optimal settings (made for gaming), thus I need those outlets badly. I have some classmates who have laptops that can go for 3-4 hours but those are no good for gaming.
 
Sparda29 said:
Definitely, my laptop is a power hog and runs out of juice in 50 minutes in optimal settings (made for gaming), thus I need those outlets badly. I have some classmates who have laptops that can go for 3-4 hours but those are no good for gaming.
Click to expand...

That always amazed me. I had this young lady in 2 of my classes. Both of our classes were in the same room and she would just use it like it had infinite energy.
 
🙁 that sounds like a wonderful time... especially gen. chem... with all the freshmen who want to party first and study later.
 
^ just another year? Don't you have to take gen chem then o-chem in sequence? both are 2 semester courses right?
 
I might be taking calculus for the fourth time. First class I took in high school but didn't take the test to exempt myself from having to take in college. The second time I took it was in college twenty years ago. For the third time, I took brief calculus last semester. It was on the list of acceptable classes for my local pharmacy school so I thought it was the same thing as Calc 1. Then I find out that a lot of schools don't accept it. So now I might have to take it for the fourth time. The extra bad part is I got an A in it every time. I have so many units now that an A does almost nothing to move my GPA. I am pretty sick of acing my calculus class.
 
NaOH said:
I was already a year's worth of prereqs away anyway, this just means I'll have to fit the chem back in somewhere. They'll probably get me on my college algebra, too.

Feels good man. ( '__')b
Click to expand...

You might be able to test out of that. They wouldn't credit me for my past math classes but I did get to take a placement test so I went straight to calc.
 
NaOH said:
I was already a year's worth of prereqs away anyway, this just means I'll have to fit the chem back in somewhere. They'll probably get me on my college algebra, too.

Feels good man. ( '__')b
Click to expand...
In addition to college algebra, they'll also get you on college writing. :meanie:
 
confettiflyer said:
...Now the real question is, if you pass someone in the aisle...do you give someone the ass, or the crotch?
Click to expand...

confettiflyer is that a quote from Fight Club?🙂
 
It's from Fight Club... but it's in relation to a flight attendant. o_0
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Mr.Smile12
Webinar: Funding your Pharmacy Education (AACP)
Replies
0
Views
1K
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
D
SDN Article: How to Use Social Media to Your Advantage as a Pharmacy Student
Replies
0
Views
2K
Dr. Jovin Lezeau
D
P
Chances to getting into good pharmacy schools? Success stories?
Replies
18
Views
7K
TC621
T
J
Pre Pharm this is your chance to run..
Replies
45
Views
8K
Dred Pirate
Dred Pirate
T
Another Pharmacy School Virtual Fair July 18 - Mark your calendars!!!
Replies
6
Views
2K
Hels2007
Hels2007
Top Bottom