RANT HERE thread

[that redhead]

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We have a Canadian girl with the reverse problem. So last year we threw her a surprise Thanksgiving celebration on Canadian thanksgiving, and she was very happy

But yeah, I completely know how that feels. :/

I don’t know how my clinical year is going to go. Thanksgiving is a huuuuge holiday for my dad’s side in Chicago, and Christmas with my mom’s side... they really haven’t told us how it works

We had American potlucks the weekend after and I attended so Canadian thanksgivings which was fun🙂 Just not the same.

As for clinical years, you might want to schedule either a vacation block or an external rotation so you can request certain times off. If you’re at school they’ll typically have you come in to care for any in-hospital patients or if you’re on call for ICU or whatever. Worst case scenario you miss a year of family stuff which definitely sucks but is manageable in the grand scheme of things- unfortunately a bit of a “suck it up buttercup” type moment :/

But! Out in GP I sure as hell don’t work Thanksgiving or Christmas Day And it’s not usually too difficult to wrangle time off around the holidays so long as you’re fair with other coworkers needs.

 

[allieh8607]

After over a year in practice, I had my first interaction today (a "meet & greet) with a client who refused to let me neuter their dog because I wasn't experienced enough. She told me I've done 4 neuters and she was extremely concerned about my skill level. She was baffled why she wasn't told over the phone that I was a "brand new doctor" and was even more floored that my more experienced colleague couldn't fit her into her surgical schedule until March. I was trying so hard to diffuse the situation and had a good handle on it for awhile, but literally everything that came out of her mouth was so volatile and rude and I got so rattled towards the end...came out of the exam room and just cried lol. Oh lord. Fun times. Then she told my receptionist "but she can give the vaccines when they're due!" Nope. You're fired. We are the 3rd clinic this woman has been to in her puppy's 11 months of life and after the neuter with my colleague she will be finding a 4th.

 

[allygator13]

After over a year in practice, I had my first interaction today (a "meet & greet) with a client who refused to let me neuter their dog because I wasn't experienced enough. She told me I've done 4 neuters and she was extremely concerned about my skill level. She was baffled why she wasn't told over the phone that I was a "brand new doctor" and was even more floored that my more experienced colleague couldn't fit her into her surgical schedule until March. I was trying so hard to diffuse the situation and had a good handle on it for awhile, but literally everything that came out of her mouth was so volatile and rude and I got so rattled towards the end...came out of the exam room and just cried lol. Oh lord. Fun times. Then she told my receptionist "but she can give the vaccines when they're due!" Nope. You're fired. We are the 3rd clinic this woman has been to in her puppy's 11 months of life and after the neuter with my colleague she will finding a 4th.

Ugh, I always just feel so bad for the animals in these situations having to live with that person. I'm sorry this happened to you today! I hope you felt better after a good cry and can move on knowing this client is atrocious and others appreciate you and your skills 🙂

 

[SkiOtter]

I’m sorry you had a crazy lady, Allie 🙁

 

[allieh8607]

Ugh, I always just feel so bad for the animals in these situations having to live with that person. I'm sorry this happened to you today! I hope you felt better after a good cry and can move on knowing this client is atrocious and others appreciate you and your skills 🙂

I’m sorry you had a crazy lady, Allie 🙁

Thank you guys <3
It felt so much like one of those communication simulation labs they do in school that I actually thought "Am I being filmed? or punked?"
And while yes, @allygator13 I feel bad for her dog, I almost feel worse for her children. The way she talked to them in the room was a little terrifying, and she slammed her young daughter into the wall when she wouldn't stop talking :/ Her kids were so unruly...in the lobby the one child was walking the dog around and it was just peeing everywhere. They pointed it out to their mother and she said "oh it's ok, the staff will clean it up". Some great parenting there. The whole appointment was just a disaster!

 

[SkiOtter]

@allygator13 I feel bad for her dog, I almost feel worse for her children. The way she talked to them in the room was a little terrifying, and she slammed her young daughter into the wall when she wouldn't stop talking :/ Her kids were so unruly...in the lobby the one child was walking the dog around and it was just peeing everywhere. They pointed it out to their mother and she said "oh it's ok, the staff will clean it up". Some great parenting there. The whole appointment was just a disaster!

......I feel like she needs to be reported to CPS.......

 

[WeimMama]

to @sheltermed but also anyone else who needs it:

I am somewhere between stunned silent fear and hysterical maniacal laughter after watching this

 

[PrincessButterCup]

After over a year in practice, I had my first interaction today (a "meet & greet) with a client who refused to let me neuter their dog because I wasn't experienced enough. She told me I've done 4 neuters and she was extremely concerned about my skill level. She was baffled why she wasn't told over the phone that I was a "brand new doctor" and was even more floored that my more experienced colleague couldn't fit her into her surgical schedule until March. I was trying so hard to diffuse the situation and had a good handle on it for awhile, but literally everything that came out of her mouth was so volatile and rude and I got so rattled towards the end...came out of the exam room and just cried lol. Oh lord. Fun times. Then she told my receptionist "but she can give the vaccines when they're due!" Nope. You're fired. We are the 3rd clinic this woman has been to in her puppy's 11 months of life and after the neuter with my colleague she will finding a 4th.

This makes me curious about what you're supposed to say when someone asks "how many of this exact surgery have you done?" and you know they won't be impressed by the answer. Is it okay to respond with something like "I'm a relatively new surgeon but I've done this surgery successfully and I'm comfortable with it . . . "? Do you usually tell people that "this would be the x number time I've done this" if they ask?

@Trilt I feel like you'd have a good answer to this.

 

[Trilt]

This makes me curious about what you're supposed to say when someone asks "how many of this exact surgery have you done?" and you know they won't be impressed by the answer. Is it okay to respond with something like "I'm a relatively new surgeon but I've done this surgery successfully and I'm comfortable with it . . . "? Do you usually tell people that "this would be the x number time I've done this" if they ask?

@Trilt I feel like you'd have a good answer to this.

Spays/neuters at my clinic aren't scheduled with a particular doctor; they're just put on the docket in the morning and divied up according to other surgeries/time available/etc, so if people inquire I tell them whom does the surgery depends on the morning schedule. Every once in awhile someone will request a particular doctor and we do our best to honour it.

I've never told someone the exact number of a surgery I've done... Tend to speak in generalities and say, roughly, "all the vets here are comfortable with x, older boss has obviously been doing it the longest because he has been a vet the longest, *sickly sweet smile* if you want to request a particular doctor that is fine but promise everybody here will take good care of your pup(/kit/etc)."

Sounds a bit like good riddance in this case though, lol.

 

[DVMDream]

After over a year in practice, I had my first interaction today (a "meet & greet) with a client who refused to let me neuter their dog because I wasn't experienced enough. She told me I've done 4 neuters and she was extremely concerned about my skill level. She was baffled why she wasn't told over the phone that I was a "brand new doctor" and was even more floored that my more experienced colleague couldn't fit her into her surgical schedule until March. I was trying so hard to diffuse the situation and had a good handle on it for awhile, but literally everything that came out of her mouth was so volatile and rude and I got so rattled towards the end...came out of the exam room and just cried lol. Oh lord. Fun times. Then she told my receptionist "but she can give the vaccines when they're due!" Nope. You're fired. We are the 3rd clinic this woman has been to in her puppy's 11 months of life and after the neuter with my colleague she will be finding a 4th.

She should be fired before the neuter. I wouldn't touch that with a 1,000 foot pole. Anything that goes "wrong" even if it isn't wrong will be a nightmare for your clinic. Kick her out now would be my decision.

 

[allieh8607]

She should be fired before the neuter. I wouldn't touch that with a 1,000 foot pole. Anything that goes "wrong" even if it isn't wrong will be a nightmare for your clinic. Kick her out now would be my decision.

I completely agree. Unfortunately, after speaking with my practice manager this morning, I am not supported in that suggestion. I told her the client should be fired, at the very least after the neuter but ideally before anything is allowed to take place- as it could very well become a major headache for our clinic. Normally I'm backed up when I make these kinds of suggestions (which is surprising, since we're corporate) but...not this time.

 

[allieh8607]

I'm starting to think it's the way I'm wearing my hair lately and my minimal makeup, because it just freaking happened again. I've started working out in the morning so don't have time in the morning to curl my hair and do my normal makeup- just been wearing my hair in a high ponytail. But apparently the trade-off is looking like I'm 20 years old.

 

[DVMDream]

I'm starting to think it's the way I'm wearing my hair lately and my minimal makeup, because it just freaking happened again. I've started working out in the morning so don't have time in the morning to curl my hair and do my normal makeup- just been wearing my hair in a high ponytail. But apparently the trade-off is looking like I'm 20 years old.

Less headache/dinguses for you to deal with. Let them show their true colors.

 

[that redhead]

I'm starting to think it's the way I'm wearing my hair lately and my minimal makeup, because it just freaking happened again. I've started working out in the morning so don't have time in the morning to curl my hair and do my normal makeup- just been wearing my hair in a high ponytail. But apparently the trade-off is looking like I'm 20 years old.

People routeinly tell me I look 15, both at work and in the rest of the world. Don’t get me started on that bit. But no, I never say, “oh, this will be my seventeenth cystotomy” or whatever, I say something similar to Trilt. “I’ve done enough to feel comfortable with the procedure” with a sweet smile. You could always say “oh goodness, I don’t keep track of how many (whatever’s) I do!”

 

[genny]

This makes me curious about what you're supposed to say when someone asks "how many of this exact surgery have you done?" and you know they won't be impressed by the answer. Is it okay to respond with something like "I'm a relatively new surgeon but I've done this surgery successfully and I'm comfortable with it . . . "? Do you usually tell people that "this would be the x number time I've done this" if they ask?

@Trilt I feel like you'd have a good answer to this.

If a client is asking how many times I’ve done a procedure, usually what they really want to know is whether their pet will be OK. So if someone seems hesitant, I talk about anesthesia and safety protocols before I ever get the question about how many times I’ve performed the surgery. And sometimes I talk a little about the surgery itself, if there are specific complications that are possible so the owners know that I’m being careful. I’ve really only had to answer it about rat spays, and I was honest with the owner about my inexperience there before I had performed one. Most people just want reassurance that their pet will be safe.

 

[capri1722]

......I feel like she needs to be reported to CPS.......

Fun fact, I wondered one day whether pharmacists were considered mandated reporters (they are in CO), and apparently in Colorado veterinarians are among the ~40 professions considered mandated reporters. Pretty much every medical professional is one. Basically everything on the list makes sense when you think about it but a lot is stuff I wouldn't have otherwise thought about.

 

[Caiter92]

Fun fact, I wondered one day whether pharmacists were considered mandated reporters (they are in CO), and apparently in Colorado veterinarians are among the ~40 professions considered mandated reporters. Pretty much every medical professional is one. Basically everything on the list makes sense when you think about it but a lot is stuff I wouldn't have otherwise thought about.

Tangent maybe, but there is a really close relationship between animal abuse and domestic abuse. Often animal abuse is an extension of domestic abuse, or threat of harm to the animal is used to control the domestic abuse victim. I could go off on this for a while, but here’s some info for anyone who is interested:

http://nationallinkcoalition.org/what-is-the-link

Also a few other states have policies that extend to animal control officers, vets, etc on reporting suspected child abuse so people should be aware of the laws in their particular state

https://www.avma.org/Advocacy/StateAndLocal/Pages/sr-animal-abuse-cross-reporting.aspx

 

[Minnerbelle]

This makes me curious about what you're supposed to say when someone asks "how many of this exact surgery have you done?" and you know they won't be impressed by the answer. Is it okay to respond with something like "I'm a relatively new surgeon but I've done this surgery successfully and I'm comfortable with it . . . "? Do you usually tell people that "this would be the x number time I've done this" if they ask?

@Trilt I feel like you'd have a good answer to this.

If a client is uppity enough to ask such an asinine question for something routine like a neuter, and I were a new grad, I would personally be happy to just pass the case along. Because you know this is going to be the one to develop a huge scrotal hematoma.

I would say something along the lines of, "this is a routine surgery that I feel quite confident in, but I see that you are uncomfortable with me performing it. I can get that scheduled with another doctor, as I think it is of utmost importance that you are comfortable with and trust the provider taking care of your pet"

Clients ask me for whatever surgeries if it's a procedure I've done a lot of, or feel comfortable doing. And I think that's a fair question. But the how many dogs have you neutered is essentially them telling to your face they don't think you're good enough for their pet. And honestly, whatever. They're entitled to their opinions. You don't need to continue subjecting yourself to these dingus clients. Good riddance. You don't need that stress of needing to suck up to this idiot every time you see their animal.

If it's a not super routine surgery that you don't have much experience with, that you're going to have help with either way, I think it's perfectly fine to say "this isn't a surgery that I have a ton of experience with, but Dr.X has been doing it for years, and we will be scrubbed in together for the procedure" or something like that.

Or if it's not something you have much experienxe with it and no one can help you, I think the client has the right to know. I'll be honest and say that "I know how to do the sx, but this is a more complicated procedure with more risks of complications, and it'a not one I've had the opportunity to do many of. The ones I have done thus far have done well, but I've only done it a few times. So by all means, go have it done at a referral facility for the best chance of a good outcome. But if that's not an option, these are the risks. And on the other hand these are the risks of not pursuing the surgery "

 

[cdo96]

I took a shower earlier this evening, and I decided to do a face mask while I was mentally shutting down for the night/ prepare my mind and skin for starting semester 4 tomorrow. So I did a new face mask that I wanted to try, and it was a peel off which was great.

Except it turned into this massively gooey mess that got actually everywhere, my hair, my nose, all over my hands. The label said 5-10 minutes to dry and that clearly was a lie, despite doing only a thin layer.

So I had to shower. Again. And scrub the crap out of my face. And that was not the anti-stress night I was planning. But my skin does feel smoother ...

 

[capri1722]

First day back at school for the semester. Also one of my classes still hasn't been published to Canvas. Also a Monday. Also I haven't had a chance to eat lunch yet and it's like 2:30. So anything that goes remotely wrong right now gets my full rage.

Like, for example, the JOKE of a PUBLIC TRANSIT SYSTEM my city has. (This sentiment is largely exaggerated, it works fine most of the time and this time it isn't even their fault but I'm cranky.)

I live at home with free rent, but the drawback is I have to commute across town. There is a fairly straightforward rail route I can take (3 different trains) that is almost never delayed even in inclement weather, unlike the buses. There is also a slightly longer bus+rail route I can take but I always have such bad luck with the buses I swore them off.

I get to the first rail station and I just missed it by a minute or two. Nbd, this happens all the time, just means I have to wait 15 minutes for the next one. About 5 minutes before the scheduled arrival I check where the train is and it says it's running 10 minutes behind schedule. Ughhhhhhhh. But also I normally have to wait 12-15 minutes for my second train anyway so w/e I guess??

The second train can't be tracked in real time for some stupid reason like it's a different type of train or whatever so I'm watching the clock and it looks like we'll just barely make the transfer on time. Get to the station and there's some announcement scrolling across the next arrival board. When it clears it says the next train is in 19 minutes. That was 26 minutes ago. It still says 3 minutes. ETA: 29 minutes later I'm on the train.

Apparently due to an accident they're having to bus people from the next station to the final station. That's also why the trains are delayed so bad.

Update: I'm on the first train that's allowed to go all the way so that's a plus I guess

 

[BigCats]

Literally realized an hour ago that the girl I've been calling by one name all year is not, in fact, named that, and that the name I've been calling her happens to belong to another girl of the same ethnicity. Now I have to go find her and apologize for calling her the wrong name all year and hope she understands that I'm not racist, just faceblind.

(It's a genetic learning disability that my mom's side of the family all has; I have far too many examples of this occurring throughout my life to know that I'm really not racist, just really bad at recognizing faces, which unfortunately comes across to people who don't know that as being really rude.)

 

[Stroganoff]

In case nobody has done it, welcome to SDN, @BigCats. Hope your stay is awesome.

 

[TheGirlWithTheFernTattoo]

I went out 2 nights back to back when I had an exam on Monday. The Vet School Plague has decided my stupidity must be punished.

 

[BigCats]

In case nobody has done it, welcome to SDN, @BigCats. Hope your stay is awesome.

Thank you!! I’ve been a lurker for a long time and figured I might as well chat a little since I’m here!

 

[capri1722]

Google Calendar decided to delete all of my classes so guess who has to spend an hour putting them all back 😡

I am aware of "repeat weekly" and the like but I have a couple classes that meet some weeks and not others, or which meet in one room one week and a different room the next week, etc so it takes forever to do.

Update: Found a way to restore deleted events and found some other events that also got deleted for no reason. Glad that's fixed.

 

[WildZoo]

Google Calendar decided to delete all of my classes so guess who has to spend an hour putting them all back 😡

I am aware of "repeat weekly" and the like but I have a couple classes that meet some weeks and not others, or which meet in one room one week and a different room the next week, etc so it takes forever to do.

Oh god I would rage quit so hard. My classes aren't consistent at all so it takes forever to put them all into Google calendar.

 

[Coopah]

Oh god I would rage quit so hard. My classes aren't consistent at all so it takes forever to put them all into Google calendar.

My school has a lovely ability to sync to google calendar. So all my random ass classes that change every damn day is on there and very reliable. Thank dog!

 

[WildZoo]

My school has a lovely ability to sync to google calendar. So all my random ass classes that change every damn day is on there and very reliable. Thank dog!

They just give us a PDF 😢

 

[Squeaksmom]

Ours is synch-able with google, but it doesn't always update right away if there are changes. I use it, but it's kind of synch at your own risk.

 

[britzen]

For anybody who has canvas and is not aware, you can sync your canvas calendar with your google calendar. (If everybody already knew that, carry on...)

Sent from my SM-G892U using SDN mobile

 

[Stroganoff]

Someone liked my post just nao (catching up!) so I re-read it...

Jeez strog, you made me tear up spill some weird liquid from my eyes

I just realized how, if taken out of context, it totally changes what I meant.

Uh... JFC. Despite some severe bilateral ophtho issues (extreme dry eyes, etc.) I've been going through for 1.5 years now, I legit squirted out some odd liquid just now. I never do that. At least sober. **** me. At least none of you bishes can see me, so whatever.

Wow. Honest to goodness I was going for "man who's too embarrassed to show emotion lies about tearing up" but holy hell is that dirty in hindsight. "Local prowler goes into graphic detail about bodily function in presence of room of opposite sex ranting about difficult times in their lives; claims he usually only does it while extremely hydrated then boasts that nobody can see the mess he made."

 

[WildZoo]

Someone liked my post just nao (catching up!) so I re-read it...



I just realized how, if taken out of context, it totally changes what I meant.



Wow. Honest to goodness I was going for "man who's too embarrassed to show emotion lies about tearing up" but holy hell is that dirty in hindsight. "Local prowler goes into graphic detail about bodily function in presence of room of opposite sex ranting about difficult times in their lives; claims he usually only does it while extremely hydrated then boasts that nobody can see the mess he made."

🤣

 

[WildZoo]

For anybody who has canvas and is not aware, you can sync your canvas calendar with your google calendar. (If everybody already knew that, carry on...)

Sent from my SM-G892U using SDN mobile

Wasn't aware but basically none of our professors use the canvas calendar

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

Thank you!! I’ve been a lurker for a long time and figured I might as well chat a little since I’m here!

 

[killerleaf]

trying to teach "this is to play with, not chew to pieces" to dog that could chew up a ball bearing....ugh. Plus, I think my baby heart dog is developing alzheimer's...he has moments where it is like he forgets what he is doing/where he is going. And, he is getting super grouchy toward the other dog. Not aggressive, just doesn't want her to be closer than 2 feet most of the time.

 

[battie]

I had resolved to not check my grades unless our counselor emailed me the "how are you doing?" email she only sends when you did poorly grades wise. We got our grades back on the 26th or 27th of December and I didn't hear from her all break. I was like, "You know, she could just be on vacay because there's hardly any students there, we'll wait to be confident till school starts," to avoid any false hope. Class started Monday and didn't hear from her and didn't hear from her yesterday, so I was feeling pretty good about it! Then got the email this morning and I am so disappointed.

I've tried every type of study system I can think of over since first year 1.0. I went to lectures and took direct notes, I didn't go to class and just studied off the given notes and listened to lecture/emailed if I had a question. I've tried outlines, flashcards, writing out notes, typing out notes, looking at lectures before class, study groups, study alone, reading out loud, reading silently, doing the lecture objectives. I don't know what else I can try. It's aggravating to only have two tests per quarter to know whether or not a system works, and then those tests are 30-45% of your grade for that quarter. So if you biff midterms, it makes the final that much harder.

If anyone has any study suggestions, I'm open for anything except really group study cause every time I try that with literally anyone, it turns into a social session and nothing gets done. I'm not worried about our milestone cause the pass threshold is a 60% and I have never been that low. But I need a 70% for the year and it's been a ****show apparently. I'm meeting the counselor on Friday, but will take any advice.

 

[that redhead]

I had resolved to not check my grades unless our counselor emailed me the "how are you doing?" email she only sends when you did poorly grades wise. We got our grades back on the 26th or 27th of December and I didn't hear from her all break. I was like, "You know, she could just be on vacay because there's hardly any students there, we'll wait to be confident till school starts," to avoid any false hope. Class started Monday and didn't hear from her and didn't hear from her yesterday, so I was feeling pretty good about it! Then got the email this morning and I am so disappointed.

I've tried every type of study system I can think of over since first year 1.0. I went to lectures and took direct notes, I didn't go to class and just studied off the given notes and listened to lecture/emailed if I had a question. I've tried outlines, flashcards, writing out notes, typing out notes, looking at lectures before class, study groups, study alone, reading out loud, reading silently, doing the lecture objectives. I don't know what else I can try. It's aggravating to only have two tests per quarter to know whether or not a system works, and then those tests are 30-45% of your grade for that quarter. So if you biff midterms, it makes the final that much harder.

If anyone has any study suggestions, I'm open for anything except really group study cause every time I try that with literally anyone, it turns into a social session and nothing gets done. I'm not worried about our milestone cause the pass threshold is a 60% and I have never been that low. But I need a 70% for the year and it's been a ****show apparently. I'm meeting the counselor on Friday, but will take any advice.

We had a similar set up at AVC where we had very few graded things (especially first two years) and it was TOUGH (like hi, anatomy midterm and final only. Hope you know your sht!) Honestly, group study wound up being the best for me, which is the very last thing I would have expected. Two of my very best vet school friends and I started studying together first semester of second year and while we had social breaks, we were able to keep it on topic. We studied all the way up through NAVLE together.

If you can't make it work, you can't make it work. Does your school offer tutoring? Kind of similar way to study but with someone presumably being paid to shut up and help instead of gossip or kvetch about school

 

[battie]

Does your school offer tutoring?

I will ask about tutoring. I know we have it (cause it was required to have one when I repeated first year), but I didn't have one this year because I thought I had figured my crap out. So I can see about one for fourth quarter.

Also, can't even check my percentage grade cause our compass/blackboard page for last quarter is gone now. 😕 I would check the school registrar except that just tells you the letter grade, not the percentage. A 69 is way different than a 60 in this case.

 

[that redhead]

I will ask about tutoring. I know we have it (cause it was required to have one when I repeated first year), but I didn't have one this year because I thought I had figured my crap out. So I can see about one for fourth quarter.

Also, can't even check my percentage grade cause our compass/blackboard page for last quarter is gone now. 😕 I would check the school registrar except that just tells you the letter grade, not the percentage. A 69 is way different than a 60 in this case.

I feel like each subject often requires a different study strategy, even with group study (at least for me). We'd quiz each other on models, go through flashcards, talk through topics, act things out, etc. Being adaptable is key but like you said, it's difficult when there isn't any grade feedback. I hope the meeting with the counselor is helpful - would they have the actual percentage for you?

 

[Doctor-S]

@batsenecal ... sorry to hear you're experiencing difficulties.

Have you tried meeting one-on-one with your veterinary med professors?

 

[battie]

would they have the actual percentage for you?

Yeah, she'll be able to look it up for me on her spiffy excel sheet of student knowledge.

@batsenecal ... sorry to hear you're experiencing difficulties.

Have you tried meeting one-on-one with your veterinary med professors?

For some of them I have, depending on the subject (though I did not this last quarter because I thought I figured it out for the final). Some were helpful during first year 2.0. But this last quarter was parasit, bacti, viro, myco, and antimicros. So pretty straight forward so I didn't go talk to them cause nothing was confusing at the time (though I apparently misjudged that).

 

[killerleaf]

maybe speak to the counselor about your learning style. Me, I need to read it--I retain very little that is said in a lecture. Others do so much better with things like audiobooks, lectures, etc. Once you know that, you can then tailor your studying around that style. For instance, if you are like me, then yes, group type study sessions suck, because you are not retaining the information. I did better on my own.

 

[killerleaf]

I would also speak with your professors. Maybe there is a common "core" concept that is just not clicking for some reason, and that is what is dragging the grades down. For me, it is networking. I have a hard time getting that all straight. But coding, man I can do that with ease--until I have to code something to work with a network. My answer of "have someone else write that module", while making the instructor laugh, was really not the correct one. 😛 But, once we figured out that was the weakness, I was able to focus more on that, and get grades more in line.

Does that make sense?

 

[SkiOtter]

I’m sorry bats 🙁 I hope 4th quarter goes in your favor
Our compass page also disappeared a couple days ago which annoyed me too.

 

[forks4spoons]

Husband asked me for a divorce two nights ago. Now i'm scrambling to find a place till I find out if I'll be going to vet school this fall. We were on the rocks, so not a big surprise, but damn, I wish he'd waited till after I find out. This just really puts a wrench in my gears.

Ugh.

 

[SkiOtter]

I’m sorry forks 🙁

 

[supershorty]

.

I'm so sorry. I got divorced last year and know how sucky it is. If you ever need an anonymous shoulder to vent to or cry on, you're more than welcome to PM me <3

 

[deleted676737]

@batsenecal I wish that I had some sage advice to give you, but I don't, really, apart from what others have already said. If you find yourself needing to vent to someone who understands the whole grades struggle with vet school, my PM box is always open to you here or on Facebook. Keep strong and keep moving forward; I know you've been working really hard.

 

[LyraGardenia]

I had resolved to not check my grades unless our counselor emailed me the "how are you doing?" email she only sends when you did poorly grades wise. We got our grades back on the 26th or 27th of December and I didn't hear from her all break. I was like, "You know, she could just be on vacay because there's hardly any students there, we'll wait to be confident till school starts," to avoid any false hope. Class started Monday and didn't hear from her and didn't hear from her yesterday, so I was feeling pretty good about it! Then got the email this morning and I am so disappointed.

I've tried every type of study system I can think of over since first year 1.0. I went to lectures and took direct notes, I didn't go to class and just studied off the given notes and listened to lecture/emailed if I had a question. I've tried outlines, flashcards, writing out notes, typing out notes, looking at lectures before class, study groups, study alone, reading out loud, reading silently, doing the lecture objectives. I don't know what else I can try. It's aggravating to only have two tests per quarter to know whether or not a system works, and then those tests are 30-45% of your grade for that quarter. So if you biff midterms, it makes the final that much harder.

If anyone has any study suggestions, I'm open for anything except really group study cause every time I try that with literally anyone, it turns into a social session and nothing gets done. I'm not worried about our milestone cause the pass threshold is a 60% and I have never been that low. But I need a 70% for the year and it's been a ****show apparently. I'm meeting the counselor on Friday, but will take any advice.

The only study strategy I can think of that you didn't mention is writing practice test questions for yourself. It's not something I usually have time for, but my friends sometimes make practice questions and share them and they're often really helpful!

Also is there any way you can look over the final to see where you missed points? That way you'd know if it's truly an issue of not understanding or remembering certain things, or if you knew it but changed your answer, etc. If second year there is anything like here it's tough because it's so much memorization, I just had to go over things as many times as possible so it would stick in my head. I'm a crammer and I don't think I'd do well at all with Illinois's system.

 

[battie]

Also is there any way you can look over the final to see where you missed points?

We can! All we can have is our answers. No pens, phones, etc. and we can only do it the specific day after the tests. After that day, they don't let you look at the exam. I hadn't done so during this last semester. I was aiming for scrapping by first quarter. But it would be a good idea to do next quarter after the midterm. I'm not sure if I can do it for the prior to Christmas break final. I would have to double check in my meeting.

I made questions as part of writing/typing out the notes. I think I just write crappy questions. Lol. They were nothing like what our profs wrote.

I've been asking closer friends how they study and they're going to go through their notes with me to show me how they study. And looking back at my undergrad, the tests I did the best on were essay based and I wrote out my notes like an essay. I haven't tried that here because we're basically 98% multiple choice. But it may be worth considering.

Thank you everyone.