Study Habits

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UpstateNY518

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What would people that are currently in pharmacy school say about studying and the frequency you have to do so and the focus?

Is the amount of work overwhleming that if you do not grasp something right away that you will be lost quickly?
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UpstateNY518 said:
What would people that are currently in pharmacy school say about studying and the frequency you have to do so and the focus?

Is the amount of work overwhleming that if you do not grasp something right away that you will be lost quickly?
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That is what we would have you believe, yes.

It's harder than undergrad, but it's also better. Your classmates are all in the same boat you are. As long as you stay on top of it, it is manageable.
 
Well basicly what I mean is that I am a hard worker now in undergrad. And I have no problem putting the work in. I am just wondering about the workload and how much you have to really understand right away and what type of studying is best since the load is so much higher.(Outlines, flash cards for certain things) Just suggestions of what people do would be appreciated for the different concepts. Cause obviously some things are needed to be memorized while others need to be understood and applied.
 
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I don't think it will be any different from undergrad. As things get harder, you are also getting better. Because if you make it there, you are obviously good enough.
 
I would most certainly say it gets harder thats why I am wonderig of suggestions on how to approach things from people that are already experienced in it and what seems to work. And how to breakdown and mangage your time. Thank You in advance everyone. Much appreciated.
 
Well of course it will be different from undergrad. But imo you shouldn't notice it much unless your studying habits haven't gotten any better after you have finished undergrad.

It's just like starting in Chem 1 > Chem 2 > Orgo 1 > Orgo 2

You would study the same way unless you skipped Chem 1 and went straight to Orgo 2 etc.

Maybe it's just me. I just don't know why the OP is worrying about the difficulty of grad when undergrad isn't finished yet.
 
I NEVER used flashcards prior to pharmacy school. I now appreciate their portability. I can sit somewhere while my family does stuff and review for a minute or two on the go.

The biggest change I saw in workload was the insane number of presentations and projects. You're not just focusing on the 7 or 8 classes you're taking. You're also coordinating with group members to ensure that your presentations are ready to go (and in the right order).

Some people study for 2 hours every day and don't cram before an exam. I try to do that, but normally study a little bit each day instead and then go over everything the day before the exam. It looks like cramming, but it's really just reviewing an entire set of lectures so that I don't miss the little trivia questions (not related to the concept).
 
iBeast said:
Well of course it will be different from undergrad. But imo you shouldn't notice it much unless your studying habits haven't gotten any better after you have finished undergrad.

It's just like starting in Chem 1 > Chem 2 > Orgo 1 > Orgo 2

You would study the same way unless you skipped Chem 1 and went straight to Orgo 2 etc.

Maybe it's just me. I just don't know why the OP is worrying about the difficulty of grad when undergrad isn't finished yet.
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Its odd that I know plenty of people who passed with flying colors in Gen Chem. Then got murdered in Orgo even though they had better study habits. Sometimes it's just the class and the material and it depends on what each person excels at. Orgo required a lot of critical thinking as opposed to just memorization at my school, different from your typical gen chem class. Maybe their study habits got stronger and they were more disciplined and spent more time studying, but that doesn't mean you still grasp the material better because for me, gen chem and orgo were two VERY different courses. Do you expect to excel in english because you got an A in math?

Personally, I think it's plenty valid to worry about what type of classes/graduate school you're going to get into when you're in undergrad, when the hell else would you do it?
 
SparkLy09 said:
Its odd that I know plenty of people who passed with flying colors in Gen Chem. Then got murdered in Orgo even though they had better study habits. Sometimes it's just the class and the material and it depends on what each person excels at. Orgo required a lot of critical thinking as opposed to just memorization at my school, different from your typical gen chem class. Maybe their study habits got stronger and they were more disciplined and spent more time studying, but that doesn't mean you still grasp the material better because for me, gen chem and orgo were two VERY different courses. Do you expect to excel in english because you got an A in math?

Personally, I think it's plenty valid to worry about what type of classes/graduate school you're going to get into when you're in undergrad, when the hell else would you do it?
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I've noticed in my class that the people who passed Orgo via memorization are struggling quite badly in our chem based courses.

Pharmacy is more conceptual based knowledge than undergrad. I find myself studying at least a portion every night (which is very weird for me).

One of the things I've noticed, which makes sense when you think about it, is that you don't really have 'easy' points on an exam anymore.

It's harder and more demanding and I'd say half of my class, myself included, has been the majority of the semester relearning how to study.
 
phathead said:
It's harder and more demanding and I'd say half of my class, myself included, has been the majority of the semester relearning how to study.
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This.

I'll admit even though I didn't try my hardest in Undergrad, I still got through it all with relatively high grades. I slept in class all the time ]: .. Something I've learned in Pharmacy school is that you can't necessarily do that anymore.. and on top of being an active listener/note taker, you can have continuous lectures, from 8-12pm almost M-F, with 10 minute breaks between each 50 minute lecture [Not like undergrad, where you may sneak in an hour break or something]

From my experience, pharmacy school really "humbles" you. You're at the top with a lot of other students who were at the top of their stuff, too. Granted.. you will still find the few who are smart enough to pull off studying one or two nights before and still getting good grades.. but the majority of the class needs to study, and study well.
 
meimei29 said:
From my experience, pharmacy school really "humbles" you. You're at the top with a lot of other students who were at the top of their stuff, too. Granted.. you will still find the few who are smart enough to pull off studying one or two nights before and still getting good grades.. but the majority of the class needs to study, and study well.
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This was the hardest transition for me. Gone are the days of easily setting the curve with hardly any true effort on my part. Now I poor the effort into my studies to just barely be average. Humbling is a mild way to put it.

I still get bummed out sometimes by the amount of effort involved in getting mediocre and sometimes sub par grades. You probably won't hear this type of talk from student panels, but it is definitely something you should brace yourself for.
 
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What exactly is considered OK in pharmacy school and does everyone typically struggle and work together? Just thoughts on this
 
Ok just wanted to know if this was the case. I know when alot of people struggle they kind of keep it to themselves cause of pride, But I was hoping it is usually people are open to working with eachother in most cases. I think group study is good to bounce off ideas and how to go about things.
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owlegrad said:
This was the hardest transition for me. Gone are the days of easily setting the curve with hardly any true effort on my part. Now I poor the effort into my studies to just barely be average. Humbling is a mild way to put it.

I still get bummed out sometimes by the amount of effort involved in getting mediocre and sometimes sub par grades. You probably won't hear this type of talk from student panels, but it is definitely something you should brace yourself for.
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This is very true. This semester was the first time in my life I've truly felt stupid. It makes you question whether or not you even have the basic brain pan to do the next few years.

It become reassuring when slowly other people admit they're in the same boat though.
 
Compared to some pharmacy school classes, undergrad general reqs are like coloring with crayolas. The sheer amount of material makes your head want to explode. The concepts themselves are not difficult, but it is hard to manage 8 classes + internship + extracurriculars + whatever else you're doing (research, for example).
 
phathead said:
]I've noticed in my class that the people who passed Orgo via memorization are struggling quite badly in our chem based courses.[/B]

Pharmacy is more conceptual based knowledge than undergrad. I find myself studying at least a portion every night (which is very weird for me).

One of the things I've noticed, which makes sense when you think about it, is that you don't really have 'easy' points on an exam anymore.

It's harder and more demanding and I'd say half of my class, myself included, has been the majority of the semester relearning how to study.
Click to expand...

I heard Pharm school was nothing but memorization. I don't see anybody working out reactions.
 
iBeast said:
I heard Pharm school was nothing but memorization. I don't see anybody working out reactions.
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Right, because you've spent so much time in pharmacy school classes.

It's not just working out reactions. It's knowing how phosphates work as intermediaries at various points or how certain nucleophiles will leave at another point.

It might be memorizing what those exact things are, but they way you apply that knowledge is conceptual in nature. There is no way you can simply memorize everything. I can look at some of the reactions we do in class on how to active a drug in vivo, for example, and see how things move around and what intermediaries are formed.

You then learn how hormones regulate various systems, for example, and how they are interrelated. Yes there are specific facts involved, but how it's applied is conceptual. That's what I meant.
 
iBeast said:
Well of course it will be different from undergrad. But imo you shouldn't notice it much unless your studying habits haven't gotten any better after you have finished undergrad.

It's just like starting in Chem 1 > Chem 2 > Orgo 1 > Orgo 2

You would study the same way unless you skipped Chem 1 and went straight to Orgo 2 etc.

Maybe it's just me. I just don't know why the OP is worrying about the difficulty of grad when undergrad isn't finished yet.
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Out of curiosity, are you a pharmacy student?
 
Develop a routine and don't fall behind.

Personally, I studied like 6-10 hours on the weekdays, and never studied on the weekends. Also, time management. I study a lot for stuff like med chem, therapeutics, pathology, but barely study for pharmacy law or ethics.
 
Please be sure to study your material the night of the lecture. It will make it LOADS easier on you. Even if you have another exam that week, just take 20 mins to look it over.

I have begun to make flashcards for each lecture. While in class I take notes and create question and answer type flashcards for a phone application I have. Then I will have study material for the finals and for the individual tests.
 
I'm a senior now and I would say that just my upper level science courses are much harder than those pre-reqs. I'm thankful for the experience it has given me in terms of figuring out some sort of system for time management compared to when I was a freshman or sophomore.

So it doesn't matter if you have the "experience" and get "better", what you learn in pharmacy school (in my opinion) will be difficult because now you're concentrating 100% on your path. No more fluff classes or gen eds to pad the schedule. Plus all of the extracurricular things you need to do to be competitive.
 
erin0522 said:
I'm a senior now and I would say that just my upper level science courses are much harder than those pre-reqs. I'm thankful for the experience it has given me in terms of figuring out some sort of system for time management compared to when I was a freshman or sophomore.

So it doesn't matter if you have the "experience" and get "better", what you learn in pharmacy school (in my opinion) will be difficult because now you're concentrating 100% on your path. No more fluff classes or gen eds to pad the schedule. Plus all of the extracurricular things you need to do to be competitive.
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Look not every class in pharmacy school is going to break your back. Some classes we be easy (even very easy). Plus I would say that no one class is going to be unbelievably harder than what you are used to. It's just when taken together your classes are going to be much, much tougher than what you are used to. 5-7 classes at any given time, plus IPPE, all the homework, quizzes/exams, presentations, group work, written work, plus anything you have going on outside just the coursework, taken together it really adds up, much more-so than I expected.

But don't let anyone tell you that it is THAT tough. Time management and good study skills go a long way.
 
Lots of info came in on this topic, thanks alot everybody. If anyone has any opinions it be appreciated
 
Would anyone compare it to the jump between high school and college?
 
study until you don't even remember what masturbation is...then you're really hardcore enough for pharm school. Simple as that.
 
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