Transferring?

[Kochanie]

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As much as I love my school I was wondering if I should transfer.

There are pros and cons. I would be transferring a semester based school so hopefully it would be less hectic.
I am just SO stupid compared to the students here. It goes too fast (quarters) and I am doing bad. That being said, I would be transferring from a top school to a meh school. Would they look down on that?

 

[Chir0nex]

I think you have to first analyze what the problem is. Take a critical look at how you study. Have you been putting in the effort? What can you improve? Have you spoken to the school to get get tutoring etc...? I bring this up because it is quite possible that you will have the same struggles at a new school, if the issue is one with your study system. Also, while a quarterly system may be faster, it also is a better sample of what medical school will look like in terms of speed.

Beyond that you have to consider your own quality of life. You love your school, so chances are that going to a new one will leave you less happy socially, not to mention that you need to make new friends and adjust to a new environment. Thus, you academics may suffer simply due to this adjustment phase.

Ultimately I think you better off rising to the challenge of a vigorous curriculum than running away from it. You will have much better study habits for med school, and stay in a place you already love.

 

[frosted_flake]

I think you have to first analyze what the problem is. Take a critical look at how you study. Have you been putting in the effort? What can you improve? Have you spoken to the school to get get tutoring etc...? I bring this up because it is quite possible that you will have the same struggles at a new school, if the issue is one with your study system. Also, while a quarterly system may be faster, it also is a better sample of what medical school will look like in terms of speed.

Beyond that you have to consider your own quality of life. You love your school, so chances are that going to a new one will leave you less happy socially, not to mention that you need to make new friends and adjust to a new environment. Thus, you academics may suffer simply due to this adjustment phase.

Ultimately I think you better off rising to the challenge of a vigorous curriculum than running away from it. You will have much better study habits for med school, and stay in a place you already love.

Strong words, friend 👍

But in contrast, sometimes the semester seems to drag on to no end, at least it feels that way in boring courses (but I have never experienced a quarter system.)

 

[medmedman]

As much as I love my school I was wondering if I should transfer.

There are pros and cons. I would be transferring a semester based school so hopefully it would be less hectic.
I am just SO stupid compared to the students here. It goes too fast (quarters) and I am doing bad. That being said, I would be transferring from a top school to a meh school. Would they look down on that?

Chir0nex nailed it. It's better to develop a better studying strategy now then later. I don't believe you are stupid compared to your peers. You just need to figure out a better way to study. In medical school, the pace is about 10 times as fast as you can imagine. I'm not saying this to scare you but to show you that you can't just "run away" from fast-pace schools where everyone of your classmates have solid GPAs.

To answer your question, no. A med school will not see a transfer as bad - given you don't tell them that you did it because you felt the curriculum was too hard. Again, if you don't think you can handle your undergrad curriculum, then you should really reevaluate things becuase med school is the real deal. Again im not trying to discourage you but only trying to give you a realistic expectation of what med school is about. You can do it - just rise to the challenge 🙂

 

[CW 2010]

I am going to vote for the transfer. I am from the same area that you, Kochanie, are and I know your school well. It's an excellent school, no questions about it. But it is well known for it's GPA deflation. And although I am all for rising up to the challenge and working hard and overcoming your own limitations (this list can go on), sometimes you gotta choose as easier path. A high GPA from an average school, in my opinion, is better than a low GPA from a good school. There are plenty of schools around us. And there are plenty of pre-meds who graduate from those schools and get into medical schools each year.

 

[Kochanie]

I think you have to first analyze what the problem is. Take a critical look at how you study. Have you been putting in the effort? What can you improve? Have you spoken to the school to get get tutoring etc...? I bring this up because it is quite possible that you will have the same struggles at a new school, if the issue is one with your study system. Also, while a quarterly system may be faster, it also is a better sample of what medical school will look like in terms of speed.

Beyond that you have to consider your own quality of life. You love your school, so chances are that going to a new one will leave you less happy socially, not to mention that you need to make new friends and adjust to a new environment. Thus, you academics may suffer simply due to this adjustment phase.

Ultimately I think you better off rising to the challenge of a vigorous curriculum than running away from it. You will have much better study habits for med school, and stay in a place you already love.

The reason I say I am just not smart is that my friend is taking Physics, Orgo, and Bios easily. He sleeps at 11, does research, and gets flying grades. I put in so much time (maybe not quality time?), but still. It is so frustrating. I never studied in high school.

 

[Lucca]

The reason I say I am just not smart is that my friend is taking Physics, Orgo, and Bios easily. He sleeps at 11, does research, and gets flying grades. I put in so much time (maybe not quality time?), but still. It is so frustrating. I never studied in high school.

I can sure you you are probably very smart. You answered your own question. You are not spending quality time studying. Learn how to fix your study habits now.

There will always be people who can do things more effortlessly than others. Luckily, a work ethic isn't inherited, it's built.

 

[Kochanie]

I know I COULD do it if I studied way more, but I honestly don't feel like I have the time in the day to know every detail about everything in my classes. For example, today class ended at 8PM. I ate dinner and studied for a midterm and now I am writing a paper. Constant all-nighters even though I suck.

 

[Pacna]

I know I COULD do it if I studied way more, but I honestly don't feel like I have the time in the day to know every detail about everything in my classes. For example, today class ended at 8PM. I ate dinner and studied for a midterm and now I am writing a paper. Constant all-nighters even though I suck.

How heavy is your course load? I remember UG being a breeze most days. I pulled my fair share of all-nighters, but only around exam time. Not weekly.

 

[Chir0nex]

I am going to vote for the transfer. I am from the same area that you, Kochanie, are and I know your school well. It's an excellent school, no questions about it. But it is well known for it's GPA deflation. And although I am all for rising up to the challenge and working hard and overcoming your own limitations (this list can go on), sometimes you gotta choose as easier path. A high GPA from an average school, in my opinion, is better than a low GPA from a good school. There are plenty of schools around us. And there are plenty of pre-meds who graduate from those schools and get into medical schools each year.

While this is most likely true, it does not address the larger point that the same problems he is dealing with now will likely still be there post-grad. Plus, if the school is know for grade deflation I suspect that there is probably consideration when it comes to comparing candidates. Plus, if the OP is pulling grades that would get auto-screened out I don't believe that is a purely institutional problem. The simplest way to find out though is to check the average GPA of students applying from his current school, something that the premed adviser may be able to provide some help with.

The reason I say I am just not smart is that my friend is taking Physics, Orgo, and Bios easily. He sleeps at 11, does research, and gets flying grades. I put in so much time (maybe not quality time?), but still. It is so frustrating. I never studied in high school.

I totally understand where you are coming from. In both UG and med school there are a ton of people who simply seem to be able to do everything without even trying. Get used to it. Also, keep in mind that if you are at a top school the pre-meds around you may not be representative of the average pre-med in general. It is very easy to find yourself in a bubble where even though you are doing quite well compared to the entire applicant pool, you constantly feel that you are under performing since you are surrounded by some of the best in the nation. Try to keep some perspective, and realize that you ar enot competing with your classmates, rather you are competing with everyone in the nation.

I know I COULD do it if I studied way more, but I honestly don't feel like I have the time in the day to know every detail about everything in my classes. For example, today class ended at 8PM. I ate dinner and studied for a midterm and now I am writing a paper. Constant all-nighters even though I suck.

So obviously I don't know the details of your schedule and course load, but ask yourself if this level of work is something that will occur every semester. For example, once you finish basic graduation requirments, it is quite possible you will never have to write an essay again, which may free up some time if that is a weakness for you. Again, this is an issue that your school should be able to help you with. Go talk to tutors who can help point out high yield concepts. Speak with upperclassmen and find out what tricks they used to get through it all. Assuming you are a freshman, keep in mind that there is an adjustment period, I did not hit my stride for studying until sophomore year when I got into some more interesting classes and knew what worked best for me to get stuff done effectively. In the same vein, realize that you don't need stellar grades in first year as there is a lot of time to show improvement and move your GPA.