Withdrawing vs trying harder?

[kunals]

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Hey, im in Bio 150 which is just basic principals of biology.

I got a 52 on the first test i studied read all the chapters went to all the lectures thought i understood it but i didnt do so well on the test.

The class average was 66 and only 3 people out of 170 got an A.

There is suppose to be a curve but the professor did admit that the test may have been too hard for what we did learn.

I was wondering if it would be better to withdraw from the class after the second exam if i do bad again or if i do good stay in the class and try the hardest to get a B

Is a W on your transcript look better than a B or a C

 

[TheWhiteFlame]

im somewhat in the same situation. with interpersonal communication i got a C on the first test, but the test was ungodly hard and was WAY too intricately worded for non majors. but, im staying. i dont really care what my grades are outside of science as long as theyre C or better. they can suck it.

 

[the duck]

im somewhat in the same situation. with interpersonal communication i got a C on the first test, but the test was ungodly hard and was WAY too intricately worded for non majors. but, im staying. i dont really care what my grades are outside of science as long as theyre C or better. they can suck it.

Wait, a pre-med didn't do well in interpersonal communication?

Anyway, I'd go talk to your professor, find out what you'll need to get a better grade. If you're pretty sure you'll end up with a C drop. If you will probably get a B, hang in there.

 

[Dookie2010]

Hey, im in Bio 150 which is just basic principals of biology.

I got a 52 on the first test i studied read all the chapters went to all the lectures thought i understood it but i didnt do so well on the test.

The class average was 66 and only 3 people out of 170 got an A.

There is suppose to be a curve but the professor did admit that the test may have been too hard for what we did learn.

I was wondering if it would be better to withdraw from the class after the second exam if i do bad again or if i do good stay in the class and try the hardest to get a B

Is a W on your transcript look better than a B or a C

Yes, a W will look better than a C. It's more of a gray area as to whether or not a W is better than a B, but that would be assuming you can definitely get a B. B's are good grades, but not if that's all you ever get in science courses. Basic Biology is a pre-requisite for medical school, and a poor grade will not only bring your GPA down, but may call into question your ability to handle the more difficult scientific concepts you encounter in medical school. I would wait to see what the professor curves the test to, but even then, you're 14 points below the average, and unless the standard deviation is huge you didn't get a very good grade on this test.

If I were you, I would change your study approach for the second test, and try to get a significantly better grade. Instead of just going to class and reading the materials, do practice problems, quiz yourself daily, or study in group and quiz each other. Get a tutor if your school provides them. If your professor provides them, use old tests to study. If s/he doesn't ask if s/he will. If you don't end up doing much better, withdraw, and retake the class, using a better study approach from the start. Don't be discouraged, plenty of people need to withdraw from classes. Just make sure you're prepared when you retake the class, and most adcoms won't look twice at one W, especially if you make an A when you retake. Good luck

 

[raltima07]

+1 on talking to your professor

 

[TheWhiteFlame]

the test was ignorant though man


i put about 15 man hours into studying for it over the first few weeks the questions were just way too tricky for someone who really doesnt care to get into the stuff

 

[Stixman28]

the test was ignorant though man


i put about 15 man hours into studying for it over the first few weeks the questions were just way too tricky for someone who really doesnt care to get into the stuff

sounds like you're ignorant

part of taking classes is learning crap you'll never have to think about again, and learning to think in other ways.

Suck it up

 

[WorldChanger36]

Hey, im in Bio 150 which is just basic principals of biology.

I got a 52 on the first test i studied read all the chapters went to all the lectures thought i understood it but i didnt do so well on the test.

The class average was 66 and only 3 people out of 170 got an A.

There is suppose to be a curve but the professor did admit that the test may have been too hard for what we did learn.

I was wondering if it would be better to withdraw from the class after the second exam if i do bad again or if i do good stay in the class and try the hardest to get a B

Is a W on your transcript look better than a B or a C

Look it is quite obvious that you are not ready for these types of classes. You should slow down and stop making excuses.
I recommend that you withdraw, finish your other classes and take other classes (that are not prereqs) until you can get into a good grove for these classes. You need to get a handle on this stuff your it will haunt you for a very long time.

 

[gatorade848]

biochem last semester i got 80 on the 1st test, which was 3 points below average. now I already had a low gpa i had to get all As in all of my classes so I kinda freaked out a bit. Well then I settled down and proceeded to get 97, 95,96 and 96.5 on the final and ended up with a A.

it is definitely possible, you just need to study your butt off

 

[TheWhiteFlame]

sounds like you're ignorant

part of taking classes is learning crap you'll never have to think about again, and learning to think in other ways.

Suck it up

TOTES bro !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[gettheleadout]

the test was ignorant though man


i put about 15 man hours into studying for it over the first few weeks the questions were just way too tricky for someone who really doesnt care to get into the stuff

And you wonder why you did badly?

 

[luke587]

Last semester i got a C- on my first chemistry test, and even came to this board freaking out about dropping i love sdn but theyll flame you more then likely when you come here with grade issues. I then got a 96, 92, and 93 on the next three test and ended up with a A-..so hang in there

 

[gatorade848]

Last semester i got a C- on my first chemistry test, and even came to this board freaking out about dropping i love sdn but theyll flame you more then likely when you come here with grade issues. I then got a 96, 92, and 93 on the next three test and ended up with a A-..so hang in there

👍

 

[sc4s2cg]

Last semester i got a C- on my first chemistry test, and even came to this board freaking out about dropping i love sdn but theyll flame you more then likely when you come here with grade issues. I then got a 96, 92, and 93 on the next three test and ended up with a A-..so hang in there

Same thing here.

Last semester I got a D in my first Physics I exam, and a C on the second exam. Miraculously I got a 100 on the third, 97 on the fourth, and I believe a 90-94 (never posted grades) on the final. A- overall.

So just hang in there and study, study, study. Who knows? Proff may make your last exam open notes. 😉

 

[LEUNIT]

the test was ignorant though man

I don't know how a test can be ignorant. Elaborate, please.

 

[BleedCubbieBlue]

Hey, im in Bio 150 which is just basic principals of biology.

I got a 52 on the first test i studied read all the chapters went to all the lectures thought i understood it but i didnt do so well on the test.

The class average was 66 and only 3 people out of 170 got an A.

There is suppose to be a curve but the professor did admit that the test may have been too hard for what we did learn.

I was wondering if it would be better to withdraw from the class after the second exam if i do bad again or if i do good stay in the class and try the hardest to get a B

Is a W on your transcript look better than a B or a C

This sounds an awful lot like me. My first test in college was my in Bio101. I thought I knew the stuff and I studied a lot for it (though not the correct way). I got a 57% and it ended up being the lowest test grade I ever got in college. I managed to get a B in the class (I did well on the next 2 or 3 test). But I can remember the same thing you are going through. I can picture the conversation I had with a friend back then over dinner if I was going to make this pre-med thing work.

Now I am graduating from med school in ~3months.

Edit: read the bold, it wasn't a matter of effort I changed. I had to change the way I studied and prepared, which was a lot different then in HS.

 

[apumic]

the test was ignorant though man


i put about 15 man hours into studying for it over the first few weeks the questions were just way too tricky for someone who really doesnt care to get into the stuff

Sounds like you're the ignorant one, dude.

What year are you? Because it sounds like you've got some serious growing up to do. Interpersonal comm is basically watered-down applied social psych (i.e., a watered-down version of one chapter of gen psych extended over an entire semester w/o the depth of an upper division course) -- in other words, it's generally known for being one of the easiest non-science courses there is at every university I've attended. (As a side note, "No-Math Physics" has got to be the easiest science course I've seen! )

Honestly, though, you need to learn to excel regardless of your innate interest in a subject (or lack thereof). Your interests really are entirely irrelevant here. Sorry. Work harder. Figure out how you screwed up. (Was it underestimating a non-science course? Was it not reading before class? Was it not looking to apply course content to the world around you?) With these kinds of courses, you should let your learning influence the way you think as that is the entire idea behind the course. Weigh and use what you are learning. In addition, actually study -- just as you would for a science class. The principles of learning o-chem (i.e., know and understand concepts; memorize only when necessary; know your terms) apply to interpersonal comm, so use them.

 

[AnotherBioMajor]

the test was ignorant though man


i put about 15 man hours into studying for it over the first few weeks the questions were just way too tricky for someone who really doesnt care to get into the stuff

Principles of Bio is one of the easiest science classes. Either change your study habits or talk to your professor. No need to drop, just adapt. The first exam is always going to be the hardest, because you don't know what to expect.

 

[gettheleadout]

Principles of Bio is one of the easiest science classes. Either change your study habits or talk to your professor. No need to drop, just adapt. The first exam is always going to be the hardest, because you don't know what to expect.

You directed your reply at the wrong person.

 

[V5RED]

Were you told what was going to be tested? If so, were those the items that appeared on the exam?

I know a lot of people in my classes have gotten flustered over exams being too difficult, but everything on the exams was part of what we were told to know.

I do have a class where the professor lies to us about what to study and then mocks us if we protest, but aside from him I have never seen that.

 

[V5RED]

the test was ignorant though man


i put about 15 man hours into studying for it over the first few weeks the questions were just way too tricky for someone who really doesnt care to get into the stuff

Is that 15 hours over 3 weeks as in 5 hours a week? Isn't that below what most classes suggest as an amount of studying.

I just mention it because it sounds like you were saying 15 hours of study over 3 weeks is a large amount of study time.

 

[sc4s2cg]

^ Our uni recommends us to study 2-3 hours for every credit hour we take. So a 4 credit hour class demands at least 12 hours of studying per week.

Its a good guideline. (Meant for the OP)

 

[kunals]

This sounds an awful lot like me. My first test in college was my in Bio101. I thought I knew the stuff and I studied a lot for it (though not the correct way). I got a 57% and it ended up being the lowest test grade I ever got in college. I managed to get a B in the class (I did well on the next 2 or 3 test). But I can remember the same thing you are going through. I can picture the conversation I had with a friend back then over dinner if I was going to make this pre-med thing work.

Now I am graduating from med school in ~3months.

Edit: read the bold, it wasn't a matter of effort I changed. I had to change the way I studied and prepared, which was a lot different then in HS.

How did you change your study habits to the "right way"