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worried about biochemistry
Started by nhitb
I am in the same boat as you but for ORGO 2
how many W's do u have so far ?
for me i have 1W for psychology b/c i had to drop it in the summer as i was hospitalized for appendicitis
some have more than 3W's and they got interviews at D school so i might think about dropping Orgo 2
how many W's do u have so far ?
for me i have 1W for psychology b/c i had to drop it in the summer as i was hospitalized for appendicitis
some have more than 3W's and they got interviews at D school so i might think about dropping Orgo 2
i don't have any W's so far. It's just that i am doing bad in the most important science classes which won't look good at all.. i mean i took my che and bio in a different college until i transferred in my second year but my first college was much easier.. those grades prob won't even be that impressive, but they aren't CC credits
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Yeh I took biochem I almost 2 years ago. It is definitely more challenging than most other courses. We had 220+ students in the class and the exam averages were always between 50-55%, and mind you, those were mostly juniors, seniors, and some masters students here and there. Only 20 students ended up with a 4.0, I was one of them and what helped me success was that I studied my ***** off. I didn't just take good notes in class, I didn't just read the chapters assigned, I did way more than that... I learned biochemistry inside and out, thought about EVERY scenario that a question can come from, and I didn't memorize stuff so much, but I "learned" how to apply biochemistry principles, It REALLY helped me learn biochemistry, and I feel so prepared for biochem in dental school, the 4.0 was just the cheery on top. Everytime I would come up with a scenario thats not explained in the book, I went to professor's office hours and discussed it with him. It was VERY time consuming course, but IMO, it was worth it
I suggest, if you want a strong grade, to do the same. Biochemistry is one of these classes where memorizing pathways and enzymes won't help you if your professor is going to ask you application type questions. You need to spend more time with this class.
Good luck to ya
yeah this is a pretty tough class.... I remember when I took it the exams only got harder because the information got alot more detailed and complex. Once you've memorized everything you now just have the language to begin studing. Either change your study habits or drop - but dont get a bad grade.
yea i just made a mistake taking it this semester, I am also taking anatomy and physiology 1, orgo lab, and 3 other non-science classes with this, so i don't have that much time to invest in this class. If i drop this course i will go down to 14 credits along with my first "W". I think, i rushed to take this class just cause tufts required it without knowing that they still accept students who haven't taken biochem but plan on taking it before matriculating...
forgive me if this question is piggybacking on the OP's thread, but i felt it might help some of this threads readers out as much as me... I was wondering, if asked during an interview about a W, whats the best way to explain it without putting your foot in your mouth...?
Nhitb, your GPA might take a hit if you keep the course, but if youre worried about a poor grade on a DS prereq, see how schools feel about taking courses of a similar discipline to make up for shortcomings in prereqs... thats what I did and they were totally cool with it. In fact, it was a poor mark in biochem that I made up for by taking a course in proteins and amino acid chemistry.
Nhitb, your GPA might take a hit if you keep the course, but if youre worried about a poor grade on a DS prereq, see how schools feel about taking courses of a similar discipline to make up for shortcomings in prereqs... thats what I did and they were totally cool with it. In fact, it was a poor mark in biochem that I made up for by taking a course in proteins and amino acid chemistry.
well a W or a bad grade is a sign of shame lol.... there is no "good" way to explain it other than the truth. "I was struggling with the class and didn't wanna end up with a bad grade"..... there is really nothing else you can say unless you have a REALLY good life situation that forced you to lower your credits
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Study hard. I remember my first biochem exam was rough, but I aced the second midterm and final. Just get to memorizing. Biochem was the only class I made note cards for. It really is just straight memorization at a certain point. You are going to have to pass it eventually, so I would give it your all and finish it now. Good luck!
Ok guys, you need to study hard for Biochem. I did my undergrad in Biochemistry major, my first Biochem class exam, I got 55 then I studied my ass off end up with the B.
If it was me, I would withdraw (however, this in no way means you should, I'm just explaining my reasoning for doing it). I did that with a physics class a couple years ago because I was taking some pretty challenging chem courses. I dropped it early in the semester because I knew I wasn't going to be able to do well in it from the get go. That's something I will most likely have to explain in my interview (hopefully to be interviews hehe). But I would rather have a W on my transcript then have a bad grade directly impact my GPA.
As for Biochem, the teacher that teaches it at my school is notoriously difficult, but I went in so frequently to ask questions that he started to like me and was more eager to help. Another thing I would do was study with a person from my class. We'd get together on Saturday nights and study for hours. She was a bit smarter than me, but for some reason, studying with her motivated me to prove myself more. We drew out pathways, did note cards for inhibitors and amino acid structures, and studied metabolism like crazy. I just loved the class because I saw great results from all the hard work I put in and actually have retained a lot of the information I learned.
As for Biochem, the teacher that teaches it at my school is notoriously difficult, but I went in so frequently to ask questions that he started to like me and was more eager to help. Another thing I would do was study with a person from my class. We'd get together on Saturday nights and study for hours. She was a bit smarter than me, but for some reason, studying with her motivated me to prove myself more. We drew out pathways, did note cards for inhibitors and amino acid structures, and studied metabolism like crazy. I just loved the class because I saw great results from all the hard work I put in and actually have retained a lot of the information I learned.
To the OP, check out my youtube channel. I tutor Biochem and recorded lectures for the students who could not make it to my sessions. I have covered most of the chapters, check it out and see if it is helpful.
http://www.youtube.com/user/aaronsbiochemvideos
http://www.youtube.com/user/aaronsbiochemvideos
Your vids rock! You have a gift... I wish I knew about these when I was taking biochemistry.
You can't do that. Pre-requisites such as biochem need to be taken for a grade.
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Hahaha!!^^^
