College woes

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Leah

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
99
Location
Georgia
This past spring semester, I've been struggling like mad with school. I started college in fall 2008. That fall, I did poorly in my biology class making a D. The spring semester I ended up making another D in philosophy. I retook biology this past summer course and raised the grade, but ended up making a terrible grade in my Spanish class (in my defense on this one, I was out sick for like a week and missed a lot.. and it was crazy hard trying to make up what I missed. I just got way behind). And today I find out that I've earned 19 credit hours and I'll be starting the fall off as a freshman again instead of a sophomore (needs 30 credit hours). I'm so overwhelmed and upset about all of this. I've always done really well in school, but it seems like with college I can't get ahead. Also with joining a sorority, there's like this extra added pressure for grades. I really want to go inactive with the sorority for the fall, but for us, that isn't an option. I'm already on academic monotoring with them. I know I need to buckle down and get myself straight, but it feels like everything I think I'm doing well, something bad happens.. it's just really discouraging. I just don't know what to do anymore. I'm to the point where I don't even want to go back in the fall, because I feel like I can do it anyway.

Just needed to vent... I've been scolded enough by my parents today...
 
At the college I went to, they had plenty of tutors and student help with the various classes. If you find yourself getting behind again, is there anything like that to help you catch up? And I've always found that if you talk with the teachers about being ill or whatever happens they're more likely to help you out. Most teachers want their students to do well. Especially in college, you're paying a lot for them to teach you, so most people want to be there. So if you're struggling in a class, I really suggest talking with the teacher and ask them if there's anything you can do extra to help your grade.

As far as the sorority, I think you just need to learn to balance your time well. Make dedicated study time and stick to it. Even if your friends are out doing something, and it's during your study time, you need to study. I know it's harder in college because you live with your friends most of the time, but it's important to make sure and have self control. Not sure if that's an issue with you, but it seems to be an issue with many students.
 
I basically lived in the study center in between classes with the tutors and student helpers. There was no way I could have gotten through O. Chem or Biochem without them. You really have to sacrifice your time and sit down and study in college..it's a big change from high school. I almost wish I would have lived in the dorms b/c I feel like I would have gotten a lot more studying accomplished. There were some days I would have class 8-3, then spend my time in the study center from 3-9 at night just to get all my studying and homework done.

So, if you have the tutors/student aides, definitely use them. They helped me tremendously.
 
Back when i was in college we were allowed to pledge a sorority 1st semester freshman year...........my GPA that semester was a .94. yes thats right not even a 1.0.
but i took some summer classes and really buckled down my junior & senior year. I ended up graduating with a bachelors degree and a 2.5. not the greatest ut oh well i ended up working for my family business anyway.
dont sweat the freshman status, its only semantics. looking back i wish i did the 5 year plan instead. take your time and concentrate on getting good grades, not graduating in 4 years. enjoy your sorority. i still talk to my ZTA sisters and i graduated in 1990!
 
Don't get too discouraged. You are going through what a lot of new college students go through. I placed into the upper division bio as a freshman, failed it, retook it and got a B. Not because it was hard but because I had to learn to discipline myself and learn how to learn in college. After that, life got a lot easier and I breezed through (not straight A's but good enough to pass. :) )

Don't worry about it taking you longer than 4 years. A lot. I mean A LOT of people are on the 5 yr and 6 yr plan now. A lot of my friends were super surprised that I finished in 4 years.
 
If you'd like, I can tutor you in some of your subjects. I've been a part-time undergrad tutor for 4 years at NC State and a tutor on LivePerson (formerly known as Kasamba) for a few years. You're more than welcome to pm me if you have any questions. I have a few students I work with online weekly across the country and I've pulled their grades up in no time.

As far as school taking more than 4 years - yeap, I'm working on year #5 on my B.S in Computer Science. This is because I live an hour and a half from my classes and I have a full time job in my hometown. I'm married, I take care of my disabled grandparents, and I have my chins and gliders to tend to. I can only handle 12-14 credit hrs at a time and it's taking me a bit longer than I hoped. I still have a 3.8 GPA, but it's just learning to take it slowly and balancing out your life that's important. Most students can't finish school in 4 years now. Remember, most post-grads are having a hard time finding steady work right now, so take it slow and concentrate on doing your best.
 
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Some of my friends literally LIVED in the libraries, staying there from 7am-10pm at night. Personally, I'd go study in the libraries if I had a long break but it wasn't for me.

I find that university is about balancing. Balancing your school work, social life, family, etc. It's hard! I still haven't got that balance quite right. Some years my marks suffer because I don't devote enough time to school while others I've been able to find that rhythm.

Make sure youhave some time to yourself as I know that helps with the stresss but unfortunately they don't joke that you have no social life in university for nothing... It takesa lot of effort and extra time to get those good grades.

Another thing I wanted to add is sometimes the route you're taking isn't the same as what you thought you would in highschool. For example, I was an A+ calculus student in highschool whereas a B was more likely in university. And sometimes you have to change your direction based on that. Follow those classes that you excel in and that you enjoy.

Good luck with everything.
 
Don't be embarrassed about this! I was very embarrassed about my academic situation (quite similar to yours) and every year it just got worse because I was just too ashamed in asking for help.

Take advantage of tutors, the academic learning center on campus, study groups (formal and informal ones), ask sorority sisters for help (going over labs, homeworks, tutoring, advice), TAs, professors... even talk to your intended major faculty.

Also, I would highly recommend talking to your campus counseling center. Sometimes, it just feels too hard to reach out for help, when in reality, it really isn't at all. Being top of the class in High School and then doing so poorly in my freshman year classes made me feel ashamed and I began experiencing high stress/anxiety attacks when exam periods starting to roll around. Talking to someone about it will help you in the long run. Usually, seeing a counselor on campus is included in your tuition (just a few visits, depends on the school).

Try your best to take care of this problem before it snowballs.

Explore different ways of studying:
- Taking notes in class, record the lecture. Afterwards, go to the library and then go over your notes again while listening. Rewrite your notes with anything you may have missed. Always go over your notes before the next class. This way you will always be on top of the material.
- Always do the recommended problem sets even if they do not get turned in for a grade.
- Sometimes using a whiteboard and explaining how to solve the problem to another person helps you learn and understand it better.

Good Luck!
 
I was always an awesome student until college too. Up until that point I always got pretty much all A's. But I struggled so much in college...and I hated every minute of it. But I kept going anyways, and re-took a couple of classes during one summer, and I graduated on time. My grades weren't great, but I did it and I was so proud of myself. You can do it! Don't give up!
 
Thanks for all the advice, guys. The whole situation has had me really under the weather, but it makes me feel better to know that I'm not the only one. I never thought I needed to take advantage of the tutors on campus, but obviously wrong! The new semester starts Monday, so I guess it'll give me a new chance to start fresh. Thanks for all the advice.
 
You're definitely not the only one! By the time I was in year 3 I'd burnt myself out. I learned that in order to get through the really crappy classes (Stat, Econ, Math) I had to take another that semester that I loved. It took me five years to get a Bachelor's in MIS because I had to offset the maths with a ton of Equine science and art classes. :p

Funny, they swore, SWORE you needed math to program. Been programming for 15 years now and have not once used a word problem or mathematical equation in programming. heh.
 
1) Need help on term papers etc? I was the first (and only to my knowledge) freshman hired into my college's writing center, and I was in there 4 years. Send them to me, and I'll give them a go through.

2) Got a sorority sister that's a Spanish or Language Ed. major? Ask her to help you study. Ditto the biology and Philosophy stuff. If you're paying all that money to spend time with your sisters, they should be willing to help you out when you need it too. As a tutor, I always took payment in Frosty's from Wendy's or going halfers on a pizza, but be prepared to offer a couple bucks, gas money, etc. just in case. :)
 
I learned that in order to get through the really crappy classes (Stat, Econ, Math) I had to take another that semester that I loved.
I second this. I only had one quarter in my entire undergraduate career where I didn't sign up for at least one "fun" class (other than music stuff), and one of my hardcore science classes ended up being the fun class (having a good professor really makes a difference...) Some of my fun classes included things like raptor biology (including a handling lab), tractor driving, archery, music theory, history of rock and roll... Some of these classes fulfilled major, minor or GE requirements, some didn't, but they were all for fun. My lightest quarter was 16 units ('full time' = 12 units), and usually I was taking 18-20.

While I never did badly in undergrad, I did learn a few things. University is not high school. I didn't have to study in high school to get virtually all As. In university, I spent the first year learning that I had to study (and go to class) and the next three years figuring out how to study. In high school, the "how to take notes and study" is sort of prescribed for you (some teachers required certain types of binders, and folders, and homework assignements, etc). In university, you go to class or don't as you want, you do the homework or not as you want, you take notes however you feel like, and you pass or fail based on how well you figure those things out. Yes, there's exceptions, but for the most part, everything but the tests and lab sessions were optional/suggested, and you figured it out from there. I borrowed study methods from most of my friends until I found the combination that worked for me. I am NOT a flashcard person. I learn best by hand-writing things over and over and over, and working through sample problems. Some people just have to reread their notes. Others record lectures and re-listen. Some people annotate the handouts or textbooks. Others type up summaries. It varies for everyone. It may take you a long time to figure out your method... I didn't truly figure it out til halfway through vet school (yes, this is after 4 years of undergrad, and into my 2nd year of a graduate program... I had a method that worked okay at the end of undergrad, but it took me another year and a half to more or less perfect it).

I also learned that having a study group is a good thing. My study groups in undergrad tended to meet a few days before an exam and independently work on homework problems or whatever was applicable to a particular class, and ask questions and get into discussions as needed. If we had enough people, at least one person in the group would actually understand every concept... and could make it make sense to pretty much the rest of the group. My vet school study group tended to meet the day or two before the exam and quiz each other on various concepts (which was useful because we all had different ideas of what was "important"). I never went to tutoring because I had smart people to study with, but it was definitely available, and some of my friends did take advantage of it. I rarely went to office hours for the same reason, but again, I had friends for whom it was a huge help.

The class I did the worst in was a chemistry class in which everything they covered I had already learned in high school. I didn't think I needed to study it because it was all familiar (and I therefore didn't go to class or do much of the reading and only perfunctorily worked through the problem sets). When I got the exam, I found out that while it was all familiar, I didn't know it as well as I thought I did.

As far as I know, most people experience a kind of study shock between high school and university. You're not alone. If your sorority requires you to maintain a certain GPA to stay in, then I hope they have some way of helping you out with that when times get tough. Most schools ought to have tutoring programs. Get together with your sorority sisters, dorm peoples, lab partner, whatever, and start to develop a network of people to help you figure out how YOU need to study.
 
Leah, ask your sisters for help! That's what they are there for! Every semester we would all write down our classes and make study groups for people taking the same classes(same or different times) or have the same major and have already taken the classes and we would make a few study groups for each class a couple times a week to make sure everyone had an opportunity to get a study time. We also had a mandatory 10 study hours a week in the library. We would meet up sign in and log hours. We all met up at the starbucks in the library for coffee and late night studying.
 

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