What does it take to do well in a course?  Specifically a science course.  These are a few tips that I’ve heard from some students:

1.  Do Problem Sets [chemistry]

2. Don’t skip class

3. Preread!

Those are just a few, and those extremists,yeah the ones who get 90+ on all their courses, dont practice till they get it right, they practice till they CANT get it wrong.  Thats the mentality I want going foward.  Now that I’m going into 2nd year, there truly are no excuses not to get a fantastic average next year, that can compete with my high school average.  You see people get 97 in a course that the average was 60.  You immediately think those people are superhuman, but their not, their human.  They’re just more focused, and probably absorb material faster than you.  So why settle for a average-above average grade when you can get those superhuman grades too.  That’s exactly what I was thinking on the plane when I awoke from a dream, or should I say nightmare where I was a high school biology teacher *shudders*.  I thought realistically, that though I can be focused, and thats what I did second semester, sometimes you just dont have time!  You want to do all those problem sets twice, and all those practice midterms, but sometimes you only have time to do some and not all.  My best midterm to date was Chem 123 second midterm, but that midterm was AFTER reading week.  With time, you can accomplish anything.  Rushing, cramming, will get you to above average at best, atleast for me.  But thoroughly learning the material, key word ‘thoroughly’ will definitely let you reach those Superhuman Grades.  Thus I have found a solution!  Why don’t I teach myself the course, before the course?!  It seems bullet proof, the difficult part is finding the resources.

One thing I learned from my second semester course was that my learning was about 85% myself and 10% Professor and 5% High school knowledge.  Pretty much if you dont do readings, or problems, or anything,  just go to lectures then chill, in a science course, I cant imagine you getting like 94+ in the class, I cant imagine you passing! (Though there are the lucky few) .  When you go to Irving and its packed, people are learning from themselves, with lectures acting as somewhat of a supplement.

I will be taking Chem 233, Biol200, Phys102, among many others next year -__- , and I want to prepare for these courses thoroughly before diving in.  That way when the course comes around, I’ll keep up, but it’ll be like a review, itll be less fresh, and those difficult concepts (which I know theres a lot in chem233!) wont be as difficult because it wont be new material.  Now due to the fact that I am highly resourceful if I say so myself, I have lecture slides from 2 different professors per course, tons of sample midterms, problem sets with solutions, the textbooks, and even have some ochem for dummies and physics for dummies as supplement.  The hardest part of this whole process will likely be staying focused and serious, its easy to slack when what your doing is by choice and not actually graded.  So I will give weekly updates with how this whole plan goes.

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

Deuces!

Binta