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I'm a rising junior in college. Yesterday I just took my final for a course that I took this summer. Honestly, I think I'm getting a C+ or a B-. My problem is, how do I get out of this rut? My gpa is a 2.7 and I'm sure that when this grade gets posted I'll be at 2.5.
Typically my textbooks are 30-40 pages per chapter, and I rarely if ever finish reading a chapter. Even if I do, I don't remember what I read, let alone the info I need to get good grades on exams. Also, in class lectures go in one ear and out the other. Should I get a tape recorder & record them? Lastly, studying for an exam is always a nightmare. I always have stacks of notes that I need to memorize 2-3 days before an exam, IF I want to get an A. I never get an A.
How do I bridge the gap from barely passing to acing exams? I suspect that its not as hard as I'm making it out to be. I'd like to hear advice from people who have/have had an A average in college, and who have methods that work for them. I desperately need & want to work smarter.
Why do you not finish your chapters? You don't start memorizing your notes 2 or 3 days before the test. Study, study, study is the way to make A's. I know because I made a lot of them. You have to make a career out of studying. Think about your subject as being interesting and try to learn all you can. College is not just about passing tests. You are there to learn. If you pass all the tests in the world and don't learn anything; what good has your time been.
I can't believe you are not already recording your classes if you have trouble remembering. Then you could listen to the tapes when you are doing other things such as driving home on the weekends or whatever you do besides go to class.
I am wondering how you chose your major? If classes are not interesting enough to remember, do you want to spend your whole life in that area of work?
What helps also is to prep before the class by reading the material that will be covered in class.
Then you're not trying to incorporate a bunch of new ideas all at the same time in class. Instead, you will be able to make sense and assimilate the terms and concepts in a more advanced manner.
Kinda makes it more concrete faster.
You will also be able to ask better questions.
I'm a rising junior in college. Yesterday I just took my final for a course that I took this summer. Honestly, I think I'm getting a C+ or a B-. My problem is, how do I get out of this rut? My gpa is a 2.7 and I'm sure that when this grade gets posted I'll be at 2.5.
Typically my textbooks are 30-40 pages per chapter, and I rarely if ever finish reading a chapter. Even if I do, I don't remember what I read, let alone the info I need to get good grades on exams. Also, in class lectures go in one ear and out the other. Should I get a tape recorder & record them? Lastly, studying for an exam is always a nightmare. I always have stacks of notes that I need to memorize 2-3 days before an exam, IF I want to get an A. I never get an A.
How do I bridge the gap from barely passing to acing exams? I suspect that its not as hard as I'm making it out to be. I'd like to hear advice from people who have/have had an A average in college, and who have methods that work for them. I desperately need & want to work smarter.
There is no good in studying if things don't stick.
What helped me get A's in college, was getting my mind wrapped and engaged into the topic. That meant sometimes reading other textbooks, publications and speaking to other people about the subject... so it will STICK.
Also, perhaps you are lacking in the foundation of learning? The basic cornerstones taught in primary/secondary schools which will give you background. For example if you are taking Trig in college, it could help if you knew the history and the applications that Euclid was looking for. Archimedes screw...etc.. It's always good to know the How and Why.
I'm a rising junior in college. Yesterday I just took my final for a course that I took this summer. Honestly, I think I'm getting a C+ or a B-. My problem is, how do I get out of this rut? My gpa is a 2.7 and I'm sure that when this grade gets posted I'll be at 2.5.
Typically my textbooks are 30-40 pages per chapter, and I rarely if ever finish reading a chapter. Even if I do, I don't remember what I read, let alone the info I need to get good grades on exams. Also, in class lectures go in one ear and out the other. Should I get a tape recorder & record them? Lastly, studying for an exam is always a nightmare. I always have stacks of notes that I need to memorize 2-3 days before an exam, IF I want to get an A. I never get an A.
How do I bridge the gap from barely passing to acing exams? I suspect that its not as hard as I'm making it out to be. I'd like to hear advice from people who have/have had an A average in college, and who have methods that work for them. I desperately need & want to work smarter.
Are your tests essays or multiple choice?
In the case of essay exams you might have issues in terms of how you write. I went to a big public university and there were lots of students who were horrible at writing and suffered for it.
On the other hand if your tests are multiple choice I would see if there are any practice tests available and take those.
Lastly, taking notes during a lecture helps a lot in terms of retention it will also help keep your mind active during a lecture. I would also try to create outlines for your notes so that they are condensed and the content is easier to memorize.
What helps also is to prep before the class by reading the material that will be covered in class.
Then you're not trying to incorporate a bunch of new ideas all at the same time in class. Instead, you will be able to make sense and assimilate the terms and concepts in a more advanced manner.
Kinda makes it more concrete faster.
You will also be able to ask better questions.
Stan,
If you read the thread on textbooks, https://www.city-data.com/forum/colle...ny-tips-2.html you would know that many college students don't bother buying the book so that makes it difficult to read the material before class.
I took a class this summer and it was challenging to keep up with the reading, so I understand why many students just give up and study their notes. Many college instructors also give out study guides. Surprisingly, I found that looking up topics in Wikipedia gave me better answers than the textbooks and was faster.
I still recommend reading the required material and reading it before the class where it is discussed.
Take soft liberal arts courses and work hard in them. Engineering, hard science, and to a lesser extent, business courses tend to lack the grade inflation that often makes political science courses "easy." They're also often curved.
The last 2 years of undergrad, I was essentially a "straight A" student, or a hair away from that. How do you that? Don't work, except during the summer, and "live" in the university library.
Some of the things I would do:
- attend all classes and sit in the front
- recopy class notes after class because they might be too sloppy for legibility (you can't believe it, but that causes one to absorb the material)
- do some chapter outlining
- do all the assignments
- start studying for mid-terms a week before, breaking up the task into small chunks, instead of cramming
Good luck. I'm NOT a rocket scientist and it's doable. Had I done that all along, I would have graduated summa, but I still graduated with honors.
It's hard to say without knowing you and your classes better. I just managed my time well, did ALL my work, didn't procrastinate, and made tons of index cards and then memorized them no matter how long it took. I am not that smart, but the flash cards helped me memorize tons of stuff. Also, you have to go to all your classes. There was one class that I took that I just couldn't get an A in, no matter how hard I tried. Years later I met someone who was a really well-known expert on that subject. She had had the same class, and also struggled with it. The difference was that she went to the professor and told him she really wanted to learn, and could he help her. He spent a ton of time giving her extra help, and she ended up so good at it that now she's a bigger expert than he is. I, on the other hand, pretty much just continued to suck at that subject. So I recommend you talk to the professors and ask how you can do better.
The last 2 years of undergrad, I was essentially a "straight A" student, or a hair away from that. How do you that? Don't work, except during the summer, and "live" in the university library.
Pretty much this...
As someone who returned for additional degrees later in life, I can attest that at the time (of my 1st degree) I thought I was trying hard, but I really wasn't.
And no offense meant to anybody, but if you are a humanities major which it sounds like you are, then you really are not putting in enough time. Even when I was a total party guy/slacker/all around aimless lad, I was still able to get at least a B in every Humanities subject.
Take soft liberal arts courses and work hard in them. Engineering, hard science, and to a lesser extent, business courses tend to lack the grade inflation that often makes political science courses "easy." They're also often curved.
Engineering and business courses also have better employment opportunities than soft liberal arts courses. I don't think a 4.0 in history is going to fly as well as a 2.5 in electrical engineering if the job requires an engineer.
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