Prothrombin Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 ...actually read/do the problems of the courses you're taking, before school starts? Some of my friends (not very smart btw) think it's fairly dumb for me to be memorizing/doing textbook work and I should wait till class starts because the prof may omit chapters. I think if you learn the work in advance, the class is just that much easier to get through:confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cnussey Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 ...actually read/do the problems of the courses you're taking, before school starts? Some of my friends (not very smart btw) think it's fairly dumb for me to be memorizing/doing textbook work and I should wait till class starts because the prof may omit chapters. I think if you learn the work in advance, the class is just that much easier to get through:confused: The material may be extraneous, but it doesn't mean it'll be useless. If you are that keen and have the time on your hands--go for it. I usually read through the texts that appeal to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HBP Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 ...actually read/do the problems of the courses you're taking, before school starts? Some of my friends (not very smart btw) think it's fairly dumb for me to be memorizing/doing textbook work and I should wait till class starts because the prof may omit chapters. I think if you learn the work in advance, the class is just that much easier to get through:confused: i have never ever ever ever done this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
token Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 Honestly, I found doing well in college to be about 10% learning the subject matter, and 90% figuring out how the prof will test it. But if that's been working for you, you might as well keep with it. No one studies the same way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DOC_Ma Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 ...actually read/do the problems of the courses you're taking, before school starts? Some of my friends (not very smart btw) think it's fairly dumb for me to be memorizing/doing textbook work and I should wait till class starts because the prof may omit chapters. I think if you learn the work in advance, the class is just that much easier to get through:confused: Well that explains why your friends are not that smart. I did this exactly same thing 3 weeks before school for organic chemistry, and fair enough I got a high 90 on a GPA killer course where my friends all suffered dramatically (best I knew got a low 80). Worked for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prothrombin Posted September 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 Yeah it definitely depends on the person and how they study, but for me at least I feel like if I study during the summer, when the course hasn't even started its more relaxed and makes it easier for me to absorb material. I also think that once school starts I get into a different state of mind that focuses a lot more on memorization and the specifics as opposed to having time to understand the big picture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattg Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 lol, I too have never done this in my life and never will:eek: I agree, that doing well in uni is in large due to you ability to extract/retain what is likely to be tested... hard to do before class even begins... that said though, obviously understanding the material is vital, and if this helps you man go for it... i definitely wouldn't say that it is "dumb", but in my opinion, doing this is being too much of a keener... i guess some can say there is no such thing as too much, and that you are just doing all you can to succeed (and, as I said, good for you, continue doing it if it works), but summer is time off, not time to pre-read your texts... I suppose the material would be easier to get through this way... but is it really that hard to get through learning as you go? Med school will be 10x the work... Anyways, like I said, keep doing it for you as long as you don't mind sitting inside pre-reading textbooks during your summer... but I think 98% of people, dumb or not, would agree with your friends, and tell you to let loose... go all out during the year if you'd like, but if that's the case, at least take a break in the summer... but no, it's not "dumb" though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a41 Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 It depends. You don't need to do that to do well, but I find if you want to LEARN something well it's useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waterluv Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 I never even thought of doing that. I put off buying textbook until class starts so I can get the sense if I will need it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prothrombin Posted September 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 It depends. You don't need to do that to do well, but I find if you want to LEARN something well it's useful. Yeah I definitely don't need to do it to do well, but I do it so that I get a bit more time to grasp the concept and theorize different situtations/understand them in real life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avenir001 Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 man, i never even touched most of my textbooks until the first week of october but i do envy the OP cuz on october 6th i'd be like, oh $hit i have like 5 midterms in 2 weeks, where do i start Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamP Posted September 1, 2009 Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 yeah that's pretty crazy...thinking back though if you have the time and don't drink, i could see it being pretty helpful for orgo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prothrombin Posted September 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 yeah that's pretty crazy...thinking back though if you have the time and don't drink, i could see it being pretty helpful for orgo. Orgo was an intense course. I didn't bother pre-reading because the profs exams are just memorizing reaction mechanisms. Pre-reading for psycology, for me at least, is not only extremely entertaining but very helpful as its all memorization. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewfieMike Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Med school will be 10x the work... probably won't be that much extra Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeman101 Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 I've based my whole university career on mastering the art of cramming. Anything can be crammed, english, calc, w.e. I have crammed for every course I've ever done. Hell I've even crammed for the MCAT. Honestly, I don't know how you guys carry a life / ECs otherwise, unless you're time NAZIs or something. I usually don't have any textbooks until the 2nd or 3rd week of school. Cause by the 4th week its crunch time for midterms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewfieMike Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Honestly, I found doing well in college to be about 10% learning the subject matter, and 90% figuring out how the prof will test it. But if that's been working for you, you might as well keep with it. No one studies the same way. I couldn't agree with this more. I spend the first 3-4 weeks of school studying my ass off to rock my first set of midterms. But totalllllly overkill it. That way you know the pattern of what is to come for the rest of the evaluation, and you still didn't use the first midterm as a 'trial run'. It's all about the testing strategy. Studying over the summer sounds like a total waste of time though. I don't start until I have the syllabus. This is going to sound pretty basic and sensible in hindsight, but I just do everything the prof says to do on the first day of class. If they tell you that the following chapters are not required, but recommended, read them! I see a lot of posts where people say like "I like to go above and beyond the course material so I can truly get a better understanding of the material." I am a full supporter of self-directed learning, but only of topics that you personally find interesting. Seeing as you are only really ever tested at the level of material presented in class/the text, taking the time to go further in depth on EVERY topic means you sacrifice time from your other courses. Remember, there's no gain in knowing a topic 110% in university Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
w8kg6 Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Med school will be 10x the work... Yeah, I'm with Newf here. It'll be more difficult than most other undergrad programs, but would be on par with the rest of the professional degrees... although I'd put it slightly out in front. As far as 10x harder? Doubtful. I can't imagine it even requiring twice the amount of work it takes to get in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewfieMike Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Yeah, I'm with Newf here. It'll be more difficult than most other undergrad programs, but would be on par with the rest of the professional degrees... although I'd put it slightly out in front. As far as 10x harder? Doubtful. I can't imagine it even requiring twice the amount of work it takes to get in. i was forced to sit in on a 2nd year med neurology lecture last week. ...most of them were on facebook Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeman101 Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 i was forced to sit in on a 2nd year med neurology lecture last week. ...most of them were on facebook Thus the awesomeness of the pass / fail system. It doesn't matter if you squeak by or absolutely dominate med school, you're still no better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cnussey Posted September 3, 2009 Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 You can easily figure out which courses are going to be intense or not by their evaluation strategies--I tend to spend the most study on the courses that put a lot of weight into exams and less in writing intensive courses (you learn the material from the research anyways!). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToHellInAHandbasket Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 I haven't done this yet, but usually it's because I *couldn't* (bookstore out of texts, shipment not in, loan hasn't arrived yet and I'm poorer than MC Hammer, etc.) even if I had an urge to. I think that each person has a different study style. There are many ways to do well. And MANY many ways not to. If you are a person who tends to get really nervous before exams, likes extra background before each class, etc. then getting yourself really comfortable with the material can really help you out. For other people, it's just too much when they can learn the material they really need to know just as well without doing this. I think that if it works for you, do it. Especially for o-chem, everybody's favourite GPA killer... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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