Cegep student here that needs to be yelled at

[Marko]

I'm a Health Science student at Brébeuf. I took spanish instead of english (huge mistake).

 

My all-time dream is to get into medicine (any Quebec or Canadian university is good enough for me). Here's the problem: I went to a high school with a total of 250 students. I was ranked #1 because kids in that school didn't give a crap about studying. I had some minor competition in sec 5 but I was still ranked first. I got SO pompous and full of myself that I basically thought I was invincible. This is partially my parents and teachers fault because they kept congratulating me for nothing.

 

I get into Cegep and I hit a brick wall pretty hard. This crap is WAY harder than I expected. Newtonian physics sucks most of the time (though I sometimes enjoy it), I hate calculus, I hate spanish, I hate litterature and humanities. The only classes I love are Chemistry and friggin weightlifting class (its called ''Mise en forme''). Overall my teachers are *okay*..they could do a better job explaining stuff... Since the start of the semester, I worked my ass off and scored pretty average grades so far (between 60 to 80%). In the past two weeks, I basically stopped everything. I've suddenly become lazy. I dont see the point in studying if I'm gonna score average...

 

I volunteer once a week at a hospital here in Montreal, and even that feels like a burden sometimes. I dont know what's happening to me. How did you guys manage to pull through all of this? Do I just need to suck it up and work my ass off or should I just let it pass and get a undergrad before applying for medical school? I'm gonna have a crappy R-score this semester either way.

 

My undergrad options: either neuroscience, biochemistry or microbiology. Are these very competitive programs? Lets say I score an R-score of 28 in cegep, what are my chances of making it into these programs?

 

Thanks for the advice. It's 2 am and I have to force myself to study physics. I have an exam this week and I'm totally drained. I wish they would have told us in high school that life sucks and that you gotta suck it up.

[future_doc]

Hey Marko, here is the scoop. I have a history like yours, thought I would go directly into med without UG. Instead, I am now completing my UG, learned how to get top marks by actually studying for the first time in my life and I matured so much. I am now ready for med. So, you will have a detour, won't be your last. Take courses that interest you in UG. I do, straight As, Dean's List, fantastic volunteering really put be in touch with med. I asm available PM any time. GL!

[thebouque]

don't give up you're just beginning cegep. Anyway you'll have to study really hard in UG as well so what's the point of giving up now. Maybe in the end things will work out. Even if you don't have a medical r score at the end of the semester, you still have 2 semesters to make it up. So keep studying.

Peace

[Sim]

Getting a decent R-score is difficult. People from outside the province got nothing to envy us.

[vx777]

Lol, you're living exactly what I lived too (includint Spanish). Hopefully you have physics this semester. Otherwise, you'll have 1 chemistry lab report, and 1 of physics like every week.

 

Don't give up. I had a crap R-Score too in my first semester. Think about which UG you want next year, not now.

[vx777]

iOtherwise, you'll have 1 chemistry lab report, and 1 of physics like every week.

-->next semester ***

[Marko]

Hey vx,

 

Tu es a brebeuf aussi...You helped me out a few months ago. Thanks to you, I took physics this semester. Next semester will be easier for me. I'll have english and biology instead of spanish and physics! Haha I cant wait!!!

 

Though today I hit another down. My physics exam is thursday (M. Gravel is my teacher) and I dont understand ANYTHING. Haha. I'm gonna fail that exam, and I failed my math exam last week also.

 

Did you have Madame Bélanger-Herr as a spanish teacher? She's awful.

 

I went to sleep at 4 am last night and slept through my crappy litterature class. The teacher got so pissed. Anyways I'm gonna try to study some more angular rotations and projectile crap.

 

Peace

See you in school (even though I dont know what you look like).

[thebouque]

I think seeing the material in a more positive and optimistic way would help you a lot. Angular rotation can be pretty fun if you think about it (no sarcasm here)

Think positive about your learning! What you learn in cegep is more important than what you might think

 

Peace

[vx777]

Yeah, I had Belanger-Herr. Her class was pretty pathetic. I mean, there were people who spoke PERFECTLY spanish in group 1 and 2.

 

Good luck and go hard.

[Iwik]

M Gravel is really kind if you go see him at his office. I remember some friends stayed there for hours. And there is something called CAPS(Centre d'Aide et de Perfectionnement en Science) if physics and math are problem for you.

They offer free tutoring! And tutors are good! (I was one! )

 

Seriously, in high school, I never learned how to manage my study time... everything was so easy! So this is something that you'll have learn, it's worth it!

 

But there is still a BALANCE that you have to maintain! If you are over stressed, think about taking a break! An hour walking outside for fresh air can seem a huge waste of time, but it helps!

 

Do your best! And if you don't get into med school right away, an UG is really not bad. But wait until after your third semester to stress about UG programs!

 

Good luck!

[future_doc]

If anybody needs a tutor in Cegep math or physics, I have the best possible person for you, all her students become exceptional, Cote St. Luc, but she is travelling now and so only window of opportunity is 2nd week of Jan til end of Feb., then she travels for many months again. By PM, I could give further background, etc.

[Normand]

Hey!

 

Getting a high r-score is pretty "easy" to score at a private CEGEP compared to a public CEGEP. For example, I used to score an average of 70% (with class average of 70%)at John Abbott and I only got a 22-24 r-score max whereas at Brebeuf if you have the same grade as your average class, you get an easy r-score of 27-28 +.

 

 

Not to sound rude or anything, I strongly disagree that it is "easy" to get a high r-score at a private CEGEP compared to a public CEGEP. I don't know what are your standards of "high" r-score but, to my knowledge, an r-score of 27-28+ is nowhere competitive to apply for Medicine, Dentistry or Pharmacy.

 

On the other hand, I can guarantee you that obtaining a high R-score (let's say 34+) is just as hard, or perhaps even HARDER in a private CEGEP than in a public one. (The level of competition in a private CEGEP is just on a whole other level ... )

[Normand]

Actually, not really...

 

I forgot to mention another thing; I did Calculus 1 at Abbott with an average of 87 and the class average was 65 and had a 30 r-score. At Brebeuf, I did Calculus 2 with an average of 92 and the class average was 68 and my r-score was 38! 8 points is quite a big difference, and I definitly dont think I wouldve ever had an r-score that high at a public CEGEP...

 

Hi loveD,

 

I am quite happy to see that you are excelling in Math with an impressive grade of 24 points above average. Now, if you were able to perform this incredible feat for every class at Brebeuf, I would readily agree that your r-score would be much higher than at any public CEGEP.

 

However, I think it would be very misleading to tell the other viewers on this forum that it is quite "easy" to obtain such a grade at Brebeuf. After all, Math is often one of those subjects where it is easier to get a higher grade (especially if you understand everything the teacher says). Other subjects, such as Philosophy, French, Physics, Organic Chem can be much harder to grasp; consequently, their content can be much more difficult in a private CEGEP.

 

Cheers

[vx777]

Actually, not really...

 

I forgot to mention another thing; I did Calculus 1 at Abbott with an average of 87 and the class average was 65 and had a 30 r-score. At Brebeuf, I did Calculus 2 with an average of 92 and the class average was 68 and my r-score was 38! 8 points is quite a big difference, and I definitly dont think I wouldve ever had an r-score that high at a public CEGEP...

 

 

It's also a matter of luck. I'm at Brebeuf too. Last semester, I finished with 89 in cal 2, and it gave me a 34.6. (Standard deviation = 14.6, class average = 75). A friend was at Bois-de-Boulogne, she got 34.8 with a 82%.

 

I must say that it's not easy to get a high r-score here.

 

To all those who high-school students who are reading this forum, go to Bois-de-Boulogne. Trust me on that. It's just as hard as Brebeuf. However, averages are waaaay lower.