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I guess I'll first start off by describing my freshman year of college. I picked pre-med as my major hoping to get a degree in dentistry. That first semester I had History,English,Sociology,Kineseology,3 hour chem lab and chemistry. I soon found out that I was terrible at chemistry and got a 56 on my first exam. Thank goodness the whole class didn't do that well and a 56 was actually a C for the class curve. Still, I could see myself not making it if my first test I alrdy started off with a 56. So I decided to drop chemistry and end my career to become a dentist. My gpa this semester was a 2.1
So second semester of freshman year is the first time I had to switch my major and thought hard and decided to go with engineering. I knew that I had to be good at math and I took math for all 4 years of high school all the way to calculus. I thought that engineering would be the best bet becuz of this math background and I did well in my college algebra/pre cal class and got a B. Still, although I got a 2.5 gpa for the second semester, the average of both semesters got me a 2.3.
So here I am the start of my sophomore year with a 2.3 gpa and in calculus and physics. I know that they are supposed to complement each other but I came to the fact that I just can't do physics. In my physics lab I was helpless while all the other kids just did all the work(not becuz I was lazy but they went to fast and couldn't stop them to ask questions on every single thing). However I don't find calculus to be that bad yet although that may soon change.
I'm just so confused right now. I just got off the phone with my mom who is having a huge fit on me about how I'm changing my major again about how I'm still undecided on a major at sophomore year. She tells me to do something I enjoy but I don't find anything in school very enjoyable. Playing starcraft is enjoyable but everything at school I just consider something that will help u get a job to make money.
I'm thinking about going into business and doing accounting but my roommate says that accounting is hard while others tell me that business is easy. I just want to be able to enjoy college and not work so hard. The argument I had with my mom was that she knows that I'm not that social and not very good with ppl and she says that to do well in business u need to be super good with ppl. But I always thought of accounting as more math related than meeting a ton of ppl. I honestly don't care how boring the classes are, as long as it's not that hard I can do it.
The first two majors I had were imo hard majors(dentistry and engineering)and all I want is a major I can do well in. Anyways, if anyone else out there is doing business accounting can you take a look at these two questions as they're the ones I'm most worried about right now.
1) Are the classes you take to be a business major in accounting easy?
2) Do you have to be super good with ppl?
 
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Calgary25998 Posts
Stop trying to find something easy or something you're good at. Find something you're interested in and work hard towards it.
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If you don't choose something that you like, you are going to hate yourself for the rest of your life. Do you want to be an accountant? If so, go for it.
If not, stop being lazy and go get what you want.
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Are your grades bad because you're not focused or because you're pushing the limits of your academic potential?
I had a 1.8 my first year in college because all I did was play video games and skip class, but when I came back several years later I was able to pull a 4.0 with relative ease just by shifting my priorities a bit. I still had PLENTY of time to waste, I just made sure that I was solid in my classwork first.
If you aren't doing well because your priorities are backwards, picking an easier major won't help you (my 1.8 major was art, and it doesn't get much easier than that). School isn't something you just have to complete, you have to do well. In your examples:
Dentistry: Obviously you need great undergrad GPA and you've gotta do well on the DAT if you want to get into dental school.
Engineering/Other Science/Business/Accounting: At some point in your career you will probably come to the realization that having a B.S./B.A. is holding you back, and you'll want to further your education. Good luck doing that with a 2.X undergrad GPA.
You have to take responsibility for your own education and future, and the sooner you do that the better off you'll be.
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On September 13 2009 08:43 Biochemist wrote:
Are your grades bad because you're not focused or because you're pushing the limits of your academic potential?
This. If you're finding things difficult but you're actually putting a lot of time and effort into it yet just can't produce results, your situation would make a lot more sense. But from what it sounds like, you just happen to be lazy and want to find a major where you can make good money down the road yet doesn't require social skills or hard work.
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I just want to be able to enjoy college and not work so hard.
begs the question: why are you in college?
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easy major = crappy job usually
did you study? do your homework? read the books? if you did all these then you need to talk to the professor and maybe the student center (or whatever it's called at your college) and get a tutor. most colleges provide them for free (to the students).
college isn't to enjoy, it's to learn from people who are usually geniuses in their field so that one day maybe you can replicate their success. if you go to "enjoy" you're probably going to fail a LOT, if you dedicate yourself, though, and succeed you'll find that you enjoyed it more than you think
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Honestly man, if you want a successful professional career (such as engineering or dentistry), it's better to drop out of school now and take a year or four off while you get your head screwed on straight. Trying to turn a 2.5 GPA into a 3.5 so you can get accepted into a decent graduate school when you already have four years of college behind you is a situation that keeps many many many people out of said graduate schools.
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On September 13 2009 08:43 Biochemist wrote:
Are your grades bad because you're not focused or because you're pushing the limits of your academic potential?
I read all the chapters assigned so far and did the hw for the introduction part but once I got to start doing actual physics I didn't even understand what to do. Even in my lab like I mentioned, I read over my lab manual before the class and still couldn't keep up to do any of the lab on my own. The problem is I don't understand alot of what I'm reading in physics and I can't stop to ask every single question I have. Well I could but it's not just one or two questions it's about every single step I have a question so it would be worthless. I do try, I just have a hard time understanding. I never skipped a class so far and copy down all the notes.
Is it a bad thing that I'm still undecided on a major at sophomore year?
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I agree with everyone else, but my advice is to go to your career center and find a career counselor. Hopefully, this person can at least guide you into a field that you may be interested in. And by interested in, I mean that you enjoy what you do and not how much you make. What is the point of going into a field that you have no fun in doing?
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I find it difficult to understand how you could do better in calculus and calculus based physics than first year chemistry. I think that is really unusual. Premed or similar curriculae should be significantly easier than engineering curriculae in most schools.
If you are doing poorly in classes the first thing you should think about doing is putting more time in. Most colleges, I believe, recommend putting on double the amount of study time as you have lecture time. Usually this brings your total invested hours close to that of a full time job (there is a reason they call you a full time student). I don't think many people actually spend that amount of time, but you should be prepared to do so if you wish to do well. In addition to reading your own textbook, you may want to consult others - also, try to take advantage of tutoring and your professor's office hours. Physics and math are tough subjects, and many people need a lot of help in order to truly learn them well. Also, look for online lectures (ocw.mit.edu, www.academicearth.org) where other professors might explain things better.
Are you paying for your college? I really hope so if you just want to be there to enjoy it. If not you should consider dropping out, out of consideration for your parents.
Try a lot of things, and as Chill said, try to find things that interest you. Do a lot of reading - chemistry and physics and biology may seem boring from first year classes, but if you learn a bit about current research and applications they all turn out to be incredibly cool.
If all else fails learn to play poker? (Though this is not easy and obviously requires a lot of ability and dedication in order to make a living - basically, nothing worthwhile is ever easy, so you'll have to learn to work hard at some point.)
Also, good luck. Maybe you should take a semester off and really try to find where your interests lie. Switching majors isn't a problem, but it is a problem if you keep accumulating bad grades.
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On September 13 2009 08:53 MaRiNe23 wrote:Show nested quote +On September 13 2009 08:43 Biochemist wrote:
Are your grades bad because you're not focused or because you're pushing the limits of your academic potential?
... Is it a bad thing that I'm still undecided on a major at sophomore year?
Most majors can be completed by good students in three years, especially if some of your generals are already out of the way. Depending when you eventually decide on, it might take you a total of five to graduate, though. What you really need is to shift your priorities and decide that school comes before play. Make some new friends if your current ones aren't the best influence on you. You have to decide where you want to be in 5, 10, 20 years and decide that you're going to do what it takes to get you there.
Like I was saying, I had a 1.8 when I returned to college after the Marines. I decided that I wanted to get a degree in biochemistry in three years and go on to medical school, and I realized that I would need to get a solid 4.0 to bring my GPA up to a reasonably competitive level by the time I would apply... so that's what I did. Set your goals, find out exactly what it's going to take to reach them, and then DO THAT.
If you aren't ready to make that commitment yet, drop out of college and go work at best buy or something until you can convince yourself that the hard work is worth it.
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It's not like I don't read or try to do any of the homework. Most of the problem comes from not understanding any of the material. I know I should go get help but I have so many questions, I don't know what to ask first. And to Freyr I did not do better in calculus or calculus based physics than chemistry. I'm taking calculus+physics NOW but it's only been 3 weeks in so it's not like I'm deep into it or anything. I said I took college algebra/pre calculus and got a B in that. Physics is the class I'm about to drop though..
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Well if you're going to all the lectures and putting in a modest effort and you're still that completely lost, then maybe engineering isn't the best choice. If I remember correctly, physics and calculus both get harder second semester.
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iono feels like you're still adjusting to college.
I'm computerscience/math major and I have shitton homeworks and live a high-stress life. I think it's normal, just get used to it
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Go find some tutoring institution at your college, i'm sure they are provided for free.
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On September 13 2009 09:08 MaRiNe23 wrote:
It's not like I don't read or try to do any of the homework. Most of the problem comes from not understanding any of the material. I know I should go get help but I have so many questions, I don't know what to ask first.
That's actually a big problem.. usually reading will at least give you an idea of what the hell is going on, but anyway, here's my "secret".. getting direct answers to your questions from someone that knows what they're talking about is the real timesaver, and not only in school. It's not that you can't find the answers on your own.. usually you can. It just takes significantly longer, in every single case, no exception.
So just ask a friend that knows the material to help you, you'd be surprised how easy it is to learn when all of your questions get answered right away. As for 'what to ask first'.. it doesn't matter. If you're looking at a problem and have no idea where to start, ask that.. "where do i start?"
plus in math-based courses, it's usually a bad idea to get lost early on because you will have to apply the initial principles over and over again
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plus in math-based courses, it's usually a bad idea to get lost early on because you will have to apply the initial principles over and over again
so true
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On September 13 2009 09:45 JeeJee wrote:Show nested quote +On September 13 2009 09:08 MaRiNe23 wrote:
It's not like I don't read or try to do any of the homework. Most of the problem comes from not understanding any of the material. I know I should go get help but I have so many questions, I don't know what to ask first. That's actually a big problem.. usually reading will at least give you an idea of what the hell is going on, but anyway, here's my "secret".. getting direct answers to your questions from someone that knows what they're talking about is the real timesaver, and not only in school. It's not that you can't find the answers on your own.. usually you can. It just takes significantly longer, in every single case, no exception. So just ask a friend that knows the material to help you, you'd be surprised how easy it is to learn when all of your questions get answered right away. As for 'what to ask first'.. it doesn't matter. If you're looking at a problem and have no idea where to start, ask that.. "where do i start?" plus in math-based courses, it's usually a bad idea to get lost early on because you will have to apply the initial principles over and over again
Careful with this. Having someone feed you answers isn't going to help you pass your exams. You want someone who understand the material who can lead you to answer your own questions. If I don't understand a lecture completely, homework is usually where things set in. For some people, just doing the assigned homework isn't enough and they need to do more. Skipping the problem solving aspect of the homework by essentially having someone do it for you isn't going to do you any favors.
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On September 13 2009 09:45 JeeJee wrote:Show nested quote +On September 13 2009 09:08 MaRiNe23 wrote:
It's not like I don't read or try to do any of the homework. Most of the problem comes from not understanding any of the material. I know I should go get help but I have so many questions, I don't know what to ask first. That's actually a big problem.. usually reading will at least give you an idea of what the hell is going on, but anyway, here's my "secret".. getting direct answers to your questions from someone that knows what they're talking about is the real timesaver, and not only in school. It's not that you can't find the answers on your own.. usually you can. It just takes significantly longer, in every single case, no exception. So just ask a friend that knows the material to help you, you'd be surprised how easy it is to learn when all of your questions get answered right away. As for 'what to ask first'.. it doesn't matter. If you're looking at a problem and have no idea where to start, ask that.. "where do i start?" plus in math-based courses, it's usually a bad idea to get lost early on because you will have to apply the initial principles over and over again
this is the worst advice i have ever read
in general, i agree with chill here, normally the thing you like to do/enjoy to do should be what you do, and if you are enjoying what you're currently doing but still struggling, that's not an indication that you should find something else. if you don't, move on, and don't aim for what's easiest.
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EPT
