Finals week was last week for me, and the final grades are slowly rolling in. I feel the need to express my unquantifiable dismay and regret that I have for not getting the grade I wanted in O-Chem.
My most epic fail grade ever: A- in Organic Chemistry
I let you guys down. Feel free to post what you guys got in O-Chem. I was really hoping to get an A in this class, but instead I got an A-. The difference for those of you who don't know is that an A- is worth 3.7 points while and A is worth 4.0 points.
Its not that I've never received a B before, its just that I feel like I could have gotten an A in this class. I slacked off near the ending which was why I did poorly.
Not as an excuse, but rather to give a better picture of what my o-chem class stats are in general: Last semester there was 1 A, 2 A-, and few people in the B range, and like 20 people in the C range, and a bunch of D and F. The professor grades on a curve.
You guys can post your final grades if you want also. I don't know why, but I feel really bad even though it is still an A-. I really wanted that A.
On May 25 2008 09:52 clazziquai wrote: If you're sad over an A-
......what the fuck?
It's not just an A-. Its falling short of my expectations and letting myself down.
Try and picture it like this. You are playing a pvt and your population is 200/200 while the terran is only 120/200. You have total map control and everything. Then you start getting lazy because you know you are going to win the game. And the terran starts harrassing you and slowly gaining more bases and finally, somehow or the other, he wins. And you are like, O M F G, I TOTALLY had that game. WTF! and then you get pissed at yourself because you know you should have won that game, but you lost. That is the feeling I have. T_T
On May 25 2008 09:52 clazziquai wrote: If you're sad over an A-
......what the fuck?
It's not just an A-. Its falling short of my expectations and letting myself down.
Try and picture it like this. You are playing a pvt and your population is 200/200 while the terran is only 120/200. You have total map control and everything. Then you start getting lazy because you know you are going to win the game. And the terran starts harrassing you and slowly gaining more bases and finally, somehow or the other, he wins. And you are like, O M F G, I TOTALLY had that game. WTF! and then you get pissed at yourself because you know you should have won that game, but you lost. That is the feeling I have. T_T
No it's not, what a shitty analogy.
If you lose the game, that's like getting an F If you almost lose the game because you got lazy, it's C or B from A
Fucking get a life. It's fucking A- for fucks sake. Do you even have friends?
Ya, I guess you are right...I just found out so I feel really bad right now, but later on I guess I won't feel as bad as I would feel had I gotten a B or lower. I guess I still won the game, but I didn't totally own my opponent.
jeez so the guy wants to do well and get A's get off his back -.-;
feel your pain greyarea~ i got a grade average of ~75% for biology in my last year of highschool, was incredibly pissed off about it.. however then the scholarship exam results came out (basically a superhard exam which pays money if you pass it, top 3% pass). And hey, i passed it - so in your face end of year exams XD
Well, think about it...do you think an A- is going to fuck your life over...just because you got an A- on Organic Chemistry? Fine, to you it might not be good because you fell short on your expectations. But think on the bright side. An A- is a fucking amazing grade. You're in college, right?
Well good job [: Other people will certainly be impressed by your grade.
On May 25 2008 09:52 clazziquai wrote: If you're sad over an A-
......what the fuck?
QFT.
Yeah, nothing wrong with wanting to do well, Plexa, but when you make a blog post about your "most epic fail grade ever" and its an A-...well, that's kind of asking for it.
I understand you, I really do. I'm trying to get accepted for an MD/PhD program, and an A- would get on my nerves. But seriously, what did you expect? Go post this in your Mensa special interest group or something and you might get a positive response.
On May 25 2008 10:33 Plexa wrote: jeez so the guy wants to do well and get A's get off his back -.-;
feel your pain greyarea~ i got a grade average of ~75% for biology in my last year of highschool, was incredibly pissed off about it.. however then the scholarship exam results came out (basically a superhard exam which pays money if you pass it, top 3% pass). And hey, i passed it - so in your face end of year exams XD
Probably the same people who were making comments in another thread that they have gobs of time on their hands in college. D:
Isn't o chem known as the "hardest" class for premeds? Maybe even for all college courses?
A- is pretty good. Even though you didn't meet your expectation, you still did well compared to a lot of people. And you learned a valuable lesson. Better make mistakes now rather than when you're a doctor =p
On May 25 2008 12:35 Jibba wrote: There's a lot of shitty students posting in this thread. I would've been annoyed if I had ended up with an A- in my important classes.
Saying an "A-" is a shitty grade is ridiculous. Oh if you get A-s, you're a shitty student! Because what matters is that your GPA > 3.7. What sheer absurdity. There's also
-Leadership -Rigor of your program of study -Extracurriculars -Internships -Relationships with professors (for when you want a job or graduate school)
But I guess even though I'm double majoring, am the vice president of the Undergraduate Economics society, and will intern when I have the chance, I guess my 3.6 GPA precludes me from your elite cadre of "good" students.
And even if you have a 3.0, and don't do anything special in college, who cares? You might be a great person, even if your wonderful standards of achievement are not reached.
And to the OP, I'm sorry about your A-, I definitely know how it feels to think you did really well and then get your grade (I got a B+ once when I thought I should have had an A). It's really a WTF moment, I don't know if you've tried but every now and then talking to the professor soon after you get your grade can help (provided you talked to them during the quarter). And even if you're stuck with an A+, there's plenty of opportunities ahead.
On May 25 2008 13:10 EnergyTraction wrote: lol @ the shitty students bashing the guy for working hard and not getting what he wanted
I got an A in my Ochem class by the skin on my teeth, 90.43 final average (my school is not + - system, just A B C).
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SKIN OF MY TEETH Eh, half assed megadeth album, but ok.
I would be disappointed by an A-. I hate it when I get border line grades. It's like "yeah, you're good enough for this, but haha you got cheated out of a better grade by 0.01% :D:D:D"
On May 25 2008 12:35 Jibba wrote: There's a lot of shitty students posting in this thread. I would've been annoyed if I had ended up with an A- in my important classes.
Saying an "A-" is a shitty grade is ridiculous. Oh if you get A-s, you're a shitty student! Because what matters is that your GPA > 3.7. What sheer absurdity. There's also
-Leadership -Rigor of your program of study -Extracurriculars -Internships -Relationships with professors (for when you want a job or graduate school)
But I guess even though I'm double majoring, am the vice president of the Undergraduate Economics society, and will intern when I have the chance, I guess my 3.6 GPA precludes me from your elite cadre of "good" students.
And even if you have a 3.0, and don't do anything special in college, who cares? You might be a great person, even if your wonderful standards of achievement are not reached.
And to the OP, I'm sorry about your A-, I definitely know how it feels to think you did really well and then get your grade (I got a B+ once when I thought I should have had an A). It's really a WTF moment, I don't know if you've tried but every now and then talking to the professor soon after you get your grade can help (provided you talked to them during the quarter). And even if you're stuck with an A+, there's plenty of opportunities ahead.
I'm not talking about the OP's A-. I'm talking about the people in here who are flaming the OP and would be 100% satisfied with an A-. I bet most of them are classic underachievers who do just enough to cruise by, which makes them shitty students.
On May 25 2008 12:35 Jibba wrote: There's a lot of shitty students posting in this thread. I would've been annoyed if I had ended up with an A- in my important classes.
Saying an "A-" is a shitty grade is ridiculous. Oh if you get A-s, you're a shitty student! Because what matters is that your GPA > 3.7. What sheer absurdity. There's also
-Leadership -Rigor of your program of study -Extracurriculars -Internships -Relationships with professors (for when you want a job or graduate school)
But I guess even though I'm double majoring, am the vice president of the Undergraduate Economics society, and will intern when I have the chance, I guess my 3.6 GPA precludes me from your elite cadre of "good" students.
And even if you have a 3.0, and don't do anything special in college, who cares? You might be a great person, even if your wonderful standards of achievement are not reached.
And to the OP, I'm sorry about your A-, I definitely know how it feels to think you did really well and then get your grade (I got a B+ once when I thought I should have had an A). It's really a WTF moment, I don't know if you've tried but every now and then talking to the professor soon after you get your grade can help (provided you talked to them during the quarter). And even if you're stuck with an A+, there's plenty of opportunities ahead.
I'm not talking about the OP's A-. I'm talking about the people in here who are flaming the OP and would be 100% satisfied with an A-. I bet most of them are classic underachievers who do just enough to cruise by, which makes them shitty students.
Okay, fair enough. But an A- is a good grade, even if you're not "completely satisfied" with it. I think someone who gets all A-s is not an underachiever. I have to take lots of classes a quarter because of my major, and if I get a B, it's unfortunate but I have gotten a couple this year.
I think the point they're making is the world isn't over if you get an A-. It's good to have goals, but your life will not be miserable now that you have an A-. There are plenty of ways to achieve, perfection isn't required, unless you're crazy.
And even still, like I said, if you have a 3.0 average, you may not be the greatest student in the world, but you can be great still. There are many aspects to life. On a personal level, a 3.0 that's a nice guy, cheerful, considerate etc. is better than someone with a 4.0 who is an asshole. Not everyone is a perfect student.
But, getting good grades, all else being equal, is good. So try to do well in school guys...
wow guys, don't be idiots. Just because you don't have high expectations doesn't mean you have to bash others who do.
They're bashing him because his post comes off as bragging and shoving it in everyone's faces. "Look how great I am, when I get an A- I get really upset over it!"
OP already knows this. If I believed he were seriously broken over this, I'd tell him to get a reality check because the difference between getting an A- and getting A as far as impacting your life goes, is exactly zero. Your final degree doesn't say what grades you got, so who cares as long as you're maintaining your scholarship/passing? It actually reflects poorly on your intelligence if you bend over backwards to go the extra mile in something that's trivial and meaningless. All you achieve is to take time away from other important aspects of life, like networking and personal interests in exchange for a slightly higher number. The only thing you can do with an A that you can't do with an A- is tell people who got an A- that you're better than them... even then, you're still a douche bag
getting an A- when you truly expected yourself to get an A (provided that you did work your ass off for it too) is far more disappointing than getting a C+ when expecting a B, etc. In the latter, if you expected a B then you clearly didn't 'own' the material and were hoping to glide by by getting lucky / prof going easy on you, etc (which i've done plenty of times), and you got fucked over somehow and got a few marks lower. Expecting to ace a subject, with the added insult of pouring everything you have into it, and falling short, is demoralizing and above all frustrating, since you know you could have given an extra push and gotten over the hill.
wow guys, don't be idiots. Just because you don't have high expectations doesn't mean you have to bash others who do.
They're bashing him because his post comes off as bragging and shoving it in everyone's faces. "Look how great I am, when I get an A- I get really upset over it!"
OP already knows this. If I believed he were seriously broken over this, I'd tell him to get a reality check because the difference between getting an A- and getting A as far as impacting your life goes, is exactly zero. Your final degree doesn't say what grades you got, so who cares as long as you're maintaining your scholarship/passing? It actually reflects poorly on your intelligence if you bend over backwards to go the extra mile in something that's trivial and meaningless. All you achieve is to take time away from other important aspects of life, like networking and personal interests in exchange for a slightly higher number. The only thing you can do with an A that you can't do with an A- is tell people who got an A- that you're better than them... even then, you're still a douche bag
On May 25 2008 14:58 thedeadhaji wrote: getting an A- when you truly expected yourself to get an A (provided that you did work your ass off for it too) is far more disappointing than getting a C+ when expecting a B, etc. In the latter, if you expected a B then you clearly didn't 'own' the material and were hoping to glide by by getting lucky / prof going easy on you, etc (which i've done plenty of times), and you got fucked over somehow and got a few marks lower. Expecting to ace a subject, with the added insult of pouring everything you have into it, and falling short, is demoralizing and above all frustrating, since you know you could have given an extra push and gotten over the hill.
Agreed. But making a blog about it on a SC forum invites any and all criticism.
To OP ignore all the other people flaming. They need to understand that when you don't achieve what you know you're capable of then you get really pissed off at yourself because you just wasted potential. It's not that A- is shitty, it's that it's shitty compared to what you know you COULD get if you had worked harder. It applies for anything, and it's a genuine feeling of sadness you get when you let yourself down and know full well you didn't work as hard as you could've. It's not about what you actually achieve, it's about what you achieve in realation to your potential.
I also get really pissed off when I lose any marks I know I shouldn't've due to silly mistakes or whatever even if my mark is still good compared to everyone elses, but of course most people react like the ppl in this blog did if you say "damn I'm so angry that I got only 95%" or whatever so I tend to just lie and say I was happy with my mark and did well. If I don't then all I get is shit thrown at me for being unhappy with a good mark when I know I could've done better.
wow guys, don't be idiots. Just because you don't have high expectations doesn't mean you have to bash others who do.
They're bashing him because his post comes off as bragging and shoving it in everyone's faces. "Look how great I am, when I get an A- I get really upset over it!"
OP already knows this. If I believed he were seriously broken over this, I'd tell him to get a reality check because the difference between getting an A- and getting A as far as impacting your life goes, is exactly zero. Your final degree doesn't say what grades you got, so who cares as long as you're maintaining your scholarship/passing? It actually reflects poorly on your intelligence if you bend over backwards to go the extra mile in something that's trivial and meaningless. All you achieve is to take time away from other important aspects of life, like networking and personal interests in exchange for a slightly higher number. The only thing you can do with an A that you can't do with an A- is tell people who got an A- that you're better than them... even then, you're still a douche bag
Lol noone is dumb enough to think that A- is somehow going to be end of the world for a person. The OP doesn't care about the impact of the mark itself, but is just sad over the fact that he knew he could've done better and should've done better. He made it really really clear in his post too. And it's not about bragging that you feel sad even when you do well. The remorse is there and it's real, especially right after that period of time when you did put in a decent amount of work but know that you could've put in some more. It's coments like these:
wow guys, don't be idiots. Just because you don't have high expectations doesn't mean you have to bash others who do.
They're bashing him because his post comes off as bragging and shoving it in everyone's faces. "Look how great I am, when I get an A- I get really upset over it!"
OP already knows this. If I believed he were seriously broken over this, I'd tell him to get a reality check because the difference between getting an A- and getting A as far as impacting your life goes, is exactly zero. Your final degree doesn't say what grades you got, so who cares as long as you're maintaining your scholarship/passing? It actually reflects poorly on your intelligence if you bend over backwards to go the extra mile in something that's trivial and meaningless. All you achieve is to take time away from other important aspects of life, like networking and personal interests in exchange for a slightly higher number. The only thing you can do with an A that you can't do with an A- is tell people who got an A- that you're better than them... even then, you're still a douche bag
On May 25 2008 12:35 Jibba wrote: There's a lot of shitty students posting in this thread. I would've been annoyed if I had ended up with an A- in my important classes.
Saying an "A-" is a shitty grade is ridiculous. Oh if you get A-s, you're a shitty student! Because what matters is that your GPA > 3.7. What sheer absurdity. There's also
-Leadership -Rigor of your program of study -Extracurriculars -Internships -Relationships with professors (for when you want a job or graduate school)
But I guess even though I'm double majoring, am the vice president of the Undergraduate Economics society, and will intern when I have the chance, I guess my 3.6 GPA precludes me from your elite cadre of "good" students.
And even if you have a 3.0, and don't do anything special in college, who cares? You might be a great person, even if your wonderful standards of achievement are not reached.
And to the OP, I'm sorry about your A-, I definitely know how it feels to think you did really well and then get your grade (I got a B+ once when I thought I should have had an A). It's really a WTF moment, I don't know if you've tried but every now and then talking to the professor soon after you get your grade can help (provided you talked to them during the quarter). And even if you're stuck with an A+, there's plenty of opportunities ahead.
I'm not talking about the OP's A-. I'm talking about the people in here who are flaming the OP and would be 100% satisfied with an A-. I bet most of them are classic underachievers who do just enough to cruise by, which makes them shitty students.
Okay, fair enough. But an A- is a good grade, even if you're not "completely satisfied" with it. I think someone who gets all A-s is not an underachiever. I have to take lots of classes a quarter because of my major, and if I get a B, it's unfortunate but I have gotten a couple this year.
I think the point they're making is the world isn't over if you get an A-. It's good to have goals, but your life will not be miserable now that you have an A-. There are plenty of ways to achieve, perfection isn't required, unless you're crazy.
And even still, like I said, if you have a 3.0 average, you may not be the greatest student in the world, but you can be great still. There are many aspects to life. On a personal level, a 3.0 that's a nice guy, cheerful, considerate etc. is better than someone with a 4.0 who is an asshole. Not everyone is a perfect student.
But, getting good grades, all else being equal, is good. So try to do well in school guys...
No, I think the point they're making is "I wish I were getting A-s", which isn't that difficult if you're not slacking off. That's how I'm reading them, and I was that way most of my life. If you put in the effort to feel like you deserve an A and miss, then it is a big letdown.
And graduate schools don't give personality tests.
If you put in the effort to feel like you deserve an A and miss, then it is a big letdown.
The OP post said that he got lazy (ie: he did slack off a bit).
I do know the feeling of being disappointed in a grade... When you figure it's something you're really good at and were planning on going into a career with it, and the prof or TA slaps a B on it... But that disappointment lasts about a minute cause anyone with a brain knows that TA's and Profs are lazy, and essays are incredibly subjective things. I wish it were legal to hand in the same essay to two different profs, just so I could compare the grades. I put the same amount of effort into every essay I write at university, and get a grade anywhere from C+ to A+ no matter what I do. C+ means the TA just broke up with his girlfriend or something, and A+ means they were in the zone of marking (after they've gone through about 8 or 9, they get used to this pace) and randomly thought 'yeah, this looks really good.'
But then there are some things that aren't subjective and there's just one right answer. In that case, it's not like it's a surprise when you get the test back. You knew how you did when you handed it in.
That's why I think the OP is just bragging =/ He put less effort than he could have, he got a slightly worse grade than he could have, and yet it's still a good grade that proves you know the material. There's no disappointment in something you know was going to happen.
On May 25 2008 10:33 Plexa wrote: jeez so the guy wants to do well and get A's get off his back -.-;
feel your pain greyarea~ i got a grade average of ~75% for biology in my last year of highschool, was incredibly pissed off about it.. however then the scholarship exam results came out (basically a superhard exam which pays money if you pass it, top 3% pass). And hey, i passed it - so in your face end of year exams XD
If you put in the effort to feel like you deserve an A and miss, then it is a big letdown.
The OP post said that he got lazy (ie: he did slack off a bit).
I do know the feeling of being disappointed in a grade... When you figure it's something you're really good at and were planning on going into a career with it, and the prof or TA slaps a B on it... But that disappointment lasts about a minute cause anyone with a brain knows that TA's and Profs are lazy, and essays are incredibly subjective things. I wish it were legal to hand in the same essay to two different profs, just so I could compare the grades. I put the same amount of effort into every essay I write at university, and get a grade anywhere from C+ to A+ no matter what I do. C+ means the TA just broke up with his girlfriend or something, and A+ means they were in the zone of marking (after they've gone through about 8 or 9, they get used to this pace) and randomly thought 'yeah, this looks really good.'
But then there are some things that aren't subjective and there's just one right answer. In that case, it's not like it's a surprise when you get the test back. You knew how you did when you handed it in.
That's why I think the OP is just bragging =/ He put less effort than he could have, he got a slightly worse grade than he could have, and yet it's still a good grade that proves you know the material. There's no disappointment in something you know was going to happen.
Sure, you sorta know what mark you're gonna get in an exam like that, and just after finishing the exam you'd feel really disappointed already. Getting the mark back just makes you feel shittier because it's now proven in print that you didn't do as well as you could've, and it reminds you of the fact that you didn't put as much effort in as you could've. Personally getting the mark I suspected back is the worst bit even when I'm expecting it, and I suspect it is for alot of ppl too.
On May 25 2008 10:33 Plexa wrote: jeez so the guy wants to do well and get A's get off his back -.-;
feel your pain greyarea~ i got a grade average of ~75% for biology in my last year of highschool, was incredibly pissed off about it.. however then the scholarship exam results came out (basically a superhard exam which pays money if you pass it, top 3% pass). And hey, i passed it - so in your face end of year exams XD
And I cheated you out for an outstanding ^_^ That was an exam I certainly didn't deserve my mark in considering the effort I put in
He never implied the world was over, he just pointed out that he was disappointed with an A- . If you have high expectations, getting an A- will make you mad. I got a B+ on some midterm and got really pissed because now I need an A+ on my final to get an A.
There's nothing wrong with wanting to do your best. And ya, it's much more disappointing when you work really hard for something and don't get it than when you just coast through and don't get it (as deadhaji said).
Maybe school isn't all that important for everyone here, but for some people it is, and grades are really important if you want to have a good career that requires you to go to grad / professional schools.
Getting A-'s instead of A's add up and will eventually lower your GPA and chances of getting into prestigious universities, so I can understand why he'd be upset about it.
If your goals aren't that academic and you don't care much about grades, fine, but at least try to be understanding of those who are. You don't see people telling you like "omfg you retard your GPA is only 3.0, I'm gonna be laughing my ass off at you when I'm making 200k+ per year after getting all my A's while your sitting at 70k per year, NEWBBBBBBBBBB"
Sure, you sorta know what mark you're gonna get in an exam like that, and just after finishing the exam you'd feel really disappointed already. Getting the mark back just makes you feel shittier because it's now proven in print that you didn't do as well as you could've, and it reminds you of the fact that you didn't put as much effort in as you could've. Personally getting the mark I suspected back is the worst bit even when I'm expecting it, and I suspect it is for alot of ppl too.
Fair enough. I guess we're just different people then. For me, results are only upsetting when I do my best, and it still isn't good enough, or when I threw in my all, thought I did well, and it turns out that apparently I didn't. If I get a less than perfect result back when I didn't try my best, and I think I could have done better, that just saves my ego. I don't have to face any facts about myself when I don't give something my all (not saying I don't try so I won't have to burn my ego; I do try in anything I'm passionate about, that just normally discludes schoolwork).
Getting A-'s instead of A's add up and will eventually lower your GPA and chances of getting into prestigious universities, so I can understand why he'd be upset about it.
I was under the impression that he was already in university. Pretty much you're wrong though... You can get into any university with a high 80s average. Not that it matters.
look, sure it's sad he missed his expected grades, everyone knows what it's like when you miss something just by a little after you've put work in. with the feat of getting into medschool piling up, it probably just adds to the stress.
but seriously, anyone who says
My most epic fail grade ever: A- in Organic Chemistry
and
Not as an excuse, but rather to give a better picture of what my o-chem class stats are in general: Last semester there was 1 A, 2 A-, and few people in the B range, and like 20 people in the C range, and a bunch of D and F. The professor grades on a curve.
is just asking to get flamed. by no standards, ivy league medschool or whatever is an A- even remotely close to 'epic fail.' by no standards period is getting the very top percentile reason to experience 'unquantifiable dismay and regret.' and especially in orgo? god it just reeks of snobbiness or some annoying deluded self-deprecating mindset, both of which deserve a slap in the face.
i'm glad so many of you are going to be top notch doctors and shit but do get a better grasp on reality please.
On May 26 2008 10:13 intrigue wrote: look, sure it's sad he missed his expected grades, everyone knows what it's like when you miss something just by a little after you've put work in. with the feat of getting into medschool piling up, it probably just adds to the stress.
Not as an excuse, but rather to give a better picture of what my o-chem class stats are in general: Last semester there was 1 A, 2 A-, and few people in the B range, and like 20 people in the C range, and a bunch of D and F. The professor grades on a curve.
is just asking to get flamed. by no standards, ivy league medschool or whatever is an A- even remotely close to 'epic fail.' by no standards period is getting the very top percentile reason to experience 'unquantifiable dismay and regret.' and especially in orgo? god it just reeks of snobbiness or some annoying deluded self-deprecating mindset, both of which deserve a slap in the face.
i'm glad so many of you are going to be top notch doctors and shit but do get a better grasp on reality please.
I for one appreciate your candor but on the internet this message may fall on deaf ears.
On May 25 2008 16:52 skyglow1 wrote: that are so ignorant and annoying. Sure, it's an SC forum, but this is pretty pathetic.
ok...wow...
can you take a joke?
And honestly..I'm not a smart kid at all. Compared to all these people, I'm a complete dumbass. But dude...the way he says it...my most epic fail ever: A-.
On May 25 2008 16:52 skyglow1 wrote: that are so ignorant and annoying. Sure, it's an SC forum, but this is pretty pathetic.
ok...wow...
can you take a joke?
And honestly..I'm not a smart kid at all. Compared to all these people, I'm a complete dumbass. But dude...the way he says it...my most epic fail ever: A-.
lol the idea behind the joke is still the same, thinking that the guy is upset about an A- because it's gonna ruin his future. And of course if it's just a "joke" then I can't comment on it without being overreactive right?
I think skyglow1 is supporting my reasons very well in this thread. If you read over his posts, he basically summarizes the real motives of why I made this thread and said the things that I did.
And to intrigue, its not what I did accomplish that makes it my most epic fail grade ever, its what I didn't accomplish. Skyglow1 seems to have experienced this first hand as well seeing as how he is making really good points. I am not trying to harp on the A- as the reason for my dismay, if you this were to happen to you also then you would realize the dismay comes from within yourself.
This is a good quote from skyglow1:
Sure, you sorta know what mark you're gonna get in an exam like that, and just after finishing the exam you'd feel really disappointed already. Getting the mark back just makes you feel shittier because it's now proven in print that you didn't do as well as you could've, and it reminds you of the fact that you didn't put as much effort in as you could've. Personally getting the mark I suspected back is the worst bit even when I'm expecting it, and I suspect it is for alot of ppl too.
Another way to put it is, when you come in second place in a close competition, the person who wins the silver doesn't say that he won the silver, he says that he lost the gold. To other people it might seem like the guy shouldn't be sad because he got second place which is still a super good accomplishment, but the guy feels bad because he was so close to getting first. In my case, the A was the gold, and the A- was the silver. I didn't win the A-, I lost the A.
You're not including the part in your analogy that you didn't care about the competition enough to begin with to try your hardest. Your ego is still saved. You got silver in a competition you didn't even try your hardest in. =/
Well there is a reason the person got silver in the first place to begin with. I don't know why but I always relate this analogy to ice skating. The person who got silver may have made a small fall in the end of their routine or tripped up somewhere which made them get second place. Its not like both gold and silver will perform exactly the same, otherwise there would be no difference between them. I performed really well in that class, I just messed up near the end. It's not like I slacked off all the way. I tried really hard in this class which is why I am feeling sad.
The reason I put that I slacked in the end was to try and justify how I got an A- instead of an A. Instead of studying for 15 hours, I could have studied for 20. But if I studied for 20, I would say that I should have studied for 25. I'm just saying that like everything else that we fall short in life, it could have been avoided had we worked harder and put in more time into it. And if I didn't care about the competition, I wouldn't be feeling bad about it.
On May 25 2008 09:52 clazziquai wrote: If you're sad over an A-
......what the fuck?
QFT -_-
Seriously...most of my friends who are going on to med school were damn happy that they managed to scrapped a B in Organic Chem...Really, my RA, who I think is friggin BRILLIANT, didn't get an A in orgo and still got into Harvard med school (read: HARVARD MED SCHOOL, you don't get any more competitive than that).
You take like what, 120 to 150 credits to graduate? And orgo is like what, 5 credits maximum with lab (most university I know have a separate lab from lecture, so the lecture is only 3-4 credits)? Unless you've been doing really crappily in every other class (which shouldn't happen b/c by your comments you got all A's), a 3.7 from a 3 to 5 credit class weighed against a 120 to 150 credit maximum is gonna lower your GPA by like ~.01, 3.99 vs 4.0, big deal. You sound like your future's ruined from just 1 class. News flash, 1 class don't destroy you career and it's not the end of the world.
Nothing against you wanting to do well, but this thread is pretty much you bragging that you got an A- in O-chem.
Ya, in the end I guess it does come across as a bragging post, but that was not my intention, nor did I have any desire to brag about an A- in Ochem on a Starcraft forum. I felt bad about falling short of my expectations, and posted this blog right after I found out my grade and was feeling sad. Take it for what you will though, but there really is no point in bragging about an A- in ochem to an sc forum, if I wanted to brag I would brag to my fellow pre-med friends and on a pre-med forum who would truly appreciate it (which I haven't).
Anyway, this blog got a lot of replies. Thanks to all the people who supported me. To all the people who flamed me and called me a bragger, I can see where you are coming from.
EPT
