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I'll do my best to keep this as short as I can.

This semester is my last semester of college. I have no plans or desire to pursue any further education after this. I am taking two computer classes and Microbiology. I am doing well in the two computer classes and don't expect anything to go wrong with those two.

My issue is with Microbiology. I currently have an 88 (B) in there. This class is insane. It is far too difficult (that is, the professor makes it more difficult than it needs to be). I have stressed myself out, busting my ass to have this grade. Please don't think I'm some whiner. I've taken classes that were difficult, but fair. This circus-act of a class is the epitome of unfair. And yes, I know, life isn't always fair. I'm getting to that.

Some background information: I have had numerous people, who took this class, tell me that they were "scaled up" to a higher grade by the end of the semester. I've heard some people were boosted from Ds to Bs. I've heard of people being boosted from Cs to As. I have also had people claim that the grades weren't scaled nearly that much, so I don't know exactly what to believe. People just do so badly in this class that the professor has to scale, otherwise most people would fail.

My big stress source right now is the huge exam we have this Friday.

Anyway, to the point. As silly and first world as this may sound, I can't do it anymore. I've been struggling since an incident last semester where, after studying for an exam for hours, I just snapped, cried, and watched TV while playing Harvest Moon for the rest of the night. I finished that semester with the grades I wanted, but it was draining.

Ever since then, I have been struggling just to get through the rest of school. Honestly, if it had come any sooner, I probably would have dropped out. I just feel burned out.

The point I'm getting to, and realistically just trying to rationalize/reason myself to by typing this, is that I want to stop being so wound up about all of this. I have made myself physically ill from being stressed about this class and I just can't do it anymore.

I've been trying to study for this test and I just can't do it. It's a ton of material and I can't wrap my head around most of it. All of the words blur together and I can't remember a lot of it.

What I'm thinking of doing is just scaling it back. Just studying casually. I have never gotten a B in one of my major classes, so I desperately want an A in Microbiology. I'm realizing that it's just not worth it. If I don't do well on this exam, it won't be the end of the world.

I'm planning to just study at a more relaxed pace for the rest of the semester. The only remaining grades are this exam, the final, a lab report, and a quiz. I think, at minimum, I can manage a C-level of work. This will end in one of several way:

• If the stories are true, it'll get scaled up to an A, which would make me unbelievably happy
• If the stories are exaggerated, it'll get scaled up to a B, which I think I can live with.
• If the stories are just completely untrue, I'll end up with a C. It's not what I want, but if getting a C is what it takes to keep myself from going crazy, I'll take it.

This probably just comes off as me whining. Part of why I am beating myself up over this is because I feel like I'm being a whiny brat about it. One of my classmates has it a lot harder than I do: she's constantly working two jobs and taking more classes than I am. She, as she has said, is constantly exhausted. Bravo to her. I could never do that. I feel like I'm barely going to make it out of this semester.

As I mentioned earlier, I think me writing this is mostly trying to justify to myself the idea of slacking for my mental health. I worry a little bit that people will think I'm a quitter or that people will be disappointed in me for not striving for an A. I don't care anymore though. I can't care that much anymore.

If you've read all of this, thank you. It was cathartic to write. If you disagree with what I've said, think I'm a lazy brat, etc., feel free to say so. I'll, naturally, disagree with you of course.

A few little details that I can't really think of a place for: the semester is very nearly over. The last day of class is two weeks from tomorrow. It's not like I'm calling it quits halfway through the semester (though I desperately wanted to do so).

When I call the class "unfair", here are some of the things I mean:

• We are given no clue how much a particular assignment will be worth. Everything is worth varying amounts of "points" that all add up to a cumulative grade.
• We are given no measure of how much each exam will be worth or how much lab will factor into our grade.
• We spent the first three months of class covering three chapters worth of material. He then threw several packets (covering close to ten chapters) at us. He does this on purpose every year. He rambles, gets off topic, and turns everything into a story.
• Marking on assignments is completely arbitrary. You could have written exactly what it said in the book, your friend could have written the same thing, and one of you would have it marked as incorrect (with no explanation of what is incorrect about it).
• Honestly, this is just too much material for one class. The professor has mentioned that he asks the department every year to turn it into a two part class and they say no.

Anyway, tl;dr: Microbiology is causing me a ton of stress. Since there are only two weeks left in the semester, I'm just going to take it (relatively) easy and take whatever grade I get.

*giant hugs* I'm so sorry that you are stressed about class. I don't have magical answers... but I'd suggest making an appointment with the professor and discussing how much stress you feel trying to get through the workload, if you can and if you feel comfortable talking with him. He is obviously aware that it's a lot (..."he asks the department every year to turn it into a two part class...") so he may empathise with you.

I agree that for your mental health, just do what you can. To help yourself, remember to make your goals achievable (eg. study for 30 mins then have a 5 minute break doing things that you find fun and relaxing, then study again, repeat, rinse, dance, etc). Maybe make yourself some quick hand-written flash cards... it might help you remember some of the material. Have chocolate. Listen to Mozart and good luck!!! ;)

*leaves you marshmallows* And remember to smile... it helps to relieve your mood... (have these grinnies to remind you)

^On the subject of flashcards, if you're not past the point of ever wanting to make them again, Anki is a fantastic way of doing it digitally. It's designed for long-term study, (intended for language learning) but you can also use it for short-term.

If not, well, sometimes we all need breaks. There's a point when continuing to push at a problem only makes it worse, anyway. Sounds like you've reached it.

Hey Sonic, I'm going through a similar issue right now. I'm taking 6 classes, it's the end of the semester and I spend upwards of 10 hours on homework every day. I stayed up until 5 in the morning yesterday to get work done, but I'm still behind. I'm freaking out and I'm stressed out and I'm burnt out.

Anyway, I'm telling you this so you know you're not alone. School is hard. Stupid hard. You're not whining. I know how you feel. If you ever want to vent more about it, please PM me. We can commiserate.

Just keep your head up. You're almost done! It's your last semester and you won't have to go through this stress again. Do as much as you can. You don't have to turn in your best work. Don't aim for A's if it's too stressful. Just aim to pass. Even if you get C's, you can still be proud of yourself for trying and working your ass off.

Just work little by little. Make a realistic study schedule and stick to it. Drink water, eat healthy, and get sleep.

You can do it!!

I got a B in Microbiology.

Heck, I got a D+ in Organic Chemistry II.

Double heck - I never even took Calculus.

I am now working at a bio lab for about $18 an hour, full-time. For the past 2 and a half years.

If anything, I should be a role model for how to half-ass your way through school and still get that big screen TV you always wanted.

You are going to be okay.



(By the way - is you professor Dr. Masio? It sounds eerily like him. I had him in my college but he transferred to some other college in God knows where. That would blow my mind if you were his student. But I actually had an argument with him in class. He asked if viruses were "bad" and then said they were, and actually was teaching us that they were. I fervently opposed this view, raised my hand and talked about how it's pointless to lay human morals on natural occurrences. A virus does what it does because it's part of nature, but our human mind wants to justify its existence as "evil" because it affects us negatively.)

School is insane. I'm in my last semester of college right now, and I feel your pain when it comes to stress and insane workloads.

I've just been telling myself over and over again that the end is really, really close. Just a month or so more of this and I'm in the clear for a while, and then it's just stuff in the past that was I can say was worth doing. And even if it wasn't worth it, there was enough that I did that was worth it to make up for it.

You've got it, S5. Keep on rocking.

Thank you all, so much. It makes me feel a lot better to know I'm not the only one going through this.

I've been studying at a more relaxed pace and I was feeling really confident. I just took an exam in my web development class and... well, I sort of panicked. I'm fairly certain I didn't do well at all. It's rattled my confidence a bit, admittedly.

[QUOTE="ScottyMcGee, post: 1529761, member: 31048"]I got a B in Microbiology.

(By the way - is you professor Dr. Masio? It sounds eerily like him. I had him in my college but he transferred to some other college in God knows where. That would blow my mind if you were his student. But I actually had an argument with him in class. He asked if viruses were "bad" and then said they were, and actually was teaching us that they were. I fervently opposed this view, raised my hand and talked about how it's pointless to lay human morals on natural occurrences. A virus does what it does because it's part of nature, but our human mind wants to justify its existence as "evil" because it affects us negatively.)[/QUOTE]

Hah, nope, sorry. My professor is more the type to defend your view that you can't personify viruses them like that. He does love to go on rants about people who are anti-vaccination.

You are already succeeding if you have an 88. Your worries are so vacuous that they are not worth a thinking about. Sit down, have a drink or two of rum, and laugh at stupid **** on Youtube or watch a bad movie. That's how I deal with stress anyway.

I actually liked microbiology. I got to do some things on the side just for my amusement, and no one bothered me.

[QUOTE="Kil'jaeden, post: 1529842, member: 26719"]You are already succeeding if you have an 88. Your worries are so vacuous that they are not worth a thinking about. Sit down, have a drink or two of rum, and laugh at stupid **** on Youtube or watch a bad movie. That's how I deal with stress anyway.

I actually liked microbiology. I got to do some things on the side just for my amusement, and no one bothered me.[/QUOTE]

Close to 50% of the grades for the class are from things being given in the last two weeks of class. Plus, this particular exam is one that is notoriously difficult; it is not uncommon for more than half of the class to outright fail it.

I think I would enjoy the class more if the professor wasn't such a nightmare.

On the brightside, I'll probably do better than the guy who said he would start studying the material last night.

Contrary to belief - do not stay up studying all night. I don't know your studying habits but I have never, ever, ever, ever stayed up all night for anything. EVER.

Maybe like. . BARELY one time for a paper.


Because sleep consolidates your memory and things will come to mind faster. But if you're studying and you just can't focus, then take some time to close the book, calm down, and have a siesta.

Use the Force, young padawan.

^I've had a few all-nighters for actual tangible assignments that were simply too big to finish on time if I'd slept, but never just to cram or anything like that.

And remember, "I'm-a Luigi, number one!"

Yeah, cramming is a bad idea. Papers and whatknot can just be a bitch to try to finish on time. But cramming is. . eugh. .

I've never pulled an all nighter either. I have gotten up early to do last minute studying, but sleeping from 11-6 does me a lot more good than studying until 3 in the morning and sleeping until 9.

I know exactly how you feel, but my ability to care either way drained out of me at some point. I just don't care if I fail or pass anymore. I spend no time worrying about that. More worried about other things.

I know what you mean. I feel drained. I'm tired of stressing about school.

Anyway, I think the exam went well.

At least consider having some rum. It always makes me happier anyway.

I don't know that I can say much that hasn't already been said, but here is my take on studying. Not everything that works for me will work for your of course, because all people are different.

-First, never study immediately after class. If you just finished a whole day of school, I think it's best to go for a walk, get some food, and just relax completely guilt free for 1-2 hours. The goal is to become refreshed so you can have a productive study session.

-Second, never pull an all-nighter just for study purposes. As ScottyMcGee stated, sleeping greatly helps commit short-term memory to long-term memory. I would recommend ensuring at least 6 hours of sleep every night, and I don't mean laying in bed on your iPhone or listening to music. Just dark, quiet, and laying in bed with your eyes closed. Hold yourself to this, even if you don't think you can finish your studying. This will force you to study more efficiently to get everything in before bed. You will find that you are more productive when you don't have the idea of "well, I have all night to learn this". Whatever you don't get to, that's fine. Trust me, sleep is too important to miss when you are trying to learn a lot of information effectively.

-Do your best not to worry yourself in the morning. Brushing up through a quick, casual review is just fine, but don't try to cram. The fact is, once you wake up on exam day you're pretty much as ready as you're going to be. It's too late to learn at that point. Rather than feel stressed about this, try to take comfort in it. You are DONE. You do not need to worry, because studying is OVER. The purpose of that day is to assess what you know, nothing more.

-Try not to take anything personally. The test results are an evaluation of your knowledge on a particular subject, not a determination of your value as a human being. I know it's easy to beat yourself up, but if you aren't satisfied with your results, just try to think of the big picture. Think of how many people in the world have even attempted that same exam. Probably not a whole lot, relative to the Earth's entire population.

-Keep in mind you can always retake classes as well. (If you have the money...) It is a financial burden, but there is no shame in having to try a second time. Future employers are not going to know or care.

-Try not to be too much of a perfectionist. Sure it feels good to get an A. Everyone likes to max out their scores. This feeling can be reinforced by video games, which are designed so many players can achieve full completion. The truth is, in higher education, people shouldn't be getting A's en masse. If half the class (or more) is getting and A, it's a worthless exam because it's not really pushing people to learn the most that they can. It's the tests where 1, maybe 2 people get A's, you pull off a C, and a significant portion of the class fails, that you can really be proud of. Pulling through a monster exam with a halfway decent score is much more of an achievement than acing something that's too easy. Also, unless it's a qualifying exam like the the Bar exam or something similar, no employer is going to care about your scores. They're going to see if you have a college degree, MAYBE they will pay attention to which college, but beyond that it's going to be your work experience and their personal interactions with you that helps them make a decision. Nobody is going to say "Well...we were going to hire you but we see you got a B on one of your chemistry exams so...".

-Finally, one small tip that has helped me immensely! Do not try to remember information. Try to understand information. The more you can understand, the easier it is to remember. Also, if you forget something, your understanding can help you figure it out. You don't have to remember a conclusion if you know how to arrive at that conclusion yourself.

EXCEPTION: Sometimes wrote memorization is unavoidable. Sometimes you need to just know lists, sometimes you need to know definitions word-for-word. In these cases, a white board (or chalk board) is your absolute best friend. Determine what information is the type that simply must be memorized, and just start writing. Erase it, and write it again. Erase it, and write it again. Keep doing this until you can write something 2-3 times in a row without looking at your notes. Flash cards are not as effective because there is no physical action associated with them. Writing on paper is a pain because you waste lots of paper, and you have to try not to look at what you already wrote. I stand by my position that a white board or chalk board is the most effective and efficient way to memorize large amounts of material.

Also, if you need to memorize complicated steps rather than lists of single words, simplify those steps as much as possible. If each step is a paragraph in your book, it should not be more than 7-10 words when you are studying it. There will be exceptions to this of course, but most things can be drastically simplified, and this comes back to understanding.

For example, think about a microwave noodle bowl. Here are the official directions from the back of one...
1. Open lid and remove all the packets. Put noodles without bag into the bowl.
2. Pour boiling water up to the inside line.
3. Close lid and wait for 2 minutes.
4. Drain all the water out through the holes with lid closed.
5. Add liquid soup and soup extra.
6. Pour boiling water up to the inside line again.
7. Close lid and wait for 1 minute.
8. Stir well and enjoy. Add your favorite vegetable. (Serving suggestion)

If you were trying to memorize this, you could study by repeatedly writing this simplified version...
1. noodles -> bowl
2. water -> line
3. 2 min (closed)
4. drain
5. add packets
6. water -> line
7. 1 min (closed)
8. stir (veggie)

It's a lot less to remember, but you still learn every single step, and in the proper order. All the information I omitted is stuff you can figure out without memorizing. In step 2, you might think "Oh no, what kind of water?". You know the end goal is to cook the noodles so, obviously, hot water is what you need.

And of course, real school is a lot more complex than instant noodles, but you get the idea.

I hope some if this helps, I kind of got on a tangent. XD

I don't agree with the idea that only one or two students should get an A on an exam or the class as a whole. Most of the time, that's a sign that the professor failed to properly teach the material. I say this as one of the three people who did manage to get an A on the first exam in this class.

I went through that every single semester except for my short summer semester and my last semester. For me, though, the issue was that I had to carpool and WAIT. FOREVER. to go home. Even when I was sick. Even when I had a migraine (and I get them a LOT!) And I was working. If you have a way to scale back, definitely do so! (Actually, the reason I didn't snap my final semester was that I scaled back by taking one fewer class. That was nice.) All I really wanted to say was that I've been there, seven eight times, and it sucks...so just do the best you can.