Graduate School

February 25, 2012

As of right now I have a love-hate relationship with grad school.  I am doing pretty good in all of my classes EXCEPT Physio, which ticks me off.  It isn't that I am not getting the information but I'm adjusting to a new move and schedule so I wasn't studying like I should have been.  Therefore, when I went to take my test I wasn't as confident as I need to be.  If you remember from my previous posts I was a terrible test taker in my past.  But I've come a long way from those days, Thank You God! Needless to say, I didn't do so hot on my test.  There were certain questions that I had no clue about (i.e. the questions that we needed equations for) and there were some that I misread, or better yet, forgot that the question asked for the FALSE answer and I provided the TRUE answer.  It might be a good idea to quickly skim through all the questions once you've completed the test and double check the questions that aren't typical (i.e. which statement is false or which of these processes wouldn't be observed if you were in xyz part of a cell).  

Oh well, I'll just have to knock the next one out of the ballpark :)  I do have some good news though.  As a result of my performance I was invited to join the Golden Key International Honour Society at my school.  I didn't even know such an organization existed.  Once I found out there wasn't a Dean's List for graduate students I gave up hope for any recognize for outstanding performance, or than graduating with honors.  But to my surprise I checked my email one day and saw the invitation.  It was a great feeling.  I'll still need to do additional research on the org though.   

Check you later!

January 16, 2012

Please forgive me for neglected this portion of my blog.  Grad school has kept me very busy and on top of that I am lazy.  I've been making posts about grad school updates on the main page.  But, I created this tab to talk specifically about my grad school experience for anyone to read and comment on.  With that said, I am still enjoying my experience although it has been very tiring.  

Last semester was a rough one though.  I moved away from home to take some courses on the main campus and my living situation was a hot mess.  Unfortunately I don't have time to write about it but believe me...I most definitely will keep you all posted.  Despite my roommate troubles I did pretty well.  My semester GPA was a 3.5 (not the 4.0 I achieved last semester :( but it is still good).  

Also, I made a friend...yay!!!  We had Pharmacology together which I"m sure helped us to do well in the class.  Exams in all my classes were manageable but they were some tough cookies.  One of my professors is extremely intelligent...I'm talking genius and he wrote his exams as if we all were on the genius level LOL.  Don't get me wrong I consider myself to be smart but I'll admit...he's on a different level.  He was take small tidbits of information from introductory courses and incorporate them into our questions.  For example, one for answer options was talking about nucleotides when the overall concept was about a specific protein channel...REALLY SIR??? O_o.  LMBO.  Needless to say he was very conceptual and challenged ALL of us on every level.  I was unsure if I'd make it LOL.  However, it felt good knowing that I was capable to meeting his expectations and answer may of the questions correctly.  

This semester I am again working to get a 4.0.  I've also adapted a new learning strategy.  Before I was learning to do well in a class and hopefully retain all the information.  This term I want to learn for the sake of knowing.  I figure this well ensure that I not only do well (4.0 status) but also know the information after I take an exam.  This may be a problem for the classes that I consider to be boring.  Those courses are the worst LOL.  

Well, I'm going to end this here and will try to make more post as we get further into the semester.  This is my last semester of classes before I begin my practicum AKA externship.       


September 09, 2011

Guess what!  This girl right here finished her first semester of grad school with a 4.0.  I am rather disappointed to find out there is no Dean's List for graduate students.  I call that BULL_ _ _ _.  LOL.  Nevertheless, I am going to keep working hard.  I really do want to graduate Summa Cum Laude.  I'm not sure if I set this goal to make up for my poor performance in undergrad or something else.  I feel as though I have something to prove to myself.  But, I've been a more than stellar student since the day I left the good ol' Maize and Blue representing university.  Maybe that's something I will never let myself live down.  Deep down inside I feel as though I really blew it.  Yes, I did graduate.  However, that's not enough for me, and I'll never understand why I did so horribly.  Especially considering that I am going to be a doctor.  What was I thinking?  As you continue to read my blog you'll realize that I come down really hard on myself, probably worse than anyone ever could.  Continuing on with what I was talking about, I've used that "failure" as fuel for my other classes.  ***BTW part of my mission as a pseudo-blogger is to let people see where I've made mistakes and to, hopefully, learn from them*** Once I an adviser told me I could have a second choice to better my grades to apply for medical school I knew I couldn't mess up again.  REMEMBER WORLD: It's a tough competitive world out there and the younger people are BRINGING the competition.  LOL.  I don't recommend going hard on yourself though.  It's just a habit that I can't shake.  While it's a sucky habit it does keep me pushing forward, and in a few years YOU might just be calling me Dr.V :)   


August 07, 2011


I have one more week of school left and.....I'm so excited and I just can't hide it (yes I am singing the song lol).  I am ready for this 2 week vacation that I get and then I'll be taking on a new set of classes in a new city :)  I'm wondering what things will be like.  I've been pushing hard in my classes.  But, it has gotten hard the last 2 weeks or so.  I've wanted to just give up on doing my coursework.  It's been so much and boy I was tired.  I wanted to chill and hangout.  But I have to realize that I'm not doing the same things as my friends and other people.  I got med school on the brain and currently, I only have one shot.  I also have something to prove to myself.  I want to bang this year out and graduate Summa Cum Laude (yes I set a goal at the very top).  So, there's an additional reason why I can't give up.  Anywho.....just one more week baby and I'll be done with my first semester of graduate school and one step closer accomplishing a dream I've had since I was a young child :) 
 

July 18, 2011



The week from Hell is over and I am so happy about it.  Last week was crazy insane and insane crazy LOL.  I had so much work to submit.  My professors had assigned numerous pages of readings, multiple quizzes, and a couple of papers.  It was overwhelming to say the least.  I made it through though and now I'm looking forward to the end of this semester.  Epidemiology, Human Physiology, Intro to Human Pharmacology, and Social and Behavioral Public Health are up next.  I'm actually excited about Epidemiology and Pharm.  However, I'm more excited to next year! WoRk :)


July 15, 2011

Graduate School is a hot mess.  No, I'm just kidding.  Graduate School is hard work but I am enjoying the process.  I am learning a ton of information.  One of my favorite classes so far is.....drum roll please.... Biostatistics.  I've never been a math person  (I like Biology) so I thought this class would give me a much harder time than it is.  I put quite a bit of time into studying though and my professor does a good job of clearing up any confusion I may have.  All of that = me currently having an A in the class :)  

While it seems like I'm having a ball there are some bad times, especially when I have a lot of work to do in so little time.  However, by the grace of God I make it through.  Right now I'm a little upset because I want to go see Harry Potter, but I have way too much work.  I have 3 quizzes and a paper to submit.  So, although I love Harry and the gang, they'll have to wait until Monday LOL.  I'm so mad that it's coming to an end :(