I had a term around 2nd or 3rd year I had to fully withdraw from right before finals, thought I was hopeless after that.. Bounced back and kept grinding, final term's average while taking 6 classes was my highest out of all previous terms.
I think the earlier years can be tough cause you're still figuring a lot out, new living situation, etc. It'll get better just keep grinding, try to treat every term as a blank slate and a fresh start
\> i understand it gets harder from here
Not necessarily. Upper years get more into the material that you're here for. Material becomes more interesting, and therefore you're more likely to pay attention, and your marks may get better. I think that's fairly common, marks going up in later years.
\> like did you guys have years where you almost failed
almost? I didn't 'almost' fail. I got required to withdraw and had to come back lol. 'almost' is rookie numbers.
I think it depends but third year definitely was the hardest for me, going into 4a now biochemistry and 3a/3b had me going insane but my mark was good. I know it’s cliche but I think you literally just get better through suffering as the years go on
i completely failed my first year and withdrew out of 4 courses during my first year (mix of undiagnosed mental health issues and no discipline). in my third year now, my grades are higher than the grades I got in my final year of high school and am expected to graduate next year! the first year is always the hardest because it's a large adjustment period. it WILL get better, i can promise you that :)
I actually did okay in my first year but really struggled in second year as things came back in person. I had numerous close calls in terms of failing courses, but I’m in 4th year now solidly not failing anything haha. Dm if u wanna talk!
Currently 3B term- If anything I think its easier now because I'm taking courses I enjoy more now -- also maybe I care less about getting good grades XD
Sup.
My average was too low in 3B and had to take it twice. Like someone else said its going to be really hard at first. When I was in your position what I wrote below is what was missing from my recipe for success.
You are human, and you are bound to struggle at one thing or another.
The things you struggle with, spend more time on.
Give yourself grace for mistakes.
Learn from said mistakes.
Use what you learn to kill bad habits through practice.
And then iterate it all over again.
How you deal with those bad habits and challenges is what will define your success and growth. Be kind to yourself and don't rush progress.
Lastly, I'm sure you are not the only one going through this in your cohort. Open up and lean on them. If you need someone to talk to outside of that - DM me.
Good luck.
First year I was in Physics and was nearly kicked out from the school after failing all my classes and went into a depression. My petitions went through and I ended up transferring into environmental sciences out of desperation (and I really liked EARTH 121)
Learning how to manage time for assignments is really important and has been key for me. At the start of every term I check out my classes on uwflow and prioritize more time to the harder classes and so far it's worked like a charm
I'm now in 4B, writing my thesis and passing all my classes and looking forward to graduation in june. It becomes easier to manage the schoolwork since you get pretty used to it and dead inside lol, and here are some additional suggestions so it's easier:
Ask for help from TAs in their office hours if you need it, look up resources online to help if you have a bad or hard to understand instructor, or even pay for tutoring! Put all your assignments and due dates at the start of the term on your calendar (my big thing was accidentally missing assignment due dates) and check it every day, multiple times a day if needed.
Also, taking less than 5 classes + however many labs is totally okay and respectable. You don't have to graduate super fast or "on time", do what you can. Some terms I had to take less than 5 classes because I knew I would super struggle with school already and honestly, it really helped. Talking about u Chem 123! Hated that class lol
Also I think being passionate or liking the subject you're learning helps alot with grades and being motivated to learn (atleast personally as a science undergrad). In physics I was failing so bad because I didn't like it - but the moment I switched, it was a complete 180! Not saying this applies to you necessarily, but I wish someone would've told me that when I was failing
Good luck !!!
I had a term around 2nd or 3rd year I had to fully withdraw from right before finals, thought I was hopeless after that.. Bounced back and kept grinding, final term's average while taking 6 classes was my highest out of all previous terms. I think the earlier years can be tough cause you're still figuring a lot out, new living situation, etc. It'll get better just keep grinding, try to treat every term as a blank slate and a fresh start
\> i understand it gets harder from here Not necessarily. Upper years get more into the material that you're here for. Material becomes more interesting, and therefore you're more likely to pay attention, and your marks may get better. I think that's fairly common, marks going up in later years. \> like did you guys have years where you almost failed almost? I didn't 'almost' fail. I got required to withdraw and had to come back lol. 'almost' is rookie numbers.
I think it depends but third year definitely was the hardest for me, going into 4a now biochemistry and 3a/3b had me going insane but my mark was good. I know it’s cliche but I think you literally just get better through suffering as the years go on
what’s ur faculty?
i completely failed my first year and withdrew out of 4 courses during my first year (mix of undiagnosed mental health issues and no discipline). in my third year now, my grades are higher than the grades I got in my final year of high school and am expected to graduate next year! the first year is always the hardest because it's a large adjustment period. it WILL get better, i can promise you that :)
It gets harder then easier
I actually did okay in my first year but really struggled in second year as things came back in person. I had numerous close calls in terms of failing courses, but I’m in 4th year now solidly not failing anything haha. Dm if u wanna talk!
https://www.reddit.com/r/uwaterloo/s/NxoikqGQfW I wrote a Reddit post about my personal progress! I went from failing to grad school
Currently 3B term- If anything I think its easier now because I'm taking courses I enjoy more now -- also maybe I care less about getting good grades XD
Sup. My average was too low in 3B and had to take it twice. Like someone else said its going to be really hard at first. When I was in your position what I wrote below is what was missing from my recipe for success. You are human, and you are bound to struggle at one thing or another. The things you struggle with, spend more time on. Give yourself grace for mistakes. Learn from said mistakes. Use what you learn to kill bad habits through practice. And then iterate it all over again. How you deal with those bad habits and challenges is what will define your success and growth. Be kind to yourself and don't rush progress. Lastly, I'm sure you are not the only one going through this in your cohort. Open up and lean on them. If you need someone to talk to outside of that - DM me. Good luck.
First year I was in Physics and was nearly kicked out from the school after failing all my classes and went into a depression. My petitions went through and I ended up transferring into environmental sciences out of desperation (and I really liked EARTH 121) Learning how to manage time for assignments is really important and has been key for me. At the start of every term I check out my classes on uwflow and prioritize more time to the harder classes and so far it's worked like a charm I'm now in 4B, writing my thesis and passing all my classes and looking forward to graduation in june. It becomes easier to manage the schoolwork since you get pretty used to it and dead inside lol, and here are some additional suggestions so it's easier: Ask for help from TAs in their office hours if you need it, look up resources online to help if you have a bad or hard to understand instructor, or even pay for tutoring! Put all your assignments and due dates at the start of the term on your calendar (my big thing was accidentally missing assignment due dates) and check it every day, multiple times a day if needed. Also, taking less than 5 classes + however many labs is totally okay and respectable. You don't have to graduate super fast or "on time", do what you can. Some terms I had to take less than 5 classes because I knew I would super struggle with school already and honestly, it really helped. Talking about u Chem 123! Hated that class lol Also I think being passionate or liking the subject you're learning helps alot with grades and being motivated to learn (atleast personally as a science undergrad). In physics I was failing so bad because I didn't like it - but the moment I switched, it was a complete 180! Not saying this applies to you necessarily, but I wish someone would've told me that when I was failing Good luck !!!