scheherazade

This was my first semester at Cornell. I don't think I did well at all in my classes. I am actually a science major, and the sad thing is that I did the worst in my science classes. Is it normal for students to do so badly during the first semester? I am so worried! I will never get into med school.

Is it only the introductory science classes that are hard? Do the science classes afterwards get a little easier (I mean do they stop having such low median grades)?

Thanks.

Rileydog

First year can be so hard because of all the transitions. Are the classes larger than you are used to? Do you feel it is the material, the organization of the courses, are you taking advantages of teaching assistants or prof hours to ask for help? First year at school can be so different from expected - many people do not do well. I remember having a course with 200 people, and only one test. How can you assess what kind of instructor you have, how they grade, what you should focus on?

perro406

You are probably talking about BioG right?

That class is a *****, don't worry about it.

ecc

Dude, don't worry! Classes won't get easier, but you would know how to prepare for the prelims better. I didn't do too well during my first semester and I thought I was pretty stupid, but everything turned out to be fine for me. All you need is to do is to study a little more, then you will get your As.

cornellbabe

i'll be the first to admitt i completely blew my first semester and i'm a business major!!! ...but this might also be the result of the fact that i did absolutely nothing all semester....

norcalguy

1) It's normal to do worse in your science classes vs. non science classes since they are more competitive and the curves are usually harsher. I'm a biology major and the couple of B's and A-'s I've received through 3 semesters at Cornell are all in my science classes. Straight A's everywhere else.

2) It's normal to do worse at Cornell than you did in HS (duh). I believe the average GPA for freshman is around a 3.0 so the average freshman will experience a .7-.9 drop in their GPA.

3) It won't get any easier to get good grades if you're a science major but it probably won't get any tougher either.

eibrahim

is college and cornell really that hard? any1 know anything about economics majors?

Cornell2009Hotelie

How about Hotel? I know the median grades are around a B- from looking at the site someone posted. Is that a reflection of the difficulty or are there many students there who are just not as qualified when it comes to academics?

norcalguy

I think this rant exemplifies some of the feelings of Cornell students:

http://blog.feelourpain.com/archives/000304.html

I too got the "look to your left, look to your right" speech during orientation my freshman year (bio majors, watch out

The fact is, there will be moments of frustration when you feel you got a lower grade than you deserve but I really feel that Cornell pushes you to do your best and although your GPA may not look great on paper, you will realize its value when you go get a job or when you apply to graduate schools. Cornell has a 89% acceptance rate to med schools among its applicants with 3.4 or better GPA's. That is due to the fact that a) med schools are well aware of the rigor of Cornell and b) despite their low GPA's, they got relatively high MCAT scores because Cornell prepared them well.

I went to a top public high school in CA myself but I really don't think I appreciated the amount of effort I put into schoolwork until I got to Cornell. Cornell students will talk with gritted teeth about how difficult it is to get high grades here, but I think one can't help but detect a tinge of pride as well, knowing that they have worked for every A and B they've received here.

Oh yea, what he says about test scores is true. No one gives a damn about test scores here. I came into Cornell with 3.98 UW GPA, 1550, 800,800, 780 and I have a 3.76 GPA right now (not bad, not super either). One of my friends at Cornell had a 1100 on her SAT's and she currently has 3.97 GPA at Cornell while taking many of the same premed courses as me. Work hard, get help when you need to and you'll be fine.

scheherazade

Cornell2009Hotelie,

Believe me, there are no students here who are not qualified when it comes to academics. It is just that the professors always wants to give all their students bad grades. I've tried sooo hard to get good grades. I was a valedictorian and never had below a 4.0 ever but now I am staying up all night and day and still am not doing anywhere near as well as I want to.

perro406

Hotelie, you dont need to worry about this.

It's because he is a pre-med.

The pre-med kids are insane. Bio101 makes them go mad and they never return to normal. By the end of sophomore year they are killing each other in their sleep.

Hotel students dont need to worry about such things.

Also, "sch....ade", remember that everyone else at Cornell was also either a valedictorian or very close to it, and that most of them never had below a 4.0 either! Welcome to the Ivy League, it's time to wake up, you're not so special anymore! It's true, nearly every Cornell student experiences this kind of GPA "culture shock."

By the way, what is your GPA anyhow? You said you "think" you didnt do well. Why don't you go to uportal.cornell.edu and find out?

eibrahim

do you have any info on economics majors?

vinzzy

how hard is the mcat anyway?

Tranorix

Haha...schade für dich...


My guess is it's just the transition. You'll (probably?) get used to it and improve, if you figure out how to adjust.

scheherazade

Sorry Cornell2009Hotelie. I was just kidding. It is a little easier, I think, in the Hotel School. I was just a little frustrated.

Tranorix, I am sure I will improve.