<p>ok for current students when did u overcome coming to cornell? when did u realize that wow, i need to work my asre off?</p>
<p>After 3 semesters. It took that long. My GPA started off pretty high. Then it dropped by 0.2 the next semester. And then ANOTHER 0.2 the semester after that. I’ve averaged over a 4.0 since them so it’s all good:)</p>
<p>woah…uve averaged a 4.0 since then? man…ur amazing! lol i want to be just like you! how much would u say u study??</p>
<p>If you do the math, it’s actually only been 2 semesters “since then.” lol</p>
<p>I’ll be honest: Freshman year I did not concentrate very hard on schoolwork. I stopped attending my math class halfway through the semester. I had around 9 absences in PE (when the max was supposed to be 3 lol). There were times when I literally didn’t finish reading till the night before and didn’t start reviewing till the morning of prelim day. I’m fairly intelligent so I got by on that alone.</p>
<p>I still don’t have great study habits. I would say that I study slightly above average for a Cornell premed + good intelligence + a little bit of luck to earn (and I use that term loosely) my GPA.</p>
<p>mine day of reconing was alot earlier, after the second wave of prelims my first semester here. </p>
<p>Three of my classes had prelims around the same time (3 total) with all of my other classes doing essays instead. In the first wave of exams, I aced all three of them. I figured “sweet, i’ve got this!” I studied my ass off for them and it payed off. Cornell wasn’t that hard, was it?</p>
<p>In the second round of exams, I blew it. Big time. A 60 in statistics and scoring well below the mean on two others. Ick! </p>
<p>Needless to say, I got my act together for the finals and did great on all of them. Saved the semester! The second round, though I studied hard, kind of put things into reality that I’d have to work harder for the grades and not just expect them.</p>
<p>How do you get >4?</p>
<p>an A+ is worth a 4.3</p>
<p>would you guys yourselves to be the type in high school who didnt need to study to get high grades? (or studied minimally)- Is this how most people at Cornell are? (and then they get to Cornell and actually need to study I assume…)</p>
<p>i studied very little in high school. </p>
<p>and i studied very little at my previous college (i transfered into Cornell) and managed to get a cumulative GPA of 3.85 with minimal effort. </p>
<p>at Cornell, incredible effort has gotten me a 3.7</p>
<p>Grad schools realize that it’s hard to get a good grade at Cornell and that their curve is extremely low right? (Mainly asking about the latter)</p>
<p>yes, they do.</p>
<p>My theory to it all: the people who don’t work as hard in high school excel in college.<br>
Why? Because they are the ones who have more to give when it comes down to crunch time. The people in high school who bust their asses day in and day out to get A+s and are fiercely cutthroat and competitive for every little bit that will improve their resume tend to do worse in college.<br>
When the stress builds too high they simply can’t handle it because they’ve already given it their all just to get into the school.<br>
Whereas those who slack off in high school, have fun, and still manage to get into a good college can just up their level of work ethic when it is demanded of them.
…
my two cents.</p>
<p>Cornell is tough but its also a lot easier to study, the people around you motivate you to work. It’s a good atmosphere for learning.</p>
<p>I’m in the middle. I try very hard in some classes but less in others. I also have a life and am captain of 2 sports so I feel like I can balance it all when it comes down to crunch time…</p>
<p>yeah i think same here- for example in my ap calc class i never study and easily excel, but when it comes to the history classes requiring memorization and an abundance of reading, I dont get by without a great deal of effort. I’m just worried that at Cornell (cals bio) I’ll really struggle because yes, I did have to study a good deal overall throughout high school- but unlike dh277 said, it wasnt to get into a good college, it was more self-motivation.</p>
<p>I think it’s just plain…stupid for lack of another word, to say that people who study less are going to do better than people who study more. Just the thought of it… I do agree that SOME people are just that smart…but bad work habits are NOT good no matter wat…</p>
<p>I agree, but people who are just naturally extremely intelligent and pick up information quicker will have an easier time at Cornell, as they would at any college. I wouldn’t classify myself to be of that type so I’m just worried I won’t be able to make it at Cornell.</p>
<p>If you got accepted to Cornell it is the belief of the University that you will make it there. Work hard and stay happy and I’m sure you will do great and love it.</p>
<p>Well, i was waitlisted so chances are i’ll end up not getting in… oh well. Thanks for the encouraging words though!</p>