Dear Collegiette Code,I’m having a really hard time staying motivated. The quarter is almost over, and my grades are bound to be pretty bad. For one of my chemistry classes, I calculated my grade, and I would have to get an “A” on the final to pass the class. There’s no way I could do that, so why bother studying at all? I feel like I messed everything up, and it’s too late to change things. Any tips?-Failing
Dear Failing,
You have two choices. You can give up and fail, or you can work your ass off and do the best you can. Don’t tell yourself there’s no way you could get an “A” on the final. That’s not to say you should delude yourself into thinking this is going to be easy, but you still have an opportunity if you work hard enough. You should also talk to your professor about your situation. Many of them are more than willing to help out if they see you putting in the effort as well.
– Honey
Dear Failing,
Just because you’re having a bad quarter and you’re not getting the grades you want doesn’t mean that you’re going to fail out of college. Of course, we would all rather binge watch Netflix and just say “#yolo” than study for finals, but we have to study. Even if you don’t get an “A” on the final, if you study really hard, you’ll at least be able to tell yourself that you did your best. The worst-case scenario is that you go on temporary academic probation. Instead of dwelling over your shortcomings this quarter, study hard for finals and find ways to re-focus yourself for Winter Quarter over the break.
– Lauren
Dear Failing,
We all have quarters where it’s hard to stay motivated and our classes just don’t interest us. My first question is, have you checked to see if your chemistry class is curved? Hard science and math classes tend to have a generous curve, so you actually might be doing better than you realize. Secondly, is your exam cumulative? If so, start studying now. Go to office hours, look over your old exams, and stay on top of the most recent material the class has covered that you haven’t been tested on. TAs are also extremely helpful. Go to your professor too, and ask about any extra credit options. University rules tend to allow classes to have 2-3% extra credit. It may seem minor, but the small percentage increase can actually push you from a 68% (not passing) to a 70% (passing). If worse comes to worst and you don’t pass, you can always retake the class and replace the grade that you have. College is hard, and sometimes we fall behind. Just learn from this experience, and be more proactive in preventing it from happening again in the future. Good luck!
– Wendy
Dear Failing,
I would advise you to visit our free, on-campus tutoring resource, the Student Academic Success Center. It offers chemistry tutoring. Go in every day before the final, and study as hard as you can! If that doesn’t work, the worst that can happen is that you have to take the class over again. At least you will know you tried your hardest!
– Hannah
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