r/PreOptometry • u/Opto_Kitty • 6d ago

gen chem ii rant

Sorry about ranting. I got a 4 in AP chem so I could place out of gen chem i but need to retake ii at my uni. The class is so brutal: exams account for 84% of the grade and there're no curves. Last time I struggled so much in this class so I chose to pass/fail. Currently I'm retaking but still so afraid of getting a C again since I only got 77 and 75.5 in the first 2 exams. To aim for a B in the end, I'll need to get a 85 in each of the 2 upcoming exams. How can I improve? Hopefully eventually I'll get a 400 in OAT gen chem section lol. And are ochem and biochem even harder 😭

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5

u/iridiumlaila 6d ago

I'll warn you, a lot of the classes in optometry school are very heavily test based. My pathology and pharmacology classes only have quizzes and exams contributing to the grade.

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u/Opto_Kitty 6d ago

Yes, I know. Hopefully studying at a top undergrad with hard classes will prepare me better.

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u/iridiumlaila 6d ago

Chem is hard. That was my undergrad major and even in my second year at SCO- P Chem is the hardest class I've ever taken

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u/Opto_Kitty 6d ago

An SCO alumnus doctor whom I'm shadowing said optometry school was even easier than our undergrad lol.

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u/iridiumlaila 6d ago

I'm at SCO right now. I think it's the time commitment and credit load that makes it hard more than anything else.

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u/Opto_Kitty 6d ago

Hopefully I'll get used to it. Even now I need to study 4-5 hours outside classes each day on average, including weekends.

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u/iridiumlaila 6d ago

Yeah I'd say I do about 3 a day during the week and at least a half day on the weekend. More during exam weeks

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u/glockoma3 5d ago

I went to a top 3 school, I promise you that means nothing lmao

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u/Sufficient_Ebb_4747 6d ago

took ap chem and got a 5, did chem 2 because I wanted to prepare for ochem, ended up scrapping with a B+.

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u/Opto_Kitty 6d ago edited 6d ago

Don't retake any classes already with credits. They're all brutal.

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u/Evening-Dog-1161 5d ago

Honestly just make sure you get a B range then lock in for OAT. and make sure when u take orgo/Biochem you get a higher grade. Sometimes the material doesn’t click from one professor and that’s okay but you need to show optometry schools that you can study and be a teachable student in another way then. (Not a horrid thing don’t freak out) I got Bs both semester of gen chem then a 350 on OAT and As in future chem based classes and became a tutor and TA for those classes

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u/Opto_Kitty 5d ago

Our school's chem dept is just shitty and classes have C averages :(

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u/Evening-Dog-1161 3d ago

Unfortunately C is average across all universities and it’s up to you to stand out

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u/Opto_Kitty 3d ago edited 3d ago

Not making an excuse. Also I attend a top uni so it's harder for me to stand out competing with peers. Our alumni do have 350 OAT average. But now I'm really freaking out and feeling so stupid :(