Question:
I just got my grade back for the IPFC 4 midterm and I barely passed (low 60s). I also did not do that great for the first midterm (low 70s). I studied really hard for it but my grades are not showing the effort I put into studying. I also heard that the IPFC 4 final is very hard so it will be hard to bring my mark back up. I feel so down right now because of it. I also want to get into a hospital pharmacy residency program but this mark will bring my average down quite a bit to mid to low 70s. Do you have any advice?
Response 1: I’m sorry to hear you’re feeling down about your situation—IPFC 4 is an incredibly challenging course and a lot of people are in the same boat. There is a ton of content for each topic, which makes studying all of the material comprehensively very difficult. The exams can be very detail-oriented and don’t have a very large number of questions compared to the amount of content there is to study, so it’s hard to know which areas to focus on for exam purposes. My first piece of advice is to keep in mind is that your performance on the midterms doesn’t necessarily reflect how well you knew the overall content, because it’s possible that you focused on a lot of important information that just didn’t show up on the exam. It’s great that you studied hard for the midterms; having good study habits is only going to help. Hopefully you were able to review your exams, and if so, took note of some of the areas/types of questions that might be worthwhile for you to focus on more for the final. In terms of the IPFC 4 final being hard—I know that’s scary to hear, but everybody is different. There have been many times where I went into classes or exams knowing that others ahead of me found it difficult, only to look back and realize that I built it up in my head much worse than what it had to be. If the exam is going to be difficult, the best things you can do for yourself are to try and stay calm (remind yourself that feeling sad or anxious is only going to distract you from studying) and just keep trying your best to study. Whenever I’m feeling overwhelmed about a class, I always tell myself I’m not giving up without a fight—once I’ve tried my best, I know I’ve done all that I can. I understand that it’s even harder to go through this when you are worried about hospital pharmacy residencies in the long-term, but again, try to remember that all you can do is try your best. I would also recommend building on things like extracurriculars, work/volunteer experience as much as possible, so you can feel more confident in your application as a whole. Be kind to yourself, you are doing great!
Response 2: Keep your head up! Exams can be stressful and not always indicative of how much studying you are putting in. It is very likely that you know more than you think, or what your mark suggests. As with most IPFCs, the course in general can be overwhelming with how much material there is to cover in such a short amount of time, but just remember to keep working at it because you’ve made it this far. Going to the professor’s office hours or studying with a friend are great ways to help your understanding. Sometimes just hearing the same content explained in a different way can make a world of difference. I would also suggest incorporating self-care into studying. This could be something like taking breaks, going for a walk, and getting enough sleep. Feeling well rested is important in making sure you are calm and focused for the questions on exam day. I know it can be difficult but try not to worry too much about how your average will be affected. In the end, your marks only represent one aspect of you as a person. Just concentrate on taking each course/semester one at a time because there will be many more chances to improve it throughout the rest of pharmacy school.