Is failing a class or multiple classes common in pharmacy school?

[dreamer122]

I just started my PY1 year.

I am barely passing my exams with grades around 70%-75%, I even failed one exam with a 67%. For those exams that I have 80% or above, my grades are still below the class average. I was an A student in undergrad but now I am only hoping to pass my exams. I am panicking because if this keeps on going I might fail at least one or two classes. My worst nightmare is being dismissed from school.

To make me feel even worse, most of my friends join 3-4 student organizations, and they are like always busy with all of the student org involvement while I am the only one not joining any and spends most of my time studying, and still, I am failing classes. They also have time to hang out in the weekend, go to bar, sport games, etc, which really makes me wonder how they manage to do all that and still do well in class. I refused their invitations a couple of times in order to study but I really don't want to end up being that one person in the class that has no friends.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? How common is failing classes in pharmacy school? Any advice would be appreciated!

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[zelman]

In my school, ~2% of people failed a class each year. They usually spent their year being left back getting their act together and succeeded after that. If they failed another class, they didn't usually graduate.

 

[MilknCheerios]

When I was going through school almost 10 years ago, there always seemed to be about 10 people out of my class of ~100 who failed a class. I estimate there were about 10-20 more people who were close to failing and would make it by the skin of their teeth. I, myself, came relatively close to failing a class during P3 year because 3 exams would make up your entire grade and I was sick during exam #1 so I bombed it.

I think you'll do fine if you continue studying the right way.

 

[Sparda29]

Try changing the way you are studying. Focus more on solving patient cases/scenarios than rote memorization.

 

[lord999]

It does happen, there are two questions:
1. How did you do in your prerequisites? Did you have similar challenges there? Based on your previous messages, you seemed to do ok.

2. First year, first term is usually not a weedout, it's supposed to be a basic sciences term. Like the above, you need to get better on your study habits, and don't worry about anyone else but yourself. The classes are not harder than the prerequisites honestly, but the amount of material and the load of the schedule are high. In other words, you cannot pad these classes with some easier ones, you basically have four serious science classes each term for the rest of your academic life in pharmacy. The question is whether it is you or the rigor?

I'm concerned though that considering your other misgivings, that you might be subconsciously sabotaging yourself as well from a trapped situation. You might want to seek professional attention if you even suspect that to be the case.

 

[steveysmith54]

Common? No.

 

[rxkrafted]

I wouldn't be surprised since pharmacy schools have been lowering their standards. If you're grades were poor in undergrad and they admitted you just to fill a seat, it's likely you will have a difficult time.

 

[910781]

Maybe you study alone? Just reading the material, not speaking out, writing out?
Can't tell because you did not mention how you study, if you work as well.

Anyways, forget about those student who are in 3-4 organizations.
Probably it's too late to catch them up, just do what you can.

 

[PharmD 2021]

I just started my PY1 year.

I am barely passing my exams with grades around 70%-75%, I even failed one exam with a 67%. For those exams that I have 80% or above, my grades are still below the class average. I was an A student in undergrad but now I am only hoping to pass my exams. I am panicking because if this keeps on going I might fail at least one or two classes. My worst nightmare is being dismissed from school.

To make me feel even worse, most of my friends join 3-4 student organizations, and they are like always busy with all of the student org involvement while I am the only one not joining any and spends most of my time studying, and still, I am failing classes. They also have time to hang out in the weekend, go to bar, sport games, etc, which really makes me wonder how they manage to do all that and still do well in class. I refused their invitations a couple of times in order to study but I really don't want to end up being that one person in the class that has no friends.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? How common is failing classes in pharmacy school? Any advice would be appreciated!

Try different ways of studying and see which one works best for you. Good Luck!

 

[mentos]

The rest of your classmates probably made friends with upperclassmen who gave them "notes" from last year's exams.

 

[mustang sally]

Well, I wouldn't say it's uncommon. We had a group of about 5-7 people who joined our class from the class ahead of us. Seemed like the cardiology module was the most common one that they had failed.

They all went on to graduate with my class, but I would avoid failing any courses for obvious reasons. The pharmacy world is brutal enough, you don't want to spend an extra year in school paying tuition. Since it sounds like you are doing poorly in most of your classes, it would probably be a good idea to reevaluate your study habits and look in to any academic resources your school offers.

 

[RxPreceptor]

The rest of your classmates probably made friends with upperclassmen who gave them "notes" from last year's exams.

Very likely occurrence. Rarely anyone wants to work hard, learn things on his/her own. These type of people will face reality (don't really know/understand the matieral) when he/she is all alone/enters the work force

 

[spacecowgirl]

Nip this in the bud right now. Get a tutor, ask your profs. They need to help you figure out where you're going wrong; you should get more than just lectures for the 150-200K you're probably putting out.

 

[Sabril]

How common is failing classes in pharmacy school? Any advice would be appreciated!

I'll say it's common, but then usually people fail because of personal, family,work or health issues. It's not common for a person to study all the time and still fail. I would say the first step is find out what your goal is. Is it just to pass this one test, to retain material for the final cumulative exam, to get a good grade? The way you study should differ depending on your goals. Then see if you can go back and see why you didn't do well: does your school allow you to review the old tests? see why you get those questions wrong to begin with: is it because you can't remember or you don't understand the material or the question?

They also have time to hang out in the weekend, go to bar, sport games, etc, which really makes me wonder how they manage to do all that and still do well in class. I refused their invitations a couple of times in order to study but I really don't want to end up being that one person in the class that has no friends.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? How common is failing classes in pharmacy school? Any advice would be appreciated!

I feel you. I was all of that, studying all the time and didn't hang out. Granted I did well on my exams but I wished I could have been better. Comparing myself to my classmates who "can do all that" made me feel pathetic. And yes there are people who are that good, having old exams or cheat sheets or not. But they are they, I cannot do what they do, so I have to roll with what I have. Plus though it does suck to know people who are way "smarter" than you are, don't let the inferiority complex makes you "the person who has no friends" (just because you can't go to their parties?). Knowing people who are on the up and up is a blessing really, something you won't likely to have once you are out there serving the general public.

 

[BidingMyTime]

Like others have said, this is not common, and it is only going to get harder. A lot harder. What was your science GPA and PCAT score? Pharmacy schools are literally accepting everyone these days, so an acceptance does not mean that you have the skills to actually succeed at pharmacy school. I would pick one night/week as your "off" night to go out with friends, every other night, and the rest of the weekend, should be spent studying. Make use of your professors office hours, visit them before tests for tips, and visit them after tests to go over what when wrong. Is appears your study technique in undergrad isn't working in pharmacy school, so try different methods of studying to find out what works best for you.

 

[angelsplight]

Nope. Usually most the failing takes place for those in the P1 year and are booted if they fail like 3 courses. After the 1st year, occasionally some people fail a class but very few, like 3-5 per semester for 1 class. !st year there are more mainly because some people just aren't used to the shift in teaching. I remember some in my class that were absolutely struggling to get 70s on exam 1st year and were riding high on the 90s train after that year.

 

[baronzb]

Maybe you study alone? Just reading the material, not speaking out, writing out?
Can't tell because you did not mention how you study, if you work as well.

Anyways, forget about those student who are in 3-4 organizations.
Probably it's too late to catch them up, just do what you can.

You sound like you have some different study habits. How does that work for you and what are they?

 

[wazoodog]

Making it through Pharmacy school greatly hinges on figuring out how to teach yourself new things, and then developing a successful routine you can consistently follow. This is somewhat personal so you should quickly figure out what style of learning works efficiently for you.

 

[ornithoptor]

People have covered a lot of grounds here already: old exams, good notes, study habits, study group or improve foundations of math or science......

When I was in school, I was able to score higher points on the tests than some of my peers, even if they know more of the subject, go to all lectures, and study harder. Heck, I missed at least 25% of classes in 3 years.

The tips that I have 1). Anticipate what will be on the test. 2). Test taking skill

1). Know what will be on the test, don't waste time on topics outside of that. Focus on the sections that will be on the test, not the entire chapter. Usually, your lecturer will give hints on what will be on the test, probably their package. Study those only. I have never once read anything from chapters from Depiro or Coda and Kimble during my first three years. Your goal is to do well on the test, not overall knowledge at this point.

2). Like taking SAT, there are ways to score points on things you have no ideas of. Use logics, reasoning to reduce unknown answers to take educated guesses. With a little luck, you should still do well. Just make sure you don't over think a question.

 

[VictorOfHungerGames]

Just pass. No one is going to ask for your gpa. Make sure you study and pass the board. I've seen people fail the law or the NAPLEX multiple times.

All your real learning will come from your rotations. Or at least it should.

If you're wanting to go into residency, first off, don't. But if you must, then you may need to ace all your classes. But then again, why would you take a pay cut, waste two years of life and do exactly the same as 98% of other pharmacists due to not being able to find the right job? lol

If possible, learn as much about business aspect of pharmacy. Work at an independent pharmacy if you get a chance to. That's probably going to be the best job you're gonna find as a pharmacist all things considered.

 

[Chineduemmao]

Nope. Usually most the failing takes place for those in the P1 year and are booted if they fail like 3 courses. After the 1st year, occasionally some people fail a class but very few, like 3-5 per semester for 1 class. !st year there are more mainly because some people just aren't used to the shift in teaching. I remember some in my class that were absolutely struggling to get 70s on exam 1st year and were riding high on the 90s train after that year.

Like how do they do it? I hit a 4.7CGPA in my first year then my second year dropped to 4.2, i know people who did worst in year 1 but much better than I in year 2. Am now in year 3 and I hope to take my grades back to the top

 

[mentos]

Like how do they do it? I hit a 4.7CGPA in my first year then my second year dropped to 4.2, i know people who did worst in year 1 but much better than I in year 2. Am now in year 3 and I hope to take my grades back to the top

I thought the scale only goes up to 4.0?

 

[Rxed 1996]

Failing exams and quizzes occasionally? Yes.
Failing classes? No.

I used to make 60s-80s on most of my exams in pharmacotherapy, but I still managed to graduate with 3.5+ GPA and do well on my clinical rotations. If test-taking is not your strength, do well on all other things.

 

[Chineduemmao]

I thought the scale only goes up to 4.0?

In Nigeria the highest is 5.0

 

[mentos]

In Nigeria the highest is 5.0

1.0 D
2.0 C
3.0 B
4.0 A
5.0 ???

 

[BidingMyTime]

1.0 D
2.0 C
3.0 B
4.0 A
5.0 ???

Some private high schools in the US have 5 point grading scales,
4. 7 & up =A
3.7 - 4.6 =B
2.7 = 3.6 =C
1.7 - 2.6=D

 

[Chineduemmao]

1.0 D
2.0 C
3.0 B
4.0 A
5.0 ???

A=5.0
B=4.0
C=3.0
D=2.0 (fail)
E=1.0 (fail)

 

[Chineduemmao]

Some private high schools in the US have 5 point grading scales,
4. 7 & up =A
3.7 - 4.6 =B
2.7 = 3.6 =C
1.7 - 2.6=D

And am talking about university not high school