Hi,

I'm a high school senior right now and im thinking of applying to McMaster's Life science Program. I always hear stories of really smart high school student who do really bad in university.

What are the usual class averages in Life Science?

Would going to class, tutorial and studying enough for me to get good grades?(ex. 9,10)

How is the social scene there? Would you get time to have fun, party and get good grades?

I can't talk about Life Sci, but the kind of students who did very well in high school and poorly in university seem to usually be those who got high marks without having to do a lot of work in high school and haven't developed the work habits needed in university.

I go to class and tutorial, and study, as well as doing my readings (I'm in Humanities and am taking two history courses this term, so there's a lot of reading), and I got 9s, 10s and one 11 last semester, and I had time to have fun as well!

I'm a first year Life Science student and I am not getting the greatest of marks. It's not because it's too difficult or anything, but mainly because I have not mastered time management skills. Honestly, as long as you keep up with all the readings, go to classes and tutorials and manage your time well, you'll do great. First year is a little difficult because you are getting used to the transition from high school but other than that, it's not too bad. Don't worrythough...It's a great program overall though and you should definitely apply!

Not all high school students do worst in university, I'm actually doing better than I did in high school. It all depends on how hard your high school is and how well you learned the material. For myself, a lot of the material was review so it was easy to do "well". In contrast, some of my classmates didn't learn a majority of the concepts and had to work a bit harder.

I didn't go to class during first year and I managed to get 10s and 11s. It all depends on how hard you are going to work. I found first year a lot more difficult than upper years because the quality of profs isn't the best ... I ended up learning more from the text than from lectures. If you work hard and manage your time properly, you should do fine.

Upper year is a different story. Lectures and tutorials are fantastic and textbooks are kind of useless. I find it's a lot easier to do well in second/third year than first ... so even if you don't do well in first year, keep your head up. : )

Not from life sci, but I'll put in my input anyways...

I was mostly a high 80's type student in high school... and last semester I pulled off 10s, and 11s. Like everyone else said, I think its all about time management. I still had time to do other stuff like go to various events, volunteer for an MSU service, go to the gym 1-2 times a week, and hang out with friends.

I'm in first year Life Sci



I can't tell you the class averages, but from what my chemistry professor has told me - they aim for a 67-69% average in the first year chem course. Keep in mind that this is only one course, but most life sci students end up taking it. The average is probably close to what other courses have, but i'm not positive.


I came from high school with a very low 90 average. Went to most of my classes and tutorials first term, put in a good amount of effort and ended up with mostly 12s. The hardest part is time management and trying to not procrastinate (...which i'm doing right now ). Keep up with the readings - especially chem and bio - and you will do fine

Thanks so much.
On average how long do you study every day? (This is directed to everyone)

It really depends...As long as you are up to date with the readings, it shouldn't take more than an hour per class. The assignments and labs however take longer. I tend to read very fast so though...

I don't...but that's the nature of my program, I tend not to have midterms.

However, at the end of the week (so sometime on the weekend), I go through and re-write all my notes into a notebook so they are a) more legible and b) in some kind of order (some of my profs jump around).

That takes me anywhere between 2-6 hours depending on the amount of notes I have each week.

usually, I like to rewrite my notes and keep up with the problems in class. usually for a 1 hr. lecture the notes take 1 1/2 hrs to rewrite nicely and the problems can take anywhere from 1/2 to 2 hrs. this depends as to whether you include the text questions or just tutorial- the course given questions.


that's for something like chemistry or math,
for something more reading like bio or psychology however you may want to focus more on the readings and notes than problems
same overall time allotment though

also depends on how much of a social life you want

Yeah, as long as you can find a balance between academics and social life, you won't have a problem. Unfortunately, I have been focusing too much on my social life rather than academics. I still have to get used to the whole idea of time management because when I was in high school I was able to pull off decent grades with procrastination. However, procrastination in university is definitely not a good idea. It might work for some but it definitely does not work for most students in university. Don't worry too much though. If you have any further questions or concerns, feel free to post them. The people here are great and are willing to help and provide you with answers to any other questions you may have.

Thanks so much.
On average how long do you study every day? (This is directed to everyone)

when i have no approaching midterms in the coming week: 0-3 hrs.
when i have approaching midterms: 4-5 hrs.

assignments: probably 0-2 hrs when i have a lighter workload and closer to 3-4 when i have lots of stuff due.

I have 20.5 hours of class a week.

So...
The people who i hear complain are the ones you don't really study and get too far into the freedoms of university (drinking, parties, drinking, clubbing, drinking, television)

it's all about time management and self discipline

Originally Posted by Maegs

it's all about time management and self discipline

Very true.

It's not about making large scale sacrifices. It's about getting into a system where you can do your work, get involved, and still have a social life. The key to this is to use anything available (technology, student services, friends, whatever) to make your life as efficient as possible.

This means, go to class, and when you are not in class, do something. Don't sleep, or sit around. Read something; related to your classes or not, but something to increase your mental alertness and ideally will teach you how to think.

That is the big thing here. When you learn how to think, and when are you used to doing so, school becomes easier, and you absorb information faster. High school tends to be a lot less thinking and a lot more blind reproduction of data. University requires a semblance more creativity in methods.

As far a social life goes, drinking is one thing, waking up daily with a hangover than doesn't allow you to get on with your day is another thing. I know anyone reading this who knows me is laughing right now, but its the thing I've learnt the hard way: drinking doesn't kill you, hangovers do.

More than that though, Mac has a great atmosphere, and the students are awesome. I've met all my best friends here, and we're all different and awesome.

(Wow I sound like such an optimist... Danielle you must be cringing)