Conquering those Classes You HATE!!

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We all take those classes that are just... ugh.

You know what I'm talking about- those "gen ed" classes that take up so much time and energy but you just can't really find the relevance? Yeah, that's microbiology for me this semester. It was organic chemistry last semester. 

Now, organic chemistry was a little different because I understood it's importance. I just couldn't understand the material. But microbiology, oh microbiology. It's absolutely my least favorite class, but I need to pass it. I have yet to see the real significance it has in my knowledge of being a pharmacist. In fact, my professor tends to point out when information is important to specific majors (this isn't a major-specific course) and the only time he ever says "now this is important for you pharmacy majors" is when it has to do with anatomy. *annoyed face* We're taking anatomy for a reason, aren't we? I thought so. 

Anyways, rant aside, it's so hard to focus in class and really know the information because I simply don't care about it. And I want to spend time learning about the classes I "enjoy" more than this one, but I have to study more because it just doesn't penetrate the mind. talk about endless circles. I've been struggling with this a lot lately, and I've come to realize that the only way to get myself interested is to focus on those pharmacy-specific areas and relate that to everything else. 

It's not easy, but it forces me to learn the material. If we are given certain drugs that inhibit certain mechanisms, I base my studying off of that. If I'm given the mechanisms, I look up drugs that may inhibit that. I look up what sicknesses such bacteria and microbes may be associated with. 

It isn't a quick way of studying at all. I end up spending at least twice as much time studying microbiology that I do my other classes, but it seems to be working. It's also probably the least efficient way to study for the short-term, but it's got to pay off in the long-run (there's no real way to test this, but I'm just going to tell myself that it will all pay off). 

So, I know we all have those classes. I know I will continue to have those classes. The ones I hate. But I trust that my advisors wouldn't make me completely waste my time and money, and I hope you believe that, too. Otherwise I'd advise you switch schools. So this is the best I can do- make lemonade out of lemons. Find a way to apply your course and run with it

...they say application is the best way to learn, don't they?