So the final determined whether or not I earned a “A” or “B”. I figured that I would have to work hard for an “A” on the final but it wouldn’t be impossible. I’ll be dang-gum if I didn’t earn a 76 on both finals! 
So 2 “B”'s…grrrrrrrrr
So I guess my question is any recommendations for cumulative finals? I did well on quizzes and exams but the final was just blahhhhhhhh. It didn’t help that I got the news about my raise and bonus the day before finals. It hit my wife plenty hard and that in turn hit me pretty hard. Is there anyway to insulate from personal life interfering like that? I’m not looking to be completely stoic but what have others found helps?
I don’t need anymore “B” on my transcript. I’m not too worried about Orgo since I took an Intro to orgo class so it’s not going to be completely foreign but I’m not going in there with any arrogance.
Anyhow…just thought I’d turn these dang C’s into something positive. 
Fire away with any words of wisdom. Mainly I’d like to learn to be “in the zone” so when life happens during med school I don’t fall apart.
Croooz, tell me more about the courses you were taking and I’ll give you ideas about how to stay prepared for the finals.
- croooz Said:
So 2 "B"'s...grrrrrrrrrI see where you're coming from but I think it's going to be impossible for most people to not get at least some B's here and there, either in undergrad or in medical school. Hell in med school we might even get a few C's, who knows? The best advice I can give you if the finals are cumulative is to read the textbook as you go through the semester. I know that most students don't and it probably hurts them by not learning the material because if you've even only briefly read something once, if you see it on a test, you may just recognize it enough to know the answer.
I took gen chem and stats. The stats was online. The assignments and quizzes were nothing compared to the midterm and final. Chem was a typical lecture and lab course. I had an 89 average but earned a 76 on the final which was my lowest grade. The professor emailed me telling me the multiple choice was what did me in. I did fine on the math…go figure. I mean I’ve always been good in math.
I’m attributing it to the fact that I only got into the rhythm of my learning style after the 2nd exam. So I’m figuring that using the read, highlight, flashcard, homework problems, and concept mapping over and over and over will get me the desired results. This time studying the flashcards for previous exams daily or at the minimum every other day.
Any advice or what not would be appreciated. I’m realizing that it’s all about getting into a zone and not being shaken out of it. Basically not turning to look around as I pursue my goal of becoming an EM attending. 
Well, actually, it sounds like you’ve already taken the right approach to solving your problem: you looked at how you studied, what did or did not serve you, had contact with the professor to see what your weak point was, and now you’ve made a very specific plan to do better next time.
So, um, you go!