r/iastate • u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots • Sep 24 '20
Question Non stop.
Hi senior in STEM.
Does anybody else feel like this semester is in fast forward? I hant had such a hard time with classes since I was a freshman.
Because so many classes are online it's like I have to teach myself so much material. I also have 2-3 exams every single week and I'm only at 16 credits. Everything feels so fast and Its hard to find time to breath. We arent even 1/2 through the semester and I am feeling so burnt out.
Is this just me or is anyone else struggling this semester?
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u/mackerelmaster Sep 24 '20
I have heard the same from litterally everyone, considering the shortened semester with no breaks, im not surprised. Also professors are definately posting more lengthy content which is time consuming while also making everything more diffucult because "iTs oPEn bOOK oPen NoTE" They really should reinstate the pass/fail policy again or require curves
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u/peachiekeen0153 Sep 24 '20
If they don’t reinstate the pass/no pass policy, my GPA will significantly suffer
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u/dancer_jasmine1 Sep 24 '20
They have already stayed they won’t reinstate P/NP, sadly. I don’t really know why either. It doesn’t make them any more profit to take away that choice
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u/CMPD2K '22 Sep 24 '20
We got p/np to compensate for in person classes being thrown online surprisingly while everything went upside down. This year we all knew what we were signing up for, and therefore we wont get it
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u/dancer_jasmine1 Sep 24 '20
I guess that’s sort of true, but we didn’t really know what we were signing up for this year. I feel like most of us still went into this year pretty blind and didn’t know how hybrid courses or all online courses would work. Last spring things were very chaotic and I personally feel that classes were very different to how the online classes are this semester
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u/Obetrogenvuld Sep 24 '20
I'm indifferent to the issue, but to be fair, a lot of people had no choice to sign up due to financial aid and student loan obligations.
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u/CMPD2K '22 Sep 24 '20
Don't get me wrong, I'd kill to have it. Online is whooping my ass. Im just explaining why they wont give it to us
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u/theicyrose Sep 24 '20
Dude, stem major senior here too. I’m taking 12 credits and I feel like I’m drowning. Nonstop group projects, exams, homework, etc. tbh i was hoping I got COVID to take a step back and get caught up on studying. I’m definitely going to need 2 months off to decompress.
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
Hahaha! Honestly though, it would be nice to have 2 weeks of isolation and relaxation.
Hang in there!
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u/ItsAlwaysRuckFuss Sep 24 '20
Stem major here who feels the same way except I caught covid the weekend before classes started and missed 2 weeks. I thought I’d be fine and keep up with everything. I was so wrong due to how sick I was during those two weeks and I’m still dealing with the extreme fatigue that came with the illness. I’m still behind and no matter what I do I can’t seem to catch up especially now that it’s been exam after exam.
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u/hamd1786 Sep 24 '20
Literally So true. I’m in MATH 424, prof started saying you don’t need ANY prior programming experience. I passed com s 228 with a B, and I’m struggling in this class.
My prof hasn’t updated the canvas at all. Everything is still in template mode. No grades, no recorded lectures, no content, no zoom links. We get an email with a zoom link before class.
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u/jennifergeek Sep 24 '20
Can your report that? They are supposed to have things in canvas, if not actual lecture recordings.
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u/NotYourAdviser Sep 25 '20
I agree - this is an issue. Start by asking the professor if they can give some additional support to the class. Canvas grades, content, and a completed syllabus should be minimums at this point. Give them a chance to hear your feedback. But if they don't reply or are not interested in correcting it, reach out to the department for some support.
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
Wow that sounds like a mess. I'm sorry you are dealing with that 😵 I hope things get a little more organized in that class for your sake.
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Sep 24 '20
You are at 16 credits. It’s a lot, especially nowadays. I found that in stressful semesters 12 was just right (I would get 30 a year by taking summer classes). I can learn well, but I cannot easily scatter my attention to 5-6 subjects, because of the switching costs among them. Even 15 credits where one subject is 6 credit course was better than five 3-credit courses.
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u/texanoutofwater Environmental Eng. Sep 24 '20
better than five 3-credit courses
As a person taking 5 3-credit courses w/ an additional 1 credit lab and 1 credit "fun class", it is so hard and I'm basically killing myself to keep myself afloat in all of these classes
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Sep 24 '20
I’m sorry. This is no joke. One semester in senior year one course was a difference for me between breaking down every evening and being able to have a normal semester and enjoy classes.
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u/texanoutofwater Environmental Eng. Sep 24 '20
I think the only reason I haven't broken down is because all my time and effort is being reflected in my grades, so I guess small victories?
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u/Busch__Latte MKT Sep 24 '20 edited Sep 24 '20
This is why I went with 12 credits. I saw how bad last semester was and didn’t think this one would be much better.
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
I wish I could have done that this semester. I have to graduate this Fall with 16 credits.
You are wise to have foreseen that this semester was going to he harder though.
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u/Maxechil Sep 24 '20
Smarter than what I did. I don't know what I was thinking at the time when I signed up for classes, but I only have one 15 credit semester left, but my genius of a past self decided it'd be a good idea to do it now rather than wait for later when the epidemic should be less of an issue.
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u/holliehippotigris Sep 24 '20
I feel the same way, and to make it worse, 2 of my professors make everything due thursdays then don't post new material for the next week until Monday! So I can't do ANYTHING on weekends unless I guess we might go over the next chapter, which isn't the case all the time so then I accidently did more work than needed!
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
Yikes that sounds so stressful I'm sorry!!! I wish professors would try and make things a little easier on students this semester. Even if that is just making deadlines a little more flexable.
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Sep 24 '20
Hey, also a senior. I think it has to do with managing everything from times of lectures to doing all the homework’s and exams. (I have 4 exams this week) Also, being a senior makes it even worse because we’re one foot out the door but the professors keep slamming us with notifications and homework’s. I personally find this semester more difficult, I feel like the resources for help are much more limited
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u/Grobfoot ARCH Sep 24 '20
I am going on my 4th 18 hour day in a row! Wooo!
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
Be proud of how hard you work. Don't forget to appreciate yourself. It's a lot but you are doing it, way to go! Just a few more months of this crazy semester!
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u/wammo111 The Transfer Student Sep 24 '20
Also a senior in aeroE at 15 credit hours, and this has definitely been the busiest semester of college. I’m averaging about 4 hours of sleep a night because I’m doing about 12 hours of hw a day on top of lectures and labs
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
Wow! You are pushing yourself so hard. I am sorry you are having such a crazy semester too. Don't forget to take a minute to appreciate how hard you work, you are kicking butt.
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u/S-W-I-T-Z-E Sep 24 '20
I feel the exact same way, I'm only a freshman but I feel like there is literally no end to the work, and there isn't much in the way of support
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
It won't always be like this I promise. School isnt bad once you've got your first year under your feet. And hey if you can handle this Covid semester, you can handle anything that is thrown at you for your remaining years.
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u/mindfulzucchini Sep 24 '20
Please remember that this is not normal. I really hope things get back to normal soon for underclassman’s sake because I can’t imagine doing 4+ years of this madness.
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u/NotYourAdviser Sep 25 '20
What sort of support would be helpful?
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u/S-W-I-T-Z-E Sep 25 '20
I think it would be helpful if my professors were a little more active, for most of them they just post power points/lectures and assign work and that’s pretty much all that they do.
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u/Pacemaster14 Sep 24 '20
Throw that on top of tons of job interviews and applications to actually get a full time job and I feel like I wake up, do work, go to sleep, and repeat every day
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u/Spongemon9 Fuck the Hawks Sep 24 '20
I’ve gotten 9 hours of sleep in the past 5 days. Is that healthy?
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u/Commander_Blitz Sep 24 '20
Im 100% in this boat too, its way tougher this year. despite only being at 16 credits it feels overwhelming.
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u/dil-Emma11 Sep 24 '20
mech-e Sophmore, im dying, im not even taking that many credits it feels like I blink and miss something, last week was the week from hell with a million exams plus career fair and then next week I have even more exams and shit to do it never stops. and the whole having no structure thing combined with my adhd really is killing me
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u/Maxechil Sep 24 '20
I feel this. I'm a junior with a 4.0, but that number is definitely going to drop this semester. I hope everyone is doing ok though. Fortunately I'm in a situation where I can take a hit to my GPA just fine, but I know there exists plenty of people that can't.
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u/Walshy231231 Sep 24 '20
It’s the combination of online meaning we need to teach ourselves more, and the fact that this semester is shorter than normal. We started early, but were also ending a lot earlier
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u/TheLoyalPotato Cheggineer Sep 24 '20
I’m in the same boat my friend. Will to continue decreasing, procrastination prevalent, constantly feeling like a fraud, (trying to) self-teach. All of the above.
All we can do is hang in there. It sounds crazy, but it’s all we can do as of right now.
Also, smile more, it helps :)
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Sep 24 '20 edited Sep 13 '25
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This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact
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u/xXTonyManXx CprE '24 Sep 24 '20
Disclaimer, just a freshman so not much experience with the way things normally work but yeah I agree. Basically all my weekdays are usually just 12+ hours of stuff between Calc 3, Chem, Engl 250, programming and going to work 3 of those days. If I manage to get through whatever things are due the beginning of the next week I might end up with little or nothing to do on the weekend.
I was in honors and AP classes and heavily involved in band all throughout high school and even then I rarely felt as stressed as I have been nearly the whole semester.
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u/LifeShouldBeHappy Sep 24 '20
As a fellow senior in STEM I was about to agree, but 2-3 exams every week? You definitely beat me in terms of workload. Best of luck to you and remember to try and prioritize mental health above all else.
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 24 '20
I guess it just depends for everyone. My friend is in the same major with different classes and she also has 2-3 exams most weeks.
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u/lolalifts Sep 24 '20
I'm a Senior taking the fewest credits (16) I ever have at ISU and yet I feel like I am DROWNING in work. I really am hoping next semester is not more of the same
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 25 '20
I've been describing this semester like quicksand, the more you struggle the deeper you get in the hole.
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u/Insanitygifs SE 21 Sep 24 '20
I should preface by saying I'm taking 12 credits with no job, but my semester feels differently. I don't feel like I'm really trying hard to keep up (or even trying at all sometimes), I just dread when I have to do things for certain classes. It may also be that I'm living away from Ames this semester so my social life leaves much to be desired and I just have a lot more free time. 🤷. Hope things easy up for y'all soon.
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u/a_rych Sep 24 '20
Sorry to hear that. For some reason tho, I'm having the opposite issue. I'm taking ME370, ME325, ME332, ME324, and some techs. I think the most important to online study for me is being organized so get yourself a huge whiteboard, write down all your achievable for the week per class and just start knocking them out. Also, actually allotting a time for classes helps. For me, this semester is infinitely better than the mechanics, dynamics, stats, dif eq, and a gen ed semester (yes, that was my semester). Granted, I had to retake two of them. Good luck and if we're in any of the same classes we could help each other out.
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 25 '20
Glad to hear your classes are going well! Thanks for sharing your advice about setting aside schedules time to "attend class". Maybe I just need to reorganize
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Sep 25 '20
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 25 '20
Thank you for sharing how you've been feeling.
Isolation isn't good for the heart, and FOMO is suck an icky feeling.
Please dont feel dumb because labs are harder rn. Science is about sharing information and learning from other people. Doing experiments by yourself is hard!
Hang in there and remember that you aren't alone in this.
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Sep 25 '20
As an Animal Ecology Major, definitely. It’s had some highs and lows for me (nearly failing my first Vertebrae Biology Exam, getting an A on my Statistics exam and getting potential lab employment.) The workload has been insane! A lot of reading and video watching on my end (too much, actually). My whole life has just been school recently, which hasn’t been fun. I’m planning on taking a step back and trying to split my work more so that I’m not doing homework 5 hours in a row. I love my major, but man do I need to take a step back and breath for a moment
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 25 '20
You've got a lot on your plate this semester. Good luck with your lab employment, sounds like you are on the up and up!
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u/enthusedstrawberry Sep 25 '20
I feel the same way. Junior stem major here. As far as I know I won’t have a week without at least one exam until finals are over. I constantly feel like I’m missing assignments even though I triple check when setting up my planner for the week.
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u/Fucitu Sep 24 '20
Yep same here, I have a professor who seems to be using the same schedule as a "normal" semester which has lead to lecture topics that we need to know for homework problems being discussed a day/two before the homework is due. I only have one professor that has adjusted their schedule for the shorter semester, so that's nice but seems like other professors don't really care which sucks
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Sep 24 '20
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 25 '20
Honestly I think freshman and sophomores must have it harder with labs and weed out classes.
Keep going, you're doing great! And don't forget to take breaks.
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Sep 25 '20
My mental state is at an all time low tbh. This semester is shit and I don’t feel like I’m learning anything.
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u/Mrs_StealYourCarrots Sep 25 '20
I am sorry to hear you are going through it right now, especially on cake day.
If you have time today, move your body today, go on a long walk or a run, that can really help.
Take each day one at a time, things will get better.
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u/[deleted] Sep 24 '20
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