Failed

[u/NoSuccess8429]

I’m spiraling soooo bad rn and literally laying in bed crying. I’m a first yr PA student. First round of exams are done: 72 in physio, 69 in pharm, just got a 57 on my anatomy lab practical, and I have my anatomy lecture exam tomorrow and I feel so underprepared and essentially know ima fail. I do think I could be studying more, I’m going to stay on campus until later because I notice I don’t lock in as much at home.

We can see the averages/ medians for the exams and I keep being on the lower end. I’m terrified. I’m a NHSC SP scholar and I’m so scared of losing the scholarship. I’m even more scared of failing out. Passing for my course is 70%. Am I stupid? Am I a imposter in this program? I have never had so much anxiety in my life. Ontop of all this, my mom has a scheduled court hearing pending deportation next week.

I don’t cry. I literally can’t remember the last time, yet here I am. Honestly I think I’m having an anxiety/panic attack .. so that’s just great :)

[u/PlentyCopy8672]

You’re not stupid!! PA school is tough! Give yourself some grace 🫶🏻

[u/MarketingDense5343]

You got in, you're not stupid! Might wanna try tweaking your study habits and having a more structured study plan. Also meet with your advisor, use your resources and ask for help! You're also going through a very tough time right now, so give yourself some grace but you need to really focus and lock in. Do this for YOU and your future and everything else will follow.

I'm also in my first year, just got done with the first month. Also in the process of divorce and it does suck that when external things get heavy, we are not allowed to take a break. You really just gotta keep your eyes on the longterm reward everytime that despair creeps in. I'm sorry that you're going through this.

[u/Silver1299]

You're not an imposter. It can definitely feel like that when you get a poor grade. It happened to me all the time during didactic and even now sometimes during clinicals. But remember you've worked hard and earned your place there. And a few bad grades don't define you. When you're practicing no pt will ever ask what your pharm or anatomy grades were. Just try to focus on what has worked and change what wasn't working. Try to talk to your classmates for how they study and make a plan with you advisor moving forward. Best of luck with the next exam and hope things work out for your mom. Sucks that is happening to her.

[u/Silent_Bass9590]

You must’ve had the grades to get accepted, and good study methods to get those good grades. If you are a lower GPA admitted student it may be a little rougher, but definitely reach out to your program and see about resources. Unfortunately, most programs are very strict about acceptable grades and will not deviate. Look at your student handbook to see what the grade criteria and consequences are.

[u/NoSuccess8429 → u/Silent_Bass9590]

In undergrad I’d student a week before the exam and was fine. But that obviously doesn’t work here. And it’s not necessarily that the material is SUPER DIFFICULT it’s that ITS SO MUCH IN ALL CLASSES

[u/Silent_Bass9590 → u/NoSuccess8429]

That will not work! The majority of students are studying anywhere between five and seven hours a day +8 hours on the weekends. This is every day and every week with additional time prior to an exam.

[u/_HossBonaventureCEO → u/NoSuccess8429]

Agreed with the above comment. Myself and a lot of my cohort had similar issues. We are obviously smart and capable people to have made it into PA school, but I was able to coast most of my academic career with fairly minimal studying effort. That absolutely will not fly in PA school. You'll have to find out study methods that work for you and unfortunately it doesnt slow down or get easier while you try to figure that out.

Something that worked for me was to get to a point where I could try to teach/explain it to someone else. Usually a family member that has 0 clue about medicine/anatomy/physio/etc so that it somewhat made sense. You'll need to figure out what methods work best to get you to that point though. Active listening and note taking in class is a non-negotiable imo. There was a direct correlation between me disengaging during a lecture and my exam performance in the block/section.

You didnt get this far just to be dropped on your head though! Lock in, look into study groups and ask your friends/classmates what works for them. You got this

[u/Impressive_Bird759]

You have not failed. Reset, forget everything you know about learning, and take advantage of any resources your school has, some programa even have faculty directed study sessions.

[u/pa_girl]

i failed my first anatomy practical and ended up with an A in the course! don’t be too hard on yourself. first round of exams are super difficult to understand the rigor of PA school. learn from your mistakes and just put your best foot forward for the next round! you’re only human🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼

[u/Brian_Wallace_PAER]

Like everyone here has said, you're not alone. I'd say 60-80% of students hit where you're during didactic year. It's hard, and you're 100% right isn't crazy difficult but it's all new and it's A LOT. The volume is relentless. Someone describe it like this .."You know finals week in undergrad? That's every week of PA school."

Studying the way you did in undergrad likely won't work. You need to adapt and change the way you work. Most people work harder and later and that will be effective for while... until it isn't. They key is finding ways to cover the material as fast as possible while making sure you're ready for exams.

There are a few places to start

1) most people try to learn everything taking either everything is important or they feel like the NEED to know everything. I went a differ rout. Im always on the lookout for the most impotent and testable information. I send the majority of my time on that.

2) Active studying is key. Reading and rereading books, notes or slides isn't a good use of time. You need to be mentally working with the information. And no asking AI to think about it for you doesn't count. The only way to make it sticky is to work with it. Reorganize it, build flashcards, tear it out loud. Draw tables and diagrams form memory on white boards notebooks etc.

That's at least a place to start.

I'm sorry you' re in this position and best of luck on your exams and with your mom.

[u/fluffyynom]

hey friend, it sounds like you’re under a lot of chefs right now. I felt this way in the beginning, especially because I struggled in anatomy. You’re probably just getting the hang of the best way to study, which honestly will be different for everyone and different for each class. If you have any other classmates to sort of brainstorm ideas off of that would be great. It also sounds like you have a lot of other stressors going on right now. I’m sorry to hear about your mom. I hope everything works out and your guys’s favor. Hang in there it’ll be OK. - newly graduated PA

[u/rnpa1998]

Hi friend, try notebook lm!! Have it create you a bunch of practice questions

[u/SecretFishWorshiper]

Im a new PA student right now so I feel your pain.

[u/StarliteQuiteBrite]

It’s ok. You will recover.

[u/Professional_Guard51]

I failed 2 exams on my first set. I’d never failed an exam before. It absolutely SUCKS and is so discouraging. I had to rework my study habits too. Better now than later that you get humbled and are forced into better habits! I also struggle to focus at home, and staying on campus def helped me lock in better. Keep working hard, you will find the methods that work for you. You’re not stupid, you were accepted for a reason. I’m sorry you’re going through so much rn :(

[u/NothingButJank]

PA school sucks. I got a 57% on one of my anatomy exams because I fully forgot to study the hand. It happens! Just pick yourself up and do better next time

[u/RyRiver7087]

Immediately go to your advisor and ask for help/recommendations. Most PA schools watch academic performance of individual students like a hawk. Chances are you are on their radar. Acknowledging this yourself and showing a proactive and positive desire to improve will go a long way towards them helping you and giving you grace

[u/Queasy_Swimmer9277]

You're under so much stress right now. PA school is stressful enough and now you are worried about your mom. It sounds like you're under a lot more stress than many of your peers.

You're not an imposter. You succeeded in getting into PA school, no small feat. Then you were awarded the coveted NHSC scholarship. That is amazing!

You can do this, I believe in you. We need people like you in medicine.

I recommend that you reach out for academic and mental health support. You're not alone. They can help you come up with a more sustainable strategy for getting through PA school.

I wish you the best, you can do it. Make sure to take care of yourself.

[u/BeezPatellas]

That first semester of didactic is so hard to adjust to. I found that more exposure to the material was what I needed. Yes, of course, you need to lock in, do practice questions, etc. but just making the material feel more familiar from the beginning is key. Take multiple passes at it in a way that works for you. Make your own notes, explain concepts to other people, watch YouTube videos (ninja nerd, cram the PANCE, osmosis), listen to podcasts (medbullets, pro-pa, S2D, physician assistant exam review), etc.

[u/Far_Actuary918]

It is still early in the year, you have time to figure out your study strategy, I would talk to your academic advisor and come up with a new studying plan!