Microbiology is kicking my butt...

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Specializes in Med/Surg.

Hey all,

I am here seeking some serious advice for my Microbiology class. Heres some background on me:

I have always been a good student. I have a 3.78 gpa in my prerequisites, with micro being one of the last ones to complete. I took both a&p classes over this summer (5 weeks each) and managed to get an 'a' and a 'B' in each class, respectively.

However, for some reason, I am seriously struggling in micro and I cannot figure out why. I am still holding onto a B in the class (thanks to some easy grades and lab) but I've gotten a 74 and a 76 on the first two tests, which is completely unheard of for me in my entire time being in school. I have decided that I'm not going to drop the class because it will only be harder to do well when I have nursing classes to focus on along with it, but I do want to do better and understand the material.

Does anyone have any good micro study tips? any online resources? any and all advice would be soooo appreciated :)

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I don't have any really good study tips but I do recommend Armando Hasudungan on YouTube.

He has a playlist about Microbiology and he does great illustrations. I used him quite a bit when I took the class and it helped on some of the topics

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Specializes in Med/Surg.
I don't have any really good study tips but I do recommend Armando Hasudungan on YouTube.

He has a playlist about Microbiology and he does great illustrations. I used him quite a bit when I took the class and it helped on some of the topics

Thank you soooo much for the tip, I'll definitely check him out :)

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There are so many factors that we don't know so we can't guess why you are struggling. Professor/style of teaching/things going on in your life, etc. However, like Mergirlc pointed out, there are of course a ton of online resources. I hadn't heard of that Youtube person but probably would have helped when I took Micro. I got an A in Micro, but remember certain concepts being confusing such as immunity and various cell types and their functions, etc. Luckily I was taking Physiology at the same time so the teachings complimented each other (but were off by like two weeks).

I definitely remember using Khan Academy and Crash Course after reading the book several times. The videos/illustrations and voices just explain things so much differently than a textbook. I thought they were a good compliment to the textbook and my lecture notes.

Hope it helps and good luck!

-David

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What material have you gone over so far? What areas do you feel like you're struggling in? Do you feel like you follow along in lecture and lab okay, or reading through the book? Does your professor have office hours or tutoring?

The Khan Academy microbiology videos have been my saving grace, I have an A in the class by the skin of my teeth. Definitely try and make flashcards, so much of micro is just that kind of memorization.

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YouTube, YouTube, YouTube. One thing that works for me is making flash cards...my microbiology class ends in December and I'm hanging onto a 92%...it's getting tougher, believe me. So I credit late night hours and studying/YouTube when my kids nap. Social life? Hardly any. LOL

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First off, Micro. can be very hard! I would recommend taking it by itself since it is very demanding. There is the lecture portion, and lab area too. Extra stress is added when you have to pass both areas to get a final grade. At my community college, students must have taken Physiology prior in order to be accepted into Micro.

I agree with other comments on here about flash cards, Youtube, etc. Attend study groups and tutoring. I like Khan Academy! I am a proud science geek, and got an "A+" in Micro. In addition, I have used multiple on line sites to help me with Micro. such as:

Boundless.com

Brighthub.com

Cram.com

Enchantedlearning.com

Enotes.com

Flashcardmachine.com

Kitzkikz.com

Microbeonline.com

Quizlet.com (***Free! It's my favorite!)

Slideplayer.com

Sparknotes.com

Study.com

Studyblue.com (You have to pay.)

Studystack.com

Wyzant.com

Other Micro. learning sites with great pictures:

Bacteriainphotos.com

Microbiologyinfo.com (*Awesome!)

Scienceprofonline.com/microbiology (*Awesome!)

I hope this info. helps! Never stop learning. Best of luck in your future journey with nursing!!!

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To start, identify what you're struggling with. Then work on fixing that, or come to us or other forums for help. Unfortunately, with your vague post, there's not really any advice we can give, because we don't know where the problem is.

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Specializes in Med/Surg.

Hey all! Thanks for all of the advice. I have started to find my groove with studying (thanks Quizlet) and I have seriously turned my grade around. I'm proud to say that I now have an 87 in the class (when I made this post, I was barely holding onto a B with an 80.1). I got a 100% on my lab report that I had to do on a Kirby-Bauer test and a 93% on my last test. Thanks again, y'all!!

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