6 ms·

I'm 20 years old in my first year of university, and I'm probably going to fail the final exams next week. I don't think I'll be having the chance to take advan

by ue_ 9y ago

I'm 20 years old in my first year of university, and I'm probably going to fail the final exams next week. I don't think I'll be having the chance to take advantage of this peak.

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
EGreg 9y ago
Just because you don't make it in university doesn't mean you can't do some amazing things. I failed my oral exams in the Math Ph. D. Instead of retaking them, I left with a Master's, made a lot of money and started my own company which now has over 4 million users. Also, forget about the peak, if you build value for yourself, you'll have more every year. If you're building value for others and earning money, then invest it somewhere that makes a difference.
- jacquesm 9y ago
  In fact, if money is what you're after you are probably better of getting the degree and then leaving academics, I don't know many people who stayed in the academic circuit and ended up being well off.
  - awkwardtortoise 9y ago
    In academia, only those who get tenured professorships are sitting pretty. And they get to sit pretty for decades. Everyone else has to hustle to get their crumbs. I know people who are teaching adjuncts and they get paid crumbs ( $2 or $3K PER SEMESTER ). This is at a highly competitive university where tuition + board is $80K. I could not believe it.
    - copperx 9y ago
      3K per semester with an advanced degree? That's insane. You earn more being a graduate student. Is that a non-STEM field? A regular job would be a much better option.
      - TheOtherHobbes 9y ago
        Yes, it is insane. Universities have become sweatshops. There are a handful of tenured foremen/women, but everyone else is busking it. The students are psrt of the cash crop, investment income, donations from alumni, and grants make up the rest. Original thinking and game-changing research have been deprecated.
- awkwardtortoise 9y ago
  What? What does you comment have to do with the topic? It seems like you got offended by the title, which has nothing to do with what you wrote. You seem to have a chip on your shoulder about being a failure at math ( or failing to get a PhD ).
  - EGreg 9y ago
    You are wrong :)
kaeluka 9y ago
Even if that really happens: there's plenty of ways you can spin this into an advantage, long term. An event like this closes some doors, but will also open others. In any case: good luck with the exams! You can do a lot of exam preparation in a week! Don't give up before it's over :-)
- ue_ 9y ago
  Thank you; the pass mark being only 40% has given me some hope. It's been a large step up in terms of volume of content from what I did to get in.
  - Jach 9y ago
    I would rather hope to fail than to slip by with 40%-60%. You'll waste 5 years of your life (because such slackers rarely get it done in 4) and come out not knowing much and forgetting that little bit too after a year or so. I can't really give a personal cautionary tale (I am a slacker, but of the courses I passed I tried to do well at least on the final and still remember a lot of details plus where to refresh memories) but I see it often enough in others. Some of them are fine with it, some of them regret it, some of them double down and find a new school / degree program. Take a close look at what you want from the university system -- little learning but socialization or just a simple piece of paper (they look a lot nicer in a frame) is entirely justifiable, just consider how you might judge your choices in hindsight once you're at the end (as well as have an idea of what you'll do at the end).
mikekchar 9y ago
When I was in first year (a long time ago), the computer science department was quite new. This meant that courses were held in various different places -- engineering, science, math, etc. Unfortunately, this ultimately meant that I had to pass by the campus pub between every class, with predictable results (drinking age where I lived was 18). Whether you pass or whether you fail will not have as big an impact as you think now. What is important is understanding how to improve. For me, I staked out a chair in the library with all the foreign students who seemed to live there. I got in to school at 7:30 am and I went home at 5:00 pm. I watched what all those foreign students were doing and copied them. Later talking with them, I discovered that the reason they lived in the library was because their tuition and living expenses were covered by their extended family. You'd have 20 people sending money that they really couldn't afford just so that one person might get a foreign education and a high paying job to lift everyone out of poverty. If they failed their exams, people in their family would likely die of disease, etc as a result. So I don't know anything about your situation, but probably it's not as bad as what my friends in the library had to endure. You've got a week. It might not be enough time to salvage first year (like I said, been there, done that). But use that time to understand what you need to do from here. Go to the library. Pick out a seat where you intend to live. Today is a good day to start to see what you can do.
- Cyph0n 9y ago
  Excellent advice. At the end of my first semester at university, my Calc I professor pulled me aside after class for a chat. We talked about a bunch of things, but one piece of advice in particular stuck with me. He said: "You are lucky to be so privileged - to study at a university for free, to have a supportive family, and to be such a smart and capable student - but you are also quite unlucky. Unlike other less privileged students around the world, you need to create your own drive. Without motivation, you'll have a tough time overcoming the inevitable difficulties you'll face in the future." So that's what I ended up doing. Firstly, I started to imagine myself being from a much less fortunate background, and therefore treated my studies as a matter of utmost importance. And secondly, I put a target in my mind for what kind of person I want to be in the far future. I visualized this in quite a bit of detail, sometimes even imagining myself being interviewed! (weird, I know) A little over 5 years later, I'm in a top 10 PhD program in my field. I'm still not certain this is what I want to do for the next 4 years, but I think I'm on top of it for now. Worst case scenario is I drop out with a MS and enter the workforce. Still, I'm immensely thankful that I have the option to think about this. Many people don't.
lazaroclapp 9y ago
From the abstract: "Our main finding is that the developmental curve of the estimated algorithmic complexity of responses is similar to what may be expected of a measure of higher cognitive abilities, with a performance peak around 25 and a decline starting around 60" Based on this and the points in the scatter plot, it looks to me like you have 40 years or so of mostly the same "behavioral complexity" you do now, in expectancy, but with the added benefit of accumulated knowledge. For most tasks, my bet is that the right accumulation of knowledge and learned intuition is a larger factor than any sort of base generative ability. So, rather than giving up, I'd start compounding that learning now, with an eye towards the long term...
bootload 9y ago
"I'm probably going to fail the final exams next week." You can improve on mental toughness to control emotion. It is not a fixed skill. Four skills needed to overcome ^fear^ and ^panic^ is through control of the limbic system: [0] - Positive self talk - Goal setting of tasks - Mental rehearsal of tasks - Arousal control (breathing) [0] "Mental Training" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ-24JtAFQw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ-24JtAFQw
- Jach 9y ago
  Which is the most universal human characteristic - fear or laziness?
  - mercer 9y ago
    I've found that laziness is sometimes fear in disguise. I don't know how that contributes, but whatever I don't care to explain; I'll be downvoted anyways.

by ue_ 9y ago

I'm 20 years old in my first year of university, and I'm probably going to fail the final exams next week. I don't think I'll be having the chance to take advantage of this peak.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

EGreg 9y ago

Just because you don't make it in university doesn't mean you can't do some amazing things. I failed my oral exams in the Math Ph. D. Instead of retaking them, I left with a Master's, made a lot of money and started my own company which now has over 4 million users. Also, forget about the peak, if you build value for yourself, you'll have more every year. If you're building value for others and earning money, then invest it somewhere that makes a difference.

jacquesm 9y ago
In fact, if money is what you're after you are probably better of getting the degree and then leaving academics, I don't know many people who stayed in the academic circuit and ended up being well off.
- awkwardtortoise 9y ago
  In academia, only those who get tenured professorships are sitting pretty. And they get to sit pretty for decades. Everyone else has to hustle to get their crumbs. I know people who are teaching adjuncts and they get paid crumbs ( $2 or $3K PER SEMESTER ). This is at a highly competitive university where tuition + board is $80K. I could not believe it.
  - copperx 9y ago
    3K per semester with an advanced degree? That's insane. You earn more being a graduate student. Is that a non-STEM field? A regular job would be a much better option.
    - TheOtherHobbes 9y ago
      Yes, it is insane. Universities have become sweatshops. There are a handful of tenured foremen/women, but everyone else is busking it. The students are psrt of the cash crop, investment income, donations from alumni, and grants make up the rest. Original thinking and game-changing research have been deprecated.
awkwardtortoise 9y ago
What? What does you comment have to do with the topic? It seems like you got offended by the title, which has nothing to do with what you wrote. You seem to have a chip on your shoulder about being a failure at math ( or failing to get a PhD ).
- EGreg 9y ago
  You are wrong :)

kaeluka 9y ago

Even if that really happens: there's plenty of ways you can spin this into an advantage, long term. An event like this closes some doors, but will also open others. In any case: good luck with the exams! You can do a lot of exam preparation in a week! Don't give up before it's over :-)

ue_ 9y ago
Thank you; the pass mark being only 40% has given me some hope. It's been a large step up in terms of volume of content from what I did to get in.
- Jach 9y ago
  I would rather hope to fail than to slip by with 40%-60%. You'll waste 5 years of your life (because such slackers rarely get it done in 4) and come out not knowing much and forgetting that little bit too after a year or so. I can't really give a personal cautionary tale (I am a slacker, but of the courses I passed I tried to do well at least on the final and still remember a lot of details plus where to refresh memories) but I see it often enough in others. Some of them are fine with it, some of them regret it, some of them double down and find a new school / degree program. Take a close look at what you want from the university system -- little learning but socialization or just a simple piece of paper (they look a lot nicer in a frame) is entirely justifiable, just consider how you might judge your choices in hindsight once you're at the end (as well as have an idea of what you'll do at the end).

mikekchar 9y ago

When I was in first year (a long time ago), the computer science department was quite new. This meant that courses were held in various different places -- engineering, science, math, etc. Unfortunately, this ultimately meant that I had to pass by the campus pub between every class, with predictable results (drinking age where I lived was 18). Whether you pass or whether you fail will not have as big an impact as you think now. What is important is understanding how to improve. For me, I staked out a chair in the library with all the foreign students who seemed to live there. I got in to school at 7:30 am and I went home at 5:00 pm. I watched what all those foreign students were doing and copied them. Later talking with them, I discovered that the reason they lived in the library was because their tuition and living expenses were covered by their extended family. You'd have 20 people sending money that they really couldn't afford just so that one person might get a foreign education and a high paying job to lift everyone out of poverty. If they failed their exams, people in their family would likely die of disease, etc as a result. So I don't know anything about your situation, but probably it's not as bad as what my friends in the library had to endure. You've got a week. It might not be enough time to salvage first year (like I said, been there, done that). But use that time to understand what you need to do from here. Go to the library. Pick out a seat where you intend to live. Today is a good day to start to see what you can do.

Cyph0n 9y ago
Excellent advice. At the end of my first semester at university, my Calc I professor pulled me aside after class for a chat. We talked about a bunch of things, but one piece of advice in particular stuck with me. He said: "You are lucky to be so privileged - to study at a university for free, to have a supportive family, and to be such a smart and capable student - but you are also quite unlucky. Unlike other less privileged students around the world, you need to create your own drive. Without motivation, you'll have a tough time overcoming the inevitable difficulties you'll face in the future." So that's what I ended up doing. Firstly, I started to imagine myself being from a much less fortunate background, and therefore treated my studies as a matter of utmost importance. And secondly, I put a target in my mind for what kind of person I want to be in the far future. I visualized this in quite a bit of detail, sometimes even imagining myself being interviewed! (weird, I know) A little over 5 years later, I'm in a top 10 PhD program in my field. I'm still not certain this is what I want to do for the next 4 years, but I think I'm on top of it for now. Worst case scenario is I drop out with a MS and enter the workforce. Still, I'm immensely thankful that I have the option to think about this. Many people don't.

lazaroclapp 9y ago

From the abstract: "Our main finding is that the developmental curve of the estimated algorithmic complexity of responses is similar to what may be expected of a measure of higher cognitive abilities, with a performance peak around 25 and a decline starting around 60" Based on this and the points in the scatter plot, it looks to me like you have 40 years or so of mostly the same "behavioral complexity" you do now, in expectancy, but with the added benefit of accumulated knowledge. For most tasks, my bet is that the right accumulation of knowledge and learned intuition is a larger factor than any sort of base generative ability. So, rather than giving up, I'd start compounding that learning now, with an eye towards the long term...

bootload 9y ago

"I'm probably going to fail the final exams next week." You can improve on mental toughness to control emotion. It is not a fixed skill. Four skills needed to overcome ^fear^ and ^panic^ is through control of the limbic system: [0] - Positive self talk - Goal setting of tasks - Mental rehearsal of tasks - Arousal control (breathing) [0] "Mental Training" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ-24JtAFQw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ-24JtAFQw

Jach 9y ago
Which is the most universal human characteristic - fear or laziness?
- mercer 9y ago
  I've found that laziness is sometimes fear in disguise. I don't know how that contributes, but whatever I don't care to explain; I'll be downvoted anyways.