Are anyone else's classes much harder than they thought they would be?

[Behavioral]

Classes are, overall, still pretty easy, but they're definitely getting a little heavier with the assignments. More readings per week are expected from us; higher breadth and depth in discussion in seminars; short (< 8pg) papers have started being due this past week, with medium (< 15pg) papers being due pretty soon; and balancing this with more responsibilities with the professors I'm doing research with.

Still, I feel like it could be much much worse.

[nehs]

So I've been in school for about 5-6 weeks. I feel like I am never ever caught up and that I never will be. It's really discouraging. To top it off, I just had an exam and missed one of the questions worth a lot of points because my mind when completely blank when I tried to do the problem. Ugh. I'm so glad to be in a school but sometimes I just want to scream from frustration! Anyone else feeling like they are drowning?

Well, that's me! I do find one course really challenging but the other three turned out just as I imagines. I'm taking 12 credits and one hard course is definitely giving me a hard time. Another concern for me, I definitely want all A's and looks like that's not going to happen despite the fact that I read up so much and go into the exam. This especially happens with those courses in which I have no interest!

[Eisenmann]

Fail part 2. I am seriously getting murdered here.

[MoJingly]

Fail part 2. I am seriously getting murdered here.

Hang in there!

[cokohlik]

Sigaba suggested I read this thread since I'm nervous about my first semester. I've heard that grad courses are easy from so many people, and I'm sure that the work itself (papers, readings, presentations) can be decidedly easy, however, I'm having trouble predicting how I'll do in graduate level discussions. How does one really particpate on a graduate level? I enjoyed what theregalrenegade said about constantly trying to think on a more advanced level. I'm trying to do that early, by pushing myself to read certain texts and read in academic Italian and French, but I suppose i won't know how I'm doing with said thinking level until classes actually begin. I'm slightly excited, because I love a good challenge. Like Red Bull, I came from a fast paced (undergrad) Honors program. I'm not sure if a fast paced undergrad Honors program is comparable to a graduate program, but I hope it is on some level (maybe with regards to weekly amounts of reading or paper lengths). I feel like my undergrad department prepared me well for graduate study on a whole, but I'm getting caught up in being anxious about little details like essay formats and some bigger issues, like becoming more advanced in my level of analysis. Anyway, I know this reply isn't quite relevant to the OP since because I haven't actually begun coursework, they can't necessarily be harder than expected I did find this thread to be inspiring and calming, so thank you!! It's comforting knowing that there are so many people in the same boat.

[Sigaba]

@cokohlik--

Be very careful when using your experiences as an undergraduate as a reference point. That is, let your achievements as an undergraduate be a source of confidence but understand that as a graduate student, you'll be held to a standard that is both different and higher even though many of the assignments may appear to be essentially the same.

From the script for Men in Black.

EDWARDS

One thing you gotta know right now.

[...]

All right. I'm in because there's some

next-level shit going on around here, and

I'm with that. Before you beam me up, there

are a couple of things we need to get

straight. You chose me 'cause you recognize

the skills. So as of now you can cease with

all of that calling me "son" or "kid" or

"sport." Cool?

KAY

Cool, slick. Now about those skills of yours,

[...]

As of this moment, they don't mean dick.

[Behavioral]

I did just about everything you could as an undergrad (involved in research, double majored, double minored, and took several doctoral seminars) and besides the PhD seminars and my theses, my undergrad did very little to prepare me for graduate school. The mere fact that so far (2+ years after graduating) that I'm the only person from my Psychology honors cohort in a PhD program says a lot about my program's cohort effect, even though I went to a top-20 school for Psychology that many of its students felt were "too fast-paced" and "too tough".

[cokohlik]

@cokohlik--

Be very careful when using your experiences as an undergraduate as a reference point. That is, let your achievements as an undergraduate be a source of confidence but understand that as a graduate student, you'll be held to a standard that is both different and higher even though many of the assignments may appear to be essentially the same.

From the script for Men in Black.

Haha!!! I get it. Brilliant!