Wow! That was fast!

Before I realized it, the first quarter of pharmacy school at UCSF is over! Time definitely flew by although the weekend before and the week during the exam was excruciatingly painful and long. In those ten days of intensive studying and test-taking, I wonder how much I have really learned, what I would remember, and whether they will be useful for my career as a pharmacist. I am beginning find test-taking and grades as time-wasters than actual learning. It would be great if we can all learn without the pressure of exams.

I tried hard to study in order to learn as opposed to studying for the exams, but I found myself doing the latter half of the time because I do not want to retake the classes. Although there are overlaps between the two (learning can occur while studying for exams), I really question the need for paper exams. My learning used to be driven by the pressure of exams. However, I now think the most important "exam" is being able to apply the concepts learned in class to real life clinical practice. I will probably forget 99.9% of what I have memorized for the final exams and midterms, but I will probably not forget the information that I have to know in order to provide excellent patient-care.

I am so glad the craziness and stress induced by exams are over...for a short while, at least.