So overwhelmed by college.

LegacyUser

I've just started a Masters course in an amazing university but I'm so incredibly overwhelmed. I feel like the thickest person on the course. It was a difficult course to get into and in my class at home I would be considered smart but here I'm just at the bottom. My problem is everyone seems to know everything already. I'm here to learn but all the other students are so competitive and trying to outdo each other in lectures which leads all the Lecturers to assume that everyone knows everything and goes at the speed of lightening. I'm so upset. I just want to quit and come home but I've spent so much money and sacraficed so much to get on it I can't just leave it. I'm completly doubting myself and my intelligence. We have an option to do a research project and I cannot think of anything viable to write it on. I've never been great at researching things, I understand principles and concepts well but I can't think of anything original that I could write an entire thesis on.

I don't know exactly what I'm looking for here. maybe I just need to get it all off my chest. I'm so lonely and upset and I feel like the village idiot. I don't fit in with all these academic types. It has me questioning everything that I thought I knew about me. Thanks for reading x

LegacyUser

deep breaths OP deep breaths

first of all forget about the other people in the lectures, you will always have those people in classes right the way from primary school through to secondary school through to third level.

get the notes that you need, get the reading material that you need.

SPEAK to the lecturer if needs be, he's there to help. its his job. get material off him

previous year assignments/exams can be really helpful

just remember its not a competition youre there for yourself, take a step back and look at it properly and form a study/research plan that fits you, not the rest of the class.

you've made it to the masters you obviously got there for a reason.

keep a level head and learn something new everyday, you'll fly through.

LegacyUser

Hey,
first of all, if you got into the course in the first place, then you probably earned your way in, as did all the rest, so don't fret that you don't deserve to be there.

secondly, don't feel alone. Arrange to speak to the college counsellor asap, and find a way to deal with all of this. i highly recommend this from personal experience.

Thirdly, if you're finding the research project aspect of it difficult, speak to a tutor and find out what you need to do.

hope it all goes well.

King John V

overwhelmed wrote: »

I've just started a Masters course in an amazing university but I'm so incredibly overwhelmed. I feel like the thickest person on the course. It was a difficult course to get into and in my class at home I would be considered smart but here I'm just at the bottom. My problem is everyone seems to know everything already. I'm here to learn but all the other students are so competitive and trying to outdo each other in lectures which leads all the Lecturers to assume that everyone knows everything and goes at the speed of lightening. I'm so upset. I just want to quit and come home but I've spent so much money and sacraficed so much to get on it I can't just leave it. I'm completly doubting myself and my intelligence. We have an option to do a research project and I cannot think of anything viable to write it on. I've never been great at researching things, I understand principles and concepts well but I can't think of anything original that I could write an entire thesis on.

I don't know exactly what I'm looking for here. maybe I just need to get it all off my chest. I'm so lonely and upset and I feel like the village idiot. I don't fit in with all these academic types. It has me questioning everything that I thought I knew about me. Thanks for reading x

You're not an idiot. You were selected for the course on merit just like everyone else. Not everyone hits the ground running at 100 miles an hour; I know I didn't. It took a few months for me to get settled in a new area studying a new course. Everyone in your class probably have doubts too.

Do you enjoy sports, art, music..? Keep up your hobbies as well as putting in the hours in the library. Give it time. It'll be worth it in the end

borabora

Hi OP! Just had to reply to your post. I just finished a course where I know students felt the same way you do.

You got on to a very competitive course. Fact is, they saw something in you that they liked, whatever that may be. They have students every year. They know what they're looking for. You deserve your place.

You are not thick. They have been studying, hard by the sounds of it. You're going to have to also if you want to keep up. I'm sure you get an outline of the lectures in advance? Do some reading before hand and get to grips with the topic.

On the other hand, the Master's I completed was pass, fail. You could only get a distinction if your thesis got one. So you could get 40% in all exams and essays and a distinction overall if your thesis got one, or 90% in everything and a pass overall if your thesis got a pass. Don't know if its the same in whatever course you're doing, but suss it out. Decide what you really need to work on and make a plan.

Master's in my experience don't tend to be that difficult to pass. My exams were embarrassingly bad and I didn't get lower than 60% in anything. There was something going on there, I would have done worse in my undergrad. Master's are often a money spinner so maybe they don't really care? Investigate what the story is with yours, re if it's pass/fail or a mark. If it is a mark I wouldn't even bother putting it on the c.v., and I don't think you'd ever be asked for it. Just the fact you have completed a Master's is enough.

Research project wise...see what the marks are and work accordingly. It makes zero difference if you come up with the concept yourself, apparently. it's all in the write up! Ask the lecturers in your course if they need any help doing a project, or know of anyone that does. I bet they will.

My master's was sickeningly competitive. Don't forget why you thought you'd be good at this. I'm sure you'll be an excellent whatever. Don't let the nerds get you down!

LilMrsDahamsta

Hi OP. Am I correct in thinking that the Masters course you are on is not in Ireland?

If so, I think it is worth pointing out that in Ireland, a Masters course will usually be at a level where people from cognate areas, as well as those with a degree in the particular discipline, can undertake the course and do well at it. In fact it can often be the case, particular with taught Masters, that some modules will be at a level only slightly higher than the best of the undergraduate students would work at. There are many historical reasons for this, including the generally inflexible nature of undergraduate education here.

On the other hand, in some other countries, notably the US, Masters courses are often specifically designed to enhance skills and knowledge gained at undergraduate level in the same discipline. There is an expectation that students will have a background in the area already and they do not usually structure the course in such a way that someone without prior knowledge would be brought up to the level of the other students before more challenging material is introduced.

This isn't just my opinion; there was a recent report (which I can't locate just now) on the Fulbright scholarship programme where students from Ireland and the US made exactly this point regarding their experiences of the Irish vs US systems.

If this is the situation you are finding yourself in, I would reiterate previous posters advice to seek assistance from the lecturing/tutorial staff. You can be sure they will have dealt successfully with this issue before, but the sooner you bring it to their attention the sooner it can be resolved.

Best of luck with it!

LegacyUser

Thanks for the replies guys, I really appreciate them. I know that the best thing for me to do is to try and get my head around the work and just to knuckle down. The lecurers here are quite pompous and they have an assumption that we know everything already and it's slight intimidating asking them to explain it to me. I'm glad to hear of everyones input and stories of people who've gone through this x

D-Generate

Hey OP,

A year ago I was in your exact position! I moved over to London from Cork to a major uni for a Master's Degree and woah it was a shock to the system! Not only did I have the hassle of uprooting my life to an intense city like London but I also had to cope with the incredible demands of the course.
Heck even after I found a place to live and settled in I still found it hugely challenging and felt that way up until I handed in my thesis last month.

In UCC I completed an undergrad that many consider a tough course and would have also been one of the top in my class. I didn't get below a first in any module in any of the four years so there I was thinking I would be able to take on the world but alas it was not to be.
In my postgrad I thought I was the dumbest in the class as everyone always had something to say in lectures and they all seemed to be coping whereas I never knew enough about the modules to speak up. Roll around to exam results time and I find that I was around average and some of those who shouted loudest were near the bottom of the class. I think the Irish education system doesn't encourage speaking out in class and as such when we find someone who is talking in class we automatically assume them to be smart!

OP I know what I say won't change your mind because no one was able to change mine in a similar situation. I know what it will be like to go through a year thinking that you are going to fail and that you are by far the dumbest and for that you have my sympathies but you will pass. It mightn't be as easy as in other years and the results certainly won't be stellar but you will feel most proud about them, I know I did about mine!

In regards to a research topic, try to make appointments with lecturers so you can go in there and see what topics they might have for you. These lecturers don't necessarily have to be ones who teach you a module. We went through that whole thing of "Think of a research topic" and I hadn't any ideas whereas others were all enthusiastic about theirs. Didn't matter really as a lot of their topics were pie in the sky and either too trivial or too challenging for masters degree and as such they just ended up picking available topics from lecturers just like I did. One added bonus about picking a topic from a lecturer is also that they will have a good idea about the area and also will be more likely to give you feedback and guidance through your work.

Good luck OP

LegacyUser

D-Generate wrote: »

Hey OP,

A year ago I was in your exact position! I moved over to London from Cork to a major uni for a Master's Degree and woah it was a shock to the system! Not only did I have the hassle of uprooting my life to an intense city like London but I also had to cope with the incredible demands of the course.
Heck even after I found a place to live and settled in I still found it hugely challenging and felt that way up until I handed in my thesis last month.

In UCC I completed an undergrad that many consider a tough course and would have also been one of the top in my class. I didn't get below a first in any module in any of the four years so there I was thinking I would be able to take on the world but alas it was not to be.
In my postgrad I thought I was the dumbest in the class as everyone always had something to say in lectures and they all seemed to be coping whereas I never knew enough about the modules to speak up. Roll around to exam results time and I find that I was around average and some of those who shouted loudest were near the bottom of the class. I think the Irish education system doesn't encourage speaking out in class and as such when we find someone who is talking in class we automatically assume them to be smart!

OP I know what I say won't change your mind because no one was able to change mine in a similar situation. I know what it will be like to go through a year thinking that you are going to fail and that you are by far the dumbest and for that you have my sympathies but you will pass. It mightn't be as easy as in other years and the results certainly won't be stellar but you will feel most proud about them, I know I did about mine!

In regards to a research topic, try to make appointments with lecturers so you can go in there and see what topics they might have for you. These lecturers don't necessarily have to be ones who teach you a module. We went through that whole thing of "Think of a research topic" and I hadn't any ideas whereas others were all enthusiastic about theirs. Didn't matter really as a lot of their topics were pie in the sky and either too trivial or too challenging for masters degree and as such they just ended up picking available topics from lecturers just like I did. One added bonus about picking a topic from a lecturer is also that they will have a good idea about the area and also will be more likely to give you feedback and guidance through your work.

Good luck OP

This post has made me feel so much more optimistic. Like you I was the best in my class, graduated at the top, knew the score in every lecture and now I'm the dunce. The research topic is optional but I'd love to do one so I'd have something to show for my year. Maybe I'm too fixated on it, I was always better at doing study and reading rhather than in depth research projects. I'm not going to quit because I've invested too much. I'm going to try my best and not expect to be number one. Hopefully prospective employers will look at my Masters and how hard it is and understand that a First is not an option!!!

Blatter

overwhelmed wrote: »

I've just started a Masters course in an amazing university but I'm so incredibly overwhelmed. I feel like the thickest person on the course. It was a difficult course to get into and in my class at home I would be considered smart but here I'm just at the bottom. My problem is everyone seems to know everything already. I'm here to learn but all the other students are so competitive and trying to outdo each other in lectures which leads all the Lecturers to assume that everyone knows everything and goes at the speed of lightening. I'm so upset. I just want to quit and come home but I've spent so much money and sacraficed so much to get on it I can't just leave it. I'm completly doubting myself and my intelligence. We have an option to do a research project and I cannot think of anything viable to write it on. I've never been great at researching things, I understand principles and concepts well but I can't think of anything original that I could write an entire thesis on.

I don't know exactly what I'm looking for here. maybe I just need to get it all off my chest. I'm so lonely and upset and I feel like the village idiot. I don't fit in with all these academic types. It has me questioning everything that I thought I knew about me. Thanks for reading x

You really would be suprised at the amount of people in the class who feel 'everyone else' is better than them. Take the advice given above, it really is very good.