Thread: Immuno I Exam... 42% of Students Fail!!

What is wrong with this picture? Why would 42% of the class fail this exam?

At some point, you have to examine why this exam has such a low pass rate and only an average of 70%.

There are people who usually honor exams who are in the 70s, so this is more than the usual story of lazy mediocre students bringing down the average.

Dr. B will definitely not have another supplemental and Dr. S will refuse to drop any questions.

Looks like it's time to ask why so many people are failing and what will be done to try to correct this.

every class has their share of brutal classes/exams.......dr s and dr b are both great profs so i'd tread with caution. you guys are going to have to deal with them next semester as well (which is a good thing)

probably the most important place to look is at yourself individually.......immuno is tough, its like learning a different language kind of. you need to find out what works for you......its unlikely that as 2nd semester students you have it "all figured out"....adjustment is the name of the game

good luck

dr. s material is straight on for the step. all the 'ph.d' material is exactly what you'll need for the step.

I would agree with you guys if we had the same Immuno that you guys had when you were in 2nd semester. I looked at scribes up until two semesters ago and Bacteria and Viruses were not as heavy a focus, as they are now.

I would not mind Immuno if it were Immuno, but this is Med Micro (light). Out of the 60 questions on our exam, a good 40 were on Bacteria and Viruses, their genetics and their characteristics. Only 20 were on TCR, T-Cells and other true Immuno.

There is little emphasis on Bacteria and Virus characteristics in the lectures and then half of the exam asks those questions. That is the real disconnect, here.

Originally Posted by McGillGrad

Looks like it's time to ask why so many people are failing and what will be done to try to correct this.

Ahem.. Study more, perhaps? If you think there is a problem with the Dr's B and S exams, look up either the current USMLEWorld questions or the older ones on reserve in the library. You will see that there is very little difference.

.....

I wonder what they'll do this time since there is no curve here.

Were the answers to all the questions from lecture/lab/reading assignments? If the answers could all be found there, then they are all fair game. No one says the distribution of questions has to be based on emphasis. 42% does seem high though.

our immuno exam last semester had a lot of bacteria and virus stuff too. There is probably slightly more because many people in med micro are forgetting stuff or not knowing stuff that we were "supposed to know from immuno" (according to Dr. S.) And trust me, that was not a micro test u just took.

As Kemper has said, every subject has its challenges. It always seem that your course or your examination is exceptionally difficult; that is because you are going through it. Please do not try to compare with the other semesters, it will only make your time here to be more unbearable. Since no two semester will have the exact same questions for their exam.

Well...... Dr S and B are excellent lecturers. Talk to them and asked them how you should approach the subject or even how to answer the question. They give excellent advise. Alternatively, approach your peers, who are doing well in the class, for advise.

McGill you took so long to finally decide to go to a school. You spent so much time on here, I would have thought you would have picked up this med school thing pretty easily