Is the quarter system overbearing?

I kind of procrastinate and work better under pressure, but at the same time I don’t want to be under pressure all the time. I want some room to absorb and relax.

I guess I can say I’m the type of student with short term memory, so when it comes to semester finals all the older info seems fuzzy to me. I can learn fast if I get help. I just don’t want to be in a pressured environment though. I’m worried about getting panic attacks. I could probably handle it. I’m just also worried because I’m going to be working and I’m going in for a biology major.

On another note, I probably wouldn’t mind for classes like English and history, I want to get those over with asap. I’m mainly concerned about chemistry and physics, I know I will have to take chemistry. I just don’t know how well I’ll perform. I really want good grades lol.

I go to a different UC, but I believe I can answer your question.
Yes, the quarter system is by its very nature, brutal, but you’ll eventually get used to the pacing after a quarter or two. I feel like the quarter system suits those with short term memory and the semester system suits those with long term memory since the classes are spaced out in 10 week blocks. This means that you’ll have less material to be responsible for when finals comes around and won’t have as much trouble cramming as people who go to a semester system school.
There are downsides to the quarter system of course, one of which being that you have less time to screw around. In the semester system, if you decide to skip a week’s worth of classes, come back the following Monday, you can easily reciver in a day or so, but if you try doing that in the quarter system, you’re basically fucked.

TL;DR: It’s fast paced but you’ll be fine if you’re on top of your stuff. IE: Doing your homework regularly and putting a few hours every day into studying.

@Onikage34 Thank you! And geez, that sounds scary.
By any chance, do you know how many classes we take per quarter?

3-4 classes usually(13-15 units).