<p>I'm planning to take a Calculus during the Freshman Summer Session at Cal and have to choose between Math 1A and Math 16A. Is 1A considerably more difficult than 16A? I'm a potential Econ major so 16A is enough to satisfy the pre-requisite but I'm leaning towards 1A in case I decide to eventually pick the Molecular and Cellular Biology major (for which 1A is required.) Is there a difference between the professors who teach these classes? Also, does Haas have a preference for 1A?</p>
<p>most ppl goin into Haas choose 16a because Haas likes higher gpa over difficult classes...i believe there is not a significant but decent amount of difference in difficulty between the 2.. but if you have a good math background then 16a would be a piece of cake (my friend doesn even go to class or discussion n she's gettin an A)</p>
<p>Poke around this site if you're interested from the math department's perspective.</p>
<p>I am going to be a freshman at cal next year. I am going to study pol sci, but i am going to be on the pre-med route. Do you think that med schools would prefer 1A to 16A?</p>
<p>No. GPA>difficulty, especially considering your major.</p>
<p>GPA>difficulty, what do you mean by that?</p>
<p>GPA takes precedence over difficulty if you're a premed. That is, don't just take a higher level of class because you think it'll look good and impress the med school admissions board -- it won't. In fact, since it's harder, you may even do worse. On the other hand, if you're confident that you'll do equally as well in the more difficult class, go for that one.</p>
<p>I don't think
[quote]
especially considering your major.
[/quote]
is so true, but med schools seem to care a lot more about your GPA and MCAT score than anything else, although a few other factors have some importance (such as letters of rec). People who take the 7 series of physics instead of the 8 probably do not get much more respect from med school adcoms, just as those in 16 instead of 1 would not.</p>
<p>Edit - Above advice seems good. Challenging yourself can be good.</p>
<p>I meant that more as a "since it's not required by the major" advisory. Obviously, if one was a math, physics, or engineering major, the more difficult level would be required.</p>
<p>Oh. I thought you meant that because one is a poli sci major, and not something known as more difficult, such as say, biology, then they would be concerned. Thanks for the clarification.</p>
<p>Thanks karthikkito and DRab..But i am still unsure as to which course to take. If it took 16A would i also have to take a 16B course? Or would just ending at 16A be enough for med school?</p>
<p>If I'm not mistaken, med schools want to see 1 full year of calc...so that's A and B, regardless of your chosen level.</p>
<p>can i take math 1A and then Math 16B second semester? I heard u get only 2 credits for 16B if u take this route, instead of the the usual 3 credits.</p>
<p>Is there sufficient room to take 1b and continue into higher math if one decides to pursue life sciences?</p>
<p>hey blue elmo...i was planning on doing the same as you! i heard that 6 credits is enough of math...is that true?</p>
<p>Take 1A regardless. Having a better math foundation will help you do better in your academic career! Look at it as an investment in future As.</p>
<p>Don't be a wimp! 16A is for intellectual sissies. ;)</p>
<p>babiblu - how sure are you that "Haas likes higher gpa over difficult classes"?</p>
<p>im asking because i am also thinking between math 16 A or math 1A for Haas.</p>
<p>1A is not that hard a class to start with... 16A is remedial math. You go to school to learn, don't get too fixated on the grading. It's very important to build a solid math foundation in your scientific academic careers and beyond.</p>
<p>I don't know about that. If you can avoid taking Math 1A, I would say do it. Of course, if you want to pursue a science or engineering degree, it may not be an option. The problem is the foreign students jack up the curve in Math 1A. They probably haven't taken AP exams so they can't opt out of it. And you know foreign students that come to Berkeley are going to have some serious math skills. To them, Math 1A is a joke that they have to put up with to pursue their studies. Now, having said that, Math 16A is no cake walk either because the course is so easy, which also undermines the curve. I remember getting a 20 question test back with 2 incorrect answers. I got a B!</p>
<p>"The problem is the foreign students jack up the curve in Math 1A." guilty...lol</p>
<p>It's true about the classes with the easy subject matters, very little separation in tests makes it harder to get an A.</p>