<p>I read that the Wharton course load limit for the first semester of freshmen year is 5.5 units. I was wondering if anybody knew if there is a way to petition the college to increase the course load limit first semester. I have taken an average of 12 college and AP courses the past two years and I know that I would feel really bored with only 5.5 units the first semester.</p>
<p>Hi there, emblem101</p>
<p>First of all, no. There’s no way to increase the limit. Second of all, you need to trust in the system. The reason that there is a limit is so that freshmen, fresh out of high school and thinking that they’re on top of the academic world don’t take on seven classes and then fail them and then drop out. I’m not trying to sound mean or cynical! The limit is there so that you can make an adjusted, sensible transition from high school to college. I’m sorry that you feel like you’ll be bored. Join a club or a study group or something. </p>
<p>Most people come here with lots of AP classes and college classes under their belts, but real college is very different from high school college. You’ll certainly graduate with all the credits you need for your major/minor/whatever, so slow down and take a breath, my friend.</p>
<p>+1 to jreeder’s post. 5.5 units is actually quite a bit. Don’t worry, they’ll make sure to keep you busy, promise.</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses thus far. I had a feeling that would be the answer… For most people, I would say that the above advice is good and I heared the reasons for the College course load limit from the Dean of the College but my statement that I would be bored with 5.5 units didn’t come from no where. The reason I say that is because I have already taken all but 2 of the Wharton core courses at a local university. I compared the syllabi and the content is indeed the same. Unfortunately, Wharton is practically the only school that does not accept credits from previous college work so I am essentially repeating the same courses but with many less courses per semester. I guess the bright side is that it should be fairly easy to get a high GPA that first year or so. Does anybody have any suggestion on how to challenge myself academically, aside from participating in clubs and sports? Also what is the highest number of courses that you can take in a semester, after the first semester of freshmen year.</p>
<p>^This entire thread is making me lol.</p>
<p>Why is it making you laugh? I agree that I may take far too many classes but that is not going to stop anytime soon… It is an addiction. Must take more bio and business classes.</p>
<p>You’ll have a ton of room to challenge yourself on the Bio side rather than the Wharton side especially if you pursue biochemistry. You can place out of a lot of intro classes with a placement exam and start taking advanced coursework very early on. 5.5 cu is definitely not challenging with the courses you take first semester but courses like Writing Seminar have a lot of busywork and will take up a lot of time. Just live it up first semester and let your mind be at peace knowing that second semester you can take up to 7 cu realistically if you want to. The 4 years will be enough time to pursue whatever degrees and majors/concentrations you want to if you plan correctly.</p>
<p>There’s no point to taking 7 classes a semester. All it will do is make your life harder and your GPA lower. Do as you wish, though.</p>
<p>Overloading is very easy to do in college and can have very negative consequences. You might start out the semester thinking that everything is going fine, but when midterms and papers start coming up, things get intense very quickly. Taking a balanced course load is not only important for your grades, it’s also much better for your learning experience and overall college experience. When you have too many classes, you may find yourself doing the bare minimum to get by, rather than engaging with the material and going to office hours. Not all classes have the same amount of work, so my advice would be to take two to three difficult classes, one or two moderately difficult ones, and one easier class.</p>
<p>@ kbolisetty23</p>
<p>There isn’t a linear inverse correlation between GPA attained and number of classes per semester. For some people 5 classes is the most that they can handle while some can take 7 or 8 classes per semester not no substantial impact to their GPA. It also depends on what classes you are taking, some like organic chemistry and biochemistry take a lot more time and effort than others.</p>
<p>@ breaker746</p>
<p>Your advice is sound. I am planning on taking the bio and chem placement exams. Also, I have already placed out of physics (2 5s on AP Physics C) and I will take the three mathematics placement exams (114, 240, 241) since I have already taken the equivalent of those courses in high school (calc 1-3, dif eq., lin. alg., and partial diff. eq.). Are you allowed to take all of the above placement exams in the orientation session?</p>
<p>My advice is to not take anyone’s advice even though you asked for it.</p>
<p>You apparently have more answers than questions</p>
<p>Rely on your own judgement.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t recommend increasing your courseload. even 4.5 credit limit in the College was more than enough for me and I felt the same way as you before.</p>
<p>For me, the thing is that Penn has so many different events, activities and opportunities that it is really hard to be bored. Guest lecturers, panels, clubs(and don’t brush these off) can easily fill up your time and really provoke your mind to think.</p>
<p>emblem101,</p>
<p>Don’t assume that because you had similar courses in community college, that you will be guaranteed a higher GPA than your fellow Wharton peers. Not everyone can get A’s and they are probably every bit as smart and grade hungry as you are.</p>
<p>As an aside, I have a son who dropped a 7th course this term when he saw his midterm and final schedule. Poeme gave good advice when he added that you should’t take all hard classes. Test the waters your first term. My guess is you will not feel the same way when you look back at your post in December. By the way, the Writing Seminar is notorious for chopping egos (as well as GPA’s) down to size.</p>
<p>If you absolutely must feed your addiction for overloading classes, use the pass/fail option wisely.</p>
<p>Chopping egos. Sounds like work. I get the feeling from this thread that egos get chopped early and often for good reason.</p>
<p>I’m not implying that I am interested in enrolling in 8 difficult or time-extensive classes like organic chemistry or writing seminar. I said that the reason why I wanted to increase my course load substantially is because I have already taken courses with the same content and difficulty level. I would not continue taking 8 classes throughout college. Also, I did not take any classes at a community college. All of my classes were in a decent four-year university in the top 100, good but not great. My statements about the difficulty of the classes were not made without information. I looked at the syllabi of the Wharton classes and talked to current Wharton students that used to go to my school. Are does anybody know if you are allowed to take all of the placement exams in the orientation session?</p>