My daughter will be a freshman in civil engineering this fall. I understand that the freshman students’ schedules will be blocked for them, however, my daughter has a dilemma, I think. She took the AP AB/BC calculus last year as a junior. She scores a 3 on both parts. We met with a professor this past spring and he suggested that she start at the beginning to form a more solid foundation. We agree with that advice. However, when she filled out the questionaire 6 weeks or so ago (for scheduling), the question was asked, “Did you receive a 3 or higher in calculus?” She marked yes. So the questions are, 1) Does she send those calculus scores? 2) How do we ensure that she gets that beginning calculus class (whether she does or does not send the scores? Thanks.
Have her call the civil engineering department and explain her situation. They’ll likely put her in touch with her department counselor.
I’d personally recommend she do something different than the professor she spoke with suggested. There are very big advantages to being ahead in any sequence at Cal Poly, especially math. There is a way to know for certain whether or not a student is ready or not to skip classes…take old tests. If she passed AB and BC, she’ll be blocked into Calc 3. Have her find old syllabi and finals for Math 141 and 142 from at least two different instructors. They’re easy to find. If it’s completely foreign to her, she should repeat. If it’s a breeze, move forward, confidently. If it’s a little rusty, she can brush up on Kahn Academy over the summer. This is an important exercise, because, as I previously stated, there are big advantages to being ahead.
Wish her luck.
Thanks for the advice. It certainly gives us something to think about. If possible, it would be nice for her to be ahead and have some breathing room in her schedule.