<p>Hi I'm going to be a first year at UVA this fall and I am signed up for Calc II this semester. So when I signed up I had no idea that Calc II was this super hard weed out class that is allegedly the most failed class and UVA and its sorta freaking me out. I took Calc BC in high school and did pretty well but I'm not sure if I'm confident for Calc II. Should I go ahead an take the class or try to move into a different class? PLEASE HELP</p>
<p>Here is my advice concerning MATH 1320: Calculus II:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>If you have BC credit and are entertaining the idea of majoring in a hard science like chemistry or physics, mathematics or statistics, take your BC credit and start with MATH 2310: Calculus III. It’s not worth going through UVA’s version of Calculus II imo unless you like tricky integrals and impossible summations. </p></li>
<li><p>If you have just AB credit and are entertaining the idea of majoring in a hard science like chemistry or physics, mathematics or statistics, consider forfeiting your AB credit and retaking MATH 1310: Calculus I. MATH 1320: Calculus II is a very intense course for a first-semester first-year and I believe there is a huge benefit to building up your math skills by retaking MATH 1310: Calculus I during your first semester (this is what I did and I went on to major in math).</p></li>
<li><p>If you are planning to major in economics, psychology, fulfill area requirements or apply to the comm school, take whatever credit you are coming in with and just complete the remaining requirement(s) by taking the MATH 1200 series (MATH 1210: Applied Calculus 1 and MATH 1220: Applied Calculus II). This series is much easier and will save you the hassle and pain of MATH 1320. Just beware that this series is terminal and will not prepare you for further math (econometrics and applied statistics don’t count as math per se =p) upon completion.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>If you do end up going through MATH 1320: Calculus II, work hard, try to get the best TA that is teaching that semester and never give up.</p>