<p>No, you do not have to take math first year. I took math 16A 3rd quarter, but there were some sophomores in my class. You can basically take it anytime. Chemistry is a little different because usually Chem 2A is only offered during the 1st quarter and sometimes during the 2nd quarter, so you should definately take chem if you wanna start cuz if u miss it, u may have to end up waiting 1 year.</p>