<p>Can anyone recommend any courses at Cornell (if there are any) that are easy so that one can add them to his/her schedule and do well without devoting too much study time? Please comment on each course that you add. Thanks so much.</p>
<p>generally the easier courses are those that have median grades of A...</p>
<p>you can find a list of the median courses for all courses at cornell here: </p>
<p>2 classes that i've taken that weren't very difficult and they fulfilled my science requirement:</p>
<p>Oceanograpy
Earthquake!</p>
<p>Do not take Space Exploration if you have never done any astronomy before! I thought it would not be very hard but it was. No homework, just lectures twice a week. But the hard thing was that we had to write 5 papers about random topics. I had no clue what I was writing about. I ended up with a C in that class when I thought it would be an easy class. (should have dropped it but I didn't)</p>
<p>There is a class about Mushrooms and fungi and a class about Dinosaurs that people say are easy. Also there is a History class on Ancient Egypt that a recently graduated friend of mine took her last sem. just to kill time and get a few more credits.</p>
<p>sociology 101</p>
<p>in a similar vein what are some easy, but interesting, courses that can fullfill my liberal studies distribution as an engineer, preferably something without tons of reading or writing(if I wanted to do a lot of those I wouldn't be majoring in something math/science oriented like engineering now would I?)</p>
<p>I second that thought Prism. We need classes that help us to relax a bit, yet don't consume our time nor curb our academic success. I probably sound like a fortune cookie envisioning an ideal world, which I doubt exists especially at ivys like Cornell.</p>
<p>Psych 101 of course! This class is reputed to being one of the easiest classes around. Plus, I hear it's entertaining. Aside from that, pretty much any AEM class fits the description you mentioned. If you are planning on taking sociology, don't take Soc 101, take DSoc 101 (yes the two are different). Dsoc 101 is easier - the median grade is an A.</p>
<p>climate and global warming (eas 268)</p>
<p>soooo much fun! (especially for those of us who love meteorology ;) )</p>
<p>Organizational Behaviour (it's the psychology of the workplace/organizations) basically applied psychology...</p>
<p>A word of warning to those who pick electives based on the median grades: Cornell will be posting the course median on the transcripts of students who enter in Fall 2008 and beyond.</p>
<p>If you do poorly in a course where the median is an A...it might not look so hot :-)</p>
<p>I still have a question about the whole median grade thing.</p>
<p>Median grade is not the same thing as curving, correct? Because I've heard that even though a class may have a median grade of an A, the teacher curves the course to a median grade of a C (the oft cited reason for "Cornell Grade Deflation").</p>
<p>Is this true, or am I absolutely misunderstanding?</p>
<p>psht...3 years of Cornell and I never quite figured out the grading system. When I took Orgo...the prof curved to a B-, but the median grade was a B. </p>
<p>All I know is that the median grade you see is calculated after the term grades have been given. If you see a course listen with a median grade of A, that means 50% of the class was below an A and 50% was above the A.</p>
<p>argh. so confusing. :( Then what did that "curve" do?</p>
<p>DSOC101.</p>
<p>If you can't get an A in this course, you are a damn idiot.</p>
<p>I've spoken to a few professors about their grading policies... in a curved class, I've heard of two methods of curving being used. </p>
<p>The first method used by professors is to calculate the mean and standard deviation of a course. Then, they set the mean at a B, B-, or as they please, no matter what the numerical average of the course is (eg. a 60 can be set to a B). If the mean is set as B-, you need one standard deviation above the mean to get an A-, and one below to get a C-, so on and so forth.</p>
<p>The other way that some professors use is to assign the top 20% of the class some sort of an A, the next 40% some sort of a B, etc. and not worry what the mean grade will turn out to be.</p>
<p>Some professors don't curve. Usually, these easy A classes are uncurved. From my experience, most science/math/engineering courses are curved to a B- or a B. Don't know about the other schools.</p>
<p>Just to point out something, in the curved classes, the median is usually higher than the mean. </p>
<p>Easy and fun class: Classic 236, Greek Mythology</p>
<p>^that actually does sound like it would be pretty interesting, and its 200 level so it would knock off one of the 2 200 level liberal arts I need.</p>
<p>However the class is already full for this semester :(</p>
<p>If you email the professor before classes start and put your name on the waiting list as soon as you get on campus, there is chance that he professor will allow you to take the course!</p>
<p>wow, all As and Bs until you get to Lectures in Genetics - D....the only class that's not an A or a B</p>
<p>The students in Lectures in Genetics probably did something to **** off the professor because in other years the mediain for this class has been B-!</p>