<p>So am I understanding that Swarthmore requires three math/science classes? I know I am going to end up seeming like a big whiner here (sorry). I do love a lot about Swarthmore just not the prospect of three science classes. It looks some of the math classes might be okay (I looked at the math dept. courses and there do seem to be a few Math for Dummies classes lol) but I am horrible at science. Are there any Science for Dummies classes? (I am really excellent at languages and literature, in case you are now wondering how I even got in to Swarthmore!)</p>
<p>I am in the same boat as you! I am horrendous at math.I am kinda worried lol</p>
<p>Hey! I was totally in the same situation when I came to Swat - I’m really not a Natural Sciences person. 
What I ended up doing is taking Stat - which tons of non-math people take and is really useful for social sciences and there’s a lot of support for you - and Astro 3 for my lab course/other science requirement (I came in with AP Calc credit, so I only needed to take 2), which was slightly harder than the geared-towards-nonmajors-Astro 1 which most non-science people take and still very supportive. I found it totally possible to navigate through. There’s also Intro to Mathematical Thinking (very little actual math) and lots of other courses like it: so really, don’t worry, you’ll be fine! People don’t typically have trouble filling distribution requirements here, since there are lots of options and lots of people in the same place as you.</p>
<p>The first step is to see what you already have in the bank in terms of AP credits:</p>
<p>[Swarthmore</a> College :: Advising Handbook :: III. Placement, Credit, and Registration](<a href=“http://www.swarthmore.edu/x14207.xml]Swarthmore”>Placement, Credit, and Registration :: Advising Handbook :: Swarthmore College)</p>
<p>It’s quite likely that you already AP credits. For example, you could already have credit for 1 to 2 math courses from AP Calc or AP Stat. You could have a credit from AP Engish or History. You could have credits for AP science exams.</p>
<p>Another approach would be to knock out one of your dreaded courses during first semester pass/fail.</p>
<p>It’s basically been said, but I’ll reiterate: even if you have no AP credits, there are at least three NS classes (including one lab) that have a reputation for being unbelievably easy: Math 1, Stat 1, and Astro 1. I took Astro 1 to get my lab out of the way, planning to just slide by without much effort–but the professor was great, and I ended up finding Astronomy really interesting, so I did really well and enjoyed the class immensely. </p>
<p>Certainly don’t worry about the distribution requirements. You can take one of your NS classes pass/fail first semester, and you can choose to pass/fail the other two (or only one, if you have AP credit). If you take easy NS classes and put even minimal effort into them, you will be fine. </p>
<p>One note: as forgetmenots mentioned, Stats is useful (and sometimes required) for certain social science majors, so if you might want to go that direction, consider Stat 11 (more applied/math-based) rather than Stat 1. </p>
<p>Best of luck!</p>
<p>Try Physics for Poets or Rocks for Jocks. </p>
<p>I took Stat and Astro 1 and 2. Learning the constellations was a great ice-breaker for, well, you figure it out…</p>