Or does it not matter so long as the course requirement is fulfilled?
For example, can I take Elementary Statistics for the Behavioral and Social Sciences to fulfill my math requirement instead of something harder like precalculus? Would that decrease my chances of getting accepted to say, UC Berkeley?
In other words, is GPA the major determinant of acceptance or does rigor matter too?
Does political science require pre-calc/calc? I would imagine that a stats class would be fine and is likely to cover the math requirement at most community colleges 
I checked assist for my old community college and UCB for a poli sci major and it said that a quantitative reasoning course had to be taken at UCB, so that to me sounds like a specialized stats course for poli sci majors; meaning I think you’d be okay with stats.
I actually tried to do the same thing myself - my major didn’t require a math higher than stats, but I wanted to try and impress the UC’s I applied to by taking a higher math (I think it was something like business calc) and I did so poorly that I actually had to withdraw from the course. It was a bad idea that I’ve always regretted. Sure, colleges do probably look at the rigor of the courses, but as long as you perform really well in the courses you do take, you should be fine.
Rigor matters, but your GPA is far more important. Will admissions be impressed by a polisci major who takes a ton of high level math courses? Probably.
The difference in rigor between stats and calc is immeasurable and negligible. Keep a high GPA. Just satisfy your IGETC requirements with whatever appeals to you most. Your GPA is extremely important.
I’ve taken pre-calc, stat, and currently taking applied calc. I don’t think pre-calc is harder than stat, personally. I think stat is more useful. Understanding the normal distribution, standard deviation, and probability is pretty nice. Pre-calc just gets you to a point where you can start to understand practical applications, but without calc all the algebra is kind of abstract and theoretical. If you’re taking your last math class ever, I’d go with stat.
Only take the pre-calc if it is a pre-req for the school you want to go to.
What if you took 52 units in 3 semesters, one being winter, and maintained above a 3.1? What are your guy’s opinion on how that may look?
@“Danny Soprano” What type of classes were they? I don’t want to sound condescending, but that course load isn’t that high, and the GPA is pretty low. Keep in mind though I have no idea what courses you took or where you’re trying to get into, and my knowledge pertains to that of UC Berkeley.
I also think it’s hard to give much of an impression on just that, without knowing anything else about your academic history.
Rigor of gen ed courses not important. That’s why you have a selection. All have equal weight.
They are processing too many applications from too many schools with too many different classes to consider class difficulty.
Like others have said, “difficulty” is subjective anyway.
Difficulty is not subjective when a student went far out of their way to take courses generally recognized as difficult - I’m pretty sure an admissions officer would be impressed by an English major who completed Calc 1-3 and did well in them all. It shows going above and beyond. This is my opinion, though.
As for the difference between Stats and Pre-Calc, or even Calc 1, it really doesn’t matter at all, and there’s no way for them to measure which one is more rigorous than the other.
“So really what you’re saying is that people who have a left brain strength are going to the best universities right out of the womb and the rest of us are screwed”
What?
Speaking of English classes, has anyone ever heard of the Straw Man Fallacy? :-"
@grinchmeup You know that’s not true, right?
I personally found that @goldencub implied that an English major taking advanced math classes would make them an overall stronger and diverse candidate. Though it was unsaid directly, I also believe @goldencub would assert the same of a math major taking advanced English classes.
Whichever side of the spectrum one is on, I think it reflects well on them if they can demonstrate high proficiency of the other side. I believe taking such classes demonstrates a strive for rigor. Admission officers tend to like that!
Left brain vs. right brain dichotomy is not real.
I won’t get into an argument, though - I have a paper to write today. Cheers.
In philosophy, argument = debate. I’m not upset, I love arguing.
My brother works for a major test preparation company and he told me that the UCs spend just a few minutes on each application. I have major doubts about the “rigor” of non-prerequisite courses having anything to do with selection when they have thousands of apps to go through. If the IGETC requires a math course and you have options to pick from, I’m guessing that means they are all viewed as equivalent, hence you should take the one you want to take.
@grinchmeup For some people. I’ve never really felt offended by an argument on here. >:D<
@goldencub "Left brain vs. right brain dichotomy is not real.
I won’t get into an argument, though - I have a paper to write today. Cheers."
So what you’re saying is that prestige DOESN’T matter …
I had to, sorry.
@briank82 Prestige is literally never a factor, ever. :))