I’m starting my freshman year this fall and have AP credit for calc I and calc II. Am I able to exempt ENGR 103? I read on some posts from previous years that this was possible, but I’m not sure if anything has changed since then. I’m an electrical engineering major.
I really do not understand why everyone wants out of this class. It really serves two purposes: first to get an understanding of engineering principles and second is to work in a team. These two skills are SUPER important to be a quality engineer.
Engineering is NOT working on a tube or creating something in a vacuum by yourself. Engineering IS about teamwork and collaboration. The best engineers are very skilled team players.
This class is one that NEEDS to be taken to develop those critical skills.
You might want to reconsider exempting out even if it is possible.
In past years you we able to exempt out of ENGR 103. It is not possible to exempt anymore.
^^^^^^^ That is good to hear!
I can see both sides of the debate. From a lot of students, I’ve heard that the introductory engineering courses seem to impede advancement to other courses, where the students would probably learn same skills anyway, as long as they can handle the courseload. On the other hand, developing connections with my class and getting a “This is what engineering is about” introduction would be beneficial. I’m completely new to this, so I can only go by what others say.
It’s not that I hate the thought of taking the class. I’d just like to know what my options are.
Well, I guess that makes my choice easy then.
The academic flowcharts and the direct advice of your college/major advisor are always the most reliable sources of the most current requirements. If memory serves me right, ENGR 103 was only ever an exemption for ChemE majors in the CofE, not EE.
No longer an exemption for ChemE, as of last year.
I am so glad that Engr 103 is required. I could never understand why people would think that finishing Calc 1 and 2 would satisfy this course anyway. My now junior ee major went to an engineering high school and took 5 or 6 engineering classes through Project Lead the Way and THAT didn’t count. For him Engr 103 was a repeat of some of those classes but for most students this is the first time that they would even be introduced to some of the engineering concepts they need to learn. It is a good way to even see if engineering is right for them before continuing on.
I have to agree. I don’t get the hate for ENGR 103 or the desire to avoid it. My son wasn’t even sure he WANTED to be an engineer when he arrived as a freshman and started out as an “Undeclared Engineer.” That class not only helped him determine engineering was a great fit for him, it confirmed his thinking that mechanical engineering was probably the most suitable discipline. He had a very good instructor and really enjoyed the class when he took it in Fall 2014.
@thr2000, my son is a jr ECE major. There is a lot of negative press on this class. It is time consuming and can be hard for those who do not have a strong Physics background. My DS took Physics first semester and ENGR 103 second semester and made an A. He said his friends who did not have a lot of expereince in Physics struggled in the fall. Hearing first hand from those who had already taken it also gave him an advantage (he knew about assignments, different professors grading quirks, etc.). You can’t exempt, so take it in the spring if you haven’t had AP Physics and take the Honors version if you are eligible.
@FamilyofFive does having just a high school level understanding of physics and brief self-study of AP physics put a disadvantage for the class? It has been a while since I messed with physics and right now I have so many AP credits that the next step is for me to take ENGR 103 out of schedule necessity. If I don’t have the necessary physics background yet, what are extra steps that can be taken to do well in this class? FWIW I am signed up with an honor’s section in the fall.
@atomicPACMAN07, my son attended a private high school that didn’t offer AP classes. (They preferred to teach from from their own curricula.) For the most part, I think their coursework matched (and even exceeded in some classes) the AP offerings at our local HS. The one exception was physics. My son took Advanced Physics 1 his senior year (and he had some physics as a freshman in the required science foundations class), and he felt the physics class was an absolute joke. He did fine in ENGR 103 and he also has aced all his physics classes to date at Bama.
To some degree, I think this comes down to natural aptitude. (His is more on the physics side, rather than chemistry.)
Maybe you should consider signing up for it first semester with enough other classes in place that if you need to drop it until the next semester, you don’t get behind the number of credits you need to stay on schedule?
@atomicPACMAN07 - Don’t second-guess yourself based on other students’ issues. As @LucieTheLakie pointed out, each student has his/her own aptitudes. And, if I recall correctly, you’ll be doing Physics 105 concurrently, right? If you’re concerned, get the book ahead of time and do a quick review before classes start.
@atomicPACMAN07- As stated above, you know your strengths/weaknesses better than I do. Those who do ENGR and Physics concurrently seem to do well. The ones my son knew who struggled were trying to do Chemistry and ENGR in the fall and saving Physics for spring. My son had not had Physics since fall of junior year, so he was not as confident. Chemistry was not a pre-req for anything so he knew he could take it at a later date.
Thanks everyone for the reassurance! Yeah I will be taking PH 105 co-currently with ENGR 103 so hopefully it bodes well together. I am glad I took the honor’s section for ENGR 103 since I really need to start on getting honor’s credit
I don’t know about other engineer majors, but for ChE majors, you still can opt out of the class by taking one of approved Advanced science class electives, Che Electives or BioChem Electives. This came from my advisor.