Hi guys, I’m a rising Aggie majoring in Biology. I had some questions/concerns about my schedule for this upcoming semester.
For the Fall 2015 semesterI am considering taking the following classes, as listed below. It’s the core requirements for a Biology major, except for the English elective, because I took AP Lang and tested out of it, so I don’t have to do English.
BIOL 111: Introductory Biology I, 4 credits
CHEM 101 & CHEM 111 :Fundamentals of Chemistry I
and Fundamentals of Chemistry Laboratory I, 4 credits
MATH 147: Calculus I for Biological Sciences, 4 credits
JAPN 101: Beginning Japanese, 3 credits
I had a lot of questions pertaining to my schedule.
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I took AP Biology and if I get a qualifying score on the AP test, I can test out of Introductory Biology. However, I also heard that it’s a ‘‘weed out course’’, meaning that the course is purposely made a lot harder to eliminate students who aren’t interested in the major. Would it be better to take the IntroBiology again (which is what I have now), or just move on to the next level of Biology?
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What’s a good number of credit hours to take? Currently I have 15, but is that too much or just right? How many credit hours do most people end up taking? Are the classes I am taking extremely rigorous for a 1st semester schedule, or should I eliminate some classes and spread them around so I can take them at different times?
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What are the best professors to have for each class and what are their policies on absences?
I would like some help, I am rather confused.
What are your plans post college? Medical school? If so, GPA will be crucial.
A&M encourages you not to take the AP credit in intro classes where you will have to take the next class. They tend to say because you need that foundation and worst case, you get an easy A. Some people encourage you to look for old tests and work them to see if you feel comfortable with them before moving on. I have no idea how to find those though.
I would say that 15 hours is about right first semester but yes you have 15 pretty difficult hours.
I can’t answer the last question except to say GO TO CLASS!
My plan is to go into research or academia, or become some sort of lab technician. I mainly want to do some sort of research career. I don’t really plan to do med school.
If I have some difficult courses, would you suggest that I eliminate anything, or just stick to what I have?
I already plan to go to class, I just wanted to know the absence policies because I need to come back home occasionally to visit some of my doctors, for specific illnesses.
I can answer a few of your questions, but not all of them. Good number of credits to take… most freshman take between 12-16, so you’re in the ballpark. To be considered full time, you have to take 12 units. The policies for absences are university wide http://student-rules.tamu.edu/rule07 with a few exceptions, but not many. If you have reasons to go back home for appointments, you could try to organize your schedule to have a ‘free day’ each week. You can find out info on professors at myedu website.
How stressful is it to uphold a schedule with 12-16 credits?
The Japanese is kind of a thing to balance out my stress as needed.
That free day thing you said is a good idea. I’m trying to organize my schedule so that I can have that free day, I think that would be very much needed. I go on MYEDU a lot, and it’s really helped me organize my schedule.
The stress level of a schedule is based on your mix of courses that are challenging for you, not just pure unit count. There are many places to get help with your classes. If you’re concerned, start out seeking tutoring/extra help right away, there are many options available some free, some fee based to help you through your classes.