I know a lot of people say not to take a heavy course load your first semester so I’m taking 13 credits but I’m still planning on taking Calc 2, Enriched Physics 1 with lab, and One Semester Chem with lab my first semester. While I want to take a challenging course load, I don’t want to wreck my gpa (I’m aiming for a 4.0 first year) in the chances of losing bright futures. I’ve taken chem for 3 years and I’ve taken physics for 2 years. I always enjoy my math and science classes way more than any other class and sometimes they’re easier for me compared to other classes. What I’m essentially trying to ask is would taking these classes first semester destroy my gpa. I’m more than willing to put work towards classes I really enjoy but I still want to get involved on campus and not be a complete shut in.
I’ve taken
IB Physics
IB Chem
AP Physics C Mech (5)
AP Chem (Predicted 5)
Calc AB (5)
Calc BC(Predicted 5)
Thank You!!!
The only thing that would make me nervous for you is physics. A couple of students at UF told us that physics sequence is one of the toughest at UF. To wedge that in there with chemistry/lab seems a little risky.
DS took Intro to Physics (PHY2020) with UF as a dual enrollment student and it was tough. He did fine but he had to really work at it, and he loves physics. Physics tutor thought it sounded tougher than a standard intro course, which seemed consistent with what the UF students whom we met at peer advising told us.
DS took CHM2045 and lab at FAU - did well but it, too, is a great deal of work.
All this being said, if science is your thing you might be OK. Just be watching closely during the drop/add week.
First question: Are you planning on Pre-med or other pre-health, Materials science or Chemical engineering? If you are then YOU SHOULD REPEAT THE CHEM. If you are physics or another engineering( other than chemical or materials science) such as mech, YOU DO NOT NEED TO REPEAT THE CHEM provided you scored at least a 5. A score of 4 will get you 4 credits for CHM 2045 and the lab. A score of 5 will get you 8 credits! If you must take chem, take Korolev and you should be fine.
Enriched physics with Calc is way better than the general physics 2048 and 2049. PM me if you need specifics. My daughter took PHY 2060 and PHY 2061 and she can give you lots of advice. The only negative is that you are taking the labs meant for the general non honors classes so they will not follow the lectures exactly but they are easy. PHY 2060 with Hamlin is excellent!
You DO NOT NEED to take Calc 2 if you get a 5 in BC. Huge piece of advice: do not allow the engineering dept. to scare you into taking Calc 2. Daughter waited to go to Preview until she had her AP scores in hand. She printed them and brought them to Preview. Signed up for Calc 3 and never looked back. Took Calc 3 with Keeran ( excellent) and Diffy Q with Chui ( that was a very unexpected and wonderful surprise) and got A’s in both. Chui may not be back for Calc 2 ( she is the best but took a break from teaching it) If you have specific questions about physics or engineering, PM me.
@saismom What if my son got a “3 or 4” in Calc BC, should he try and bypass Calc 2? At Preview last week they pushed him to sign up for Calc 2 in the fall.
@saismom My Calc BC teacher warned me that skipping Calc 2 with BC credit hurts people in differential equations but I never really understood what he meant by that.
@ProudParent2020 If he gets a 3 on the BC exam he should definitely retake Calc 2 (unless he’s in a non stem field.) You might be able to get away with a 4 but for most engineers they won’t need the infinite series, they’ll need the integration (or so I’ve been told.)
I personally would not skip calc 2 if you did not get a 5. Having said that, review trig functions, integration by parts, and u-substitution for Diff Eq. These are the only important concepts from Calc 2 that appear in Diff Eq, plus vector algebra for Calc 3, but that’s not as much an issue because Keeran covers it so well.
Also notice at Preview that engineering dept.only shows “success rate” charts for kids who took Calc AB. When we specifically asked them how kids who scored a 5 on BC fared in Calc 3, they sent us the chart by email which shows that 80% of Calc BC score of 5 kids got an A, A- or B+ in Calc 3 with skipping Calc 2. Some kids are just very strong math kids and they know who they are. Why should they repeat things they already know? My daughter looked over old Calc 2 exams and felt very comfortable so she signed up for Calc 3 with her AP scores in hand. That being said, her toughest/most annoying class was “Good Life” because she had to write about things she has no interest in. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. I know an honors student who crushed physics and calc and chem and got a C- in Good Life and must repeat that course! UGH!!!
@saismom
I’m not much about complaining, but I got a chuckle when I saw you write about the Good Life… I just wanted to say, be warned about this class, I agree with saismom 100%… It seems like an easy introductory class, but it gets infuriatingly frustrating and you better brush up on your composition skills. I have taken 3 semesters at UF as a transfer student and all my classes were mainly 4000 level Computer Science/Math classes. However, the only grade I didn’t receive an A in was IUF1000 - What’s the Good Life… It was the most annoying class I have ever taken and I had some bad professors before. It definitely depends a lot on your instructor and TA, but something is wrong if you take Algorithms, Numerical Analysis, etc. and the one class you do bad in/struggle is the standard mandatory Gen Ed class. (Note: Although I didn’t like the class, I still participated heavily, read all readings multiple times and used the smoking notes… It’s just a terrible class… Or maybe it was just my TA, who knows)
So yeah… Your daughter is not alone! 