Five Classes per semester

<p>I was wondering if taking five classes per semester was an overkill at Princeton, especially during Freshmen Year. I was thinking of taking CHM 301, EEB 211, Writing Seminar, and MAT 201 for first semester and then CHM 302, MOL 214, Freshmen Seminar of sorts, and MAT 202 second semester.</p>

<p>But, I want to concentrate in Molecular Biology and have a certificate in Finance, and I have heard that I need to take ECO 100 before taking the prerequisite for finance certificate ECO 310. So, I might need to take ECO 100 my second semester of freshmen year, which would mean I have five classes.</p>

<p>Also, is it okay if I don't take any language courses my freshmen year? I'm hoping to test out, but if I dont, is that still okay?</p>

<p>it's not overkill--a lot of freshmen do five classes second semester. your courseload looks difficult--mol and chm in the same semester might be difficult--but doable. if you don't test out of language, however, you pretty much have to take language first-year. don't plan against it if you're unsure.</p>

<p>also, chm 301/302 are not going to be offered next year; only chm 303/304 orgo will be offered.</p>

<p>Thank you so much!</p>

<p>does anyone else know if ECO 100 is a required prerequisite for ECO 310? because if not, i'm going to just take ECO 310 my sophomore year without ECO 100 my freshmen year.</p>

<p>I don't think they let you take 5 courses first semester. However, if you do well first semester, they let you take five the second. Your advisor will let you know. Princeton advisors meet with every student individually and are actually very helpful. They have to approve of your classes before you register.</p>

<p>some freshmen take five first semester, but a lot of advisors refuse to sign off 5-credit courseloads first semester. it really depends.</p>

<p>ECO 310
Microeconomic Theory: A Mathematical Approach
(SA)</p>

<p>Description/Objectives:
This course presents the economic theory of individual and firm behavior using mathematical tools including calculus. The course will emphasize applications of microeconomic theory to consumer choices, output and production of firms, market interaction and equilibrium.</p>

<p>Sample Reading List:
Walter Nicholson , Microeconomic Theory</p>

<p>Reading/Writing Assignments: TBA</p>

<p>Requirements/Grading:
Midterm Exam: 40%
Final Exam: 50%
Problem Set(s): 10%</p>

<p>Other Requirements:
Course Not Open to Freshmen</p>

<p>Prerequisites and Restrictions: ECO 100 and MAT 200 or MAT 201. Not required for concentrators. Not open to Freshmen.</p>

<p>So yes, you need ECO 100.</p>

<p>You should definitely consider using the Pass/D/Fail for one of the five courses.</p>

<p>I took five courses my first semester, including a writing seminar (which is generally regarded as taking a lot of time) and two 300-level courses. It really does depend on how "laissez-faire" your advisor is.</p>

<p>Wow, what 300 level courses did you take?</p>

<p>Third year Chinese and modern Chinese history (HIS 325). Both took a lot of time, but I happen to like history and I took four years of Chinese in high school (1 year of HS Chinese is about 1 semester of college Chinese), so it was manageable.</p>

<p>It's strongly recommended that Engineering majors take 5 courses during the spring term of their freshman year. So if engineers HAVE to do it, A.B. candidates could definitely pull it off.</p>

<p>Freshman Schedule:
- Humanities Sequence
- Humanities Sequence
- Mathematics 201
- Intensive Elementary Chinese
- Freshman Seminar</p>

<p>Will the above schedule be manageable?</p>

<p>If you are good at math, then MAT 201 shouldn't be too bad; freshman seminars and CHI 105 are also usually not too difficult. But the Humanities Sequence is pretty reading intensive, so the above schedule could still be a bit heavy.</p>

<p>even if your advisor doesn't sign it, you can still pick the class...
there is no mechanism to stop you</p>

<p>PDF'ing one of them should make your courseload manageable.</p>

<p>Basically, intensive elementary chinese wouldn't be much of a problem because I speak Chinese at home and know quite a good range of vocabulary from watching Chinese news. I can't speak and write the language though.</p>

<p>Can you PDF a class and later upgrade it to a full credit course when you feel you can get a good score on it?</p>

<p>The thing is, I'm not even sure about Humanities Sequence. I'm only very sure that I'm interested in it, but do not know whether I could cope with the intensity of the course. I've been a Science student all my life, and have never taken any literature/ humanities classes. What do you think? </p>

<p>Would Integrated Sciences be more suitable for me as an aspiring engineer?</p>

<p>You must declare that you are PDFing a course by the fifth week. You can reverse that decision up through the ninth week.</p>

<p>albert87, have you checked out the integrated engineering sequence instead? engineers have very strict course requirements, I doubt taking the humanities sequence will give you enough room to pursue engineering. </p>

<p>The integrated science sequence is more for the pure sciences.</p>

<p>to give you an idea of what aspiring engineers must complete by the end of freshman year:
PHY 103/104 or 105/106 (you can test out with 5s on both Physics C exams, but even then, are strongly encouraged to take 105/106)
CHM 207 or 201 (can test out with 5 on AP Chem)
MAT ??? (Doesn't matter what level you're at, you should take math as an engineer)</p>

<p>I would not take a non-science based first year and then declare engineering for the second year. You should take a sophomore year level course in engineering if you have the background for it just to make sure you like what you're getting yourself into. Also, engineering here's difficult. Even people who received 5s on their AP Physics exam struggle in introductory Physics here.</p>

<p>I did the Singapore-Cambridge A Levels, so I'm supposed to have one year of advanced standing from my A level credits. I did Math, F. Math, Physics and Chemistry, all of which fulfil most of the freshman engineering requirements. As such, I would like to try something different in my freshman year by doing some humanities before I take hardcore engineering classes the following year. </p>

<p>What is the integrated engineering sequence like? So far, I've heard people rave about humanities sequence and integrated sciences sequence but not so much the integrated engineering sequence.</p>

<p>Anyone care to share their thoughts on this?</p>

<p>Thanks, debryc.</p>

<p>yeah, i think you can after 9 weeks (if i'm correct). </p>

<p>integrated sciences seems more of a fit.</p>