<p>Do any of the current students know what is the typical course load for a freshman who is not a science, art or music major?
I know they take Core I and II but how many other other classes do most students take.</p>
<p>First semester Core I and writing 50 are required. The rest of the semesters only Core II/III. And most students take 3-4 courses. Most students I asked said that the average is 4, and few take 5.</p>
<p>Thanks, I asked a professor at lunch last Friday and she said 4 courses also. So with Core I and writing 50 that will only leave 2 others for the first semester.</p>
<p>Most students start out by fulfilling GEs or exploring various intro courses (hopefully both...the beauty of double-counting). An average of 4/semester is required to graduate...3 is full-time, over 5.75 requires special permission. A normal first semester would be 4 or 4.25-4.5 (i.e. four academic classes + a PE). </p>
<p>In my experience, 5 classes is doable if you consider the workloads, the professors, and your other commitments, but I definitely don't suggest it first semester. At all. There's just too much else to get used to and too many other ways to spend your time in the beginning. </p>
<p>2 electives sounded kind of lame to me in the beginning, but once faced with a course catalog of 1200-some-odd classes, I was glad that I already had two "YES. I'm DEFINITELY taking that" courses out of the way. Much less overwhelming :p</p>
<p>I am currently a freshman.</p>
<p>First semester I took:
Core 1
Writing 50
French
Anthropology (for the social science requirement)</p>
<p>this semester I am taking:
Core II
French
an English survey course for my english major
Music (for fine arts)
Creative Writing at Pomona</p>
<p>Five classes are totally doable, but it really depends on which five you are taking. If all five have a huge course load, then you will be doing a lot of work, but it is still manageable. If your fifth class is a PE, then you should be totally fine. I am taking five again next semester, and auditing a PE class as a sixth. I recommend four your first semester, since Core I and writing 50 do take up a lot of time. You will have plenty of time to take more interesting classes after the first semester.</p>
<p>I'm going to be a freshman in the fall and I;m wondering if I should already by worrying about my schedule or if I should wait until I get there to figure it out. Also, how probable is it that I will get the classes I want (if classes that I'm interested are about half full)? And one last question (I promise :) ) if I want to take French, but it is only being offered at CMC, will I have to wait because I'm a freshman and I'm supposed to be taking all my classes at Scripps? Thanks.</p>
<p>You do not have to worry about your schedule yet - wait until you get to school and you talk to your advisor. You will have to take Core and Writing 50, so you will only have to pick two classes. There is a chance that the class you want will fill, but if you talk to the professor or come to class on the first day, you will most likely be let in. You could also be put on a waiting list for the class you want.</p>
<p>You do not have to take French at Scripps - the language classes are part of the joint program, meaning you can take a language class at CMC, Scripps, or Pitzer. You have to get permission to take it at Pomona though. </p>
<p>Freshmen are supposed to take all of their classes at Scripps first semester, unless it is a class that is part of the joint program, and then you can take it at any of the campuses (except usually Pomona.) The joint classes are listed in your catalogue, but I think some of them also include sciences, fine arts, social sciences, etc. (you will have to check on this, I am not positive which ones are joint.) I am surprised French isn't offered at Scripps in the fall, that shouldn't be the case. There should be enough offered at all of the colleges, depending on what French you get placed into.</p>
<p>Similar to MissLovelyRita, I would suggest holding off for now. Look over the course schedule a bit to familiarize yourself (make life less overwhelming come orientation), but don't worry about making decisions. You automatically have Core 1. You'll take Writing 50, but you'll learn more about the sections once you get to orientation. You'll also learn more about the GEs in general and, as has been said, you'll meet with your advisor, who will guide you through scheduling.</p>
<p>If a class is only half full right now, the probability that you'll get into it is probably high (unless it's a very popular intro type course, i.e. Beginning Spanish or intro Bio, and then it's a toss-up). You'll also get your registration time when you get to orientation, and this will make a big difference.</p>
<p>As for French, have you ever taken it before? If so, you'll be required to take a placement exam during orientation and then you'll sign up based on your score. If not, then you'll register for Intro French. I don't have a schedule in front of me, but if it is only offered at CMC, then you're probably fine. Whether or not a program is joint depends on the individual department at each campus (i.e. philosophy is joint between CMC/Scripps/Mudd/CGU, but individual at Pitzer and Pomona, and German is joint between Scripps/Pomona, with no department on any other campus, bio is joint between CMC/Pitzer/Scripps and individual on Mudd and Pomona, etc.). But if you test into a level of a language that's only offered off-campus, and if there's space available, I'm almost positive you'd be allowed to take it (either it'd be joint or your advisor would just allow it...whatever). I'll try to look up more reliable info for you later, but no guarantees.</p>
<p>Meanwhile...get your mind off of this for the remainder of July :)</p>
<p>I am a pre-med Science major, but my first year sched. was pretty typical, second semester i took 6 courses, i reccommend NOT doing that, but 5 is fine. </p>
<p>First Year
Fall
Core I, Writing 50, Bio, Chem
Spring
Core II, French, Dance, Bio, Chem, Psych</p>
<p>They take care of your whole schedule when you arrive, since you cannot check whether smthg is filled or not until you arrive. During orientation week you have a scheduled mtg with your academic advisor who can walk you thru the process, most upper level and elective courses are filled already. but they sometimes reserve spots for incoming students. Good Luck</p>
<p>French is a joint program, Scripps and CMC therefore it doesn't count as an "off campus course" and they are very lax with that rule as long as you talk to your advisor.</p>
<p>French 001 is offered at CMC and the 2 sessions are about 1/2 full and they will not be offering it Spring semester just French 002.
If you have had any French yoou might want to take French 022.</p>