This is the advice I’ve always been given. The only time I’ve ever heard anyone say to accept the credits, specifically in Math and Physics, is only if your engineering degree plan requires nothing beyond the basics. I’m enjoying the conversation on this topic and I’m absorbing.
1 Like
Haha, I also think that’s not a good reason to retake a class. I think a lot of kids take classes for granted when they retake them and think it’ll be an easy A when they’re not. Especially since college exams are really hard! But some no doubt will be review. But I think if anything what is good about retaking a class and I didn’t mention this above, is that the transition to college can be difficult for some and while you’re in school less hours per day than you were in high school, you need to have good time management skills, etc. I think there is so much that is new that having a class that is familiar to oneself helps with the other classes that aren’t so familiar and it helps ease the transition as the classes move into more and more difficulty. My daughter probably could’ve passed out of that Calc 3 if she put her mind to it and studied the summer before she started school. All the old tests from years prior for the Calc 3 course and homework sets, etc. were online from the semester prior to use to study and teach herself what she didn’t know, but she finally decided she didn’t want to spend her time on it. The test to pass was not based on your overall score but something where on each section you had to get a minimum score. So you basically had to know every topic and couldn’t skate by not knowing one. Tbh she just isn’t that disciplined and I know I can just say yeah ok when she says something like that, lol. Ultimately I think it was a good move because the students in Linear Algebra were not freshman, nor were most of them in her Calc 3 class since I remember the seats available before she registered were slim, so it probably worked out for the best.
1 Like
Everyone at Georgia Tech, including the advisors, will tell you to take BC Calc credits. My son was also advised by an advisor to take his physics 1 credit (which he didn’t do) and to take physics 2 somewhere other than Georgia Tech which many people do. This was during orientation. He recently had a conversation with his advisor about physics 2 which he still hasn’t taken and she agreed it’s a good idea to take it somewhere else. Lots of out-of-state people take it at home to save $.
Thanks very much for the conversation around taking the credits. It will give us things to consider for sure!
By the way, when we first looked into testing out of classes we had understood that if you were successful with the exam, you would need to pay the tuition that you would have paid if you actually took the class. DS followed up with GT and was told that is not the case, which is great.
I think one of the reasons DS is very interested in testing out of Linear Algebra and MVC is that from reviewing Oscar they will be online lectures and he wants to avoid that where possible. Obviously he will have to do well in the tests, if he ultimately decides to go that route. Thanks again!
I find this fascinating. Many schools we are in contact with over the last decade absolutely frown upon taking program required courses away from the main campus. University core requirements, sure, but at UT, A&M, Purdue, UM, and such we have been instructed the complete opposite. We also have been advised multiple times to make sure you retake first year Math and Physics so that the department can “reprogram” the students thinking.
This is our first experience with GT as none of my other kids had it on their list. We’re still discussing everything right now and waiting for Tuesday’s Ivy announcements.
My daughter goes to UT and I can honestly tell you that many students in Engineering there actually do take the math and physics classes at a CC because they are a beast at UT otherwise. If you’re in the CNS there you also have to take all of those classes plus physics and many kids change majors after one semester because there are majors in that school that kids can’t handle those courses, like nutrition for instance.
My daughter is in the Business Honors program and while she had her AP BC and dual credit for Calc 3 (which wasn’t required for her major anyway), personally I never would have let her take those at a CC. Something like Psych maybe, but a core class like Math, no. She took summer school last year and only because they discounted it 50% and had just attained residency status did I let her take the class (English) there, otherwise she most definitely would’ve taken it at a CC.
@yearstogo I have never heard of a school charging full tuition to pass out of a class. That makes no sense. What UT-Austin does however, is charge you $10/hour for every AP or dual credit you claim. But the best thing about it I’ve since realized is that even if you send all your AP scores, you don’t have to claim them all at once. For instance, our school recommends if you take Spanish Honors 4 but aren’t taking AP Spanish senior year, to take the AP test because you can usually gets 3 and some schools take a 3. So my daughters did that and both earned 3’s which is pretty sad because one actually told me she didn’t speak at all for any of the verbal section so she doesn’t know how she earned a 3 (not the UT daughter), anyway she can claim 6 credits I believe, however, as it turns out she already had enough credits to cover her extra electives or required courses other than some specifics she needed so they’re just sitting there if she ever needs. On the other hand, the other one who was mute during the test, needed at least a 4 I believe and would’ve had to take some placement test at her school as well but fortunately for both of them, there is no language requirement for their majors.
1 Like
Classes at GT are hard. Glad to know they are not alone in recommending some courses be taken elsewhere. My GT son was valedictorian of his rigorous school and very well prepared and he has been challenged every semester. He, thankfully, was a pro at time management which is critical at Tech. The kids who get in trouble are the ones who really never had to balance a rigorous schedule with extracurriculars or “never had to study” in high school. At some point these kids all outpace their innate talents - it just comes quickly at GT. Like they tell you in orientation, all of you were in the top 10 percent of your class before you came to GT. 90 percent of you will not be this year. It is eye opening!
As far as taking Physics somewhere else, that advice may not be given to every major depending on what foundation is needed for further classes.
Totally. It’s like all those people in middle school who think their kids are “gifted” because math comes easy to them and want their kids in those advanced classes but by sophomore year they’ve hit the wall and can’t handle the material.
At a lot of these elite schools these kids are all on a level playing field and the ones that can’t handle being #1 anymore or the top because everyone is now pretty much the same, I’ve seen now seem to have the hardest time.
1 Like
@VirginiaBelle my daughter is one of those kids “who never had to study” in HS, specifically for math and science courses (all APs). Sometimes I wonder how she will adjust to college!
1 Like
My son too, and i’m nervous.
1 Like
Hopefully they will learn good study habits! My daughter stopped doing math homework as a freshman because it was optional!
2 Likes
I have the same concerns…DS has enjoyed doing math competitions for many years and “school math” has not been a challenge at all. Wanting him to learn and be challenged but not get completely destroyed.
2 Likes
She will learn quick! My son had several hours of homework every night that was absolutely not optional 
and was very involved in extracurriculars all school year. Time management is a skill that he had to learn and it has served him very well!
I had the same talk with my sophomore and my current senior. College is an adjustment because they have a lot of free time during the day and no parent being sure they get to class.
The same things work now that used to work then. Go to class. Much easier to learn when you’re actually in class and taking your own notes. Don’t get behind. Use your time in the middle of the day wisely. There’s never anything fun going on then and if you do you can do the fun stuff at night. Utilize the resources available to you. There is a lot of support from tutoring to office hours out there but you need to be able to recognize that you need it and seek it out. Don’t wait too late! Meeting your professors and teaching assistants is always a good idea 
And @srparent15 is right. At an elite school, everyone is on a level playing field. Our kids are no longer the smartest in the room or the smartest in the school. My son has told me several times he can’t believe how many people are so much smarter than him😂. That being said, he loves Tech, is getting a great education, has done very well academically and has a awesome social life. It is a great school for the right kid but they have to manage their expectations and their time!
All these kids are very capable of doing well. That is why they got in Georgia Tech! The biggest issue is going to be managing their time to fit in all of their academics and allow them to have a balanced life. That’s just a life skill that we all need to learn I’m sure he will do great!
There is no way I would survive in today’s college environment. I’ll date myself and say that three decades ago I finished my BS and MS using only the basic high school time management skills; and much more using my late-night social skills. As I watch my last kid getting ready to enter the gauntlet, it continues to amaze me how “ready” these kids are, even when the parents don’t think so.
1 Like
@VirginiaBelle yes she will have to learn to study! She is a dancer (ballerina) and spent
many hours training, rehearsing, etc. so it was a bonus that she did very well in school without too much effort. But I am definitely worried that college will be an adjustment!
1 Like
Something else too, some of these kids that were the stars with the all A’s now get C’s and can’t handle that. Or even a B. And that’s ok. As parents we have to support them and let them know there’s nothing wrong with it. They will earn a 60 on a test. It’s not the end of the world.
@RockyPA As far as homework goes, if she’s really not doing it she will want to get in the habit of doing so. Both my college kids have classes where homework is part of the grade and certain classes have large problem sets that are time sucks. Also with group assignments as well sometimes I’ve seen that be a hard adjustment for kids who are used to working on their own. I have a friend who’s daughter really has not adjusted well to working collaboratively and would do a lot of the stuff ahead of the group for the group as if she didn’t trust them. People in the group really didn’t like that. Also if they would ask her about an answer for something she would not share or be collaborative for concern of academic integrity issues even though it wasn’t close to that. Well this year a lot of them are working collaboratively but not with her and she was really struggling and finally reached out to help with someone but still so freaked out about the integrity issue that asked the TA for permission first. A little over the top but she’s clearly so rigid. Point being, you have to learn to collaborate and work as a group together and not point fingers or get upset if someone can’t meet etc, and get to know your counterparts because you soon do realize who will be willing to help in your time of need.
1 Like
Has any RD admitted student received an acceptance packet from GT yet? I’ve only received a notecard with a letter on the back encouraging me to apply to a learning community.
Does anyone happen to know how financial aid works with the coop program?
My daughter has received the acceptance letter twice in mail. It is the same letter that you see in your portal. No additional material. She was accepted during EA.