<p>How important it is to colleges whether or not one took advanced math/science courses and excelled in them in order to be considered for an Engineering major? I am interested in Engineering but I am shying away from the possibility due to my not so excellent grades, and I know there are many more qualified people out there. I am about to be a senior and I will be taking Chem II AP and Calc AB. As a junior I got a 70 in Pre-Cal PAP (1st semester) and 90 in regular Pre-Cal (2nd semester). As a sophomore I got an 83 in Chem PAP (1st sem) and 79 (2nd). As a junior I got 79's for both semesters in Physics PAP.
My SAT is a 1900 (620 critical reading, 660 math, 620 wriitng)
My ACT was a 25 but I'm going to retake it...
I'm looking at schools such as UT Austin, Texas A&M, Baylor... just wondering so I know what path to choose when picking my major choices...
Thanks. </p>
<p>Most of the time what they want to see is that, if you had the opportunity to take the rigorous math and science courses that you used that opportunity. It sounds like you did. Of course they like to see you did reasonably well, too. Your grades and test scores aren’t going to keep you from doing engineering, though I’d bet they will keep you from doing engineering at either UT or TAMU.</p>
<p>At many universities you can enter the engineering department without having already completed such course work. Obviously, it makes your path to a engineering B.S. a bit longer. Consider your competition; lots of Texas-Austin and TAMU applicants will already have Calc I & II or AB Calc on their resumes. It will be your choice to begin college with Calc I. Same for Chem. Upperclassmen on this forum have recommended that Freshmen take both in college because college math and college chemistry are faster paced and cover much more than their High School AP or Honors equivalents. Nevertheless, don’t sweat it.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you have to complete the work to get out of an engineering program.</p>