A lot of colleges including RPI, Stevens, Perdue, RIT show 4 years of Maths as a requirement for Engineering. What are the good/ABET-accredited engineering colleges that will accept 3 years of math? We are in CA. Not interested in the midwest area colleges. West Coast or East. Applying to CSU and UC but they seem to be unpredictable. Current GPA 3.7 (weighted)
Has done IM2 (freshman), IM3+STEM ( Sophomore), AP Calc AB (Junior - didn’t do well in AP exam), dropped out of Calc BC in senior year. Doing AP Physics 2, AP Computer Science A, AP Gov in senior year. PLTW in all 4 years.
Thank you for your help!
1 Like
4 years of math may include the high school math courses taken in middle school.
One other possibility that comes to mind, try to arrange dual enrollment calc 2 spring senior year.
1 Like
Thanks for the reply. Didn’t do any HS courses in middle school. Calc BC was very hard and I was failing. With other AP courses and EC it was hard to keep up. Would one semester of dual enrollment be of any value?
Just based on this statement, you need to give serious consideration to a major outside of Engineering.
13 Likes
One semester of calc 2 is equivalent to calc BC. If you’re not confident in your learning from AB, taking dual enrollment calc 1 might be an even better idea. Edit, based on your reply following this post, take calc 1.
How did you end up in calc AB junior year if you didn’t take high school courses in middle school? That doesn’t make sense. It looks like your high school does integrated math for algebra 1, geometry, and algebra 2. Integrated Math 1 would be high school math in this scenario - surely you didn’t skip it.
2 Likes
got a C and B in Calc AB in Junior, but AP exam got only 2. The school was online completely due to the pandemic and it was hard to catch up. I love AP Physics2 and get A. All other classes have A so far in senior year. Very involved in Robotics and other EC. Would Engineering Technology be a better option? I understand Calc is heavy in Engineering and hope I can take some classes in the summer to catch up. Thanks for replying to my post.
1 Like
I think it’s extremely hard to advise students about whether engineering is a good fit based on online/pandemic classes. I don’t disagree that in a normal context - struggling with Calc AB and Calc BC as separate year long classes, doesn’t bode well for an engineering student. But I’ve seen way too many kids struggle with online classes during Covid and each individual school/teacher’s ability to teach effectively remote, to assume that the student can’t hack engineering. I would absolutely advise dual enrollment in IN PERSON classes to really get a feel if engineering is a good fit. I’d probably start with Calc 1, based on grades and AP score of Calc AB junior year - or even an earlier class if available and you don’t feel confident in your preparation for Calculus.
Check the requirements of state universities - it might bode well to be at a larger school with lots of different paths depending on whether engineering is a good fit regardless vs an engineering focused school. I know Oregon State accepts 3 years of math, but I’m sure there are many, many others.
4 Likes
I was put in Integrated Math 2 in my Freshman year. Some students had done Integrated Math 1 in middle school but I didn’t. I think that was the mistake. I didn’t have any other math class to go from Calc AB other than BC in senior year.
1 Like
Your calc AB grades might make admission to engineering difficult. My sense is that looking at less selective programs is a good idea. I don’t know enough about Stevens or RIT to guess; my guess is that Purdue and RPI are reaches.
Now have my fourth kid taking high school calc and have seen that high school teaching and grading vary widely in AP calc. I would not close the door on engineering based on AP calc experiences, if engineering is what you want to do. You just need to back up and get the math right, and apply to colleges at the relevant selectivity level.
Your math track is a little weird. I might anticipate some holes. I agree w/ @Darcy123 that you might want to take a non-calc math course dual enrollment to shore things up. Precalc? Something along those lines - the dual enrollment school should have a placement test.
5 Likes
I really like Oregon State U, and trying to find similar schools. I just checked the dual Enrollment classes that were offered to us, Calc was not included. I will try to find some more information on that.
1 Like
Utah has engineering that shows a four year course plan starting with Calc 1. It is relatively easy to get into and offers WUE:
https://catalog.utah.edu/#/programs/EyMhdjEA-?bc=true&bcCurrent=Mechanical%20Engineering&bcItemType=programs
1 Like
Looking at their website, it looks like Utah only requires 2 years of math, and that you don’t have to apply directly into the engineering college, which should also make it easier for you.
I think the fact that you’re doing well in physics and have robotics experience bodes well for you, despite your struggles with calculus up to now. My husband didn’t take calculus in high school, and then almost failed his first college calculus class (as an engineering major). He took the class again with a better professor, got an A, and proceeded to excel in engineering, eventually getting his PhD. Hang in there if it’s what you really want to do!
3 Likes
Thanks for the encouraging words. I am a very hands on technical kind of guy and engineering has been my passion. I just need to find a college that fits me and able to thrive.
3 Likes
Check the requirements of University of New Mexico.
2 Likes
UMaine
2 Likes
Skipped precalculus? Was IM3+STEM supposed to include precalculus?
Normally, if the student completes calculus and knows it well, it should not be a problem for going into engineering. However, doing poorly in calculus AB (C and B grades with AP score of 2) and dropping out of calculus BC can be a worrisome sign that the student’s precalculus knowledge is not strong enough to do calculus well.
Note that students without AP credit for calculus will probably need to take the college’s math placement test on entry. Not doing well on such a math placement test may require the student to start in precalculus, which will likely delay graduation by a semester for an engineering major. An example of the kind of placement test a student may need to take: rurci3 (student may want to try this quiz now to check precalculus knowledge)
For admission to UCs and CSUs, IM2+IM3 = 3 years of math (the minimum admission requirement) because IM1 is validated by completion of IM2 or IM3 (page 19 of University of California Counselors ), and calculus AB counts as 1 year of advanced math.
4 Likes
This is exactly what I was thinking when reading the original post. In my experience students who are very strong in algebra, trigonometry, and precalculus tend to find calculus straightforward. I have heard that students who are weak in the prerequisites tend to find calculus very tough.
There is what you need to get accepted to an appropriate university, and what you need to do well once you get there. Concerning the latter point, I think that you need to at a minimum be solid in all of the prerequisites for calculus. I am wondering what sort of work you can do to get a more solid basis in these prerequisites.
3 Likes
Which UC’s and CSU’s are you applying for Engineering since they are all test blind, Math grades will be especially important. What grades did you get for IM2 & IM3?
I agree that you need a solid Math foundation so Calc 1 DE could be helpful regardless where you apply.
3.7 Weighted GPA is 9-11th? What is your UC/CSU GPA?
https://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/
UC’s other than Merced may be out of Reach.
1 Like
I would recommend trying the quiz at rurci3 in order to see what review of precalculus topics is needed before retaking calculus 1. If there are gaps in precalculus knowledge, retaking calculus 1 may not go that well even if it is the second time.
2 Likes
Your calc ab is more than needed to get into an engineering program. You might need to redo in college but many kids don’t get that far.
If you like Oregon State, how about Washington State, Arizona bit more urban), Idaho, Colorado State….you will have lots of options.
You will need to strengthen your math but if you really want to pursue engineering you should retake the first year of calc again. There’s where most students will be anyway.
Good luck.
4 Likes