<p>Other majors include exercise physiology looking at PT down the road. The good thing is the pre reqs for that are all science core required in engineering. Possibly epidemiology down the road (not undergrad). </p>
<p>I’m thinking maybe the frosh general eng is ok with an eye on what she likes and doesn’t like with that. Then also being conscious of other majors available at each school. That sounds like a reasonable plan. Thanks for calming me down. </p>
<p>If she doesn’t love math, better to stay away from the sciences and especially engineering. Or grin and bear it, as others said, but remember, the major courses will be chock full of math too.</p>
<p>Or is there a chance it is her math teacher turning her off from math?</p>
<p>As stated by others she needs a university instead of a strictly technical school to keep her options more open. Her freshman year she will take many of the same courses regardless of which STEM field she actually ends up in. Or, she could have plenty of her sciences done if she goes humanities/social sciences instead. It will be interesting for you to see what she ends up doing five years from now. </p>
<p>I was a chemistry major who disliked physics and was so-so for math. Too bad the mix with biology was in its infancy in my day. Once your D discovers various college courses she will figure out her path. There will always be courses, even in her major, she may not like. </p>
<p>Don’t worry, mom. Things will work out.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t apply to engineering if I were her. It’s much harder to get accepted than undeclared major.</p>
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<p>That actually depends on the school.</p>
<p>And if it is harder to get into engineering in frosh admission at the given school, it tends to be hard to change into engineering after enrolling, so an undeclared student who decides to go for engineering may not be able to get into the major, other than by transferring to another school that will accept him/her into the major.</p>
<p>Well if you don’t have the grades to transfer in that even makes it less likely you should study engineering in the first place.</p>
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<p>The threshold for transferring into the major is often considerably higher than the threshold for staying in good academic standing or transferring to another school in the major.</p>
<p>For example, it is possible that, at school X:</p>
<ul>
<li>Engineering majors at school X need to maintain a 2.0 GPA to remain in good academic standing.</li>
<li>Others at school X need at least a 3.5 GPA to have a realistic chance of changing to an engineering major.</li>
<li>School Y will admit transfer students to the engineering majors with a 3.0 GPA, and school Z will admit transfer students to the engineering majors with a 2.5 GPA.</li>
</ul>
<p>So what GPA “makes it less likely you should study engineering in the first place”?</p>
<p>I know a couple of kids in engineering who were not strong math students and they are really struggling in the college math classes which are required (adding extra semesters and summers to retake those math classes.) As some have said, engineering is hard to transfer into due to the tight requirements and prerequisites which are required. I have been told if you think you want to do engineering start with taking the required freshman engineering classes (which in many schools are the same regardless of the type of engineering). </p>
<p>All that being said - my daughter went in undeclared and it served her well - helped her to decide a path which she is now enjoying. (not an engineering path.)</p>
<p>A computer science degree might require easier math than engineering - check that out. Still a tech field but very different. A woman in either engineering or tech is still in the minority these days (which might be to her advantage).</p>
<p>As a freshman advisor, my favorite major is undecided, although here no freshman can declare a major, only an area of interest. HOWEVER, if a kid is interested in a highly structured program, like nursing or, I would imagine, engineering, it is better to start on those tracks. The reason is that jumping in later can add extra time to a program if a kid is out of sequence. If a student decides the program is not for her, she can switch out far more easily. Some of the courses will fill gen ed requirements, the rest electives. No harm done. If engineering remains a viable possibility, she should probably apply with that program as her area of interest. </p>
<p>DS is an Electrical Engineering major. I’m pretty sure that DS isn’t the only student that loves their engineering classes but wasn’t thrilled about having to take Calc II, III and Differential Equations. 
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<p>My point is that if she likes the rest of the major then I’m sure she can do the 4 or 5 math classes that are required.</p>
<p>I know a lot of parents read here that girls have an edge applying for engineering majors. But some of these girls have strong mat skills. My kid never go anything but A in math and all other sciences. Particularly for math she is always the top 4-5 students. Her teacher told the counselor that. She gets a butt kicked in Math in college. Had she major in math like *intparent’s kid she would have her head handed to her. This is why I was so much against her put down that major. Only after regrouping her study skills did she manage to get straight As.
Despite having string GPA I’m still wording about her finding job. So if you in engineering with 2.0 I would even more worry. Honestly I don’t think that’s such a hot GPA. And if you read OPs posts, other alternative majors are not science and math. So maybe this kid is not someone to push into engineering.</p>
<p>*string should be *strong GPA.</p>
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<p>This may not be true for girls. Engineering is the one field in which girls have an admissions advantage.</p>
<p>OP</p>
<p>One advantage of applying in a given major is early access to advisers in the major and the support system that comes along with being a declared major at many schools.</p>
<p>I would get to know the ins and outs of how classes are managed at target schools. You can learn this by talking with students and professors. Also check into support services such as tutors. Find out how many students drop out of the math sequence or re-take classes.</p>
<p>Consider whether she wounld be more comfortable at a school where her stats and background will put her among the most prepared and accomplished, especially if her high school is very competitive. </p>
<p>Post #32, those girls also have strong stats the ones that were admitted. I know someone from my daughter’s school was rejected with 34 ACT and top 1% GPA from Cal Poly SLO. Not sure what other schools she applied to but her major was mechanical eng. But I think she was rejected from Catech too. If I recall she did very well on all the math and science classes as in not a single B and in more advance math then my kid.
The kid who has B in Calc AB is not a kid to push into engineering.</p>
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<p>My son got a 3 on the AB Calc test (too low to qualify for advanced placement at his university) and did so poorly on the university’s math placement test that he not only had to retake Calc 1, he had to retake precal as well.</p>
<p>He graduated with honors in computer science, went on to get a master’s degree in that field, and now has a nice career going as a software engineer.</p>
<p>You never know.</p>
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<p>It will be different math, hard to say easier or harder really. </p>
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<p>I got a C in high school calc. Went on and did fine. Having consistent absent mindedness to forget to add “+C” all over the place doesn’t mean that you can’t do engineering. </p>
<p>Additionally, high school calc runs at a slightly faster pace than Calc in most colleges (this might vary by high school though - is the Calc AB all year or 1 semester?), and in college it’s 1 of 4 classes you take, in high school it’s 1 of 7. </p>
<p>@Marian I think part of the trouble (not all) in her case is her teacher. He isn’t her favorite, nor is he the fav of most kids in the school. It does not help matters at all. I myself had a poor teacher in both physics and pre calc in high school (no calc at my school), and I did very well. High A’s in a year of physics, took trig to prep for calc and aced it, then got a B in calc with a heavy load in the sciences. The teacher does matter! Perhaps your son had a similar experience. </p>
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<p>High school calculus AB is typically taught over a year, but covers what college calculus typically covers in a semester or slightly more than a semester, so it is typically slower paced than college calculus. BC approximates what college calculus typically covers in two semesters (or the last part of the two semesters of college calculus if it is the remainder for students who already took AB).</p>
<p>It depends on the high school and the college. My daughter found the BC calculus not as hard , relaxing for her but not the same in college. She has to put in the work.</p>