I will be taking calc 1 sophmore year, and calc 2 junior year, so I was wondering what the logical continuation would be for senior year. Where could I take these classes? I’m hoping to attend a school such as Williams or MIT…
I took the same sequence of classes (except it was AP Calculus AB in sophomore, Calculus BC in junior). Possible courses are: multi-variable calculus, differential equations, linear algebra, abstract algebra, etc. But I suggest you have good experience writing proofs before taking much more advanced classes.
Thanks, and yes those are the classes I mean
And MITer94, what do you mean by good experience writing proofs?
Can you take dual-enrollment classes at a community college or university?
The logical next step would probably be multivariable calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, or discrete math. You can usually find these at community colleges, and you don’t need experience with proofs before you take them. Upper-level courses (number theory, abstract algebra, real analysis, etc.) are likely to have additional prerequisites, and you could take them next spring if you’re at a university.
You should also think about transfer credit, if you’re interested in that. Some colleges would make you retake a lot of classes.
Thanks. Yea I figured a community college course wouldn’t suffice what a college like Williams requires… So what are the pros of taking the class at a community college senior year as opposed to taking nothing?
Your high school doesn’t have anything above Calc 2? If not, you should take the next level at a CC senior year because all competitive colleges like to see 4 years of math.
I’m pretty sure it would suffice. And it’s definitely better than no math senior year.
If you’re talking about transfer credit, I would recommend emailing the colleges you’re interested in and asking what their policies are. (You might be surprised by what you can get. My private university gave me a lot of transfer credit for my dual-enrollment classes.)
Pros: Learn math, earn transfer credit.
Cons: The grades will become part of your “permanent college transcript,” in the sense that you might have to submit them to employers or graduate schools in the future. You might have to pay for the classes (depending on your state), and you might not earn transfer credit. It’s also inconvenient to take high school and college classes at the same time, because you have to go back and forth.
For admissions, colleges don’t expect you to take anything beyond what your high school offers. When they say you need four years of math, they’re assuming you’re an average student who won’t reach calculus until senior year or later. In your case, it would be fine to not take any math classes. (You essentially already have four years of math, but you learned some of it before high school.) It’s nice to take advanced classes, but it’s not going to make or break any college decisions.
Building off what others have said thus far: most HS students end their math sequence at Calc I or II (AP Calc AB and BC, respectively), so taking a further class is seen as “above and beyond” in effort (at least, I should like to think so).
Taking any college math class in dual-enrollment program(s) is a good idea. Based off the math sequence offered at my school, you have the option of Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, or Multi-variable calculus (in that order of preference). Of course, there might be others available.
Also, a class is a class. If the subject covers Linear Algebra, I can’t imagine it’d be too different to the point where certain universities don’t accept whatever credit you can get from it (as opposed to taking it at the university itself), y’know? So I wouldn’t worry whether “this school will accept it”, if that’s one of your main concerns.
The “standard” high school math sequence involves pre-calculus in the senior year. Most high school students don’t take calculus.
A lot of colleges (especially private colleges) are weird about transfer credit, regardless of the material covered in a course. In some cases, my university won’t even “transfer” its own classes taken by high school students.
@halcyonheather
Ah, my mistake. In my HS, in a low income area, Calculus classes were always offered, so I assumed it was standard fare in other schools in the country. I was mistaken.
I’ve heard of the reluctance to accept transfer credits at certain schools, but I find it weird nonetheless. If a student takes a Calculus class at a CC vs. the Calculus class at the university, what is different?
Sure, the professor, classroom setting, and overall vibe of the class differs, but the material itself is fundamentally the same. The concepts will not change just because you have a different person teaching it, in a new classroom with new people (except maybe the LEARNING process). So why do some schools not accept that?
I find it to be a kick in the teeth for the students who put in the effort to take these more difficult classes, as they have to go through it one more time and waste time.
It’s not really about the material, from what I can tell. They don’t like to give away credit for free, but there’s more to it than that.
You have to set limits somewhere, because you don’t want people coming in and testing out of a whole degree. Getting a degree from a their college is an experience, not just a bunch of facts you can write on an exam. My theory is that they want their student body to have a cohesiveness that comes from taking similar classes together, and it’s harder to do that if you have students arriving and testing out of random things.
There are probably more differences than you think among (for example) linear algebra classes, though. The main distinction is that they can be proof-based or not. At some schools, linear algebra serves as a rigorous introduction to proofs. At other schools, it’s essentially a matrix arithmetic class. Any differences can be determined by comparing the syllabi, and colleges usually do this before they give out any credit. (My university has two linear algebra classes, one for math majors and one for non-majors. I took linear algebra through dual enrollment at a local university that only had one class. I ended up getting credit for the non-majors class, which is useless because I’m a math major.)
*from their college
Thank you all for your responses! Just one last question: If I take a class such as linear algebra senior year, will I be bored retaking the class at at a more rigorous LAC?