Should I take 3, 4?
The fewer clases you take per semester the longer it will take to graduate.
Depends on your major. If you’re in a more challenging fields (CS, engineering, math) or fields in which high GPA is a priority (Pre-med, Pre-Haas), it is wise to take fewer classes your first semester to gauge how much you can handle. You can always take more classes in subsequent semesters.
Four courses is typical to get 15-16 units (most courses are 4 units, some are 3, and a few are other values like 1, 2, 5, or 6 units). Units nominally correspond to workload (1 units nominally means 3 hours per week of work), but actual workload per unit varies from course to course. Generally, courses with labs, art studio, music performance, large term projects, or computer programming tend to be higher workload per unit; it may not be a good idea to take more than two such courses together.
I am majoring in Econ.
@canyouhelbzme Do you plan to follow the quantitative track? Do you plan to add a math or stats major?
This page has information on prerequisites, etc… for the Econ major: https://www.econ.berkeley.edu/undergrad/prospective/freshmen I recommend the video that is linked on that page. Also, you will get a lot of help at Orientation. My son is majoring in Econ. They advised him at orientation to take a lighter load first semester to get used to Berkeley. He took 15 units, including Calculus (Math 1A), Reading & Composition, 2 GEs and a one unit Freshman Seminar. He was advised to take Math 1A despite a 4 on the AP Calc AB exam, because Math 1B is supposedly quite rigorous. He was also advised to wait on Econ 1 until second semester. He is now a sophomore. His other 3 semesters he has taken 17-18 units. Mostly because he finds classes that he wants to take. He is done with his GEs and has 8 courses to take to be finished with the Econ major and a minor in Public Policy.
Don’t take too many, there’s no rush; Have a cap at 15 or 16 units, but remember that this is Berkeley, so you have to get used to the courseload and rigor. Try taking 1 or 2 “easy” courses and maybe a DeCal or seminar to ease the load, if you are taking technicals.
Seems like a lot of advisors say this, but lots of students at Berkeley do fine starting in more advanced math courses. Since the math department puts old final exams up on its web site, an entering student with AP calculus credit can easily check his/her knowledge of Math 1A (or Math 1B) material by trying these old final exams to make a more informed placement decision: https://math.berkeley.edu/courses/archives/exams
However, a student who took calculus AB, or took AB+BC over two years should be aware that college math covers material twice as fast as those high school courses.