CHEM107 is entry level Chemistry start from molecular science but in more detail level. CHEM120 is mainly inorganic Chemistry, oxidation and reduction and basic chemical equations but in more detail. It covers very little organic where most students struggle.
If you know for a fact that GT transfer from CM to CS is easy, GT is the top choice.
Student cannot move required classes designed for first semester ETAM to Spring semester. When you attend NSC, TAMU advisor will work with you on classes (sessions and schedule), the only selection is time and the 3 credit hour “core curriculum”. But note that even though degree plan is listed with 32 hours (suggested), most confident students take 13 hours in Fall and 14 hours in Spring to meet the minimum requirement for ETAM and to make sure their workload is light enough to attend some activities.
That said English ENGL103, 6 credits of “core curriculum” are optional for ETAM year. Some students take these to boost GPA. Once student is admitted to their major he or she can take these in the summer to “catch up”.
We were willing to pay more for a richer experience (pardon the pun) at TAMU but it makes even more sense now to choose GT.
Why should Chem be required for a CS major?
Nothing in 1st year Engineering gives students a feel of coding, which means he’ll have to wait till the sophomore year at least
And of course the uncertainty
My son has some experience in robotics but very limited programming (started self-learning C++ a couple of months back) and is nervous about making it at GT. What would you do?
Being an engineer means a person is well rounded. So all engineers take classes in chemistry, electricity, statics, dynamics, coding, regardless of their specialty. Of course, I am not familiar with all colleges degree plans but this is the case with the few I am familiar with.
There is lots of coding in eng 101 and eng 117 (eta 116, not 117), both freshman engineer classes that all general engineers take at tamu. Those without coding experience have to learn lots, quickly.
Eng 101 gives the freshman an overview of all the different types of engineering degrees offered. Many come in thinking they know what they want to do, and then change their minds when they learn of all the possibilities. Since your son has just started coding, how does he know for sure that thats what he wants to do??
If he is going to a top rated competitive engineering school like GT or tamu for computer science, many of his classmates will have been coding for years. He can catch up and thrive, if driven.
Regarding Chem 107 - I am not familiar with the hs chem class you took, but my son says that chem 107 was mainly review since he took AP chem. You could study the AP chem test guide to be prepared for chem107 at tamu, or any freshman chemistry at any university
Yes I believe GT (if getting into CS) will be top choice. A few years back CM transfer to CS in GT was very easy, hopefully nothing change but you may still want to reach out to GT CM advisors to see if it is still the case.
GT CS is top notch (in the same rank as MIT and CMU) so if there is a path it is a no-brainer.
As for your questions
Chemistry is for the ETAM process, which some students may choose other engineering fields. But then the question of why picking chemistry and not biology, discrete math, IOS/Andriod programming…That for sure TAMU will change throughout the time.
ENGR 102 (Freshmen Fall semester) is Python programming. This is not an easy coding class. In US, most students have computer science in high school and students are very versed at Java (a C/C++ variant) and C# so TAMU try to challege students with another programming language instead of repeating Java and C/C++ programming. Also Python is widely used in all engineering fields for quick scripting.
Your son will definitely need more catch up to do. If possible try getting an AP Computer Science A workbook to see if he can comfortably answer the questions. US students have two years of computer science (AP computer science Principles and AP computer science A) in high school. AP CS A classes projects are already quite sophisticated. If your son finds the questions challenging, use this summer to enroll in C/C++/any object oriented programming classes.
You may find some students in TAMU or GT discussions claiming the programming classes are easy and some claim to have no experience but still doing great. Those are very rare and extraordinary smart students. Coding needs time to develop skills and style. Students good in discrete math can understand the logic faster but coding still need a lot of practice.
Here is a link to the GT major selection. Scroll down to the link for the policy on changing major.
If memory serves, incoming freshman are allowed to change major once, basically no questions asked. This is really the process of formally declaring a major and does not have to be the same as entered on your application. Any additional/later changes require departmental approval.
Bottom line is that if you want computer science or computer engineering or a handful of other popular majors, 3.75 college GPA is your target, because non-automatic admission to those majors is very unlikely.
However, some other engineering majors at Texas A&M have enough capacity to admit all interested students.
@FriscoDad Thank you for sharing this great info. Daughter will apply college (engineering) this summer, we are in Texas, obviously the usual TAMU, UT, Rice… and some out of state. I have some questions.
What makes Georgia Tech computer science so good? Seems like back in the 90s not hearing it so much.
Is private university like Cornell, Stanford, MIT, CMU really worth it?
Those are very good questions. Especially many good students get multiple offers and high cost is at stake.
GT ranking in science and technology shot up so fast because their curriculum got updated frequently. Hence most employers found their graduates were able to quickly adapt into their new jobs. For instance, GT computer science has 8 “threads” (like tracks in other colleges) all are very trendy area and GT allows students mix different threads to develop more specialize skill set. Most other colleges are traditional (old school), requiring a number of fundamental science classes. However, many of these colleges are now catching up this GT model. They are now publishing new degree plans every year. Traditional colleges (like UIUC and TAMU) usually have an easier freshmen year but the learning curve becomes very steep starting junior year.
Top private universities are all good and most offer financial aid (discounts) to families with income less than $100K. So for out of state applicants, at times the cost is only a little higher than out-of-state public universities. To better compare them with top public universities (UCB, UIUC, UM, UT, Purdue, GT, TAMU), you need to look at their degree plans. For instance, if CMU has a track a student wants but not UIUC, then even CMU’s cost of attendance is slightly higher, CMU is still worth it. As for the ultimate goal (getting a good job), top private and top public universities are about the same (for top quarter students).
Either will be fine. Also use Khan academy as self-learning tool. If your student find AP CS A too tough, try AP CS Principles first then AP CS A.
Main difference from AP test to college classes will be the exam. College exams are free-response coding (not multiple choice) so frequent coding practice is very important.
Data structure (a sophomore class) can be brutal to new programmers.(in second half of the class.)