Hi, I’m an international high school student from Calgary who is looking to take computer science and electrical engineering courses at Berkeley. Looking at the courses that are available, I am currently looking to take CS31- Introduction to Computer Science I, and EL ENG3- Introduction to Electrical Engineering. I want to also take CS32- Introduction to Computer Science II at the same time, so can anyone tell me if they have done both CS31 and CS32 at the same time before or how hard they are?
I have some knowledge of JavaScript and Python, but have had no formal classes.
How hard is EL ENG3? How good does your math and physics have to be for the course if you are in high school?
Does anyone else know any courses at UCLA that are useful for programming and computer science?
I am also looking to take Math 31B since I have done IB Math SL. Is CS31, Math32B, and EL ENG3 too many courses at one time?
Most high school students wouldn’t be prepared for that curriculum.
EE3 is typically taken by second-year engineering majors at UCLA, because it has prerequisites of multivariate calculus and first-year college physics (which has a multivariate calculus co-requisite).
Taking CS31+CS32 at the same time would be a horrible idea, unless you are already a semi-competent programmer AND you are willing to put in the extra effort to learn C++ before CS 32 starts. (I went from no programming experience to writing a platform game complete with sound and graphics in my first CS class.)
@b@r!um I’m now thinking about taking Math 32A, COMPTNG 10A, and Introduction to Political Theory(for interest and balance). I would have a full day of classes (9am-11:50am and then 3:15pm-5:20pm) on Monday and Wednesday, and only programming on Tuesday and Thursday (11am-11:50am).
I notice that it says the lectures are 3 hours yet on the class schedule all the classes I have looked at only appear to be 1-2 hours despite having Lec1 beside them. Can you explain to me why?
Which university are you planning to attend in the fall?
PIC 10A seems like a fine course to get hands-on programming experience; however, it does not count towards UCLA’s engineering or CS major. If you are hoping to get an engineering or CS degree from UCLA, I’d stick to CS 31. If you are going elsewhere and hoping to major in CS or engineering, that university may or may not give you a hard time about replacing their own introductory CS course with PIC 10A. CS 31 is the “safer” choice in both cases.
Math 32A would be useful if you attend UCLA in the fall, but may not help you elsewhere. Most colleges teach UCLA’s Math 32AB sequence in a single one-semester “multivariable calculus” course. Unless you’d complete both 32A and 32B, you’d still have to start from scratch elsewhere.
@b@r!um I’m actually a grade 11 student, but I’m planning on applying as computer science or computer engineering related major and am hoping that this will make me a more attractive applicant. I definitely am planning on applying to Berkeley, UCLA, UCSD, Washington, Illinois, Waterloo (Canada), U of T (Canada), UBC (Canada), among other schools.
The main problem I have with taking CS31 is that 50 minutes of the course overlaps into Math 32A according to the UCLA Class Schedule website, which is why I’m not sure if I’m able to handle that. I’m mostly looking to show universities that I am capable of taking courses related to CS, but also want experience in CS, since I’m planning on creating apps over the summer for iOS and Android.
Do you think that taking Math 32A will be impressive to some universities if I mention that on my application? Some of the top schools I want to get into are Berkeley and UCLA, and I’m trying to show initiative by taking advanced classes, and showing them that I am serious about computer science despite not discovering that it was something I liked until grade 11.
So if you had the option of only taking CS31 or Math 32A, you would take CS31? Or do you think it’s okay for me to have overlapping classes for CS31 and Math 32A if I make sure to study a lot on my own?
I would also not spend a lot of money on summer courses in an effort to “impress” universities. They won’t be impressed. Summer courses say more about your financial resources than your academic potential. If you do take summer courses, take them for your own benefit.
Since you want to learn how to create apps, prioritizing CS seems like the obvious choice.
I would personally advise against taking too many advanced “academic core” courses in high school. When you start college, most of the engineering majors will take most of their classes together - they’ll all follow the standard math, physics and engineering sequences, form study groups, and form close friendships with their fellow engineering majors. If you are more advanced in some areas than others, you may not encounter the same people in multiple courses and it’s much easier to end up socially+academically isolated.
I don’t know how many “fun” courses UCLA teaches over the summer, but if I had the time to take a bunch of classes at my local community college, I’d ditch the math and take more exploratory courses unlike anything I encountered in high school. How about 3D animation, media law, meteorology, forensic science, foundations of biotechnology…?
@b@r!um Thanks for the advice. I’m still thinking about taking CS31 and Introduction to Political Theory since I’m actually interested in both subjects. I’ve never actually been to the US before, so I want to also make sure that the “international student in the US” theme will actually be something I’m comfortable with. Perhaps I can talk about my experience of studying at UCLA in the summer on my college application? I’m definitely going to be moving far from home if I come study at UCLA over the summer, and will be a lot more independent, which is why I’m Berkeley and UCLA will recognize that I’m showing genuine interest in attending them. Also, I feel that doing this also shows I have the maturity to take care of myself in terms of academics and well being on my own.
If I were to stay in Calgary over the summer, I’d likely just be learning coding on my own in order to make the apps and taking a single summer school class at my local high school since that’s all that’s offered, which I feel doesn’t really stand out. I’ve also tried searching job sites for internships in computer science, but all I can find are ones offered towards undergraduate students.
Spending a summer in the US won’t stand out either.
When I was a graduate student at Stanford, a majority of the students who took summer classes on campus were foreign high school students who were hoping that taking summer classes at Stanford was somehow good for their college applications. Did that make hundreds or thousands of international college applicants special? I doubt it. The numbers just don’t work out that way. Stanford admitted just about anyone for the summer session with sufficient English proficiency and enough money to pay their exorbitant tuition fees without financial aid.
Funny aside: even though summer courses had the same course names as their regular counterparts, many had a different course number and did not count towards a Stanford major for Stanford undergraduates. The summer courses were not taught by regular faculty, but instead by graduate students who got the chance to teach an entire course independently. Summer courses were also significantly easier than regular courses and the summer students could pat themselves on the back for acing a “heavy” load of Stanford courses. Lolz.
Not to say that summer courses at UCLA or Berkeley are not equivalent to their regular courses. They may well be. I mostly wanted to make the point that thousands of foreign high school students take summer courses in the US in the hopes of improving their college applications, so many that it’s no longer special.
I don’t want to talk you out of taking summer courses in the US. I just want to emphasize that you should do it for yourself, not for college admissions. In particular, if the fees would be a financial hardship for your family, please don’t waste your money.
I briefly answered on your other thread. The recommendation for UCLA summer session is for one class per session due to the accelerated nature of the courses. These courses are regularly 10 week quarter courses, but for summer they are 6 week courses. The IB Math you’re completing now, is most likely not equivalent to UCLA’s Math 31A, so you will not likely be allowed to enroll in either 31B or 32A.
You would not be able to register for classes that overlap in time, either.
Attending a UC’s summer session does not make you a more attractive applicant to those schools. What are you test scores? Your GPA so far? What ECs have you participated in?
ETA I see some of your stats in another thread. I really feel it is premature for you to take UCLA summer courses.
“…and am hoping that this will make me a more attractive applicant. …”
You need to make sure that your strategy works for you in regard to UCLA admission later on and not backfires on you, in case you get a bad grade!
Remember that you are going to compete for good grades with actual UCLA students who are not only proven to be of high caliber but perhaps have better knowledge/background on the field (by virtue of being more senior to you)!