Is 16 credit hours too much for a freshman?

<p>I'll be a freshman this fall and am majoring in math, and right now I'm signed up for 16 credit hours. Everybody keeps telling me 12 is a good number for your first semester just so you can get acclimated to college life and the campus and whatnot.</p>

<p>Right now I'm taking:
Calculus 2 (4)
Religion and 20th Century Fantasy (3)
German 1 (5)
Freshman Topic Composition: 20th Century Lit (3)
Honors Colloquium (1)</p>

<p>I'm also planning on getting a part time job and being involved in lots of clubs and would like to have a decent social life.</p>

<p>It's mostly the German I'm worried about. I really want to take it, but I could take Latin instead for 4 credit hours, which I know would be a breeze since I took fours years of Latin in high school. Do you think I should do that instead? It would only be one less credit hour, but it'd be a whole lot easier.</p>

<p>Hey I too have around 16 credits. Ya for bright futures and getting used to the college the counselors recommend it. But hey your an honors student and if you can handle the courses then why not.
My courses are:
Calc 2 -4
Chem1045 w/L -4
Enc1101 -3
Human Geography -3
Ancient mythology -3
so its 17. I will be able to do it.</p>

<p>haha we have almost the same interest. I too want to get a job and get involved in college stuff. I was thinking of joining the homecoming committee and some of pre-med clubs. btw when was your orientation?</p>

<p>It really depends on what classes you are taking, how is your professor, and how are you are taking it. </p>

<p>Last semester I had 16 credits as well: Baby “a ****ing joke” bio (3), baby lab (1), intro “waste of 50 minutes in a cold room” statistics (3), financial banking economics (3), intermediate macro economics (3), and analysis of “■■■” economic data (3). I skipped all my baby bio lectures, which were MWF in the morning, the rest are spread evenly from the afternoon to late afternoon on MTWR. I had a lot of time on my plate, where I could most likely gotten a part time job.</p>

<p>If you are taking Chem 2, Orgo Chem 16, Physics 2, Differential equations, and Bio 7 that are spread throughout the day, every single day, then yes, it might be too much.</p>

<p>Both you, and ad238gh, will have plenty of time and will survive with no wounds.</p>

<p>I actually found out that the German class is only 4 credit hours instead of 5, but the class is five days a week. So I think I can handle it. :)</p>

<p>Mine was on the 5th-7th. When was yours?
And when is your Calc 2 class? Maybe we’re in the same one!</p>

<p>That’s cool! I was actually thinking of doing that for a while but now I’m thinking of joining Union Productions to help plan like concerts and stuff.</p>

<p>mine was 7th to 9th. it was so much fun!!!
oh right now its right in the morning from 8.00 to 8.50 but i might change it because my schedule looks kind of uneven. lol. When’s yours?</p>

<p>that’s nice too. that sounds fun.</p>

<p>Mine is from 12:20 to 1:10.
Haha I was going to take Japanese from 8:00 to 8:50, but I just could not bring myself to take such an early class.</p>

<p>haha I tried taking a later one too but it kept coinciding with my chem class. But its not a fixed schedule yet, so I might change it.</p>

<p>Why the hell would you guys do this to yourselves as a first year? I would take an easier pace the first semester to get assimilated to college. After all who wants to stay in studying rather than be at Doak when we destroy OU?</p>

<p>It can very much be dependent on professors. Languages, however, are known to be Major time-suckers. With your schedule I would switch to Latin if you really want the time to try lots of different clubs and get invovled on campus. Or, better yet, drop another class entirely and sit at 12 credits with the language you really want to take. </p>

<p>Map out the work during drop/add week up to the first major exam in each class (pgs to read, few study days before exam, assignments, ect for 5 days of the week) and see if that’s what you really want to deal with your first semester.</p>

<p>Sidx1337: Well yeah, that’s what I’m wondering. I’m used to having school come easy to me, but I know college is different. My schedule doesn’t seem like a lot to me but what do I know? I’ve never done this before. lol</p>

<p>Yau: Thank you! I’m thinking I’ll go back to Latin. Having fun in college is more important to me than learning German. :)</p>

<p>I took 13 (14? Can’t remember, I just know it was 27 total my freshman year) and had no issue- and honestly probably could have added another class to get to 16.</p>

<p>Just keep in mind though that while Bright Futures will technically pay up to 20 credits per semester (or at least before the most recent rounds of budget cuts it would), if you take more than 15 credits and get the BFS disbursement for credits 16 and beyond, the amount extra you get disbursed will be removed from your spring financial aid.
When the Financial Aid Toolkit says to call if you take more than 15 credits, they do mean to call, or you will get that wonderful “One or more of your Financial Aid items has changed!” email.
Considering that the most recent cuts weren’t supposed to impact current recipients of Bright Futures (non Freshmen, basically) the last I heard before the final cuts, and I’m sitting here with a cut of 20% for next year, it would not surprise me in the least if they also cut out paying for over 15 credits per semester.</p>

<p>No problem! If you join Union Productions they will definitely keep you busy. I’m actually taking two CLEP exams this summer in order to keep my credit hours down next year.</p>