<p>Hi all,</p>
<p>Just wanted to know if it's possible to juggle five courses in one sem- 4 classes and 1 lab.</p>
<p>I was thinking of taking:</p>
<p>BIO 100 Organismal Biology Lecture (registered)
BIO 101 Organismal Biology Lab
CHEM 103 (I have to write a test to qualify for this, so <em>if</em> I do get through, I guess it'll be pretty tough)
MATH 133 Calculus 1 (Co requisite for CHEM 103)
FSYP 173 The French Revolution and the making of the modern world (registered)</p>
<p>for a total of 16 credits. </p>
<p>I've checked the timings, and these courses seem perfect to start with my major in Biology.
Just asking, but will the workload be too much for me to handle?</p>
<p>PS: I hope it doesn't sound inappropriate, but I'm decently intelligent, and I've probably done quite a bit of the above mentioned courses in high school.</p>
<p>My D took six courses this past semester, and got 4 As, one B+, and one “pass” (as in “pass/no pass”). She did that while working a 10 hour a week part-time campus job (not the kind that let’s you study while “working”), and participated in intramural athletics. So yes, I think it can be done. And based on what you said about yourself, it should be a breeze. Go for it.</p>
<p>To me it looks like you’re taking 2 lab classes (Bio and Chem) and two other classes. I’m not sure why they separate out the lab as a separate 1 credit class for bio.</p>
<p>Here’s what the course catalog says:</p>
<hr>
<h2>Students with a strong high-school science background find taking Introductory Biology and Chemistry courses simultaneously in the first semester both useful and challenging. Other students benefit greatly from taking only one of these courses during their first semester at Oberlin. Prospective Biology majors are urged to consult with a Biology faculty member during freshman advising period to discuss these options.</h2>
<p>This looks like quite a demanding schedule to me, but obviously a lot depends on your degree of preparation and abilities. Talk to your advisor about the pros and cons once you arrive on campus.</p>
<p>apperip, that’s definitely a demanding first semester schedule. Whether or not it will be too much for you to handle really depends on your high school preparation, and your prior experiences with biology, chemistry, and calculus. Definitely talk this through with your academic advisor (and/or a biology faculty member) when you arrive on campus. The schedule you propose might be perfect for you, or it might be an incredibly bad idea. Either way, a faculty member will be able to talk with you and determine from your prior experiences what path is most appropriate for you.</p>
<p>@apperip2 - I also highly recommend talking with your academic ambassador or the ambassador that will be present during your registration time during orientation (you will be assigned an ambassador in late August; they’re upperclassmen that are here to serve as knowledgable resources throughout your first semester). Professors and advisors are extremely helpful when deciding a schedule, but a current student has the most realistic views of what is actually possible within your first semester.</p>
<p>This is doable, but again it depends on you. I never took any of these courses, so I can’t speak to the workload, but they all seem to be pretty rigorous. My personal thought is that for your first semester in college, to only take 4 just to give you more of a chance to adjust to a college workload, which is tougher than high school, as well as to college in general. Also, 16 credits is as many as you can take, which limits you if you wanted to take something like an exco for credit.
Another option is to take them, and then there’s always the add and drop period, so you could always give it a try, and if it doesn’t work out the first few weeks, you can drop a class.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for the advice and input everyone. I’ll definitely keep the suggestions in mind, and talk to my academic advisor and student ambassador when I arrive in August.</p>
<p>I took BIOL 100/101 and CHEM 103 my first semester at Oberlin, along with two humanities courses. There was definitely quite a bit of work, but it wasn’t overwhelming, and I pulled out with good grades. Now, taking MATH 133 in addition to bio and chem might be a bit much, but that will totally depend on your previous experience with biology, chemistry, and calculus, and how willing you are to work hard. CHEM 103 is basically CHEM 102 first semester (equilibria, thermodynamics, kinetics) - it’s not two semesters of material squeezed into one semester. It presupposes knowledge of the CHEM 101 material, basically.</p>
<p>I’m a junior biochemistry major who’s actually going to be an academic ambassador this fall, so maybe you’ll end up talking to me! :D</p>
<p>Thanks for the input, dottified. I’ll keep it in mind.</p>
<p>Hahah, I might indeed end up talking to you. :D</p>