<p>So, I wanted to take Java in my sophomore year and I'm thinking of learning Matlab on my own since it's apparently very useful for BME. Does anyone know how difficult this will be with little programming experience? Thanks so much!!</p>
<p>I was actually looking through the intersession course listings at Hopkins the other day and there is a 1-unit course called “A Hands-On Introduction to Matlab”. Try looking into that class and try to enroll. It’s over winter break so I don’t think it will impact your grade/GPA in any way.</p>
<p>I graduated 4 years ago, but Matlab is very vital for BME - I used it many of my undergrad classes and still use it nearly daily in my research today. If you have no programming experience, I would strongly recommend a structured class such as the Java class, Scientific Computing or the Computing for Engineers so that you learn how to think like a programmer rather than just learning bits of code. I had several classmates that tried to learn matlab as juniors in SBE I and struggled because they had to experience thinking about how you give a computer instructions. If you decide to take Java instead of one of the classes that teaches Matlab, then after the class, try to learn the same concepts in Matlab so that you get a feel for the Matlab syntax. The general ideas of how to program will remain the same, but some of the syntax (exactly how you write commands) will be different between the two.</p>
<p>listen to TheEarlyBird. I took that intersession class and it was definitely helpful. Also, the classes here are fair. They do not expect you to come into Hopkins knowing any coding experience (unless maybe if you’re CS). If you have a class in MATLAB they will ease you into it.</p>