<p>I'm a freshman currently doing poorly in my introductory courses, as I have a C- in PHY 103 and a C- in MAT 201, I'm doing reasonably well in writing sem and CHM 207. My grades are causing me to reevaluate whether I should study engineering here or switch to pursuing an A.B. degree.</p>
<p>I enjoy math / science and the prospect of building things seems pretty interesting, but I also enjoy studying literature and the social sciences. I'm just wondering whether engineering is worth the destruction of my GPA, or whether I can have the same career prospects as an econ major for instance. I know Princeton is ideal for social sciences, but is it worth the extra effort for engineering?</p>
<p>you skip first semester Calculus
you skip second semester Calculus
and you finally take third semester Calculus in your fall freshman semester and have a C- so far…</p>
<p>had you taken first semester Calculus that grade would be an “A”</p>
<p>Introductory Physics at Princeton has always been tough, so having a C- at midterm is not extremely bad…</p>
<p>shape up and bring those "C-"s to B’s and get A’s in your other two courses and you will have a 3.5 GPA, not bad at all.</p>
<p>I know plenty of Princeton Engineering majors that got C’s in Physics and went on to get B+ averages in their Engineering majors and continued with succesful careers…</p>
<p>If you love the Engineering, continue on the path…</p>
<p>I will take a 3.0-3.5 GPA happy Engineer over a 3.8 GPA AB major that always wanted to be an engineer any time.</p>
<p>Yeah if you can’t handle physics 103 and Mat 201, you really shouldn’t major in engineering… You might get dominated… I’ve looked at the work my engineer friends do and it’s pretty intense. I thought PHY 103 was really easy, but I doubt I could do their stuff.</p>
<p>Econ is an easy major. I’m an econ major - take it from me. You need to be just okay at math (good at calculus) to be a successful econ major.</p>
<p>But what’s most important is what you see yourself doing 10 years from now: if your heart’s set on being an engineer, get your s*** together and you can do it.</p>
<p>I agree with randombetch on this one. If Multi and Mech. are causing you this much trouble, just imagine what E+M and Linear Algebra will be like next semester.</p>
<p>i have a completely different question now, is it possible for Princeton undergrads to go to Princeton for grad school? for instance, could you go on to do an MEng right after?</p>
<p>Haha, it’s funny that my situation is the opposite of yours: if I can’t do well enough in A.B., then I’ll “drop” to B.S.E… =P</p>
<p>Anyway, it really comes down to you. Have you honestly been working your hardest? If you’ve worked as hard as you are willing to (i.e. without making yourself unhappy) and you can’t get grades that satisfy you, then you should probably try something else. But if you’re heart is set on engineering and you’re willing to work harder, then go for it.</p>
<p>@ib612: Yes, it is possible for Princeton grads to return to the university for graduate school. From what I’ve seen here, however, this seems to be the exception rather than the norm.</p>