<p>To people who've done the sequence, what is it like?</p>
<p>Also, I really want to take it, but I don't know what the prerequisites are.
Do we need to know calculus before we come to the class? I haven't done any, but I can self study over the summer if needed.
Do we need to be an honors student? I'm an academy student, so I guess that'll work, but I'm not sure.</p>
<p>All comments greatly appreciated! </p>
<p>I haven’t done the sequence but here is a previous thread that should answer some of your questions: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-washington/1270734-comparison-of-calculus-tracks-124-vs-124h-vs-134.html”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-washington/1270734-comparison-of-calculus-tracks-124-vs-124h-vs-134.html</a></p>
<p>And here is a syllabus from 2010: <a href=“http://www.math.washington.edu/~lee/Courses/134-2010/syllabus.pdf”>http://www.math.washington.edu/~lee/Courses/134-2010/syllabus.pdf</a></p>
<p>The class is great. I took it last year as a high school senior (although I wasn’t in academy). You should definitely know calculus before coming in, or at least have a good idea of the basic methods of computation of integrals and derivatives (i.e. what’s covered in math 124 and math 125). Since you’re an academy student I have no idea if you could learn this in the next month and a half or so (I certainly know people who could do that) but you might as well go ahead and try if you are interested in the class. If you have experience doing math competitions then I would be very confident you’ll do well in the class. Note that you need to know the methods of computation because most of what is covered in class is theory and thus you’ll get little to no instruction of how to compute things like derivatives and integration by parts (if I remember right a computation technique that took about a week in 124 were presented as one example in class that took a few minutes to cover). Hence you should be comfortable with the rudiments of calculus.</p>
<p>Note that I am not sure if the math department will even allow you to take it without any “formal” experience with calculus. </p>
<p>But if you do get their permission prepare for a proof-intensive class. The class covers a lot of material quickly, and parts of it are covered at a fairly mathematically rigorous and deep level. Hence I would quote a mathematician, Spivak, when he says “… beyond this [speaking of prerequisites] a certain (perhaps latent) rapport with abstract mathematics will be found almost essential.” By this I mean that, if you know enough calculus, the hardest part of the class will be the proofs and the abstract view of looking at things.</p>
<p>So try and study for the class and if you have mastered the material from 124 and 125 at least try it - it’s a great class and the year long sequence will make your mathematical talent grow immensely.</p>
<p>You don’t need to be in the honors program to take honors math & science courses at UW. But you generally need an AP calc score of 5 or equivalent to get into the math 134 sequence. As NWskier pointed out, math 134 is not really a calculus sequence, it is a pure math sequence that assumes a working knowledge of calculus.</p>
<p>You might also look at the info here on the other math sequences at UW: <a href=“http://www.washington.edu/uaa/advising/choosing-courses/chemistry-math-physics-pathways/”>http://www.washington.edu/uaa/advising/choosing-courses/chemistry-math-physics-pathways/</a>. </p>
<p>Note that there is an honors 124 sequences as well, but it is nothing like 134 – 124h is just a slightly more rigorous version of the regular calculus sequence.</p>
<p>Email the math advisor: <a href=“mailto:advising@math.washington.edu”>advising@math.washington.edu</a>. They will probably tell you no, you can’t enroll in math 134 if you haven’t had calculus yet. But one option would be to take math 124/125 this year, then math 134 next year; you could still finish a math major in four years with the most rigorous math program offered at UW if you take the 334 sequence in your junior year, as math the 134 and 334 sequences are both accelerated and cover most of the math undergrad curriculum. This would seem particularly reasonable given that you’re starting university two years early. </p>
<p>There is still plenty of space in math 124h this fall, and it is a very popular class among Acads. Ditto phys 121b and/or chem 145 (both are honors), if you’re so inclined.</p>