<p>are the undergraduate math classes as hard as MIT and give out ridiculously long problem sets? i took multivariable calc at berkeley over the summer and it seemed about as difficult as my community college diff eq class</p>
<p>Depends on the Prof. Math at Berkeley is known for being hard but it never seemed that tough to me. I think people tend to do badly because of America's bad science and math teaching in high school rather than the program being particularly tough.</p>
<p>You just have to stay on the ball and do all your work. Speed is especially important because math classes often give midterms and finals in class and as such they have to compact a 5-8 weeks in just an 1 or 1.5 hours so you will get punished harshly for dumb mistakes.</p>
<p>If you take Math 1B, brace yourself because it's a pain (esp. without AP Calc BC foundation).</p>
<p>Agreed. Math1B is a classic weeder course here, and personal experience can tell you that. I'm currently on the verge of failing math1B. As it turns out, none of the professors for math1b are "easy" this semester. Looking at all three professors' exams, though, I somehow still ended up with the hardest prof.</p>
<p>isn't Math 1B the equivalent of AP Calc BC? i heard that class was an easy A from a student</p>
<p>and plus i already took math1b and a local community college so if i retake again it won't be so bad, right?</p>
<p>It can be an easy A if 1) you get a good prof and the exams aren't ridiculous and 2) if you have good background in math. Unfortunately, I have neither. And if you already took math1B, why would you retake it? Why don't you just transfer the credits over?</p>
<p>because i'm thinking about majoring in math and right now, i only have a superficial understanding of calculus. i really didn't take calc in high school to learn, but get that A which i sorta regret.</p>
<p>oh yeah i have another question. </p>
<p>do math classes use MATLAB or that sort? and would it be good to purchase a student MATLAB version for my comp if the math classes use MATLAB?</p>
<p>"isn't Math 1B the equivalent of AP Calc BC? i heard that class was an easy A from a student"</p>
<p><em>laughs</em> There is no comparision apparently, in terms of difficulty.</p>
<p>so if there's no comparison. then they're very similar in difficulty?</p>
<p>I haven't taken AP Calc BC myself and I find it incredibly hard. I've asked many classmates who took Calc BC whether they covered this and that before, and they say they haven't. In fact, for the material that was covered, in Math 1B it went more in depth.</p>
<p>Math 1B is designed to be a weeder course. The average for the last midterm was a 66%- but I have no other statistics because the professor refuses to release any more information to us. For the upcoming midterm, it's suppose to be even more difficult. She compared the two midterms by saying the first one was writing the Russian alphabet whereas the second one is writing a Russian literary analysis.</p>
<p>i'm sure there's a nice curve going with that 66% average :) </p>
<p>i took Math 54 (multivariable) at Berkeley and i found it bearable.</p>
<p>I have a friend who got a 5 in AP cal BC who supposedly made a wise choice to start w/ math 1A. Now she's having problem with 1B. She also decides that she might follow maths. It must have been all good had she taken 53 from the beginning. Feel bad for her.
whatiscollege, 54=Linear Alg + Diff. Eqn, Multivariables=53.</p>
<p>Unlimitedx, you know that your professor is just exaggerating, right?</p>
<p>whatiscollege, you don't need matlab or mathematica just yet. If you intend to take some graduate courses later on, maybe.
Eitherway, it's good know them if you major or minor in Maths.</p>
<p>Hyperbole hopefully :)
But historically, the second midterm in math 1b is very difficult.</p>
<p>Oh man, I'm taking it now and didn't do all that great on the last midterm. My prof is the german teacher, nice lady but she grades on an absolute scale. She prepares us very well though so I'm hoping it'll be ok.</p>
<p>are the problem sets as hard as the ones in MIT or Caltech?</p>
<p>I know a few people (non-math majors) who are taking Math 53/54 right now and think those courses are easier than Math 1B. So, yeah, Math 1B is probably one of the hardest lower-div math courses. I don't have any personal experiences to support this claim, though, but that is the general consensus among most of my acquaintances.</p>
<p>Well, whatiscollege, it sounds as if you'd be fine starting out with Math 53/54. With a little review of the calculus, you'll probably be fine. </p>
<p>If you're adventurous enough to start out with upper division material, there is a class called Math 70 that is useful to many. It's an introduction to proof writing and general mathematical "thinking." A lot of people here take Math 110 (Linear Algebra) and Math 70 together. </p>
<p>Personally, I started out here at Berkeley as a freshman taking Math 104 and Math 113. I had never really written a proof before then. Somehow, I have made it almost all the way through the math program here and I love it. </p>
<p>The problem sets truly vary with the professor. If you took a course during the summer, chances are that you had a graduate student teaching you (or perhaps an assistant professor). You won't encounter difficult problem sets in 1A/1B/53/54. They are usually just tedious. </p>
<p>If you want a good challenge, take the honors courses here (upper or lower div). They are probably harder, if not equal in difficulty to, the courses at CalTech and MIT. One of the neat things about the math department here (and many of the other deps.) is that undergraduates are allowed to take graduate courses. </p>
<p>Also, you will end up using Matlab if you are an applied math major. That doesn't happen until much later, though. I rarely use Mathematica. I know a few people who use it for fun and occasionally to type up problem sets (though LaTeX is a far better option for that). </p>
<p>You won't be bored with Cal Math... =) </p>
<p>Hope this helps. </p>
<p>~Anna </p>
<p>PS: If you love math, the length of the problem sets really doesn't matter.</p>