Math Courses?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Rochester
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<p>I saw the previous thread about the MTH160s vs MTH170s, but could anyone give me more input?</p>

<p>I got a 5 on my BC Calc AP during my Junior year, and I took Multi-Variable Calculus during my Senior year last year. However, my grades for my high school courses themselves ranged from Bs to A minuses. I also feel that I could benefit from going over some of the material I've learned from these past 2 years (especially some multi-variable concepts). I also hope to get a few "easy" A's to boost my GPA. </p>

<p>So my question is, if I'm looking to re-learn some multi-v stuff (and maybe some things from calc again) that I was not the strongest in during high school, should I still do MTH171Q? If not, then which class from the 160's should I sign up for? </p>

<p>BTW, I'm thinking about going into medicine, law, or economics (yikes!). So I don't intend to become a math major. However, I've always been good at math and still want to explore that area before declaring a major.</p>

2

<p>I can only tell why my D2 has told me.</p>

<p>She also took AP Calc BC in high school her junior year, got a 5 on the exam and then took multivariable calculus and linear algebra with diff equations as a senior. Her grades were in the same range as yours–high B, low A. She opted to retake MTH 165–and was very glad she did. She felt that the re-take gave her a reasonably “easy” class her first semester (and an easy A), plus it gave her chance to firm up her grasp of some methods and topics she felt shaky on. It also boosted her confidence in her math skills and let her know her mastery/skills were on par with college students at a competitive uni.</p>

<p>Plus, she really didn’t want to retake all of her math courses from the beginning as she was planning on at least a math minor. (Which only required MTH 235 to complete. She has since decided to double major in math so the extra space in her schedule that starting higher in the sequence allowed has been really helpful. She’ll finished with a BS Bio and a BS math in 4 years.)</p>

<p>As for the 160 vs. 170 classes–she was strongly discouraged by the math department from dropping into the middle of the 170 sequence. IOW, they basically told her to either start with the 170 sequence from the beginning with 171Q or she could start with MTH 235 (or any lower courses in the sequence. i.e. MTH 164, or 165.)</p>

<p>Multivariable calc is MTH 164 at UR. So you could possibly start with MTH 165, if you wanted. (Sequence is 161, 162, 164, 165.) Your placement in the 170 series is something you will need to discuss with the math dept during orientation. </p>

<p>If you want a bit more of challenge, but not the 170 series, you could opt for the MTH 160Q series and start with either MTH 164Q or MTH 165Q.</p>

<p>You definitely ought to schedule an appointment with an advisor in the math dept. during orientation. You must have a meeting if you want credit beyond your AP exam placement. You will need to have either an official college transcript showing that you have college credit for multivar calc OR you must produce evidence that the class you took is equivalent to MTH 164. You’ll need a syllabus, possibly a letter from your teacher, the name of your textbook, etc. In fact, it would probably be worthwhile to to contact the math dept and ask what you’ll need for evidence. </p>

<p>D2 says that the 170Q series is “crazy hard”–but then again she didn’t take any of the courses so that’s hearsay from her friends.</p>

<p>Medical school admission requires no more than 2 semesters of calc. However, many (most) US medical schools will not accept AP credit. (Exception: if you have taken a higher level course in the same subject area. But even that isn’t always true. It’s really on a school by school basis. You need to check the entrance requirements for every school you’re interested in.)</p>

<p>Law school admission has no math component.</p>

<p>UR’s undergrad econ requires 1 full year of calc (161-162 or 171-172 or 141-142-143). If you plan on grad school in econ you will need more math. The dept. recommendations for those going to grad school:</p>

<p>[Mathematics</a> Training for Students Interested in Economics- Economics Department - University of Rochester](<a href=“http://www.econ.rochester.edu/UG/mathprep.html]Mathematics”>http://www.econ.rochester.edu/UG/mathprep.html)</p>

3

<p>Wow, thanks for your input again! Your D2’s situation was almost exactly like mine, so I’ll think about MTH165. And, yeah, I’ll definitely meet with my advisor once I get assigned one. Again, thanks! They should pay you to keep posting ;)</p>

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<p>(Think about MTH164, if you do 165 then 164 there’s a pretty good chance you’ll forget Calculus, and 165 is not a calculus class.)</p>

5

<p>good–
You need to meet with an advisor specifically from the math dept in addition to whoever you are assigned to for freshman advising. Only someone from the math dept can approve a placement above MTH 164.</p>

<p>Email or phone the dept secretary </p>

<p>Hazel McKnight
<a href=“mailto:mcknight@math.rochester.edu”>mcknight@math.rochester.edu</a><a href=“585”>/email</a> 275-4411</p>

<p>And ask her to help you schedule an appointment with a math advisor to discuss your placement during freshman orientation.</p>

<p>She’s a very helpful person.</p>