<p>Hey guys.
I am wondering if taking math 120/124 in the Winter quarter instead of Autumn would set me back/make me fall behind. I'm interested in majoring in Computer Science or Biology.</p>
<p>Also does anyone here know who the good quality and bad quality professors are for Math 120/124?</p>
<p>I've also heard that math 120 is actually more difficult than math 124. I've taken some calculus in high school through IB math SL.</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>It depends. What are you taking in autumn? It’s best to start the calc series (Math 124-126) as early as possible to get it done. It opens up other courses for you to take. At the same time, you want to finish the other prerequisites (CSE 142/143 and 5 NW credits-PHYS 121/CHEM 142/BIO 180), so that you can apply for the computer science major. With that said, if you’re not strong in math (which may be why you’re pushing it off until winter), then you’ll want ample time to make sure and do well in those courses, especially for computer science. That’s not to say that Biology is the same, as those are two VERY different majors. In my opinion, if you’ve already learned calculus in high school, then the quality of professors should be secondary to the difficulty to succeed in the respective class. Better profs=higher averages=harsh curve. Take that as you will.</p>
<p>I’m taking Intro to chem because I’ve only taken a semester in high school and that was during my sophomore year. I don’t remember much from that class. Human Bio Div is part of the FIG that I’m in at the moment. It’s with Intro to chem. The other class that I have right now is intro to microecon. This schedule isn’t final. I want to take CSE 142 but the course is filled up at the moment. Economics is also a major that interests me. I’m going to take the math placement test and try to at least place into math 120.</p>
<p>I am in the exact same position as you Arcura. I want to major in CS and got placed into Math 120. Math isn’t my strongest subject so I’m deciding whether I should brush up my skills first and then take math in Winter quarter. Another thing that is sort of worrying me is that I hear that the Math 120 prof is not very good so I fear that my grades will be low due to that, thus hurting my chances of getting into the CS department.</p>
<p>Yeah I read Conroy is a pretty difficult professor and he teaches like half of the Math 120 classes. The time schedule right now does not show the professors for the math section. I still don’t know what to do haha. Not sure if Conroy teaches in the winter Qtr.</p>
<p>Oh I don’t think Math 120 is taught in the Winter. I think it’s only Autumn and Spring. That makes it even harder.</p>
<p>Math 120 is taught throughout the regular academic year. It’s a high-demand course, just like all the other elementary calculus courses (Math 124-126). Conroy is essentially the only professor that teaches this course at the UW on a consistent basis. He’s known for being very “thorough” on examinations, which is why people have difficulty with the course. If you can’t get into CSE 142 during Autumn, then you should definitely take a math course. It doesn’t matter when you take the course; if you aren’t proficient in the math prerequisites for CSE, then there’s a high chance you won’t get in. I know people that 4.0 the entire calc. series, 4.0 CSE 142, and then make minor slips in other courses like CSE 143 (3.5~ish) and PHYS 121 (3.4~ish), and get rejected by the department. It’s that difficult. Biology and Economics are VERY different from CSE. Biology is a minimum-requirements major, which means you can apply at any time after you’ve passed the basic requirements. It only requires Math 124/125 by graduation. Economics is competitive admission like CSE, except it has lower standards. You still have to take math to apply (depending on if you’re doing a BA or BS), but the acceptance rate is significantly higher than CSE. Average GPA’s: ~3.5 for Economics; ~3.7-3.8 for CSE</p>
<p>mochiman24, thanks for your input. I’m leaning towards an econ major because it’s te most interesting to me at this moment. I watched some lectures from MIT.
Is there a website where I can find the acceptance rates or avg GPA’s?</p>