<p>How many classes do people usually take in a semester? Is it unreasonable to take 6 classes a semester? What about 5 first semester freshman year? I’m just trying to figure out if I need to choose my major early or not…</p>
<p>Depends on your school. Usually, 5-5.5 for Engineering, 4-5 for CAS, etc..</p>
<p>6 classes is considered to be an overload, which is not possible for registration in your first semester (max is 5.5 I think). After your first semester, you can apply for overload if you have a certain GPA.</p>
<p>Unless all your classes are all bs classes, 6 is usually considered unreasonable. 7 and you probably won't be doing much other than studying.</p>
<p>It really depends on the difficulty of your courses. You can have many BS classes or a few extremely hard ones. Regardless, there is a certain physical exhaustion that comes with attending many classes and I'd say 7 is overkill, no matter what the classes are. It also depends on whether or not you have work study.</p>
<p>it's possible to take a lot, up to 7 classes. it really depends on u tho. no major requires you to take more than 4 classes a semester, so you can slack off and do that many, as many students do. if ur in a special program, or plan on doing something like a double major or a minor, u might have to take 5 classes a semester, but usually not more, unless you want to.</p>
<p>how difficult would it be to manage 5 courses if one's on the premed track? and possibly dual degree?</p>
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Unless all your classes are all bs classes, 6 is usually considered unreasonable.
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<p>You know, there are scholars at Penn who don't consider themselves usual, just to let you know. I think that you have been rather harsh in your words by saying the Penn students who take more than the lower limit of courses take BS courses. Not so say I.</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses. I have another question: does financial aid and grant carry over if you need an extra semester or two of undergrad past the normal 8?</p>
<p>A word to all of your New Quakers.......keep in mind that PassFail Courses are also options for you. I'd suggest you keep that in mind for something to work into your plan. <a href="http://www.college.upenn.edu/rules/grades.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.college.upenn.edu/rules/grades.html</a></p>
<p>hazmat: I think what he was saying was that if you are taking 6 courses or more it's quite difficult and considered to be quite an undertaking. The "usual" student at Penn would say that many classes is a difficult load to carry, unless the courses were easy of course. Many people including yourself are able to handle many challenging courses at once :D </p>
<p>I myself take four classes but only because I have so much work study (up to 20 hrs a week) that I need to do. If it weren't for that I'd be shooting for 6 classes and getting the most out of my money and time, in my opinion. I am hoping next year's aid will be better so I don't have to work so much.</p>
<p>Somebody above said that you can always slack off and just take 4 classes....</p>
<p>I just want to say taking 4 classes is not slacking off, it is the norm, and it is what the university recommends. Dean DeTurck wrote a really good article earlier this year with his advice, and he basically said flat out that if you don't need to take more than 4 classes a semester, don't. Your academic and campus life will be better off for it, and it gives you just as much of a rewarding experience as taking 5 or 6 classes a semester.</p>
<p>If you come to Penn you'll be surrounded by tons of kids who double major, take tons of extra courses, and achieve in high levels in other ways. I think that's absolutely fantastic, and I know everyone has their reasons for doing what they do.... BUT the point of this post is that you probably DON'T need more than 4 classes a semester, and the attitude expressed above about "slacking" is exactly what you should NOT be influenced by. Do what you think is best for you, don't feel like you need to live up to what other people around you are doing... in the end, it won't matter.</p>
<p>Edit: Chemaddict, I am not trying to badmouth you in any way, shape, or form... simply trying to point out that people on campus, either directly or indirectly, do pressure people to take more on than they need to. I strongly feel that people need to avoid that pressure and do what is best for them, regardless of what others do/say.</p>
<p>^ is correct. However, again, it ultimately depends on your program. For example, for BSE in engineering, you have to fulfill 40-41 credits. So that is an average of at least 5 classes per semester assuming no AP credit. The only way you can cut it with 4 classes per semester in engineering is if you have 8-9 advanced credits, or take summer courses. 5.5 classes is actually very common for first semester engineering. (But I would advise you not to take that much for the first round)</p>
<p>approximately how many credits would a premed bioE major need to fulfill?</p>
<p>what about dual degree, like bioE and a major from wharton, for example?</p>
<p>what about bioE major trying to complete a MS as well as a BS?</p>
<p>also, how long would each of those take?
-so far, I have 5's in Chem (useless, i think), Calc BC, English Lang, and Comp Sci AB
-and this yr i'm taking Bio (useless?), Physics B (useless?), English Lit, Spanish Lang, and Stats</p>
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<blockquote> <p>Thanks for the responses. I have another question: does financial aid and grant carry over if you need an extra semester or two of undergrad past the normal 8?</p> </blockquote>
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<p>Good question. I'll try to find out for you.</p>
<p>Most people take four, a fair number of people (Wharton, SEAS, Nursing) take 5 a semester. Dual degree kids usually take six, some take seven.</p>
<p>I took 4 my freshman year because I was busy getting settled in and used to the college lifestyle. Since then I've taken 5 a semester. Worked great for me.</p>
<p>legendofmax Nicely put and helpful to all new students as well. Each student coming to Penn will be able to make their own situation work for them. What is important here is that** whatever a student chooses you will be accepted by others on campus**. Penn is such a great campus because of the diversity of talent&interests. I love knowing people who are all doing their own but different plan of getting an education here at Penn.</p>
<p>how many credits are required by Penn, would taking 5 classes/semester (depending on the amount of credits of each course) allow you to fulfill the requirement in less than 4 years? or allow more space to fit in requirements for dual degree/major?</p>
<p>do u pay extra money to take more than 4 classes in a regular semester???</p>
<p>how hard is it to manage work study while at penn/wharton?</p>
<p>You need between 32 and 36 course units to graduate, depending on your major.</p>
<p>Also, Dreamer10, that's a really good question......</p>
<p>no, you don't pay more to take more classes during the normal school year...</p>
<p>and, you may need anywhere from 39-46 credits for those in engineering and dual degree programs (m+t, etc.)</p>
<p>just wait until you have a program of study chosen, and you will know what you need to complete and the number of credits required (it's all on pennintouch).</p>