<p>As far as I know AP exams can place you out of classes and get you credit, but I don’t think they can count for your GERs. Everyone has to fulfill Disciplinary Breadth requirements - those include math, natural science, engineering and applied science, humanities, and social science (one class in each field). You don’t have to take an advanced math class to fulfill the requirement - you can take Stats 60, which is essentially AP Stats (introduction to statistical methods with precalculus) or even Math 19, which is the first quarter of the “easiest” calculus sequence (the longest). We have a math major here, so it gets pretty damn advanced, I imagine.</p>
<p>On the topic of Math, what would be the most basic/rudimentary Math course?</p>
<p>Probably Stats 60. It’s appropriately nicknamed “fuzzy math” because it is required for most nontechnical majors (especially social sciences) and a large contingent of athletes normally take the class, especially in Winter Quarter, where there aren’t problem sets, a midterm, or a final (only weekly quizzes).</p>
<p>Trust me, I came to Stanford as someone who wanted to steer clear from math and got an A in this class with ease. </p>
<p>There’s also Math 19 which is the lowest level of calculus there is, but I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re just trying to get your math requirement out of the way.</p>
<p>AforAmbition, a 5 on the Calc BC exam gets you 10 units of credit, and places you in the Math 51 series (Multivariable Mathematics, vector calculus, linear algebra, PDE’s). It also makes you eligible for the 51H series, which is all proof-based and <em>extremely</em> intensive, if that’s what you prefer. Either 51 series fulfills the prereqs for further mathematics study at Stanford. Our math department is outstanding.</p>
<p>i loved this thread last year, so i’m here also to answer any questions that I can help with</p>
<p>although once the Stanford 2015 list comes up, we should ask mods to move this thead there because it is eventually meant for admits and later for matriculants.</p>
<p>to give you an idea of what i do know about:
i’m involved in a dance team, model un, cultural organizations</p>
<p>my courseload for autumn:
Chem 31X (accelerated intro chem)
Physics 21/22: Mechanics/Thermo
Polisci 1: Intro to International Relations
IHUM</p>
<p>winter courseload:
Chem 33: first organic chem class
Math 51: linear algebra/multivariable calc
Physics 23/24
IHUM
Hopefully an introseminar about children’s health</p>
<p>about first quarter, if you can handle it, it is worth taking a moderate courseload, and you can still have a great time (just with a little less sleep)</p>
<p>in my opinion, there is a lot more to keep up with in the more techie classes (chem, physics, cs, math), and the classes do move fast. also imo, some professors do in fact fit 16 weeks worth of material into 10 weeks, taking out a few sections that aren’t as important. it is definitely manageable, but you will just have to keep up with reading, lecture notes, and problem sets. most science and math classes also have 2 midterms (some have more), so you will constantly be studying, meaning you may lose track of other things.
for more reading-based classes, even though there aren’t problem sets and usually aren’t as many (if any) midterms, you can still easily get behind in readings, and it takes a lot of time to catch up.</p>
<p>luckily, thanksgiving break a week before finals gives a great opportunity to catch up a little before exam time.</p>
<p>What is the best part about Stanford?
-Thanks!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I agree that the answer is probably Stats 60, but if you are less stats minded (most social science majors require stats), Math 19 is not difficult.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I totally agree.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Definitely the people. I could elaborate for days, but I think the coolest part is how everyone here defies a stereotype or an image.</p>
<p>what’s better for stanford?
mac or pc?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Well, which do you prefer? Use whatever you prefer and feel comfortable with. I strongly prefer PCs so I use a PC. There are a ton of Macs here, maybe even a majority. The RCCs know about both of them, and the computer clusters all boot in either.</p>
<ol>
<li>I’m from SoCal, so is the rain really as bad as people say it is?</li>
<li>Is the quarter system really that stressful? Hanging out with my friends from Stanford, that’s all they complain about.</li>
<li>The campus is so spread out- is this an issue? Is getting places hard? Are people isolated geographically?</li>
<li>Is the gym (arilliogonalsaflje something? Sorry!) really as crummy as people say it is?</li>
<li>How many lecture classes can I expect freshman year?</li>
<li>What is your relationship with grad students and upperclassmen?</li>
</ol>
<p>Thank you so much!!</p>
<p>Hey, i’m a current stanford student too and i can answer a few questions. I’m undergrad class of '10 (Psychology, minor in ME) and i’m now coterming in Mechanical Engineering. For those who don’t know about coterming, it’s basically the best deal in this world. You stay about 1 more year (or 45 units) and get a master’s degree from stanford. People apply near the end of finishing their undergrad requirements and it’s typically fairly easy to get in if you haven’t screwed anything up. Also, it gives you a chance to get a master’s degree in fields you might not have degrees in (e.g. go from Psych -> ME)</p>
<p>@azuabi</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The rain here isn’t bad. I don’t know if that’s because I’m from florida and rain is much worse in Florida, but the rain here is never really super constant, nor is it hard.</p></li>
<li><p>Everyone I know here enjoys the quarter system. I, for one, get bored of classes easily and having the quarter system is amazing. It may seem like you have tests upon tests at times, but things are not that terrible. I’m just saying, I wouldn’t worry about it, because once you’re in it, it’s not bad.</p></li>
<li><p>People bike here so it’s not hard getting places. and dorms are all placed next to other dorms so no to all your questions.</p></li>
<li><p>Who are you talking to? It sounds like they should transfer from Stanford. Our gym is clean, air-conditioned, and never really crowded. I think it’s one of the nicer gyms I’ve been to. My friend from UF says it’s bigger than the gym she went to there.</p></li>
<li><p>You can expect at least 3 (for IHUM) on top of whatever intro classes you take will probably be large lecture classes. Any "Intro to… " class is usually a large lecture class. IHUM comes with small sections though, so it’s both sides of the coin.</p></li>
<li><p>All undergrads are pretty seamless. Coterm students (who are technically grad students) are basically 5th years so they still interact with the undergrads on a healthy but not sketchy level. And then there are Grad students, which make up half the people here at Stanford, but undergrads don’t really have any sort of connections to them. Grad students are separate entity of themselves for various reasons (which I can go into if you wanna know).</p></li>
</ol>
<p>^lol sketchies :P</p>
<p>the only thing i can really speak about with limited experience is the gym. compared to other colleges, it is pretty good. but i went to a Bally fitness gym (which isn’t even the greatest of gyms), and i was disappointed by Stanford’s. For such a large student population, it is actually pretty small. and it is really busy if you go at peak times (aka 5-10 PM weekdays, fridays, weekends). sometimes you have to just go somewhere else for a few minutes until a cardio or weight machine opens up</p>
<p>The only problem I have with the rain is when it’s 55 degrees out in December and your gloves/clothes/whatever are damp. That’s no fun.</p>
<p>Thoughts on the quarter system:
I went to Stanford for undergrad, and I’m on semesters now for grad school. I much prefer the quarter system. You get a wider variety of classes; in particular, you can afford to throw in a random class every now and then that has nothing to do with your major or any GER but looks fun. That seems like it would be much harder on semesters. I also find that semester classes drag on at times. I don’t mind having finals three times a year instead of two; there’s less material on each final that way, and each final matters less. I also thought all my classes were taught at a perfectly reasonable pace–a few profs, of course, raced through their classes, but they were the types who would race through a class no matter how long they had for it.</p>
<p>That said, two drawbacks come to mind:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>As others have said, it’s hard to catch up if you fall behind. I fell behind for a couple of weeks in one of my classes this semester, and I’m now caught up again. But on quarters, I don’t think it would have been so easy to do that.</p></li>
<li><p>The quarter system might allow the academic calendar to have a disproportionate effect on the social calendar. At Stanford, it seemed like the first couple of weekends each quarter were the times to party hard, and then everyone suddenly found their classes getting serious, and settled down somewhat (with a spike sometimes a couple of weeks before finals). At my current school, the party scene is pretty constant all semester right up until about a week (or less) before finals, at which point it dies completely. Be warned, however, that this is a blatantly unfair comparison; my current school has a (deserved) reputation as a big party school.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>@azuabi</p>
<ol>
<li>I’m from SoCal too. The rain is quite bad; remember to wrap a plastic bag around your bike seat every time it rains. Temperature-wise, though, it is very warm because the dorms set their heaters to ridiculous levels.</li>
<li>The quarter system is kind of stressful, but there is always time to socialize.</li>
<li>It’s not an issue if you have a bike. You can pretty much get to anywhere on campus within 15 minutes. There are two Safeways in Menlo Park each 2 miles away. Stanford Shopping Center is useless for practical items, but there’s a San Antonio Shopping Center 5 miles away with stores like Walmart. The Marguerite shuttle goes to all of these places, but it’s not too far to bike either.</li>
<li>I have not been to the gym, so no comment.</li>
<li>Expect 4 classes, with some with 3 and a very few with 5.</li>
<li>I am staying in FroSoCo (Freshman-Sophomore College) which consists of ~80 each of freshmen and sophomores. It’s a great dorm; we have excellent two-room doubles and one of the two best dining halls on campus (ours is Ricker, the other is FloMo). Expect it to be quiet though, and not much drinking/partying happens. If that suits you, you should definitely consider applying!</li>
</ol>
<p>Just a question, now that I know I got in: how’s the internet and laptop policy? Are they pretty strict when it comes to what you can use the internet for on your personal laptop? Is it slow or fast?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>The internet is ridiculously fast. now that I’m home I find myself missing stanford’s internet. I think if you download too much illegal music they get mad at you, but other than that it’s pretty much a free reign. </p>
<ol>
<li>I’m from norcal so I never thought the rain was that bad. It just sucks when you’re trying to bike to the library and you show up soaked. </li>
<li>I like quarters! I like that there’s less of a single crunch time–I had midterms and papers spaced out across the quarter, versus a single midterms week and a single finals week. Plus, it gives you more options for classes. </li>
<li>Everywhere’s really close on a bike. The only annoying thing is that a lot of the residences are really spread out so sometimes it’s a pain to go visit people. </li>
<li>I think arrillaga’s great, it’s just really far away from where I live. Plus I’m on club sports so I mostly just work out with the team. </li>
<li>IHUM is half lecture, half discussion, and other than that, most math and science intro classes are lectures. Most of them break up into discussion sections 1/2 times per week, though. </li>
<li>lol so the rep that the grad students have is that they’re “sketchy,” and the coterms are in a sort of weird limbo. I know a bunch of grad students from the ultimate team and honestly they are all pretty chill. i guess the rep comes from grad students trying to crash full moon or something? I’m not sure.</li>
</ol>
<p>What’s the food like at the dining halls? Are there any good places to eat off campus?</p>
<p>Okay 2 more for you guys :D</p>
<ol>
<li><p>in high school, the key to getting to Stanford i would say is doing something amazing, that sets you apart. (besides having good grades of course). to get to grad school, what do you have to do in college to ensure entry to top schools?
I wish somebody had talked to me more in 9th grade about getting into college… i thought it was just grades and test scores. I got accepted but i didn’t realize my extra curricular would be why. hope this makes question makes sense.</p></li>
<li><p>I’m probably not going to get any financial aid. My family’s not super rich nor are they poor. However, if (hypothetically) i got a full tuition scholarship to usc (my brother did), my parent’s won’t pay a penny for stanford. I don’t want premature white hairs by taking on a $200,000 before my 18th birthday. However, i’ve heard once you get to Stanford, there’s a lot more opportunity for grants/scholarships. True? </p></li>
</ol>
<p>THANKS GUYS!!! :D</p>
<p>imma quit lurking for a second to say that stanford is the best - so exciting that a new class is already gearing up for this amazing experience!</p>
<p>oh and grad school depends a lot on what field/type of school you’re trying to go to - you generally want good standardized test scores, a good gpa (how good will vary based on what field/schools you’re looking at) and a relevant transcript… but most everything depends on the specific schools/fields you’re looking at. research the ones you’re interested in.
& imo full tuition is a lot to turn down. you’ll have to wait and see how much Stanford gives you - i would stay away from chewing over the hypothetical until you know for sure. they tend to be very good with financial aid. idk about other grants but i haven’t heard much about ones that’d be able to cover $200K, or that would even need to - Stanford F.A., as i said, is great.
i’d try to get your parents to budge on the matter. even as much as i love Stanford (which is a lot), there’s no way I’d personally take $200K of debt over a full ride at a good school like USC.</p>
<p>back to lurking.</p>