I’m signed up for orgo 1, calc 1, and algebra/trig based physics this semester. I know i could handle taking just two of the classes, but i just dont know if i could handle taking 3. If it was general chemistry i’d feel a little more comfortable but orgo seems a lot more demanding. Has anyone had a schedule like this or worse? Does this seem all that bad? I’m just thinking if i dont do it now, i’ll have to do it later when i have even harder classes
Are you taking other classes too? Or strictly those three?
How long is the summer session, and is the school on the semester or quarter system?
At a semester system school, the summer session is often 8 weeks long. If that is the case, then the full time course load is about half of the course load one would normally take in a 15 week semester.
@bodangles no I’m only taking these 3
@ucbalumnus our summers are 5 weeks for most classes, 6 weeks for higher unit classes
If you’re only in those three it should be doable, but it would be better to break them up a bit more with some electives.
I took honors biology+a writing intensive lab, honors orgo, and calc-based physics this past fall. The semester before that I took honors gen chem, linear algebra/diffeqs, physics, plus a sociology class. It takes dedication and hard work, but it’s absolutely doable, especially if you know that you like/are good at STEM.
The only bad thing is that you’ll be constantly studying something STEM related, which can lead to some burn out. Make sure to take breaks. You could try taking a low credit elective that doesn’t take much brainpower to give yourself a break.
If you want any orgo advice, my big piece of advice is to spread out your studying. Make flashcards as you’re learning things, and try to glance at them a couple times a week so the information stays fresh. Focus on understanding rather than memorizing - if you find yourself trying to memorize each and every specific reaction problem, you’re doing it wrong. Orgo follows several rules that generally fully explain the reasoning behind many mechanisms.
A 5-6 week summer class will cover material three times as quickly as the same class in a 15 week semester. So taking three classes at the same time in a 5-6 week summer session would be like taking nine classes in a regular 15 week semester.
Did we establish “this semester” meant summer session?
I’m taking this during spring semester, i thought ucbalumnus was asking about summer so i could split it up and take 2 in spring and 1 in summer
Actually, I initially thought you meant during a summer session. If this is a regular semester, then it should be ok (even if you add a fourth course, if you are a full time student). However, two of your courses are lab courses, which tend to be higher workload, so having a fourth course with lab or large term project or other high workload may not be a good idea.