<p>I am going to be a freshman next year. I just wanted some advice from current students. I have some AP credit for science and math courses like AB Calc and Chem. I am currently in MCS and I want to switch to CIT so I would like to start off with a high GPA. </p>
<p>I am planning to take Honors Chem I, the required writing course and computing.</p>
<p>Should i skip Calc I with my AP credit or take it to get an easy A? Is there any disadvantage to this?</p>
<p>Also, which would you suggest taking first, intro to programming or physics I? and why?</p>
<p>I don’t think my friends that retook Calc 1 considered it an easy A. I know I skipped into Calc 3D after getting a 5 on BC and felt it was appropriate.</p>
<p>And, really, the difference between one A and a B after four years of classes is pretty minimal. You’d be better served placing out of the class and having the extra room to take something you’d enjoy.</p>
<p>If you want to switch into CIT you should also plan on taking Intro to _____ Engineering courses each term of your freshman year, as well.</p>
<p>Yea, I’m planning to take Intro to ChemE but my advisor said I might not get it the fall semester so I’ll definitely take it spring. So would you suggest starting with Calc II?</p>
<p>I am in a similar situation. I’m in physics, but I want to go Mech.E. I know I will place into calc II, but I’m thinking about going calc I for the higher GPA (for internship and transfer purposes)…My adviser told me that intro to ECE, Mech.E, Chem.E, and I think one other one is full for the fall. So I might take intro to Civil or Materials to satisfy the CIT requirement.</p>
<p>A nightmare of a professor (mihai) is teaching 21259 calc 3d this fall. If you can put it off-- put it off. She’s dreadful-- they keep moving her around - she’s not even a tenure track prof, has a thick accent and is useless. The SCS freshman got stuck with her last year in concepts 127 and then they got her again in the spring with matrix aleg 241-- thank g-d she’s been shifted elsewhere!</p>
<p>Don’t retake 120 that’s useless. 122 iffy.
You don’t get a choice to skip – you MUST take the online CMU math placement test. Your advisor will email you with instructions. It’s on CMU blackboard. Take it very very very seriously. YOu’ll need a 46/47 or higher to place out of 120 and 122. You can also forfeit your calc credit and take an “honor” version of calc. Worth it if you’re in physics or a math major. </p>
<p>For CIT – if you can postpone 259 and wait for another prof-- do it!
Take Physics or Chem, freshman english (if you get in), intro to CS and your Intro to engineering course.
BTW you can also take 260 Differential equations if you place out of 120 and 122 - 260 can be taken before 259. Pre-reqs for both are 120 and 122 which you get from a 5 on AP CALC BC PLUS a solid score on the CMU placement test. Be careful with the last section on series–many people blow it and that puts you back into 122. Beef up on it before you start the test.
The test is timed…if you know your stuff 2-3 hours long.
If you’re struggling - (and you’re stupid enough to cheat (yourself) by opening a book – or interneting your answer) then you will be sweating it out 4-5 hours long.</p>
<p>Johnson is the prof for 260 - he’s also a non-tenured track prof- but he gets good ratings. They move him around in all the intro classes as well. I don’t know anything about him- perhaps someone else can chime in. But avoid Mihai!!
Ask any SCS freshman about her- you will get no votes in her favor.</p>
<p>Bottom line - MCS and CIT have pretty much the exact same freshman curriculum with the exception of MCS needing Bio and only some CIT majors needing BIO and the Intro to Engineering class for CIT.</p>
<p>Lots of old threads.
Also see the FB 2014 CIT group – lots of course stuff surfaced there</p>
<p>Yeah, avoid Mihai like the plague. She basically just regurgitated info from the book and went on vaguely related tangents, not to mention that the homework had almost no correlation to the material we went over in class. I’ve had her for 2 classes thus far- stay away.</p>
<p>Johnson wasn’t the worst professor (especially compared to Mihai), but he wasn’t too stellar either. His lectures were alright, but he didn’t seem to care much outside of class. He won’t go out of his way to make his office hours less awkward, and he can be a bit condescending at times.
I’d say he’s low-average. Not terrible, by any means, but I wouldn’t want him again.</p>
<p>Your description of Mihai still sounds better than the guy I had for Calc 3D. He hadn’t taught the course in something like ten years, used his old overheads without reviewing them, wouldn’t use a pointer, and had mistakes all over the place (which he didn’t correct since he never brought a marker, either). I also remember having 8:30 recitations with a TA that could barely speak English.</p>
<p>Diff Eq was the complete opposite experience where I had a fantastic professor and a really good TA.</p>
<p>If you place into 21-259, consider postponing it. 21-122, however, is not bad at all, and I would definitely not skip down into 21-120. You’ll just be bored. </p>
<p>As a CIT freshman, first semester I took:</p>
<p>*21-122
*Mat Sci Intro
*Physics I for Engr (33-106)
*Intermediate Chinese (placed into this)</p>
<p>second semester:</p>
<p>*21-259 (3D)
*Intro to MechE
*Interp
*Intermediate Chinese II
*Physics II for Engr (33-107) - I took this because I had AP credit for 15-110; it is a notorious weeder class that lots of people will choose to take over the summer at CMU, Pitt, or elsewhere, or will take it soph. year. But whatever. I got it over with :p</p>
<p>I felt that both of these schedules were a good mix of challenging but not totally overwhelming. (Though 33-107 is always going to be a little tough…or at least it would have been for me in any case…)</p>
<p>^Yes, Greggo is awesome. I had him for 21-122, and if I weren’t taking Diff Eq over the summer, I’d have him for that in the fall. Which would be similarly awesome.</p>
<p>“she’s dreadful-- they keep moving her around - she’s not even a tenure track prof, has a thick accent and is useless”</p>
<p>That’s harsh. I took concepts with Mihai in the fall (I’m an ECE major), and while she might not be the best out there, she definitely isn’t useless. And what do you mean by thick accent? She’s perfectly understandable and nobody I took it with had an issue with that aspect. Concepts is a very difficult class to teach, and I agree she didn’t do a very good job with it, but I wouldn’t go to the extent you went to describe her. </p>
<p>Also, you do not need a 46/47 to get placed out of 120/122. I got a 39 and got 5 on Calc BC and was placed out. I don’t mean to pick a fight, but please check your facts before telling people what to do.</p>
<p>Well, you’re the first to say anything positive about Mihai. You might as well have directed your comments to the others who share the thoughts-- see Eurelo – just as “harsh”. My S and a bunch of his friends (we had brunch right before thanksgiving week) were not happy - many didn’t even attend her class b/c they felt the time sitting there was of little value. You don’t think she has an accent? Hmm whatever (not that everyone with an accent cannot teach-- just in this case, the inability to teach and answer student questions, combined with the accent made for a difficult situation. S’s roommie took linear instead of matrix just to avoid Mihai-- )</p>
<p>The posts on FB and CC on the placement guarantee you’re out of 120/122 with 46/47. The 40 - 45 range seems to be highly variable- some students placed out and some didn’t – it rests upon a combination of the AP score and how you score on each of the 7-8 parts of the CMU test. So to be guaranteed you’re out of 120/122 you’re golden with 46/47 and uncertain with anything less. That’s been the results here for 3 years of student anecdotes.<br>
You can always petition Mackey (or whomever is handling it this summer) to get placed into 259-- if you get a C or higher, then you get credit for 120 and 122.</p>
<p>To be fair, this matched the attitude of many of my CS friends throughout their undergrad classes. (Then they’d secretly watch the videotaped episodes at 2 AM while downing some Mountain Dew: Code Red.)</p>
<p>Mom2012and14, I’m wasn’t trying to point out anything positive. I agree that she wasn’t a very good teacher. She does have an accent, but really, that isn’t an issue. There are so many people at CMU, from so many countries, that you kinda expect these differences.</p>
<p>Teaching aside, she’s probably one of the nicest ladies you’ll ever meet. I saw that at office hours. She does try to help you if you’re in trouble/have scheduling conflicts - she goes out of her way with that. Not a lot of people do it and I think that’s commendable. And well, I had a lot of fun in concepts simply because the homework wasn’t linked with lecture material. Its like that in most classes. You actually end up learning a lot more that way, spending late nights trying to figure out a problem(which I personally find a lot of fun in ) & forming really good relationships with the people you’re pulling the allnighters with.</p>
<p>For matrix, she was an average teacher but a really nice lady. She would give you all the necessary time/explanation needed to get a particularly troubling concept.</p>
<p>Mihai isn’t the end of the world. At the end of the day you’re there to learn and if you have the slightest inclination to do well, put your head down, grit your teeth, stop *****ing and fill in the blank spaces yourself.</p>
<p>physicsdude1992, I’m the the same situation as you. Are you trying to sign up for a intro to engin course in fall and how are you gonna sign up for it cos its not on the courses for MCS students in the course registration form?
Also, I spoke to someone who switched into CIT a few years ago and another alumni and they said its ok to take one intro to engineering course in spring and another in any other year.</p>
) & forming really good relationships with the people you’re pulling the allnighters with.</p>