If your student truly wishes to go to Purdue - even if that’s a maybe- send the Loci. Students are applying to 10-20 schools… and universities are looking to sift out the less serious candidates. It’s helpful communication for all involved.
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This is important to consider. My other child in a different Engineering major chose to retake Calc1 (had AP exemption) because they had to take Calc2 and 3 and didnt seem prepared. Also, exempt from physics retook physics w/ calc because they were required to take Adv. Physics w calc. If they didn’t have to take the next sequence, it might have been ok to take the exemption. IMO, AP classes do not equal more rigorous colleges same level classes. I’m sure others were fine with exemption, just offering their perspective.
@colls I think my daughter would agree. My engineering DD chose to take the college version of her AP classes to make sure she fully understood before moving on to the next step of the class (calc2 etc). I think she was grateful to have a couple of classes she could easily pass as she adjusted to college level studying and everything else. I think she used her AP history class for credits since it was unrelated to her major.
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My Son got acceptance from Purdue Cybersecurity Honor undergrad program. e is now thinking about doing computer science first as base. How difficult it is to get transfer from Polytechnic Cybersecurity program to College of Science CS program ? He also got acceptance from UMD Computer Science but wanted to check about Purdue if he can get transfer.
Last year CS did not accept any students from outside the college of science. If your child has a direct CS pathway somewhere else it will be safer to go there.
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ok thanks for the quick response…
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How easy is it to do study abroad as an engineering major? Did your daughter do a summer program or a semester? Thanks for all the advice on this thread, it’s very helpful!
Thanks @COLLS @momofboiler1 @Susanb33
Very helpful.
I think he has some APs in the social science/liberal arts (Eng lang, comp, history, Econ, etc) that would be enough to gain a semester. I sure hope they let him apply them.
We reviewed a YouTube video from a year ago where they said Engineering majors are also allowed take complementary or additive minors. Are these something kids add later or from the beginning? We looked for how/when one adds these, whether there were any restrictions, but came up empty.
Anyone have any experience in this? Thanks in advance
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Yes! Engineers can absolutely go abroad!
My D did a “Maymaster” in Italy after her freshman year. She wanted to co-op so knew that was really her only option for her, but friends did the GEAR program which incorporates working and studying abroad. Another friend, did a semester in China. My understanding is it’s very doable and there are lots of options. The key is telling your advisor early so they can work with the student to find the best semester and program for them.
Minors and concentrations are added later, after freshman year, when students officially transition to their major. Your student will get a new advisor in their major and they’ll work together to design the plan of study to get the minor or concentration. It was very straight forward for my daughter.
AP credits are very straight forward at Purdue. Here’s the link to their chart: College Board Advanced Placement Credit - Undergraduate Admissions - Purdue University
Daughter was accepted to comp sci. At info session they said purdue now has a path to double major in comp sci and data sci (must apply into cs as a incoming fresh which she did). anyone have any insight on ease in adding data sci as second major ? since data science is one of the majors that’s gets closed out does that affect double majors as well?
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My soph in civil eng definitely applied as many APs as he could. He had almost all of his gen ed courses covered and it has opened up a lot of space in his schedule - to have a lighter load to to add courses for a minor or two (or three!). He took calc BC his jr year of high school and got a 5, but that was 2020 when content was dropped and the exam was shortened. Then no calc his senior year. When it came time to register at Purdue, he went back and forth on which calc class to take (1, 2 or 3) - he had credit for calc1 and calc2 from his AP BC score of 5, but didn’t know if that was smart to jump in to calc3. Read many comments online and took the advice of “take the credit and run” - so he did. Took calc3 his first semester. It was hard but I think that was also because it was his first semester of college. And Purdue math is notoriously hard and some would say the calc classes are the hardest classes at Purdue. I would take whatever AP credit you can get.
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In general how do AP credits work at Purdue? Do you actually end up paying less since you will not be taking those classes at all? Or are you considered to be eligible to take a higher level course instead?
What did your son end up taking his freshman year? Did he take less classes, or was he able to take some civil eng classes before getting out of FYE? I know Purdue must have lots of kids like this, so it’s probably not hard for their advisors. It’s just hard to tell what you’d take when looking at their sample 4 year plans if you’re coming in with lots of credit.
The computer science major is mapped out as a four-year program. I imagine engineering is similar. That said, most off campus apartments require year-long leases, so a summer semester can often be factored towards an early graduation. We are still trying to figure this out. You pay by the semester, though. So there’s only a savings if one graduates early. Our daughter is a freshman with junior standing. Her APs and DEs got her out of a lot of general education requirements. She is trying to work out what to do with her extra time, assuming she won’t get the CS classes any earlier than needed in order to graduate early. She could take master’s classes as a senior or do a double major, etc. So I would say it depends on one’s major.
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No discounted tuition because students still need a minimum of 12 credits/semester to be a full time student. You just take a higher level courses or have room for other electives instead. My D came in with second semester sophomore standing and was able to add a certification, a concentration, do research, and take grad level courses. She technically could have graduated one semester early but she wouldn’t have been able to finish her concentration or get published.
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First semester he took chem115, com114, engr131 and math261 (calc3 - multi var) - 13 credits
Second semester he took cs159, eaps120 (geography), engr132, ma265 (Lin alg) and phys172 - 15 credits
Summer he took phys241 (optics). Took it from home but online with Purdue. Heard it was a really tough class in person that a lot of kids fail, so he did it over the summer - 3 credits
No civil engineering specific courses while in FYE
Purdue lists all the AP classes they accept on their admitted student page: COLLEGE BOARD ADVANCED PLACEMENT CREDIT
Most require a 4 or 5 to get credit- students GPA is not impacted. As other have said- Calculus is one of the most challenging classes and many students take Calc at Purdue even if they took AP.
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A LOCI is not required but if you are committed to attending you should tell Purdue that and have a guidance counselor pipe up echoing that too. Any new info that can support an application is good to provide.
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With a bunch of AP credits you can pay less by graduating early or you can do 4 years and have room for minors and concentrations that otherwise could push you beyond 8 semesters. Know students who have done both. comes down to personal finances and preferences. The Plans Of Study for each major and AP credit charts are the place to start.