Question about freshman schedule

<p>First off let me say that I am a procrastinating senior; I don't put in my best effort because I don't really try that hard anymore. When I do try my best I usually do better than the class average, if not as well as the class average. I just wanted to know from your guy's perspective if part of a good schedule for chemical engineering first year @ Purdue would be the following:</p>

<p>Chemistry - The "weed out" class, generally at or above the AP level
Physics - The "weed out" class, generally at or above the AP level
Calculus 1 - The "weed out" class, generally at or above the AP AB level</p>

<p>These three are the main courses I am worried about; I am not proficient at chemistry (AP) because I gave up too early, when I know I could've done better. I've never even taken regular physics. I'm still in Precalculus and maintaining a B+/A- or so.</p>

<p>I plan on extensively studing these three subjects at the AP level via self study and a private teacher during my 2 month visit to India (to see family). I was wondering if it's enough time to cover all the material covered in each class throughout the whole year. How well will I do in freshman year if I attempt this?</p>

<p>First year calculus is easy... lol. I got A+'s in calc 1 and 2 without trying. But if you're only maintaining a B+/A- in highschool calc, you might have trouble.
First year Chem is a little harder, but still easy. This is coming from someone that hardly took ANY chemistry in highschool.
First year physics is hard for a lot of people, but I didn't have any trouble.</p>

<p>The weeder classes at my school are first year linear algebra and physics. How you do as a freshman in University doesn't depend on how much you studied in highschool. It depends on how hard you try in University, and how smart you are. My knowledge was **** poor going into University, but now I study hard and get good grades.</p>

<p>What's the recomended course plan?</p>

<p>Russell7, your school must be cake and not weed out if you could pull grades like that in Calc 2 and Chem 2. These are generally weed outs that set out to destroy grades and nothing else. None of the material in these classes is easy, nor are high grades easy to get. At least at my school. In calc. 2 avg. grades for a test that about 500 people take hover around 60%. Chem 2 about 70%. </p>

<p>Now me talking from a standpoint of a 2nd sem freshman procrastinating from finals, Chem 2 and Calc 2 are not difficult, but you will not pick up easy A's in both at any school. If you take both at the same time odds are you will get an A in one, but not the other. These are both very difficult courses, but with enough work and effort put in you should get B's or better in both.</p>

<p>Couldn't be more true. On one day I had a calc2 and chem 2 test in one day. Got 100% on math and only 65% chem. Too hard to study for everything at once. These are the only two classes I have that I consider hard. While I consider them my hard classes they are each doable classes though. Got to love GE classes to keep the GPA high.</p>

<p>Yeah calc 2 is kinda hard, but easy once you practice the problems. 'Series' and 'sequences' are the silliest math topics ever.What do you use this stuff for? Easy, but silly. We had to memorize all these stupid 'series tests.' Half the kids in my class dropped out of the class.Most of the others got C's.I actually did way better in calc 2 than i did in calc 1(got a B in calc 1 and an A in calc 2). Calc 2 has to be the most useless class i've had so far in college.</p>

<p>Chem 2 was also easier for me than chem 1('easier'....not 'easy').The thing with chem is that you have to study.You have to read thoroughly.READ THOROUGHLY.Or you will get raped by the exams.</p>

<p>"Russell7, your school must be cake and not weed out if you could pull grades like that in Calc 2 and Chem 2. These are generally weed outs that set out to destroy grades and nothing else. None of the material in these classes is easy, nor are high grades easy to get. At least at my school. In calc. 2 avg. grades for a test that about 500 people take hover around 60%. Chem 2 about 70%."</p>

<p>I go to a top school, and there is a 40% first year Engineering attrition rate, so my school obviously has weeder classes. However, I'm a little biased, in that I'm not an average student. In fact, I actually have a 3.9 GPA; I find everything easy. Typical curves in those two classes are set to a 2.4-2.5 (4.0 pt scale). The averages in my classes were similar. Calc 2 average was about 64, and Chem 2 about 65.</p>

<p>The fact that I found the material easy doesn't mean that my school is "cake." It isn't my fault that you found it hard.</p>

<p>How did you get an A+? I thought the highest grade you can get is an A?I dont even think they handed out A+'s in my high school, let alone college.</p>

<p>It depends on the grading system. Some schools don't offer A+. At my University, A+'s usually go to the top couple percent of the class. Some profs don't give out A+'s, and some only give it out at their discretion if they feel that a student is above the level of all the others. At my University, an A+ and an A are both a 4.0; but the A+ is a "glorified" A for the people at the top of the class.</p>

<p>caa5042, when you get to Calc III you'll find out why you needed Calc II. It's not something they teach just to pass the time.</p>

<p>"'Series' and 'sequences' are the silliest math topics ever.What do you use this stuff for?"</p>

<p>Sequences and series are actually very important in higer level math. Any type of integration/ODE/PDE that you cannot find a closed form solution for (pretty much anything realistic or moderately complex) uses series solutions as an approximation. </p>

<p>Pretty much every type of numerical method implemented to solve the afforementioned types of problems is really just an algorithmic type of series.</p>

<p>There's actually lots of other stuff but you get the idea.</p>

<p>If I recall correctly from when I was looking at Purdue, most first year engineering students take the same courses regardless of their discipline since your major is technically freshman engineering and you won't declare you specific area of engineering till your second year. I would recommend talking to current Purdue students to see what they have to say. Here is what Purdue recommends you take your first semester: <a href="https://engineering.purdue.edu/ChE/Academics/Undergraduate/ChE_PlanOfStudy.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;https://engineering.purdue.edu/ChE/Academics/Undergraduate/ChE_PlanOfStudy.pdf&lt;/a> .</p>

<p>Hmmm... that looks a little different from my first year program. Every engineering has the same first year here, too. Mine was:</p>

<p>Semester 1:
Calc 1
Gen Chem 1
Engineering Mechanics: Statics
Physics: Fluids and Waves
Arts elective
Introduction to engineering (1 credit, pass/fail, lame course)</p>

<p>Semester 2:
Calc 2
Gen Chem 2
Engineering Mechanics: Dynamics
Linear Algebra
C++ programming
Introduction to Engineering 2 (1 credit, same thing as before)</p>

<p>
[quote]

First year calculus is easy... lol. I got A+'s in calc 1 and 2 without trying. But if you're only maintaining a B+/A- in highschool calc

[/quote]

*** easy A's????? I slept through my HS AP class and got a B+
but first semester I got a freking F in cacl 1 man, even though I was retaking the damn class. and i go to a state school</p>

<p>how the he ll did you get an F in calc 1 when you took ap calc in high school?Thats just embarassing.</p>

<p>In an equivalently juvenile manner, someone ought to now exclaim, "Nooo, caa5042, <em>yoooou're</em> just embarassing!"</p>

<p>It happens, dude. Calc 1 doesn't particularly have a cookie-cutter syllabus, so it's not unlikely that two Calc 1 courses would yield different results for the same student. Don't be an arse.</p>

<p>be silent sweetie.There's no excuses.Its the same exact course-Derivatives and integrals.</p>

<p>Bottom line, insults really aren't necessary. Everyone screws up sometimes. Be nice, and be supportive here. If you can't be supportive, then don't comment.</p>

<p>Typical HMC Frosh Courseload:</p>

<p>FALL</p>

<p>HUM 001 Intro Humanities and Social Sci
MATH012 Intr to Lin Alg/Discr Dynmc Sys-
MATH013 Differential Equations I
CHEM021 General Chemistry
CHEM025 Chemistry Laboratory
CSCI005 Struct Progrmmng Problem Solving
PHYS023 Spec Relativity/Quantum Mechanic </p>

<p>SPRING</p>

<p>ENGR004 Introduction to Engineering Dsgn
HUM 002 Building Community
PHYS024 Mechanics & Wave Motion
PHYS028 Physics Laboratory
CHEM022 General Chemistry
CHEM026 Chemistry Laboratory
MATH014 Multivariable Calculus
MATH064 Multivariable Calculus II</p>

<p>I guess it matters where you go rocket...cuz if I did that schedule at PSU, Id have like 25 credits :P(for my first semester)</p>