<p>Hi, I'm an incoming freshman and my CalSO is coming up next weekend. </p>
<p>I pretty much have the least grasp on what major(s) I want I could possibly have. After some consideration, the 4 majors that interest me the most are: astrophysics, chemistry, mcb-biochem track, and music(would take with one of the others as part of a double major).</p>
<p>as you can see, besides the chem and mcb being somewhat similar, my majors have pretty much nothing in common, with MATH1A being the only thing I could sign up for to cover more than one area.</p>
<p>So, I'm pretty clueless as to what courses I should pick for the 1st semester. </p>
<p>Here are two hypothetical schedules that seem to make sense though:</p>
<p>1: MATH1A
ASTRON7A
MUS49B
R&C class or seminar
2:MATH1A
CHEM1A or 4A
MUS49B<br>
R&C class or seminar </p>
<p>Even these sets of classes seem shaky though.</p>
<p>I realize that my interests seem to be unreasonably scattered and you may think I lack focus (which I do). But given the case at hand could anyone tell me if either of my hypothetical schedules make sense or other recommendations for my phase 1 picks?</p>
<p>The first thing you should consider is whether you really wanna major in chem or not since Chem 4A is an entirely different animal from Chem 1A. Chem 4A is exclusively for College of Chemistry students (or those who want to transition into it).</p>
<p>It’s not that 4A is exclusively for CoC students, it’s that you have very little reason to take it if you’re not in or interested in the CoC.</p>
<p>If you’re interested enough in Chem as a major (you definitely need to think hard on this before making a decision), I’d suggest taking schedule #2, because 4A is only offered in the fall. It’s a hard-as-**** class, though, so be warned…</p>
<p>^thanks. i had found that on the tele bears site but just wasn’t sure if incoming freshman were allowed to use open hours after calso and before phase II.</p>
<p>Does anyone happen to know what music classes I can skip out of with a 4 or 5 on the AP Music theory exam?</p>
<p>Also, would it be safer to phase 2 math or chem? Since there are so few music spots left (like 55 total), I don’t think I can afford to phase 2 any music classes. This is forcing me to phase 2 either math or chem to stay within the phase 1 unit limit. Or should I take my chances on the music and make sure I get into my technical classes?</p>
<p>No matter what you got on your AP Music Theory, you will be required to take a placement test a few days before the semester starts. Thus there is no need to sign up for any music classes for phase 1 since you don’t know which class you’re gonna end up with. (49A if you barely pass it, 49B or 49C if you ace it, 20A or 25A if you pretty much flunk it. if you don’t get the 49 series, you’ll probably have to settle with a music minor)</p>
<p>And always phase 2 math. It will initially get loaded, but there will be at least ~30 dropouts in the first 2 weeks. If that still doesn’t solve it, you can always contact the math advisor Barbara Peavy who will put you in the lecture and the discussion section you want b/c she is awesome like that. :D</p>
<p>Sure, you can phase 2 your music course unless you have other courses to fill up the 20.5 unit cap. if so, definitely leave it as an alternative.</p>
<p>schedule.berkeley.edu - select Fall 2010 then search for the class. </p>
<p>The first screen will list the classes and the status as of the evening before. Click on the link at the bottom that gives you current enrollment and restrictions to see the up to the minute value.</p>
<p>For example, as of 10PM on Sunday night, Math 1A section 1 lecture lists 215 open seats and 196 enrolled, but when I click to get the current enrollment link I see that 225 are already enrolled - another 29 - and the open slots are commensurately lower at 186 (capacity of 411 minus enrolled of 225). </p>
<p>Also, some classes have enrollment by category - if you match a category such as “new or readmitted” then that line determines whether you can enroll. You may find open spaces but none that you qualify for, when a class has multiple categories. </p>
<p>For example, again on Sunday night, IB 131 has 389 enrolled and it appears 343 more seats, but by category you see six categories: instructor approval, new/readmitted, IB major, specific versions of MCB major or public health majors, bioengineering or toxicology or a specific nutrional science majors, and open. The open category is already full, meaning that unless yo uare a new student, one of the listed majors, or get a special approval from the professor, you cant register in spite of the 343 open slots. In addition, the course is restricted to juniors, seniors and grad students, thus the incoming freshmen can’t sign up either. That is why you can see lots of open seats on the main class screen but also a long waitlist.</p>
<p>CHEM1A (seemingly plenty of room left)
L&S R44</p>
<p>Phase2:</p>
<p>MATH1A(several hundred spots left; there should still be room by Phase 2, right?)
MUS49B(around 26 spots left, but pending placement exam anyway)</p>
<p>And, if I manage to get all of those courses, how would the workload of the resulting schedule be?</p>
<p>A bit high for first semester. Math 1A and Chem 1A is pretty typical for first semester, but L&S R44 is a fairly workload intensive class in its own right. Not ridiculously high, but a bit heavy. A less intensive R&C or a general breadth class is more typical.</p>
<p>Yes, I keep hearing L&S R44 is tough. But most other R&C classes either have very few spots left or already have waitlists, and my CalSO isn’t until Saturday.</p>
<p>Do you think I should put something else as phase 1 on my sheet and hope there’s still room my Saturday? The only other course I see that likely won’t fill is S ASIAN 1A, which fulfills my HS requirement…</p>
<p>Or, I guess I could not take music this semester and have Math, Chem, and L&S R44 for my minimum 13 units, but is that wise to do 1st semester?</p>
<p>taking a minimum of 13 units is never unwise. in fact, if i could repeat my freshman year, i would’ve definitely taken 13 units; better to underextend rather than to overextend yourself.</p>