<p>Hey all, i'm an incoming freshman at Stanford planning to major in computer science. I have a couple questions regarding my schedule:</p>
<p>1) Which math to take?
-I scored a 5 on Calc AB, which allows me to enter in the Math 50 series, but the CME series also looks interesting. Is CME substantially harder?</p>
<p>2) CS 106X or CS 106b?
I took AP comp sci, got a 5, took an online class called Data structures and Algorithms this year which was terribly taught but I was presented with a basic understanding of the material that will be covered in 106x or 106b.</p>
<p>3) SIMILE:
I was thinking of also opting for SIMILE ( Science in the making Integrated Learning Environment) which is a history of science ILE. It counts as 4 units Fall/Spring, and 8 units during the Winter along with a PWR1 requirement. Does this program seem like a bad idea for potential computer science majors? pros/cons? If I were to do this, what other classes would/should I take along with it during the fall? I feel like taking SIMILE + physics/compsci/math during fall would be too much, so which of the latter would I skip the fall?</p>
<p>--Thank you!</p>
<ol>
<li><p>CME is usually taken by students who plan on majoring in engineering fields. It’s a little harder, but either way both series are difficult. Math 51 is generally regarded as a tough class, but most make it through.</p></li>
<li><p>I recommend CS106B because Marty Stepp is teaching that class in fall. Cynthia Lee is teaching CS106X, but many prefer Marty’s teaching style over Cynthia’s. I did not take CS106X with Cynthia (I have Cynthia right now for CS106B) but her 106X class exams were closed notes/closed book. I believe Marty’s exams were open-book. CS106X is more in-depth than 106B and probably just slightly more challenging, but they’re roughly the same. I would recommend 106B if you feel uncertain about that online class.</p></li>
<li><p>SIMILE and other programs like that are extremely time-intensive. It would be difficult to juggle CS classes and SIMILE classes all at once. Do NOT take SIMILE + physics/compsci/math. I took Physics 41, CS106A, and Math 51 last quarter and it was incredibly difficult and stressful. I recommend taking two science/math classes and then some other ‘fun’ class to balance your schedule out.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>It is possible to take Math 51 Winter quarter and skip taking math Fall quarter. Many engineering majors opt to take Math 51 winter quarter, simply because a majority of hardcore math majors take Math 51 in the fall and tend to skew the curve. However, if you’re a CS major, you are required to take both Physics 41 (Mechanical Physics) and Physics 43 (Electricity and Magnetism). Physics 41 is ONLY offered in Winter and Physics 43 is ONLY offered in Spring, so keep that in mind when planning out your schedule.</p>
<p>I recommend looking at the UGHB website and looking at 4 year-plans and seeing which CS tracks you want to pursue.
<a href=“SoE Undergrad Handbook”>SoE Undergrad Handbook;
<p>I suspect despite your 5 in AP CS, you will enjoy the pace of CS106A, especially if you take Math 51. From what I have heard, 106B is going to be hard for everyone and if you add Math51 to the schedule, you will have lots of issues. 106A will be a lot of work too but as a beginner class, it is not as bad.</p>
<p>On a side note, it is surprising to hear that CS majors need 2 physics classes (they are not easy either).</p>
<p>If you are familiar with CS and did AP CS, I think that 106a would be very easy, and perhaps boring.
My DS went straight to 106B and had very light programming experience (C+ and Java a couple years earlier) and didn’t even take AP CS and it was a good decision.</p>
<p>You can do a search on 106A and 106B and find the syllabus to get a good sense.</p>
<p>On the physics, yes that is true, but if you did well with AP Physics you can waive some if not all of the requirement.</p>