Questions from an incoming transfer applicant (Fall 2014)

Colleges and Universities A-Z Reed College
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<p>I was accepted as transfer applicant and have received a quite generous financial award, so I will be attending Reed this Fall. I'm an international transfer student, from India, and I'm really excited about getting to pursue my interest in Physics at Reed. It seems like I'd need to to 5-6 semesters at Reed to complete my course requisites and get the true feel of the "Reed Experience"!</p>

<p>So, a few questions:</p>

<p>1) I will have to take the intro Humanities course plus a year of our "Group A" (two units/one year in one of Art History, Music Theory/History, Philosophy, Religion, Literature) and a year of "Group B" (two units/one year in one of Psychology, Economics, Political Science, History, Anthropology, Sociology). Or a 200-level Humanities course.</p>

<p>As somebody who's not been in touch with the Humanities side of education these past 2 years, what kind of courses would be easiest for me to balance with the heavy Physics-Math course load? I'm really interested in Philosophy, Psychology and Anthropology, and considering that I do have some prior knowledge of Music Theory... what courses would the Reedies on CC recommend me to look into?</p>

<p>2) This one's directed to anybody who may have knowledge of the Physics courses in the second year, would it be too difficult to take up both Quantum Mech. I and Classical Mech. I/ Electrodynamics I in the same semester?</p>

<p>3) What are the Junior Qualifying Exams in Physics like? What kind of course material are we expected to have covered to decently in the exam? I need to do well in the Physics courses because the entire idea behind me transferring to Reed is so that it becomes easier for me to move on to a good PhD. program in physics.</p>

<p>4) Everybody talks about the immense workload at Reed, so after that would it be possible to also attempt to become a part of the student group at the Research Reactor? Honestly, how tough is the workload for a prospective Physics major, especially as a transfer student?</p>

<p>5) I'm coming from Bengal where the coldest it gets is 6-10 degrees (Celsius) in the winters, so what kind of weather should I expect to get used to in Portland? I've read all about the incessant drizzles, and I'm not too worried about that. How cold would it get around winter and how warm during the summer months?</p>

<p>Thanks for going through my questions, I look forward to any feedback you guys may have... and I look forward to joining Reed in the Fall. :)</p>

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<p>Haha I know who you are.</p>

<p>Anyway,</p>

<p>1) No course at Reed is “easy”, so take classes that you would like to genuinely take because otherwise it’s not going to end pretty. From what current Reedies tell me, those inclined to physics/math usually take up economics to fulfill the Group B requirement. Basically, just look at the classes offered and read the descriptions. Are you not required to fulfill the Group X requirement? </p>

<p>I, personally, am excited to take up a language at Reed. You will probably not get this chance again and there may come a time in your life when you will regret not studying a foreign language in college. So, milk the opportunities offered by the liberal arts as much as you can?</p>

<p>2) I’m not too aware of what’s up with physics but I should point it out to you that physics is extremely demanding at Reed. A friend who attends Hamilton, for instance, tells me that he just has 1 problem set to do per week for physics, while at Reed, you will have to do one every other day for even the introductory class.</p>

<p>3) --</p>

<p>4) Working at the research reactor would be demanding, yes. Many who are excited by it in the beginning lose interest midway through the seminars because they just don’t feel that it’s worth the time or energy. Only you can tell if it’s worth it. If it were impossible, no one would be running the reactor and it would be shut down.</p>

<p>You ought to speak to a physics major at Reed to gauge the difficulty. Ask the admissions office to find you someone. From what physics majors at Reed tell me, the program is extremely demanding and very difficult indeed. Someone who enjoys physics, however, would enjoy the difficulty and find it to be fulfilling.</p>

<p>5) Don’t know yet. Reedies tell me it is cloudy all the time.</p>

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<p>5) It can snow in Portland, but you’ll have plenty of time to be prepared for it. It does not rain all the time, but there are months when it seems like it does. There are clear skies quite often. Average daily temperatures here: <a href=“Portland Climate, Weather By Month, Average Temperature (Oregon, United States) - Weather Spark”>Portland Climate, Weather By Month, Average Temperature (Oregon, United States) - Weather Spark;

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<p>Thanks for your reply International95! </p>

<p>I wasn’t really talking about courses being “easy” per se, I was just wondering what’d be easy to balance with a high workload in Physics and Math! And I will probably take you up on your advice to try and get someone to talk to from the Physics dept.</p>

<p>I’ve not been informed of any Group X requirements yet, by the Registrar’s Office… Could you tell me more about the Group X requirements? I don’t really know much about them. </p>

<p>Are you also a transfer applicant? How is it that you know who I am? :p</p>

<p>Have you received your snail mailed admissions package yet? I got the acceptance by email on 15th May and my financial offer yesterday, however the mail package is yet to reach me…</p>

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<p>Take philosophy. Logic is the first phil class people take, and it should be quite intuitive and even easy for someone with a strong background in mathematics. Then you can fulfill the requirement with an upper-division class that complements your interests, though advanced philosophy courses tend to have very cumbersome prereqs, so you may have to shmooze a little to get in,</p>

<p>The physics qual is supposedly one of the few people can fail, but I think you don’t need to worry about that at the moment. Wait and see how you do in your classes first.</p>

<p>A lot of physics people take the reactor operator course. A lot of them drop out of the program because they don’t have enough time, too. Basically many people, mostly science majors, sign up for it at the beginning of every year, and only a fraction of that number makes it to the end of the program. But I haven’t heard of anyone failing out of Reed because of it. If you can’t manage it on top of your course load, you’ll drop it. It’s not a huge dilemma.</p>

<p>Those are the lowest temperatures you can expect in Portland as well, unless you go into the mountain. Portland weather is very moderate and doesn’t deviate from 10 degrees C by more than 5 degrees for the majority of the school year. The weather can be really nice at the beginning and very end of the year, however.</p>

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<p>No, I am not a transfer. But I did see your post in the group. It is exceptionally difficult to make it through the transfer process for internationals who need aid. Congratulations!</p>

<p>Take a look at this: <a href=“The Educational Program - Catalog - Reed College”>http://www.reed.edu/catalog/edu_program.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Thanks AboutTheSame… the link was informative :)</p>

<p>Ghostt… I’ve been thinking about philosophy too… most likely that I’ll do philo unless I want to really rekindle my old interest in music and western music theory…</p>

<p>additionally, I’ve also read about people failing the physics quals, and that worries me a teensy bit
… but not all that much.</p>

<p>Thanks for the weather Info, weather is not really a big deal but I wanted some first hand feedback about it all.</p>

<p>International95… I’m just happy I got in… I had applied as a freshman two years ago and it didn’t work out then. So I’m really excited about it all falling in place now :)</p>

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<p>" I will have to take the intro Humanities course" This isn’t true.</p>

<p>Students who transfer with sophomore or junior standing without transferable credit equivalent to 110 will fulfill this requirement by:</p>

<p>taking Humanities 110, or
completing Humanities 210, 220, or 230 and one additional unit from Group A or Group B (below).</p>

<p><a href=“The Educational Program - Catalog - Reed College”>http://www.reed.edu/catalog/edu_program.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Ah, so it’s final now. :slight_smile: I will be attending Reed for sure. Deposits submitted et al. Cornell came up and accepted me, but gave no aid in the end… So now, Reed it is! First love over Ivy league prestige+humongous debts.
@rhg3rd: Thank you for letting me know that, I guess I still have to iron out some of the details with the Registrar’s Office :slight_smile: </p>

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<p>Good choice ;)</p>

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<p>Congrats on your acceptance! Transfer admissions is really competitive. </p>

<p>1) I would encourage looking into the option of taking an upper-level humanities course combined with any Group A or B course in lieu of Hum 110 unless the course content really interests you. I know, I know, that is totally sacrilegious but some transfers and older students I know had wished they had done that, since they are in a very different place than all bright-eyed bushy-tailed 18-year-olds that make up 95% of Hum 110. Hum 110 is worthwhile but one of its goals is teaching freshman how to do college, specifically Reed, and breaking them in a bit. If you have never had conference-based classes or are unsure if you can handle Reed’s level of reading/ writing/ critical thinking, then it might be very useful to you.<br>
If you do decide on an upper-div Hum class, I highly recommend Hum 220. </p>

<p>As far as the rest of Group A and B requirements, do what interests you. Ghostt is right that Logic (Philosophy) might make a lot of sense for Group A, and you seem to be leaning towards Anthro/Psych for Group B. Read the course descriptions and see what sticks out. There’s not really a right/wrong answer, nor are there “easy 'A’s”, but you are generally going to be more successful at what interests and engages you. </p>

<p>You are required to fulfill Group X which is 2 courses in any one subject outside of your major. It could be Music Theory or Linguistics or Creative Writing or Russian lit or Modern Dance or anything. Do you have any transfer credit for classes other than Math or Physics? That might fulfill at least part of Group X. It might also fulfill all or part of A or B if they are the right courses. </p>

<p>Go a little easy on yourself your first semester. Take 3 or 3.5 units if you can, see what it’s like, and then add more the following semesters. </p>

<p>4) Physics is a demanding major but presumably you have an aptitude for it, so ymmv. A good strategy for Reed is to prioritize the EC activities that are important to you, and then learn to juggle them along with your courseload. A big mistake is to think you never have time to pursue anything but your academic work because then you will likely never make time to pursue anything else. But if you commit up front to one or two outside actives, then often you will learn to make it work and find time you potentially didn’t realize you had. Also check out the workshops the DoJo offers on time management, reading effectively, etc. </p>

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<p>@SHolmies‌: Thank you :slight_smile: I’m absolutely thrilled that I even had the chance of weighing going to Reed or Cornell. against one another.</p>

<p>1) I really agree with your take on an Upper level HUM course. However, a really important thing you mentioned is breaking people in a bit. While I’m confident that I know how to handle a large workload, etc. I have never attended a conference style class. HUM 110’s topics are, of course, interesting… but they are just as interesting to me as any other course would be, ie - I’m not too crazy about them. I think, with regards to Group A, Philosophy interests me, and in Group B I’m interested in the Psychology/Anthropology courses. </p>

<p>I have probably met the Group X requirements since I had 2 Chemistry courses, and several Electronics/Electrical/Mechanical (Engineering) courses in my college syllabus. </p>

<p>The Registrar’s office tells me I have enough credits to be able to graduate in two years, however, I plan to study for 3 and do a few extra courses. Since I do have that little bit of extra time I will probably go easy, as you said, in my first semester. </p>

<p>4) I do think I have a certain degree of aptitude for Physics and Math, but I would still like to take a few basic courses because most of my Physics training has, till now, been informal. I was into many EC’s in my school life, and I was quite good at some of them, so I would love to get involved. I will be looking to get into debating or any outreach activities Reed may be involved in. Is Tennis/Football(Soccer) also something that I could take up as an EC at Reed? I was always playing either of these sports till I got into college back here, and didn’t have time for sports anymore.
In fact I would love to get back to playing the piano too! Let’s see. </p>

<p>Additionally, what are the PE requirements that I might need to satisfy? </p>

<p>I will look into the DoJo workshops! Thanks for the heads up :slight_smile: </p>

<p>Apart from all this, would you recommend me trying to take a study abroad program in the Spring term of sophomore year? What kind of study abroad programs would suit a Physics major? </p>

<p>I also have to pursue a work-study as per my financial aid package, which of Reed’s work-study programs would you recommend? </p>

<p>Thank you for your response, it really is very helpful.</p>

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<p>Quoting a physics major: “You can study abroad, but you’d find that most physics professors tell you not to because the requirements for physics majors are fairly stringent and study abroad programs may not fulfill them.” So basically, physics majors typically do not study abroad. You can try, though.</p>

<p>I have been through pretty much all the reviews of study abroad programs on Reed’s website (lazy summer), and coincidentally, found a review from a physics major:</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.reed.edu/ipo/patricks%20blurbs/university%20of%20dublin%20trinity%20college.html”>http://www.reed.edu/ipo/patricks%20blurbs/university%20of%20dublin%20trinity%20college.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Did the registrar’s office give you a breakdown of which courses you’ve already taken meeting which requirements (a credit evaluation)? It sounds like you should have Group X totally covered, and Group C (science) and D (math) will be taken care of through your major. But you haven’t taken anything that could possibly fulfill the Humanities, Group A, or Group B reqs, correct?
Sometimes transfers have to advocate a little for previous courses meeting requirements. (If you want help with that, PM me your transcript or list of college coursework)</p>

<p>I’m sure they will want you to do the majority of your physics coursework at Reed, so you might only get credit for like one or two previous physics classes. Or none if it was informal. (Same reason as Intl95 stated above: "requirements are fairly stringent and [other schools] may not fulfill them) And they might say any math you took before isn’t the same as the math they offer and have you take some of that over (this is where advocating for yourself becomes necessary). But since you’re transferring as a sophomore that doesn’t really set you back too much. </p>

<p>However, if you are interested in study abroad, go talk to Paul DeYoung immediately (the director of International Programs), like your first week on campus. Also talk about it with your academic advisor during your first meeting. Study abroad takes a decent amount of planning, which means doing it your first year at Reed is uncommon. And if the physics dept won’t play well with other schools, you may end up fulfilling more of your Group reqs through study abroad than your major reqs (like going to Florence and taking 2 Art History classes and 2 Anthropology classes to fulfill Group A and B). Physics is also tricky since Physics 101-102 and 201-202 are both year-long and only offered in order with 101/201 offered during fall and 102/202 offered during in the spring, and they probably don’t want you to miss out or delay any of them… Again, talk to Paul and your academic advisor asap and see what is possible.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.reed.edu/registrar/new_planners/phys_new.pdf”>http://www.reed.edu/registrar/new_planners/phys_new.pdf&lt;/a&gt; – this should become your best friend
<a href=“The Educational Program - Catalog - Reed College”>http://www.reed.edu/catalog/edu_program.html&lt;/a&gt; and <a href=“http://www.reed.edu/apply/applying_to_reed/transfer2.html”>http://www.reed.edu/apply/applying_to_reed/transfer2.html&lt;/a&gt; and <a href=“http://www.reed.edu/registrar/pdfs/sched_1415.pdf”>http://www.reed.edu/registrar/pdfs/sched_1415.pdf&lt;/a&gt; – these will help too </p>

<p>Taking it a little easier your first semester with 3.5 units (Hum110 and 2 other classes) will also allow you a bit more time to try out some ECs and figure out which ones you really want to pursue, as well as giving you more free time for a social life and general adjustment to Reed. A lot of students take on as much as they can their first semester and end up being overwhelmed, so starting a little slower is just smart. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.</p>

<p>Reed has some intramural sports, including soccer. <a href=“http://www.reed.edu/sports_center/sports_club_list.html”>http://www.reed.edu/sports_center/sports_club_list.html&lt;/a&gt; Tennis and Soccer are offered as PE classes. You have to take 6 quarters of PE and there are a lot of classes to choose from. <a href=“http://www.reed.edu/sports_center/classes_index.html”>http://www.reed.edu/sports_center/classes_index.html&lt;/a&gt; </p>

<p>Reed had a debate team, but I’m not sure if it’s still active. There is a solid community outreach and volunteer program called SEEDS: <a href=“http://www.reed.edu/beyond-reed/seeds/”>http://www.reed.edu/beyond-reed/seeds/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>There aren’t really work-study ‘programs’ per se, just on-campus jobs that qualify for work study, like working at the sports center, library, admissions, mail room, etc. Many professors receive some work-study money to hire student employees so you could get paid to help them do research, etc which is fantastic for science majors (to find out about those opportunities you usually need to contact them directly as they are rarely advertised). Some of the SEEDS opportunities qualify as work-study as well. There should be some sort of optional workshop/lecture about FWS and campus jobs during orientation. </p>