<p>Peppington,</p>
<p>What are you thinking of majoring in? Does the Finite Math class fit your major better than College Algebra does? And how much mathematics will your major require?</p>
<p>While the traditional algebraic skills taught in College Algebra do play a role in Finite Math, they do not play anywhere near as central of a role as they do in pre-calculus and calculus.</p>
<p>So, my advice (as a math prof) is the following:</p>
<p>If you didn’t do any preparing for the second placement test but just took to see if you could move into Finite Math, then you are probably adequately (but not exceptionally) prepared for Finite Math. And if you are prepared to work hard in the class; do all the assigned homework even if it is NOT collected and graded; and go to office hours and the college tutoring center if you start to have problems understanding the material, then you should be fine in Finite Math.</p>
<p>If you think taking College Algebra will be an “easy A” because the course will cover much of the same material you learned in HS Algebra I&II and Pre-calculus (and somehow make Finite Math easier in the future), then you need to be aware that many, many students who have successfully completed HS Algebra I&II and Pre-calculus have real problems with College Algebra because they do NOT put enough time into the class since they think the class will just be a review. So they develop bad habits: frequently skipping class (since they already “know” the material, why bother with going to lecture?); not doing any homework (teacher doesn’t collect it and it’s just “review” anyway, so why bother?); and trying to cram everything into short-term memory just before the test (worked in HS, so it should work in college, right?).</p>
<p>You might want to talk to the instructor of the Finite Math course and ask some questions about what background material is really needed to succeed in the the course.</p>
<p>If enrollment numbers are not really, really tight, you might also want to attend both a College Algebra class and a Finite Math class during the add/drop period and make the decision after you have a chance to see what the requirements are in both courses.</p>
<p>Good luck</p>