My son is going to orientation on June 20 and 21 at UMD. He completed the math placement test online already.
Are there any other placement tests he needs to take prior?
I know he will be registering for classes however he will not have is most current AP scores till July. It will be 3 exams including Calc BC, English Lit, and Macroeconomics. He is confident that he did well on these exams but he will not have the scores to prove he can register for more advanced classes. What is your recommendations for him regarding this?
Secondly, here in NY there are some great resources for students to share their favorite classes and professors which in turn helps incoming students choose those classes/profs when the register for the first time. Does this resource exist for UMD? My son will be an Aerospace Engineering major in Gemstone Honors so we were hoping to have a general idea of what to register for his first semester. He is coming in with 11 APS with scores of 4’s and 5’s so we know that will help him skip some gen ed requirements. Thanks for any insight you can provide!
If you google “umd professor ratings”, you’ll find several applications that may help. My D, who just graduated, would often ask other students who were already taking courses that she was interested in, about their experiences. In time. your son will get to know the professors and form his own opinions.
Also look at the following link for courses that are being offered in Fall 2018
Check out OurUMD and PlanetTerp (the latter of which is more current and is always being updated). Check the Gemstone website for the introduction class he’ll have to take his first semester and check out the engineering pages for the list of classes he’ll have to take as part of the engineering track. I’m sure they have some sample schedules online! Also, I’d highly recommend that he creates a schedule BEFORE coming to UMD for orientation. It’ll make registering for classes so much easier.
Depending on the engineering advisor that oversees your son during orientation, he/she may allow your son to register for classes assuming he passed all his APs (and if it turns out he doesn’t he’ll have to change his schedule during the summer).
Our son is going to orientation in July (Engineering). Is he going to have a hard time getting into classes? Maybe we should switch to earlier orientation?
@MDmom11 If he’s taking introduction classes, getting into classes shouldn’t be a problem, since there’s usually a TON of sections. He might not get the sections he prefers, though. They tend to open up more seats in a class or section with each orientation session, and he can always change his schedule over the summer if he doesn’t like what he signed up for during orientation (like if he notices a better section opened up or if there are more slots in a class or something. A lot of people change their schedules over the summer)
In engineering, unlike most majors, there is not a lot of wiggle room. There are a lot of classes that build on each other, and need to be taken in sequence. However, there is def some flexibility in the first year. For example, my son took physics first semester and chem second semester, instead of vice versa. Bear that in mind in case there is any interest in studying abroad - it’s possible for engineers, but more so early on than later.
Per the 4 year plan, the engineering classes your son should take first semester are
ENAE100 (Aerospace Engineering Prof)
ENES102 (Mechanics) NOTE: the instructor is currently listed as TBA, but since this is a keystone course, it will be a good prof. They typically use TBA so as not to cause a rush/overcrowding on favorite profs. They will post the name later.
MATH140 (but that will actually be 241/Calc III, assuming an AP score of 4 or 5)
CHEM 135
ENGL101 (NOTE the English AP Literature does NOT get you out of ENGL101 (which is a writing/composition class).
And assuming GEMS100
Here is the AP transfer credit info http://www.transfercredit.umd.edu/plc/APGenEd.pdf
Macroeconomics is not needed for engineering, but does count for general studies, DSHS category. The openings in his schedule from AP exam credits will give him more time to do Gemstone research/
@MDMom11, what discipline of engineering? And yes, if there is any openings for earlier orientations, I would def switch…my son did not want early classes (he’s a sloth) and did not have to take anything earlier than 9:30 his first semester, which made him very happy.
General engineering student advice: get the highest possible grades you can for the first 2 years, so that when you hit the really tough ones, they won’t hurt your gpa as much.
Thanks for the feedback @whenyoubelieve and @maryversity. He is Chemical Engineering and also Gemstone, so I would imagine that a lot of his classes will be intro. Not sure we can switch orientation due to some travel plans so hopefully we can figure this out
@MDmom11 no worries - honestly, he will get all the classes he needs. You just asked if u should and I assumed that meant it was possible. If not, really not a biggie. Just may mean classes start earlier than 9:30, which is not an issue for first semester freshmen that are used to high school early class start times anyway. As I said, starting later was just something important to my son.
Thanks so much for the amazing information! We sat down and figured out a basic 4 year plan. He does want to study abroad. At the admitted student day they told him AERO majors could only study abroad 2nd semester sophomore year and in limited locations if he wanted to stay on track. He is looking at Australia, Manchester England, and Norway as his top 3 choices! We were under the impression that AP Lang got rid of English 101. It is not clear on the chart. Do you know if that is true. He took AP lang, AP physics, and AP US history last year with 5 scores on all. He also has AP Chem and and AP Euro from his soph year also 4 and 5 on those exams. He is going to audition for Chamber singers after he gets on campus so they told him to block the class out on his schedule time and he will add it in the fall if he makes it in. We were able to create a decent schedule. One question we did have was how much time to allow to walk between classes? Is 10 minutes enough?
@kswaiz A 5 in AP Lang DOES satisfy the GenEd called FSAW(fundamental studies: academic writing), which freshmen would usually take ENGL101 to get rid of. You’ll want to look under the “GenEd” column to see if the APs he took exempted him out of any GenEd credit.
As for walking times, it truly depends on where the classes are. Use http://maps.umd.edu/map/ to gauge distances and elevations (UMD is really hilly) and compare it with a walking distance he’s familiar with and knows how much time it takes to walk there. For example, I compared the .8 miles from my res hall to the CSIC building with the walk it used to take me from my house to my high school (around .6 miles) and added like 5 minutes to estimate how long the .8 miles would take me. (Hope that made sense lol). If you need some estimates on how long it takes from one building from another, I can give my approx. walking time (I walk a little faster than most, though).
@kswaiz our son completed the survey awhile ago … I think he decided to go random and let the school pick his roommate, but I also think he is on the facebook page for incoming freshmen so not sure what he’s doing there. I’m sure they’ll meet each other soon
@kswaiz I need to get to a computer to answer u more fully, but one of my son’s roommates did Norway and loved it (he is EE). Ramsey Jubaji does a great job working with engineering students for study abroad. As I mentioned, my son decided late in the game (he’s MechE) so it was more challenging to get enough equivalent courses for me to justify a semester abroad, so my son actually did a winter session in Australia (so it was still an amazing experience, but it didn’t throw him off his timeline for courses).
And yes, I believe English AP Lang does get u out of 101, but Lit doesn’t. That’s great he has so many AP’s as that will give him more freedom in scheduling and his time management with Gemstone research!
I’m glad u were able to navigate the links to sketch out his schedule. Let me know if u have any more specific questions…
@whenyoubelieve great info on walking time, but you forgot to take into account the damn hill by Stamp, which can add time needed haha…
@kswaiz if it helps to know, all engineering, math and science buildings are grouped in one corner of campus, so that helps. However, it is definitely a good point that you should check the building designated for each section option as occasionally they will put lectures in free classrooms that are not where the majority of the sections for a class are typically offered
@maryversity It seems to be the math to music buildings that are giving us the most challenges. A 2-2:50 math class in the ARM and then Chamber singers at 3 in Clarice Perf Arts bldg. Is there a bus or shuttle that can work or still not enough time?
@kswaiz Yes, there are shuttles on campus, but I think a bicycle would be more efficient for control of timing for this situation. It’s still gonna be tight though. However, I would think that he could have a conversation with director of Chamber Singers about the potential he might be 5 min late. I imagine that beginning time is used for vocal warmups so he should make sure he does some en route…
Also, note that if you keep a bicycle on campus, you will need to register it - here is the page for that along with info on bike share http://www.transportation.umd.edu/bike.html
@kswaiz I’ve had to go from the math building to the Clarice last semester, but it’s really tight, if you want to get it 10 minutes or under. It’s more like a 15 minute walk. I don’t think there’s a shuttle that goes on that particular route during the day (I would have taken the shuttle, if there was!). I’d look into a bike, if there’s no ability to change the math section, or talk to the Chamber director, lime maryversity mentioned.
@maryversity Hey, there is a 17 credit limit on freshman registering for classes. Do you know, is there a limit for sophomores and upperclassmen as well? I’m drawing out my four year plan and I can’t fit everything I need in the first two years.