Skipping core classes

<p>I plan on majoring in mechanical engineering at GT, and before any of the registration processes, I should ask a few questions about skipping classes.
While it is recommended to skip classes with AP credits to save time and money, some say the core classes are easier and will help my GPA in the future, if not skipped and I do well in those classes.
But also I have heard that core classes at Georgia Tech is generally much harder than major classes, and if this is the case, it will rather hurt my GPA. I really can't decide which way to go.
If everything goes fine(meaning that I get decent scores on the AP exams this year), I will have total 29 AP credits before the registration. This sounds great that if I take classes aggressively, I can even graduate in three years..</p>

<p>Is it a good idea to have a lot of AP credits exempt core classes? Are tech's core classes harder than (or as hard as) major classes? I have searched the forum but couldn't find some satisfactory answers to this questions... </p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

<p>“This sounds great that if I take classes aggressively, I can even graduate in three years.”</p>

<p>Umm… It’s not a race to get out of college. Companies are going to look at your GPA first, not how long it took you to your degree. I would not recommend taking classes aggressively.</p>

<p>Thanks for the reply. Then do you mean I should take the introductory courses which are supposedly easier than major courses? But is it still advisable to exempt out the core courses even if I don’t want to graduate early? Like I can graduate in four years taking classes leniently.</p>

<p>My son is starting this fall. He has been told by others that are current or former GT students to take the AP credit. Perhaps if it was in your major then maybe?? not sure but he is going to take all the credits he can get. He has no desire for example to take any more English or govt classes than necessary. lol</p>

<p>The AP credits allow you time to do a a co-op and still graduate in a reasonable amount of time.</p>

<p>BTW I saw your other post. I think you will get credit for Chem because you had a high enough Chem SAT score. I think some others have posted chem is a weed out class. So I’d take the credit unless you really like chemistry.</p>

<p>Thank you for the sincere reply. I think then I am going to take as much AP credits I can along with the chem SAT.</p>

<p>Unless the class interests you a lot, or it’s really relevant to your major, feel free to skip. I regretted not taking as many APs as I should have (or rephrase, did as well on the exams as I should have…) and have to take classes that do not really interest me. They are necessary yes, but I would rather have used the credit and move on to more major classes.</p>

<p>What AP credits do you anticipate having?</p>

<p>Can anyone tell me the difference between Computer Engineering and Computer Science? Are they both ABET accredited? Thanks.</p>

<p>If you have AP credit for a course then you should exempt out of it so you can start taking major specific classes and have a lighter course load when you first start at Tech!
Computer Engineering has to do with hardware and Computer Science has to do with software!</p>

<p>GTJacket, not entirely accurate. Computer Engineering has both a hardware and software component to it, and computer engineers later on decide on which one they prefer, but Computer Science is primarily software and programming language related.</p>

<p>Well computer engineering is part of the ECE department (Electrical and Computer Engineering). A lot of Computer Engineering involves doing things with signals, circuits, microelectronics. Of course, it also involves software stuff but more like the interface between hardware and software. CS at gatech has different threads or concentrations and look into those if you are interested. I’m neither ECE or CS so feel free to call me out if I’m wrong. I work for a department that is under the ECE umbrella and they do research on microelectronics, chip stacking, semiconductors, interposers, etc.</p>

<p>Both CoC and CoE (College of Computing and College of Engineering) are ABET accredited.</p>