<p>I want to know just how difficult it is to maintain a 3.5+ GPA. I mean if any current NYU students could give specific tips and concerns on how to do well at NYU then it would be a great help. State your major or minors too.</p>
<p>I really think it depends on what major you do and what school you’re in. For instance, I double-majored in History and Politics and minored in French, and I graduated with a 3.67 (which would have been higher had I not taken a class with a professor who gave me a C because I rightly called her a racist) from CAS. Many of my friends were pre-med, and they graduated with 3.1-3.3s though they were really, really intelligent simply because their classes were ridiculous.</p>
<p>Basically, try to find what you like AND what you’re good at, and roll with it. Make sure to take the introductory courses for each sub-topic within a major, as they are really good at developing the knowledge and skills you’ll need for later courses (for instance, I think every politics major should take International Politics because it provides a great overview of the theoretical models you’ll encounter in many of the other politics courses). Find out if you’re better with exam- or paper-based classes, and try to take that type. Learn to be a better reader: faster and more efficient, able to take out the overall point of a reading without getting bogged down in the details. Make sure you go to class, and pay attention. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to speak to your professor or TAs outside of class. Make friends with your classmates and work together to figure out stuff you don’t know. Do the assignments.</p>
<p>Basically, just put in the effort and you’ll do fine.</p>
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<p>And there were many pre-meds, including me, who graduated with 3.7+ despite having “ridiculous” classes. If you ask me, most classes are pretty reasonable. </p>
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<p>Absolutely agreed. This is really good advice.</p>
<p>Taking classes you don’t like and aren’t good at is a recipe for low grades. There are some classes that you’ll hate and just can’t get around (for me, that included WTE) but you have to suck it up and do the best you can.</p>
<p>It depends on classes (difficulty is very dependent on major and teacher) and you. The courses here overall aren’t too bad (IMO), and it seems to be the case for the majority of students here. The average GPA in CAS, I believe, is around a B+. I have a 3.6+.</p>
<p>I hear that for LSP they make it fairly easy for you to maintain a respectable GPA. don’t know about other schools.</p>
<p>yay for grade inflation</p>
<p>yea what is LSP like, is it easy to maintain 3.5+?</p>
<p>I’m prepared as heck.</p>
<p>Of the 59 credits I’ve completed at my community college, 39 are honors credits. My education so far has been VERY rigorous. I got NYU on lock.</p>
<p>I am in Stern and have a 3.8+ gettings As arent difficult if you are willing to work hard</p>
<p>3.9 GPA in LSP. (was 16/500, 3.8 GPA in HS, 6 APs, all honors)</p>
<p>Londonb, how did you get LSP’d with that class rank and GPA? Did your SAT and SAT II’s stink??</p>
<p>in what’s typically called an easy major (media) i had one TERRIBLE class where the grading was like this:</p>
<p>50% final paper (25 pages or MORE)
25% midterm paper (10 pages)
25% attendance/participation</p>
<p>THAT’S IT. i’ve had other classes that were really easy. it really comes down to individual teacher. if there’s a professor that’s hell bent on putting everyone through a ringer, community college classes/APs won’t help you.</p>
<p>i also had a politics class that was really interesting, but the professor was really eccentric. here’s the grading:</p>
<p>100% final paper (NO LESS than 30 pages, no more than 50)</p>
<p>don’t say you have anything “on lock” until you actually set foot in a class and look at a syllabus or hand in your first college paper. there are professors who are not ashamed to tear papers a new one if they really stink.</p>
<p>My daughter’s stats. SATS were average.</p>
<p>missamericanpie, how do you ensure that your paper doesn’t suck? I know that seems like a silly question, but I’m worried that I’ll put tons of effort into mine and then have them torn up.</p>
<p>I know this question wasn’t addressed to me, but this is how I wrote papers. I figured out what the professor preferred and ran with it. I had two professors who wanted us to regurgitate everything they said; that became very clear in class, where arguing against them didn’t end well. The first professor I had who was like this tore my first few papers apart until I started writing exactly what he had said in class, at which point he gave me much better grades. I had the second professor senior year, and he was a pompous and pretentious fool, so my final paper was basically a big “f you” to him wherein I completely tore down all his idealistic theories. I did well in the class, but not as well as I could have had I bent to his will.</p>
<p>On the other hand, I had many more professors who appreciated a well-developed, well-argued, well-written paper above all else. One professor, commenting on my paper, wrote something like, “I disagree with your entire conclusion, but your argument for it is excellent,” and gave me an A. Basically, she realized that I didn’t know everything about the subject, but I had used what we HAD learned and drew conclusions based off that. </p>
<p>Professors, being researchers and authors themselves, are mostly used to having their theories challenged, so don’t be afraid to go out there on that limb if you’ve got the facts to back yourself up. The important thing is to understand the material and apply it appropriately. Don’t just throw things together and hope they stick. If you go to class and do the readings, it doesn’t take a massive amount of effort to write a good paper, but you just have to make sure that it makes sense. Re-read your paper with a critical eye and ask yourself, “Does this point support the next? Do they support the conclusions I’ve teased out from them?” Use appropriate citations to back up your assumptions. Write short, neat paragraphs that properly convey whole ideas, and don’t be afraid to write in shorter sentences, too. Basically, just make sure that what you are trying to say/argue for is both clear and convincing.</p>
<p>Wow! Thanks so much, nyu<em>times</em>two! I’ll definitely keep all of that in mind. How much did having your professor rip up your papers affect your grade in that class?</p>
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<p>LOL, take a wild guess.</p>
<p>Well, for that one professor, he was consistently giving me Bs with nary a comment explaining why, but when I changed up everything to write what he wanted, I started getting A-s and As. It was unfortunate, but I heard later on that he does that to everyone; and, having read one of his own articles, it’s definitely very obvious that he doesn’t take kindly to anyone who disagrees with him.</p>
<p>Don’t worry, though, he doesn’t teach undergrad classes normally. This was for one of the Freshman Honors Seminars, which I don’t think he teaches anymore.</p>
<p>zapakovex – Allright, duh, it didn’t affect it positively. I was asking more along the lines of how badly would that bring you down? </p>
<p>nyu<em>times</em>two – Thanks. Hopefully I won’t have too many pompous professors.</p>
<p>Bump! Would any other students like to add anything? How difficult were classes from each different subject? Would you say the history department is tougher than the english department etc. etc. </p>
<p>Also, what did you guys feel was the hardest about transitioning from normal high school academics to collegiate academics?</p>
<p>I definitely think that some department are, by default, more difficult than others, but for the most part, the level of difficulty will depend on what you’re good at. And then, of course, there are sub-topics in departments that you might do well in and those that you won’t do well in. For instance, the politics major is mostly broken down into: international, comparative, American, and theory. I knew people who were great at theory then not so great when they got into international stuff. Just figure out what you’re capable of doing, know your limits, and if you see that you are REALLY not getting the basics of a department, ask for help first, and if you’re still really struggling, you may want to re-consider your major.</p>
<p>In terms of transitioning, I think the most difficult thing was developing self-discipline. Instead of having the same classes every day, you only have class once or twice a week, and since professors tend to just assign reading or a paper that’s due in a few weeks, it’s up to you to make sure you actually do the work because it’s very, very easy to simply not do it or do it the night before and not get caught (of course, it’ll eventually affect your grade). </p>
<p>Time management is also a huge factor, as it’s easy to get overwhelmed by not only the freedom of college but also the fact that you’re living in New York City. Just remember that the city isn’t going anywhere, and you’ve got four years, so if there’s something you want to go to–an exhibit, a restaurant, etc.–that isn’t immediate and temporary, you can put it off if you’ve got work to do. Of course, you also need to allow yourself some leisure time, as working all the time will burn you out in no time.</p>
<p>The last difference (and this certainly won’t apply to everyone) is that you’re learning from people who really know their *****. It’s ridiculously intellectually stimulating, and I encourage everyone to not be afraid to respectfully debate with professors if you can do so. Now that I’ve been learning under the Socratic method (yay law school), I’ve developed an even greater love of reasoned discourse with professors, so if you can have such discussions in class, take advantage of it as it will help you understand the material in a more substantive way.</p>