<p>How useful are these sessions, and is it worth the cost to travel to attend them? If so, are the ones on campus "better" to attend than the ones across the country. Are schedules made based on these advisory sessions, such that attending one the first week of orientation lessens your choices of courses/teachers/class times, etc.?
Also, will AP credits affect placement/course choice freshman year? My daughter has taken 12 AP courses - will grades on current AP exams (available on July 1) have any effect on class choices first semester of freshman year?<br>
Thanks so much for any useful information - we are from the deep south, so attending any session will require travel, with Atlanta being the closest location for the travelling session.</p>
<p>The answer to your first question is that the advisory sessions are not very important at all and were barely worth the $1.50 I spent on the subway ride to get to columbia (that was in the good old days when the subway was still $1.50). Definately dont waste any money traveling to new york. I think the ones during orientation are equally good. Also, first semester you really dont have very much choice in what you are taking and any remotely desirable class will have already filled up with upperclassmen by the time freshmen get to register. Depends on your daughter's major though. AP credits may play a role but again this depends on the intended major and the APs that were taken. You will definately know the results of the APs before registration for classes which takes place the friday of orientation (as far as i remember).</p>
<p>Thanks, Shraf. She will be attending CC, and is totally undecided about a major at this point.</p>
<p>I would suggest going to an information session if there is one in your local area. There are seperate sessions for the parent and student. It allows you to get some answers to many of your questions that you may have outside of the curriculum your freshman year. As a parent I look back to some of the valuable information I received from other parents regarding being homesick (we are from california), encouraging us to go to Parents Weekend and sending my daughter home for the two long weekends in November to help my daughter's freshman transition.</p>
<p>I agree with ccmom09 that these sessions are more useful for parents than the students. But I wouldn't travel far for one if it's difficult. As an example of what I remember: A parent panel at ours answered questions about transportation and shipping, about cell phones, about what they wish they'd advised their students before first year (one, I remember, was not to put anything online that they wouldn't want their grandmother to see), banking, about storage space in the dorms (getting risers for the beds was a good tip), whether or not to insure instruments, etc. If you already know some other Columbia parents, you don't need to travel to get these kinds of tips. You might even get some of these questions answered here online:), or at move-in if you are planning to help with that. </p>
<p>The students will get all the same info repeated at orientation. AP scores do matter for such things as whether or not the language requirement has been satisfied, and what level of science or math a student might start at. Different departments treat APs in different ways. That info is also available on the Columbia website, and in material that is sent to students. Departments like math and physics hold sessions during orientation that help students decide which class they might start with. Don't worry, you daughter will figure it out.</p>
<p>Hm, I believe the answer to your question about AP Credit is answered here: <a href="http://www.college.columbia.edu/bulletin/programs_of_study/placement.php%5B/url%5D">http://www.college.columbia.edu/bulletin/programs_of_study/placement.php</a></p>
<p>We have perused the link you just referrred to - my daughter will have far more credits than she will get credit for (18, thus far, without counting 7 AP exams she is taking this year). My question referred specifically to AP placement affecting this year's choice of classes. The placement questions that I see would revolve around Calculus, Govt, and Latin. Will her class choices this year involved "placing" out of any of these courses (she already has requisite 5 AP score on Latin Lit). I assume it will all be made more clear once we get info re: this year's class choices, but I was looking for some guidance as to whether waiting on AP scores would be helpful for the advising session. Again, she will be going into CC.</p>
<p>msjhop, i understand ur enthusiasm relating to this topic but first of all your daughter will not come out of this advising session knowing what classes to take....far from that it is just a very general and broad sweeping advice that will do little to address specific concerns. Her AP scores will not have very much affect on her choice of classes. The three that u specifically mentioned:</p>
<p>Govt - I doubt this one will matter at all</p>
<p>Calc - I think the rule is that u can start with calc 2 if u have a 4 or 5 in either calc and u can start with calc 3 if u have a 5 in BC calc</p>
<p>Latin - I think a 5 on AP can either reduce the language requirement by 1 year or completely eliminate it....alot of people who take latin in HS though (usually forced by parents or to build vocab or to do better on SATs) chose not to use it to fulfill the language requirement since there are so many other languages that are offered here that are interresting and useful. </p>
<p>Also, most of ur questions completely depend on what your daughter plans to major in....for example unless she is a math or science major, there is no reason to start at calc 3. </p>
<p>On top of that, a piece of advice....with all due respect try to back off....seems from what you are posting that your daughter is very bright and u must remember that she is the one who is going to college - not you and she is the one who will be chosing classes - not you. There will be more than enough advising when she gets to campus during orientation, before she has to register for classes so there is really nothing to worry about...she will be quite informed when she makes those decisions. I understand that you want her to get the most out of college but u shouldn't get overly involved in her choice of classes and major. Also, first semester freshman year is usually filled with intro courses and core classes...actually at least two of her classes (out of 4 or 5) right off the bat will be core classes (Lit Hum and Frontiers of Science or University Writing) and her other two classes will probably be intro courses depending on her intended course of study or her interests.</p>
<p>AP scores only matter for math,science, and language classes. My son, for example, took AP European history but didn't bother to take the AP exam, knowing it wouldn't count for anything.</p>
<p>If you look at the core curriculum language requirement, it should tell your daughter whether or not she has satisfied the requirement with her Latin score. I know a 4 in French did. The math department, as I mentioned, will have a session during orientation to answer questions students have about which math class to start with. There is also a period during which a student can switch calculus levels if the class seems too easy or too hard. Departments like physics, chemistry, and computer science, each has a different policy on what kind of credit is given for AP. For example, one department might only give credit after another class is taken. Another might not give credit, but use it to suggest a more accelerated class. None of that really matters if your daughter is not headed into science and math. If she is, then she'll make her decision in the first few weeks of attending classes whether or not she is in the right level.</p>
<p>These questions will really be answered for your daughter at orientation if not before in the material Columbia sends her. She will also have an opportunity to meet with an advisor before she chooses classes. The summer advising sessions are really much more general, and not really necessary.</p>
<p>My point in asking this question was simply to determine the usefullness of the summer advisory session. With all due deference, Shraf, since I will be paying the costs of travel to this session, I was attempting to determine if it would be money well spent. As for letting my daughter handle her own course selection or choice of major, I obviously have no intention of interfering with that; I was just attempting to determine if AP issues would come up at the advisory sessions, such that a post July 1 date once AP scores were known would be preferable. When I attended the summer advisory session for my state university years ago, that is when schedule was determined, not the week before classes. I therefore find your "helicopter parent" comment quite misplaced, especially if you will look at the miniscule number of posts I have on this forum. Again, this may be all clear once Columbia course materials arrive, but it is not very clear at all based on website information, and I had hoped for some guidance from students or parents who had attended the sessions. As an aside, a less confrontational tone by a couple of student posters would go a long way in enhancing the usefullness of this board. JMHO.</p>
<p>You're welcome. I understand your concern better now, as my daughter went to UCLA and the pre-frosh summer advising session was where they signed up for classes. That meant the earlier the summer session a student went to, the likelier they were to get their choices. At Columbia, however, the first years sign up at the same time, at the end of orientation week.</p>
<p>The website is hard to negotiate, but I believe this is the link to the Columbia College Bulletin you're seeking:<a href="http://www.college.columbia.edu/bulletin/programs_of_study/placement.php%5B/url%5D">http://www.college.columbia.edu/bulletin/programs_of_study/placement.php</a></p>
<p>According to that page, which is for this current year, your daughter's Latin score would satisfy her language requirement and the AP government might place her out of the introductory political science class (only significant if she is going to major in political science). She will be automatically assigned to two core classes -- Lit Hum and either UW or Frontiers -- and students are usually advised to take a slightly smaller load first semester. She would typically take two more classes. So, as far as APs go, her decision would be whether or not to take more language even though she's not required to and whether or not to continue in math that first semester.</p>
<p>Msjhop, you will find that 99% of what you know about Columbia is in writing somewhere (in some policy on some website). There's very little that a Columbia advisor can tell you that you can't figure out on your own (or via the informed folk on this board).</p>
<p>And, IMO, these summer sessions are more for the parents (easing the transition, making them proud parents and happy tuition payers, etc.) than anything else. Columbia just started these summer things a couple years ago. Orientation has always been where Columbia gives out all the advising that is necessary, and the addition of these summer sessions changed nothing. The fact that they're optional means that no indespensable information is given out at these sessions.</p>
<p>You've convinced me that this wouldn't be a good expense of our money or our time, even though it sounds like fun.</p>
<p>Before my daughter went to Columbia in the fall alumni/students in our area also hosted a summer kick-off to college in August. It was an informal gathering at a park and we were able to get a lot of answers to our questions. It was also nice speaking to the upperclassmen and seeing what they had accomplished regarding internships, studying abroad, etc.</p>