I need to take a class and it prerequisite this summer in order to graduate by a certain time. Do colleges usually actually enforce taking prereqs before a class? If so how do they know? Will I be thrown out of class the first week?
They might not let you register for both. Even if it slips past them, how do you know you won’t do badly in the more advanced course due to lacking the necessary background knowledge?
Well, I’m actually already registered to take both this summer. I just don’t want to be kicked out when the semester starts. Just curious how they would know besides manually looking at each student’s record to see if they qualify for the class. That is my main concern. As for being ready for the class, I don’t believe that will be a problem.
They probably won’t know. If it didn’t give you a red flag when you registered, it means there isn’t anything in the computer system checking your courses against prerequisites and they aren’t likely to be doing it all manually. The real question is whether or not you should take a class and its prerequisite at the same time, and that’s a tough thing to answer since classes rely on their prerequisites to different degrees.
Email the professor of the more advanced class and ask if this would be acceptable. In some cases, the prerequisite is not absolutely necessary. But, in many cases it would be very challenging to take the prerequisite and the advanced class concurrently.
Some academic departments will scan for students out of sequence like you and bump you from one course at the last moment. Address this now with the department.
I was an architectural engineering major and required to take fluids before plumbing (don’t laugh - it was a tough course!). For some reason, my schedule didn’t work out and my advisor let me take plumbing first. Ouch. That was a big mistake. I really struggled. There is a reason that prerequisites are required!