Taking Physics Out of Order

Hi All,

I have a question, I know that UC admission officers look down on taking classes out of sequence, however when it comes to Physics, they have Physics 40 at SRJC, which I took last semester and then there is 41 and 42 which are both about different topics. You have to take 40 before either 41 or 42 regardless. If I take 42 before 41, is that a bad thing? I’m doing it because I plan on taking ENGR16 next semester, which requires completion/concurrent enrollment in 42 and Math 2 (which I’m taking this semester). I’m going to take ENGR16 next semester. I will be applying as a transfer student this fall. If I take Physics 42 and then Physics 41 in the Spring, will I not get any credit for taking 41?

What is your advice?

What are the names of the courses? If its something like Physics A/B/C, you probably shouldn’t take them out of order.

You can also send an email to the different UCs you are considering to double check. Just be aware that they are super busy, so you might not get a quick response.

Don’t see why taking 40-42-41 would be a problem if SRJC does not list 41 as a prerequisite for 42, and the three courses are listed on http://www.assist.org as covering all of the physics courses you need for your target school and major.

For example, to transfer to UCB EECS, you need all of 40, 41, and 42 to cover UCB 7A and 7B, and need to add 43 if you also want to cover UCB 7C: http://web1.assist.org/web-assist/report.do?agreement=aa&reportPath=REPORT_2&reportScript=Rep2.pl&event=19&dir=1&sia=SRC&ria=UCB&ia=SRC&oia=UCB&aay=14-15&ay=15-16&dora=EECS

Note that the UCB physics course descriptions (and which SRJC courses cover the topics) are:

7A: Mechanics and wave motion. (SRJC 40 and part of 41)
7B: Heat, electricity, and magnetism. (SRJC 42 and part of 41)
7C: Electromagnetic waves, optics, relativity, and quantum physics. (SRJC 43 and part of 42)

@SumStudent I just finished at SRJC… definitely try and take physics 42 with Younes… its his last semester before retiring. I took 42 and 41 at the same time, wasn’t too bad. Also when applying for UC’s this fall, you tell them your planned courses for spring. So long as you have 41 on your planned courses you should be fine. And if you’re looking for more clarity, call and ask someone at the UC you want to go to! You’ve got options, just wanted to say hi and good luck at SRJC this coming academic year!