<p>So, I'm going to be a freshman at Rice, and I've been looking at classes and major requirements, etc. trying to prepare for O-Week advising, and I have some tentative plans of courses to take, but I think I might be going a little bit overboard. I also plan on getting an on-campus job and possibly joining the Ultimate Frisbee team, in addition to doing homework, sleeping and socializing occasionally, haha :)
I would really appreciate some feedback from upperclassmen about whether or not I should pare it down, maybe take some huma-type courses, particularly from science/engineering majors :)</p>
<p>I would like to take these courses, provided I will not spontaneously combust in doing so:</p>
<p>Phys 101 (general physics)
Chem 211 (organic)
Bioc 243 (cell bio)
CAAM 210 (intro to engineering computation)
Math 211 (Differential eq)
Span 301 (advanced Spanish 1)</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>My usual response to this is the frustrating “wait-until-o-week”, but as a a rising senior who who took cell bio as a freshman, I’m going to say DON’T DO IT. Wait on that one, at least - it’s very reading-intensive and the exams take a lot to prepare for. I’m guessing you’re planning on being a BIOE, and if that’s the case it’ll be much easier to take cell “on schedule” (junior year) when you have 50+ classmates as a support system.</p>
<p>Other than that, you know what you can handle. Keep in mind that you NEED time to make friends your first semester. Whether you think you’ll get burned out on science without humanities courses is totally up to you :)</p>
<p>The thing about physics, orgo, CAAM, and diff-e is that they might not necessarily be extremely difficult, but they are time consuming classes. Even if you’re the brightest person to ever walk through the sallyport, I just don’t think you’ll have enough time to take those classes and do everything else you want.</p>
<p>I’d say drop bioc 243 and you have yourself a manageable schedule. I think starting off with five courses is good and you can drop a class if it gets rough. taking four classes is fine too. Some kids have a hard time adjusting to the intensity of Rice’s courses so watch out for that.</p>
<p>Ok, thanks, you guys! I will definitely drop the Bioc, and maybe wait on caam or chem, too :)</p>
<p>^^ Good choice. The other thing to remember is that a large courseload may seem manageable at first, but it comes back to haunt you in the last couple of months.</p>
<p>I took 9 classes in one semester. It was easy enough till about spring break, after which all hell broke loose</p>
<p>Holy crap. what do you want to major in? these are all great classes, but you have a lot of time to spread them out and take them. these are all pretty intense classes.</p>
<p>Phys 101 (general physics) - pretty difficult
Chem 211 (organic) - difficult and extremely time intensive
Bioc 243 (cell bio) - super super time intensive
CAAM 210 (intro to engineering computation) - can be difficult
Math 211 (Differential eq) - can be difficult depending on your teacher
Span 301 (advanced Spanish 1)</p>
<p>i would definitely drop one, if not two, of the first three. but i applaud you on being so ambitious and driven. if these are the classes you want to take, then you’re going to love rice.</p>
<p>I’m going to disagree with the above poster…this is, while not “standard”, not at all an unusual schedule for BIOEs. If you’re a BIOC, though, beanstreet is totally right and you don’t need to cram it all in at once.</p>
<p>Jesus! how many classes do students at Rice take semester!!??!?! isnt it usually 4 classes for most colleges?</p>
<p>^^ 4-6 is normal, depending on schedule, major and specific classes selected.</p>
<p>I took five classes and an LPAP (PE class — I took swing dance) first semester, and took five classes per semester most of freshman and sophomore year, and then I took four classes per semester junior and senior year. You get more out of your classes when there are fewer of them.</p>
<p>Haha, thank you guys for your advice, and I’m thinking now I’ll probably take Phys 101, Span 302 (assuming the prof lets me take it since I scored 301 on the exam…), Huma 102, Math 355 and maybe an EBio or Econ course 
I was thinking BioE, but I’m leaning a lot more towards EE, with a minor in EEB. Also I want to do pre-med, and the Spanish certificate thing… so I think this is more reasonable!</p>
<p>Oh, and then there’s still the whole O-Week advisor thing, too…haha
:)</p>
<p>I’m EE too but with a CAAM minor. If you have any questions about EE, i’ll do my best to answer them.</p>
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<p>Yes. Oweek advisers come from a range of majors and interests. Chances are high that every single class you have listed has been taken by multiple advisers who can tell you about the course, the professors and the different sections (if any)</p>