Uncoordinated Double Major

<p>I'll be going to Penn in the Class of 2018 and I'm a Bio major. I didn't apply to any dual-degree programs because I wasn't sure I was interested in business; however, I think I've changed my mind now. I'm interested in getting a Finance degree from Wharton alongside my bio degree from the college so I was wondering if anyone knows what a 4 year schedule for each would look like. I don't want to be swamped with 7 classes every semester, but I'd still like to graduate in 4 years so could anyone post an example schedule that would satisfy college requirements along with Wharton ones?</p>

<ol>
<li><p>“I would like to take less than 7 classes a semester and graduate with 2 degrees and one concentration in 4 years.” No pain, no gain. Certainly doable, but will require mostly 5.5 or 6 credit semesters. </p></li>
<li><p>You have posted no credit on what you are coming in with. Since you are not in Wharton, I am going to assume you will try to transfer. Be honest with yourself. Do you really want to study BOTH bio and finance? You are much better off only doing only one. Are you going to take Econ 001 and 002? Math 104 as well? Are you smart? Do you think you can pull a 3.8+ GPA while taking 10 classes in your freshman year? </p></li>
<li><p>I’m not going to take 10 minutes making you a sample schedule, make it yourself
Links are available for what you need to graduate with two degrees. Take not that you cannot take MGMT 100 first semester and you will be behind in your Wharton curriculum assuming you get in sophomore year. </p></li>
<li><p>Come to Penn first and speak with your advisor. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>Hi, thanks for the reply! With regards to credits, I have 5s in Calc AB/BC, Chem, Bio, Phys C Mech, Phys C E&M, Phys B, Comp Sci, English Language (4s in US Hist/Euro Hist), and hopefully 5s in World Hist, Env Sci, Psych, and Stats. Would anybody be able to outline a schedule still? I’ve done so myself but I wanted something to compare to. </p>

<p>Best to talk with your advisor at Penn. Also, getting a 5 on Calc B/C at Penn doesn’t get your math requirement waived; you either choose to “repeat” that level course at Penn or get waived up to the next highest course and take that one.</p>

<p>DS is in Wharton and didn’t get Penn credit for a 5 on Calc B/C — zero credit for it at Penn aside from using it to take the next highest level math class in his first term there.</p>

<p>There are a lot of colleges out there that let you pile up the college credits via 5’s or less on AP exams. Most of the Ivies are pretty skimpy when it comes to doing it — they allow it for some but not all. Again, best to chat with your Penn advisor for specifics.</p>

<p>You will need to take another math class for Bio anyway so I wouldn’t worry about that. I think the main thing you should think about is doing a dual degree. When people talk about Penn being stressful, most of it is due to students spreading themselves too thin. I personally think that in most cases dual degrees are largely unnecessary. It is better to focus in one area that be a jack of all trades. I thought about doing a double major in math but decided that I should just focus on my main major (my true passion) since I would learn most of the math I needed there anyway. As a result I have taken a ton of grad classes in my major and was easily able to sub matriculate without overloading.</p>

<p>Dual degree person here! Before you tackle an uncoordinated dual degree definitely check how you fare in your first semester. Then if you feel the need to take on that second degree, talk to your advisor. I’m in a coordinated dual degree program and I can tell you it is quite the workload, but an uncoordinated dual degree could be even more labor intensive because there’s no set guidelines to follow and you still have to fulfill the requirements for both schools. My advice is to just see how your fall semester goes and then take on more classes if the need arises. It’s a whole different level than high school! </p>

<p>That is definitely the plan right now, but assuming it goes well, do you think it would be manageable in 4 years with some AP credit and summer classes? I don’t want to be overloading myself and just studying all the time.</p>