Ga tech is not big on curving and not big on handing out A’s. Make sure you check course requirements for transferring to tech if you decide to go that route.
@scubadive I’m not going to transfer out to Tech. I usually see transferring out as an engineering major to be a very difficult and successful procedure; often times course work doesn’t line up neatly and it’s just a pain trying to figure out scheduling. I would only transfer out to another UC.
One thing to keep in mind is that you’re in the weeder classes right now. A lot of people in these classes will drop out of the majors that require them because these classes are difficult for them. Put another way, you’re taking these classes with a good chunk of people who are in the wrong majors but haven’t realized it yet, so they bring the average down.
Or you could have people that are like how I was at 18, when I took these weeder classes: I couldn’t be bothered to put effort into them because I wasn’t interested, even though I didn’t have trouble with the concepts. Yes I realize that was incredibly stupid of me, and sometimes I wish I could go back in time and knock some sense into 18 year old me. But that’s in the past, my work ethic is much better now that a few years have passed, and hopefully that will be the case for those in your class that are like I was.
And yet another thing: The people in your MAT 21C class that are not currently freshmen? Most of them either failed a previous calculus class and are either retaking this one or had to retake a previous one, or they placed into precal their first quarter and are a quarter behind in math. You get the occasional ones that put off the 21 series by a quarter for whatever other reason, but most non-freshmen are in that class for one of those reasons. As for why those two things might happen, keep in mind that not everyone got a good education in math before college, and that not everyone is naturally skilled in math.
I can say from experience with computer science and upper division math at least, that once you get to the upper level courses the averages get higher than they ever get in lower div. That doesn’t stop some genuinely hard classes from having lower averages because of the difficulty level, but for the average upper div class there often is either no curve needed or only a very small curve. I think the biggest curve I’ve had for an upper division CS or math class so far only bumped everyone by about 7%, but I took that class a year ago and can’t be bothered to check how the curve exactly was right now. This was for ECS 120, which is notoriously hard in the CS department. In any case, it’s nothing like my calculus classes where in at least one of them you could get a 55 and still get a C. By the time you get the point of upper level classes, your classmates are (hopefully) in the right major, or will realize very very soon that they need to switch, and are (hopefully) genuinely interested in the material to do well in the class.
And I know you already said that you didn’t mean the title to come off as harshly as it did, but do watch how you word these things in the future. Trust me, nobody likes people that come off as being arrogant, which, as I think you’ve gathered by the responses, is how the title comes off.
@PhantomVirgo Ahh, yes. I was telling the exact same thing about the people in my 21C class being ones who probably failed or took a gap quarter of calculus. Yeah, I kinda wrote this post in a bad mode… probably not the best idea. I want to take MATH 25, but I’m a bit annoyed that the schedule my counselor made me won’t allow for MATH 25 until winter of NEXT year. I’m not mad at her because she made a schedule that would maximize my current credits, but I also am not sure I want to be an engineering major. Would you think its a dumb idea if I take CHEM 2A, MATH 21D, PHYS 9B, and MATH 25 this winter (this coming quarter). My original plan says to take all those classes EXCEPT MATH 25 and replace it with a GE. The thing is that with my dual enrollment credits I only have 2 more GE classes to take to fulfill all my GE requirements, so I think I would be able to put them off till senior year and be fine. The only problem is I don’t know if it’s smart taking 4 stem classes in a given quarter. What would you say? I’m currently taking PHYS 9A, Math 21C, ECON 1A, STAT 13, and ECE 1 ( a 1 unit class), and my workload is pretty light. Keep in mind I already took a 9A and 21C equivalent already so that might have to do with my workload…
Have you ever taken any other proof-based math classes before? MAT 25 is one of those that’s notoriously hard for its level/numbering, largely because it’s many people’s first introduction to higher level, proof-based mathematics. I never took 25 myself, but took MAT 67 (proof-based linear algebra) my sophomore year and it definitely kicked my butt because that kind of proof-heavy class was something I’d never previously encountered.
Actually for that matter, is there any particular reason you want to take MAT 25? Just curious, because that’s a class usually only math/stats majors or people considering one of those majors take.
I’d be wary taking MAT 25 with those other three classes if you’ve never had a proof-based math class before. That’s not to say you shouldn’t do it, but depending on how your brain works that class may take a lot of effort to wrap your head around the concepts. If you have, that should be fine. I personally would take a non-STEM class as my fourth class that quarter just because I don’t like having all my classes in the same general area, but it’s your call.
"“UC Davis does not do the holistic viewpoint.” What?? Is this even written in the English language? What a terrible sentence structure. How about, “UC Davis does not do holistic review.” How is is possible to “not do a viewpoint”?? How can you “do” or “not do” a viewpoint?!! You have or do not have a view, not a “viewpoint.”!! Based on this sentence alone, I would say imjack has won his/her point about how stupid people are at UC Davis, especially as this is a UC Davis counselor!
@PhantomVirgo Well I’m very fond of math and I enjoy my calculus C class thoroughly. I like to attempt the proofs in my calculus C textbook (although they are probably nothing compared to math 25). I want to learn formal mathematical proofing and I’m actually looking into a math minor. Many upper div classes have MATH 25 listed as a recommended pre req.
@PhantomVirgo I’ll be applying to UCD and I plan to major in CompSci + minor in Math. Generally how are the upper division courses there and what advice would you give a transfer? Also how are the STEM clubs and tutor quality.
@napapapa hey man, dont invade my thread! make your own thread
I hope you’re aware that not everyone is going to be smart or good at every single subject. And I don’t think it’s fair that you’re judging an entire university’s population based on your one Calculus class.
Lmao my bad man.
@sweetlacecharm It also includes people in my physics class. But yeah, I know… I admit I should probably see how students do in my classes in the future to give them a fair chance.
“I’m a freshman”
No need to be so superior. It’s a hard class, and many people don’t expect it in the first quarter. Especially since it’s the first midterm. I took that class fall quarter my freshman year, got one of the highest scores on the midterm, and everyone else in the class bounced back on the second midterm.
You’ll probably end up with a 2.0 after next year, have fun with that.
@iamjack just because people score low on the first test. Doesn’t mean their dumb. Tell us when you take the second or third exam. You’ll probably be crying because you got a 63 or something.
@NASA2014 i got a 94 (raw) in the class… A 90 was was the cutoff for A-/A