Worried about my schedule

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Buffalo - SUNY
1

<p>Hi, everyone. Basically I got my freshman schedule and I'm a bit worried about it being too much.
Monday: Calc1 from 10-10:50, Chem from 1-2:50 and 3-4:50
Tuesday: Chem from 11-12:20 and Gen Physics from 2-3:15
Wednesday: Calc1 from 9-9:50 and 10-10:50, Honors Colloq. from 1-1:50, Biblical Interpretations from 4-6:40
Thursday: Same as Tues
Friday: Calc1 from 10-10:50, Gen Physics from 12-12:50</p>

<p>This is a total of 18 hours of credits...Should I consider asking to change something? Thanks for the advice.</p>

2

<p>Calc 1 and Physics are easy. They make up 8 credit hours total but are basic courses. I assume it’s PHY101, not 107? Either way, I think they’re both pretty easy.</p>

<p>Who are your professors for those classes?</p>

<p>Chem seems to be one of those dreaded courses, I got out of taking it so can’t really comment.</p>

<p>Biblical Interpretations must be your seminar - can’t really comment on that - it could be a really easy course or a really challenging one. Could have a lot of work or not a lot at all.</p>

<p>Colloquium is only one hour this year? It was two hours last year, and they were the biggest waste of two hours in your life. Not a thing important during class. There is a fair amount of work outside of class - you do a service project and have to write a paper on it - but you do it with a group and it’s not exactly hard. I know they changed the course this year to make it better, hopefully that is the case.</p>

<p>Breaking it down, you have 4 hours on Monday, 3 on Tuesday, 6 on Wednesday, 3 on Thursday, and 2 on Friday. Wednesday looks rough - I’ve taken that many hours in one day and it’s not fun. Certainly manageable, but not fun. Especially with a three hour class.</p>

<p>Your Fridays are going to rock - you have only two hours of easier classes - and they don’t start early and don’t end late.</p>

<p>18 credit hours may be a tad on the high side for the first semester, but I know a lot of people who did it. I don’t see anything that you’d likely want to change, as it would set you back in that line of courses. What courses do you need for a sequence (Calc, Physics, Chem, etc)? It’s always possible to take one later…but if they’re part of a sequence, you don’t really want to do that…and if you have a lot of classes to take in the following years, you don’t really want to push them off. You’re required to take colloquium and a seminar, so there’s not much you can do about that.</p>

<p>And did I mention your Fridays are really good? Seriously, that is the best start to a weekend.</p>

3

<p>Son had 18 credits first semester too. Tough on engineering students and doesn’t get easier. He did drop/add an elective they gave him that he had no interest in and was able to add one that had good student review.</p>

4

<p>Chem 101 is very time consuming so, unless it’s a sequence you need to start immediately in order to be accepted to your major on time, that may be one you can put off and replace with a gen ed like World Civ, Pluralism, or the art/language requirement. But, depending on your prof, Calc and Physics shouldn’t be overly burdensome. I agree with the above posters that many math/sci majors are taking 18 hours a semester and it’s absolutely possible to do well if you manage your time wisely. Good luck!</p>

5

<p>Thanks for responding everyone! I feel a lot more at ease with this schedule since everyone’s saying it definitely can be done.</p>

<p>I’m planning to major in chemistry so I’m guessing I have to take chem right now? I don’t really get what’s meant by a sequence.
My teacher for physics is Markelz and for calculus, it’s Coburn. I’m really worried about physics because I sucked at it in high school. Any recommendations on what books I should borrow to study up on it for college?
Thank God for easier Fridays. =) I’m going to work hard to get through those Wednesdays!</p>

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<p>Here are my mom tips: if you have trouble with a class, ask for help immediately. Don’t think it will get better, it won’t. Also find out when the drop deadline is for classes. If you are overwhelmed, you can usually drop a class without penalty.</p>

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<p>So this is PHY 107? She does not seem to be a very popular teacher, judging from the reviews she has on ratemyprofessor…but it may be that mostly her unhappy students post there! My D has found validity in the comments she’s read on rmp, both positive and negative, and will use it as additional input to help make schedule decisions, but has also done well in courses that are generally regarded as “weeders”. At this point, there may not be any slots left in other sections, but you can always explore other alternatives such as whether it’s possible to put off physics til spring (when it’s likely that other profs will be teaching this) and take a gen-ed instead. Just make sure you don’t drop something before you know what you can add - if possible, have you advisor make schedule changes for you this time. The UB SA also has posted course reviews, derived from end of semester student evaluations, but their website seems to be undergoing some construction and I can’t find the link. </p>

<p>[University</a> at Buffalo (SUNY Buffalo) - New York](<a href=“http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/SelectTeacher.jsp?sid=960]University”>http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/SelectTeacher.jsp?sid=960)</p>

<p>A sequence would be a group of related classes taken in sequence - usually you must take them in order because each one is a pre-requisite for the next higher-level course. For example, Chem 101 is the first in the sequence and a pre-req for Chem 102, which is a pre-req for Biochem, etc. The Chemistry Dept website will have the complete listing of required courses for students intending to apply for a chemistry major. You can also run a DARS report from your UB homepage anytime which will show you all the courses you must take for your intended major and for gen-eds.</p>

<p>MDMom is right, the best thing you can do is seek assistance as soon as you don’t understand something. All of your profs will have regular office hours, as well as their TA’s, and there is also tutoring available. For some of the sciences, the same tests are given to all of the sections so students often attend the lecture of whatever prof they feel is the best teacher, even though they weren’t assigned there (you do have to go to your assigned recitation/ lab though). That may be an option for physics if you find that you’re having trouble learning the material from the lectures. The Chem Dept has their own room where the TA’s help students on a walk-in basis - my D and her friends were regulars and I’m pretty sure they all managed to pull at least a B+ but I remember her telling me that Chem was taking up alot of her time…YMMV!</p>

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<p>So it’s Physics 107 (why did I skip physics 101?), and Chem 105. Thanks for the advice. I think maybe I’ll call up my counselor and ask if I can take a gen ed course instead. If not, there’s always office hours and tutoring for whatever I’ll have trouble in! I’ll also check all the classes I have to take for my major to make sure that I can drop physics if necessary for the first term.</p>

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<p>PHY107 is the intro course for calculus based physics, which is probably required for your major. PHY101 is regular intro physics, generally for non-science majors.</p>

<p>Btw, before you drop any class make sure you find out if it’s been designated as limited enrollment! If so, you could have a problem registering for it again other than in summer sessions…</p>

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<p>All PHY107 exams are the same. You can go to another professor’s section if you wish, but have to go to your own section if there is an iClicker quiz (most will announce them ahead of time…for Petrou it was every Friday…but not sure if this is standard across the board).</p>

<p>Dropping shouldn’t affect limited enrollment if I understand it correctly. Resigning would. I believe the drop period is two weeks.</p>

<p>But seriously…PHY107 is an easy class. I had Petrou, he is generally regarded as one of the better professors, but honestly got very little out of the lectures (it was easier to doze off or get distracted than try to understand his accent). Just make sure you do the homework and understand the problems. If you don’t, go to recitation, office hours, etc until you do.</p>

<p>PHY107 is more popular in the spring though, it seems there are a lot more sections then. Most engineers take it in the spring (I wanted to sign up for it in the fall of my freshman year but honors didn’t reserve any seats in it…evidently they did this year).</p>

<p>CHE105 is Honors Chem. I hear it’s a lot of work. But it’s also a relatively easy way to fulfill an honors experience.</p>

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<p>My advisor told me that I should keep PHY107 because of my major requirements. And since I can go to another professor’s section if I have to, I’ll definitely keep it now. =)</p>