Cornell freshman schedule help?

[emzerlee]

I just finished pre-enrolling for my classes and I wanted to know if my schedule is too much.

1. BioG 1440- Comparative Physiology
2. Chem 2070- Gen Chem
3. Math 1710- Intro Stats
4. FWS (english)- hopefully Literacy in the Digital Age
5. PE

Should I take Stats this semester or take it in the spring. I have to take a separate Bio Lab 2 semester (BioG 1500) and so it will probably be more stressful to delay stats. I am using AP Credit to skip Calc 1 and Calc 2 and my advisor suggested I take Math 1710. I know AEM, ILR, and PAM offer stats as well. Should I take stats in the math department or elsewhere. My second choice would probably be AEM Stats.

Thanks in advance 🙂

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[911 Turbo]

I just finished pre-enrolling for my classes and I wanted to know if my schedule is too much.

1. BioG 1440- Comparative Physiology
2. Chem 2070- Gen Chem
3. Math 1710- Intro Stats
4. FWS (english)- hopefully Literacy in the Digital Age
5. PE

Should I take Stats this semester or take it in the spring. I have to take a separate Bio Lab 2 semester (BioG 1500) and so it will probably be more stressful to delay stats. I am using AP Credit to skip Calc 1 and Calc 2 and my advisor suggested I take Math 1710. I know AEM, ILR, and PAM offer stats as well. Should I take stats in the math department or elsewhere. My second choice would probably be AEM Stats.

Thanks in advance 🙂

Definitely not too much

 

[emzerlee]

thank you 🙂

 

[kpcrew]

It looks fine but put in more work than you think you'll need. Cornell is pretty well known for grade deflation and you don't want to get caught on the wrong end of that.

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

I just finished pre-enrolling for my classes and I wanted to know if my schedule is too much.

1. BioG 1440- Comparative Physiology
2. Chem 2070- Gen Chem
3. Math 1710- Intro Stats
4. FWS (english)- hopefully Literacy in the Digital Age
5. PE

Should I take Stats this semester or take it in the spring. I have to take a separate Bio Lab 2 semester (BioG 1500) and so it will probably be more stressful to delay stats. I am using AP Credit to skip Calc 1 and Calc 2 and my advisor suggested I take Math 1710. I know AEM, ILR, and PAM offer stats as well. Should I take stats in the math department or elsewhere. My second choice would probably be AEM Stats.

Thanks in advance 🙂

That looks like a legit schedule. I had the same schedule freshman year except I took Stats second semester and Psych 1101 first semester. I don't really know how Bio works now a days, I was the last class that took BIOG1101-1104 before they got rid of it in 2010. But I can't imagine BioG 1440 to be too much different. I say take stats first semester because CHEM 2080 is much harder than CHEM2070 especially when the concepts/professors made no sense, the prelim average was like 30% average....

I don't think you should take MATH stats, too much work for no reason, you're just torturing yourself. I took PAM stats second semester of my freshman year. It was so easy I never even went to class. However, it was a lot of work second semester because Chem 2080 problem sets and PAM stats problem sets were always due on the same day every week. If you're going to take PAM stats, take it first semester. My friend took AEM stats (or was it IRL stats? I can't remember), apparently they let you use a one page formula sheet on the exams. We had to memorize all the equations for PAM stats.... But the good thing about PAM stats is that the tests are almost always identical to the practice tests, just the numbers are slightly different.

Hope that was helpful.

 

[emzerlee]

That's EXTREMELY helpful!! i've heard mixed reviews for MATH 1170, but almost everyone says go for AEM/PAM so i think I'll follow the crowd 🙂

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

That's EXTREMELY helpful!! i've heard mixed reviews for MATH 1170, but almost everyone says go for AEM/PAM so i think I'll follow the crowd 🙂

Have a good time! Freshman year was the best year I ever had EVER...my freshman year GPA certainly can testify.... lol
Make sure you go to the club fest during orientation week and join some health/medical clubs. If you're Human Ecology, then you should join PATCH, it's really competitive and intensive.

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

That's EXTREMELY helpful!! i've heard mixed reviews for MATH 1170, but almost everyone says go for AEM/PAM so i think I'll follow the crowd 🙂

Also, a friendly reminder, never take a subject offered by that department if you can get around it. It'll probably be the best advice you'll ever get in terms of getting your requirements done. For example, don't ever take a math from MATH department if you can find an equivalent one somewhere else. MATH stats are for math majors, certainly not for us premeds. Don't ever take an FWS class from ENG department, and don't take any history from HIST department(Look for cultural ones, such as Egyptian history offered by East Asian Studies). All these classes offered by these particular departments are filled with major students that we can't compete with, and we aren't looking for unnecessary unfavorable competitions. It's like as if an unsuspecting art major student walked in BIOMG 2810, genetics... Death sentence for sure.

 

[emzerlee]

words can't describe how grateful i am for your advice. Im in CAS but plan on doing an internal transfer to CALS after the 1st sem. I have heard about the non-English FWS thing so I've tried my best to avoid them in my ballot. I'm really interested in technology so my top 2 choices are Literacy in a Digital Age and A Cultural History of Television. Do you think those are ok? I will definitely join so med clubs (since i've been in them since high school). thanks so much for the tips! have you graduated yet?

 

[emzerlee]

oh and med schools won't look down on me taking PAM stats instead of MATH right? i'm so clueless so I'm sorry about my abundant questions :/

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

words can't describe how grateful i am for your advice. Im in CAS but plan on doing an internal transfer to CALS after the 1st sem. I have heard about the non-English FWS thing so I've tried my best to avoid them in my ballot. I'm really interested in technology so my top 2 choices are Literacy in a Digital Age and A Cultural History of Television. Do you think those are ok? I will definitely join so med clubs (since i've been in them since high school). thanks so much for the tips! have you graduated yet?

No problem! I learned that the hard way when I signed up for a history offered by HIST department. I was lost the first class about what they were discussing and had to drop it right away... haha
I haven't heard of those before, I think FWS changes every year, I took one from psych department and one about ghost and spirits.
I'm in CAS too, good choice for transferring into CALS, I'm so fed up with all the liberal arts requirements by CAS. If i have to take another essay writing class, i'm going to flip out, haha. I'm going to be a senior next year, so old huh?

And no, the course name is Intro to Statistics. They won't mind, plus stats is not that important anyways.

 

[emzerlee]

haha yeah. I don't even know what made me apply to A&S but who knows, I might not have gotten in if I applied to CALS. English definitely isn't my strong point so I'd like to avoid that as much s possible. I do want to take French though, but not at the level that A&S requires. Wow a senior! That's not old at all! You're still in your early 20's, so you're at your prime! You're almost done! Are you applying to med school soon?

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

haha yeah. I don't even know what made me apply to A&S but who knows, I might not have gotten in if I applied to CALS. English definitely isn't my strong point so I'd like to avoid that as much s possible. I do want to take French though, but not at the level that A&S requires. Wow a senior! That's not old at all! You're still in your early 20's, so you're at your prime! You're almost done! Are you applying to med school soon?

Yup I'm in the process of application. You don't have to worry about this for a long time...
some encouragement for you, as well as some heads up about where you need to place your GPA. I didn't see this until the beginning of my sophomore year and freaked out.
http://www.career.cornell.edu/paths/health/medschool/upload/RevisedaaChart200910.pdf
But overall, you have a great chance! Good Luck!

 

[emzerlee]

good luck! i'm sure you'll get into a great school. and thanks 🙂 maybe i'll get lucky and see you around campus 🙂 i'm not ready for the weather so that's the only thing that will make me miss sunny california besides my family. i'm actually buying my winter clothes this week!

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

good luck! i'm sure you'll get into a great school. and thanks 🙂 maybe i'll get lucky and see you around campus 🙂 i'm not ready for the weather so that's the only thing that will make me miss sunny california besides my family. i'm actually buying my winter clothes this week!

haha, you'll be fine. You get used to it after a while. All three of my apartment mates are from California 🙂 They seemed to have adjusted fine. The most essential piece of wardrobe is rainboots, you'll never survive without a pair.

 

[emzerlee]

haha, you'll be fine. You get used to it after a while. All three of my apartment mates are from California 🙂 They seemed to have adjusted fine. The most essential piece of wardrobe is rainboots, you'll never survive without a pair.

I hope so! i'm excited for the snow and wearing huge coats, parkas, scarves, and mittens! i already have my north face fleece jacket waiting to be worn😀 i know i'll take a whole bunch of pictures and send them to my friends back in california! i can't believe I'm flying out in a month! it's crazy, but thank you for being so nice and helpful. you're the first senior i've ever talked to 🙂

 

[Ansar]

Yeah, it seems like a good schedule for first semester.
Good thing you didn't sign up for CHEM2150 (honors gen chem), ... bad mistake 😳

Re. MATH1710...I've heard from friends that it is like taking AP Stats again, so...take that as you may. It's certainly not the math-major statistics...that's MATH4710

 

[wanderedtoolong]

Also, a friendly reminder, never take a subject offered by that department if you can get around it. It'll probably be the best advice you'll ever get in terms of getting your requirements done. For example, don't ever take a math from MATH department if you can find an equivalent one somewhere else. MATH stats are for math majors, certainly not for us premeds. Don't ever take an FWS class from ENG department, and don't take any history from HIST department(Look for cultural ones, such as Egyptian history offered by East Asian Studies). All these classes offered by these particular departments are filled with major students that we can't compete with, and we aren't looking for unnecessary unfavorable competitions. It's like as if an unsuspecting art major student walked in BIOMG 2810, genetics... Death sentence for sure.

I have to strongly disagree with this. If your only goal while at Cornell is to get As and have the perfect med school app, fine, choose your courses in this manner, but Cornell has MUCH more to offer. Some of the best profs I had there were in the History and English departments. Select classes based on what interests you and the reputation of the professors, not on how easy it is to get an A, and your med school app will end up stronger in the long run. Who knows, you might even LEARN something in the process, even if you get a (gasp) B.

 

[cincincyreds]

I have to strongly disagree with this. If your only goal while at Cornell is to get As and have the perfect med school app, fine, choose your courses in this manner, but Cornell has MUCH more to offer. Some of the best profs I had there were in the History and English departments. Select classes based on what interests you and the reputation of the professors, not on how easy it is to get an A, and your med school app will end up stronger in the long run. Who knows, you might even LEARN something in the process, even if you get a (gasp) B.

I totally disagree with you have to say. The goal is a 4.0 if you want med school. Get enough B's, and you are going to the Caribean. You can go back to college later if you want to take interesting classes.

 

[emzerlee]

I understand where both of you are coming from. I want to take interesting courses, but I also don't want to jeopardize my chances by taking a class I know I won't do well in.

 

[Chemdude]

Pretty good schedule. You should be fine.

 

[Chemdude]

I understand where both of you are coming from. I want to take interesting courses, but I also don't want to jeopardize my chances by taking a class I know I won't do well in.

Take Magical Mushrooms...Interesting course/easy A.

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

I have to strongly disagree with this. If your only goal while at Cornell is to get As and have the perfect med school app, fine, choose your courses in this manner, but Cornell has MUCH more to offer. Some of the best profs I had there were in the History and English departments. Select classes based on what interests you and the reputation of the professors, not on how easy it is to get an A, and your med school app will end up stronger in the long run. Who knows, you might even LEARN something in the process, even if you get a (gasp) B.

I strongly disagree. Arts and Science makes you take a bunch of requirement classes in topics that I have no interest in as a biology major, such as philosophy and literature. Since I have no interest in the topic in the first place, why do I have to suffer in a class that I don't enjoy in the first place just to finish my requirements?

 

[Luvahgilahsa]

Take Magical Mushrooms...Interesting course/easy A.

dude that class got so much harder after my freshman year. My friends who took it freshman year thought it was the easiest thing in the world and encouraged the rest of us to take it sophomore year. Apparently the professor got a warning about making the class too easy, so they made much harder. It is not that easy, I was surprised.

 

[Chemdude]

words can't describe how grateful i am for your advice. Im in CAS but plan on doing an internal transfer to CALS after the 1st sem. I have heard about the non-English FWS thing so I've tried my best to avoid them in my ballot. I'm really interested in technology so my top 2 choices are Literacy in a Digital Age and A Cultural History of Television. Do you think those are ok? I will definitely join so med clubs (since i've been in them since high school). thanks so much for the tips! have you graduated yet?

And why on Earth would you transfer from CAS to CALS? If you're a bio major, it won't matter...and CAS>CALS overall.

 

[Chemdude]

dude that class got so much harder after my freshman year. My friends who took it freshman year thought it was the easiest thing in the world and encouraged the rest of us to take it sophomore year. Apparently the professor got a warning about making the class too easy, so they made much harder. It is not that easy, I was surprised.

It wasn't easy, but if you put in the time, you will get the A. All you have to do is attend lecture and you'll be fine.

 

[emzerlee]

And why on Earth would you transfer from CAS to CALS? If you're a bio major, it won't matter...and CAS>CALS overall.

I feel that the CALS requirements are a better fit for me than CAS. And I'm not entirely sure yet if I will find the time to fulfill my language requirement. I'm also Intereted in the Business Minor for Life Science majors that is also offere by CALS. Everyone I've talked to recommended switching to CALS.

 

[NonTraditional3]

Does the bio major still require the Biochem sequence?

 

[emzerlee]

Yeah, it seems like a good schedule for first semester.
Good thing you didn't sign up for CHEM2150 (honors gen chem), ... bad mistake 😳

Re. MATH1710...I've heard from friends that it is like taking AP Stats again, so...take that as you may. It's certainly not the math-major statistics...that's MATH4710

I didn't take AP Stats so I think PAM 2100 would probably be a better fit for me than MATH 1710.

 

[NonTraditional3]

The best bio elective I took was BioAP 7140 - cardiac electrophysiology - 1 credit graduate seminar open to undergrads, graded as satisfactory/unsatisfactory; taught by vice-dean of the college of vet med, really awesome guy. Class is offered once every 2 years in the fall. If your a bio-major and pre-med, its definitely a course worth taking.

 

[emzerlee]

Does the bio major still require the Biochem sequence?

Yes it does,

 

[emzerlee]

thanks for the tip! i'll definitely keep my eyes open for it

 

[Ignatius M.D.]

Edit: not a Cornell graduate.

Take interesting AND easy courses (I picked out interesting without regard to difficulty...mistake). Even pre-med hells like Cornell have them. Find out what they are and see if you can fit them in. Also, try not to take more than one pre-req at once if you can. I went to a similar uni, and freshman or sophomore students taking 2-3 prereqs at a time nearly had nervous breakdowns (and sub-3.3 GPAs). Most important, don't forget to enjoy yourself! I nearly went to Cornell, and I know that it's a wonderful school with a gorgeous campus. Get out there and have some fun.