Math requirement

[LaurenKittie]

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Most veterinary schools say "2 upper division math classes." I've taken stats, but I'm torn whether to take pre-calculus or calculus for the other (I'd like to take all the pre-requs I can, so my options are wide open). Is pre-calc considered upper-division math?
My boyfriend is a math-whiz (he's an electrical engineer) so I have a built in tutor, but math has never been my strong suit.
I recently graduated with a bachelor's degree in Biology, and my cumulative GPA was 3.37, so I'm concerned with raising it at this point.

 

[twelvetigers]

Calc is straight-up a requirement for a few schools (Florida is the only one I can think of offhand) so make sure you don't actually need calc specifically. For OKSU I've taken trig (though I think algebra might have worked, or anything higher up than trig) and stats. Both were 2000 level courses. I would check to make sure pre-calc would work for Illinois/Wisconsin (wherever you're thinking of applying). Or, if you *might* want to apply lots of places, calc may be worth it anyway just to cover more pre-req ground.

 

[quakk]

have you considered taking calc at a community college?

my calc classes at my 4-yr university were huge; my chem and bio, etc. classes at an extension campus or community college were < 30. my experience with smaller classes is that i get much more attention than with larger classes. work problem after problem until you get it - calc is easy that way. and, oddly, the calculus relates to physical concepts quite nicely; it's not just an abstract concept. if you can identify those relationships, they may help your understanding.

and it's not a science class, so i wouldn't think it would matter that much where you take it, just that you take it.

also, isn't pre-calc a pre-req for calc?

 

[LaurenKittie]

have you considered taking calc at a community college?

...

also, isn't pre-calc a pre-req for calc?

I'm taking physics, calc or precalc, organic and biochem at a community college because I didn't take them during my undergrad, so I already have your first suggestion covered. ^_^
I'm not sure if I can just register for calc straight-away. I think because I tried to take it during my undergrad and failed catastrophically (I just couldn't get the concepts, too many people in a fast-paced class), they may let me take it since they assume I already tested into it.
No worries, there's no F on my transcript. There's a "W" for withdrawal, which is another reason I'd like to try and take it successfully.

 

[bunnity]

In my opinion, pre-calc doesn't have much to do with calculus. I never understood why it was called that. I actually thought it was a lot harder than calculus itself. I would vote for instead trying a survey course (if your school has one) like "Introduction to Calculus" or something, and then taking Calc 1 if you're applying to a school that requires it. The name probably varies by school but if you ask your advisor if there is an introductory course designed to help you get a feel for calculus before you take Calc 1 they can probably tell you if it exists at your school.

Also take advantage of any math or study center that your school offers - often schools will have free help in the subjects people often struggle with.

 

[quakk]

I'm taking physics, calc or precalc, organic and biochem at a community college because I didn't take them during my undergrad, so I already have your first suggestion covered. ^_^

brilliant! to quote homer simpson... "S.M.R.T." 🙂

I'm not sure if I can just register for calc straight-away. I think because I tried to take it during my undergrad and failed catastrophically (I just couldn't get the concepts, too many people in a fast-paced class), they may let me take it since they assume I already tested into it.

i wouldn't think you'd have to test into it again... if you had the pre-reqs then, you should have them now.

in my high school, pre-calc was called analysis. i don't remember why it was called analysis, but it was. fit right between trig and calculus. prob'ly some concepts and techniques useful to understand prior to doing calculus? i don't recall.

it's appalling how much calculus i've forgotten since uni. interestingly, i used precious little in a 10-year engineering career. i can count on one finger the number of times i used calculus in my work, or otherwise. computers did the rest.

a little help from our friends... nothing like learning from the best:
http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/Mathematics/18-01Fall-2006/CourseHome/

 

[nyanko]

It says upper division but you're taking them at a community college?

edit: Calc and stats are lower division at every place I've been.

 

[LaurenKittie]

Well gang, now I have yet another math question. Turns out that 5 out of the 6 schools on my not-so-short-list (Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, and Wisconsin) require stats only, which I've already had (yay!). However, Ohio requires "algebra and trig." I already took trig and 2 levels of algebra in high school...I'd really rather not have to take them again. What's the deal with that?

 

[nyanko]

Well gang, now I have yet another math question. Turns out that 5 out of the 6 schools on my not-so-short-list (Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, and Wisconsin) require stats only, which I've already had (yay!). However, Ohio requires "algebra and trig." I already took trig and 2 levels of algebra in high school...I'd really rather not have to take them again. What's the deal with that?

It means you have to take algebra and trig, I'd assume. Everyone takes them in high school, but you have to take them again in college unless you test out of them...

Did you take calculus already?

 

[LaurenKittie]

It means you have to take algebra and trig, I'd assume. Everyone takes them in high school, but you have to take them again in college unless you test out of them...

Did you take calculus already?

I tested into calculus at my undergrad college. I didn't end up finishing it (W on my transcript) because we had a large class, bad professor and so I was failing catastrophically.
If i take calculus, will Ohio see that as already having algebra and trig since calc is more difficult than those classes? Maybe I should take calc anyway then...

 

[bunnity]

You might not have to take them if your regular undergrad gave you credit for them. I took everything up to and including Calc I in high school, and my undergrad transcript shows that I have fulfilled my algebra requirement but is listed as 0 credits toward graduation. Basically saying they aren't making me take algebra again. For Calc I did the AP test so I actually do have 4 credits for it on my transcript.

Look at your undergrad transcript. If it states that you have tested out of algebra or that you are exempt, I can't see a vet school making you retake it (check with the vet school to be safe obviously).

 

[carcharias]

LaurenKittie:

I asked Ohio about their math requirement by asking if I took algebra and calculus if this would this satisfy the requirement. And I also asked about pre-calc & calculus (essentially asking if calculus can be used for one of the two classes). And this was their response:

Yes, if you complete a calculus class with a grad of C or better it will fulfill the requirement.Calculus is higher from the level we require.

So, in case you have to take calc for another school, it looks like it would satisfy one of the two classes required by Ohio anyway.