Taking Calculus without Pre-Calculus

[WWE]

Hey Guys,

Its been quite a while since I had a mathematics course and I was told by a friend that Pre-calculus really doesn't have much to do with Calculus and for me to just dive into Calculus. What is your guys' thoughts on that? Has anyone done it before? Can it be done? Will the person be successfull? Thoughts please 🙂

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[mrblah]

you need to know your trig functions from pre-calc/trig, and functions.

I took precalc 8 years ago...and then when i went back to school 2 years ago, i placed into calculus, and I didn't know crap. I dropped it and took precalc to bring me up to speed. Really its up to you. I found calc was easier after i took pre-calc.

 

[SexyPlexi]

I realize now why I was supposed to LEARN something in all those math classes I took. 🙄 I took precalc 6 years ago and I hardly went to class and probably didn't learn anything...and I made a C. I didn't care then...I just needed to get through my business degree. Then I went back to school in the fall and dove into Calculus. It WAS challenging and I had to buy Calculus for Dummies, go to the math lab at school, and work extra hard to even remember algebra (apparently I never thought I would EVER need ANY math I took in my entire life...great job 🙄)

Make sure you get a good professor and be prepared to make up for it and you can do it. I managed to get an A...barely...but an A nonetheless! Good luck!

 

[Jammerdez1]

If you don't know your trig basics, you're in for a rough ride. If you have the option, take Pre-calc. It's like trying to take Organic Chem without ever taking the intro chemistry class first.

 

[CougarPaw]

You don't need to take Pre-Calculus. I took Calculus w/o Pre-Calculus and did fine. I did have to learn the Trig functions on my own though.

 

[WWE]

Got it.. so pretty much if you don't know your trig skills well, then you are going to have to self-study them.

 

[mannyi987]

Ive heard it put this way,
Calculus itself isn't hard, but it becomes hard because it uses precalculus.
You really should have a steady foundation in precalc

 

[qtnatty]

i took pre-calc my junior year of high school and waited until i was out of college 6 years to take calculus. i got an A. i had to work hard for it though.

 

[Sparda29]

I found calculus easier than pre-calculus but there were things that I learned in Precalc that were necessary for Calc.

So, if you didn't take Precalc in high school, I wouldn't recommend taking Calculus. A great book for Calculus is Calculus for Dummies.

 

[SexyPlexi]

Got it.. so pretty much if you don't know your trig skills well, then you are going to have to self-study them.

Yup! As long as you are ready to do some extra investigating on the things everyone around you seems to already know, then you should be ok.

 

[shaolinRX]

Pre-calculus FTW!

 

[cystapharm]

if you really want an A take pre-cal first. if you're ok with a B with trying super hard, dive in. if you're really good at math skip precalc.

 

[nrgracing2003]

Best to learn the basic and get a strong foundation in calculus before diving in to Calculus. You might think it will save you time but in the long run you might struggle.

 

[CCdarling]

Derivatives, antiderivatives...eek. Only thing worse are vectors and force and all that physics crap.

It's do-able to take Calc without pre-calc, but you probably have to work harder. Know your trig identities..GL

 

[WWE]

I found calculus easier than pre-calculus but there were things that I learned in Precalc that were necessary for Calc.

So, if you didn't take Precalc in high school, I wouldn't recommend taking Calculus. A great book for Calculus is Calculus for Dummies.

It's funny that you mentioned that Sparda29. I actually just went online yesterday and ordered the Calculus for Dummies book and work book. I heard that it is an excellent book to get you prepared for calculus and also to help you understand it.

 

[SexyPlexi]

It's funny that you mentioned that Sparda29. I actually just went online yesterday and ordered the Calculus for Dummies book and work book. I heard that it is an excellent book to get you prepared for calculus and also to help you understand it.

It is! It TOTALLY helped me. Plus there is a review in the beginning of algebra, geometry, and trig 👍