I've been offered to take Calculus

[konartist]

hi, I'm a jr. in high school getting ready to be a senior and a I've been offered to take Calculus. I did pretty well in precalc I got an A on every test but , I know that my geometry skills and algebra skills are a little off. What should I do? Should I just take pre calc again and then take calc in college?

Also, I'm seeking a career in pre - med and I'm trying to convince my father to send me to u of a , but he is convinced the first two years at a Jr. College and a university are the same but cheaper. Can you guys please give me some strong approaches that I come back with and tell to my father.

It's not that we can't afford it but he just wants to save money. His perspective is since he went to a CC first that I should go to a CC first, but I know I'm smart enough for a university, I just don't know what to tell him.

 

[scorpa]

Pre meds at U of A have to take calculus, you could get away with taking Math 113 where the prereq is only Math 30 Pure, but I will warn you, the class is curved and most people have taken Math 31 already. Sucks for the people that haven't taken it yet. If you did good in precalc then go on to calculus, if you go to the U of A you really want to have a calc background before you go.

 

[konartist]

Ok thanks for the advice! So I will take it.

 

[leon1127]

COMMUNITY COLLEGE AND 4 YEAR SCOOL ARE NOT THE SAME, in texas at least. I am going to community college and 4 years school simutaneously in Dallas. Classes in Community College are just jokes. They never go in depth. It is even simpler than high school course. If you have the choise and passionate for knowledge, go for 4 years school.

 

[Wooh]

Hah, Leon...I'm originally from Dallas (studying out of state). I wouldn't put it quite as bluntly as you did, but basically, if you can hack a 4 year college, community college probably will not challenge you as much. It's not to impugn the quality of education there...just to say that it'd be like taking algebra 2 after taking BC calc!

 

[daveyp225]

I will disagree with those who say CCs are jokes. Some may be, but not all of them--and it is what you make of it. I went to one for my first two years and not only enjoyed it, but also did very well, and at the same time earned an A.S. degree. Now I am in Binghamton Uiniversity with a solid calculus (1,2,3,D.E.) and physics background and find that I am ahead of most of my classes. I am also emplyed with my A.S. degree making a decent salary compared to most undergraduates here.

Generally in CCs, the classes are smaller so the teachers can actually TEACH you. It is much easier to learn and you don't have to worry about being able to get extra help from your teachers. University professors are often "bothered" by giving extra help, as it interferes with their research, mentoring, etc. But like I said, it is what you make of it. If you don't feel challenged, challenge yourself and you will do well. Also, if you make good with the professors in your CC, chances are they have friends in the bigger schools. Reccomendations from several doctors make you look quite good ;).

 

[Nothing000]

I have taken Calculus 1 at both a community college and a university. I first took it at the CC, then when I got accepted to the University I was affraid that I would not be ready for Calc 2 at the "University Level". So I retook the class, and it turned out that we actually covered a little MORE material in the class at the CC! And the class at the University was no more rigorous either. I really could not tell a difference in the classes besides the fact that more material was covered at the CC!
Oh yeah, I also took the Calc class at the CC in 8 weeks during the summer, and the Calc class at the University in a regular 16 week semester, and we still covered more material that the Community College!
So this summer I have the option of taking Calc 3 at either the Community College or at the University, and I am almost certain that I will take it at the CC because it is a lot cheaper.

 

[nbo10]

If you're going pre-med and want to go to med school after graduation, then yes you do need to go to the University for 4 years. It could be argued that Med school addmissions are the most competitive. And having 2 years of CC might throw up warning flags for 1st tier schools.

 

[Jeff Ford]

I'm currently learning more in my community college calculus class than I did in either my high school AP calc class, or the calc class I took at a 4 year private college. Investigate the local community colleges, and find out from the university you want to attend what transfers. Generally you'll find one community college that seems to have more classes that transfer than the others. Pick that one.

 

[Poop-Loops]

The first two years of college aren't advanced either way. As long as you take the upper level courses at a university (duh, where else?) and you do well, then you'll be fine. Nobody in their right mind is going to say "well, you graduated from U of A, but you transferred there, so I'm sorry, you don't get the job."

 

[scorpa]

If you want to do the college thing first I believe you can enroll in Red Deer college in the pre-med program, you do the first two years there, and all of the courses are tailored to those of the U of A so that you can transfer there directly and with no hassel. Something to think about.

 

[leon1127]

I am sorrie if i was being too critical in the last post. Let me explain my observation. To be precise, i have attended 2 community colleges and a 4 years school so far. I am taking macro, micro and some other classes in community college this semester. In addition, i am Applied Maths major, therefore I study all applications of maths arise from any field (i am in real analysis already). My micro teacher is just a big talker and just read off the book during the entire class. He constantly shouts to me, "you must take note, or else you must fail." He repeats this "motivation speech for 10 mins everyday. Though, there is no point to "copy" notes from the book since everything is in the book already. When I ask question about applying maths in homework problem. He would be like "if you want to do it your way, that is fine. But i won't help you." that kind of attitude annoys me a lot. when i ask questions to my macro professor, she is able to answer my question. She even says class in there is just too basic. A friend of mine is taking macro in my 4 year school, and her class is doing case study which my class will never do (i have confirmed that). Even the same classes in CC and Univ, the homework problems of CC requires pre-alg and, on the other hand, HW problem from univ requires basic calculus already.
Lastly, I want to restate that this is my observation. I am not implying all professors in CC are bad, though i believe that qualities of professor are varier than univ. In face, my macro professor is one of the best professor I have met. Professor in CC takes too much time trying to answer everyone's question (and way too many questions), thus the lecture never finish on schedule.

 

[The_Tuna]

Take calc now or at a CC. My calc 3 class at pima is filled with people who all agree that the UofA calc classes are terrible.

 

[scorpa]

I actually really enjoyed my calc class at U of A. I highly recommend Enver Osmanagic as a prof if you do go to U of A, he was terrific. I absolutely loved him. When I found out that was the name of my prof I was terrified i wouldn't be able to understand him at all, but when I got to class all of my worries vanished. He was very clear and easy to understand, and his accent actually made things funner lol.

 

[The_Tuna]

Well, there you have it, depends on who's teaching :p It is of course always recommended to take calc in HS as it will probably be a full year vs 1 semester in college, plus you get it out of the way.

 

[scorpa]

If you are in a science program you have to take calc at least once in your first year whether youve taken it in high school or not. It definitely helps to have knowledge of it before you are in a university calc class, which is why you should definitely take it in high school also.

 

[leright]

Yes, you will need to take calculus. At most schools, some form of calculus is required to get your degree regardless of your degree program. Even the management and english majors are required to take calculus in the form of "math analysis", which at my school is watered down calculus. Obviously if you're engineering, physics, mathematics, or the like, then you will need to take lots of calculus. I am willing to be that if you're a pre-med major, you will need to take calculus too.