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Chosing a major part VI
Fizban140
Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
This is pretty frustrating...
I just seperated the military and got back home, I am trying not to waste time so I am trying to attend college as soon as I can. Well the university I want to go to will not accept me with the grades I have so I have to go to a community college first but they won't tell me what classes until I chose a major with them.
I have almost no idea of what I want to major in so this is incredibly frustrating, how much of a difference will it really make if I end up tranfering to another degree? I have until October 15 to make a decision. I can't get a place to live or a job until I figure this out since it will depend upon where I live. Do I just chose some general degree close to what I might do or do I just go to a community college and hope to figure out what I like? Both plans sound like shit.
I just seperated the military and got back home, I am trying not to waste time so I am trying to attend college as soon as I can. Well the university I want to go to will not accept me with the grades I have so I have to go to a community college first but they won't tell me what classes until I chose a major with them.
I have almost no idea of what I want to major in so this is incredibly frustrating, how much of a difference will it really make if I end up tranfering to another degree? I have until October 15 to make a decision. I can't get a place to live or a job until I figure this out since it will depend upon where I live. Do I just chose some general degree close to what I might do or do I just go to a community college and hope to figure out what I like? Both plans sound like shit.
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I'm not sure how you contacted them, but if you haven't already I would sit down with a counselor at any/all schools you're considering (assuming travel isn't an issue) and discuss your options. Most colleges will be more than happy to help you.
Also, I have no idea what your financial status is like, but my A++ #1 recommendation if you're starting school is to begin the federal financial aid application at FAFSA.gov to see what you qualify for. It's free, doesn't take too much time to complete and can be a huge help.
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However, also depending on your major, the levels these are at will vary - for example, if you're an engineer, you might have to take Chemistry 210 but English Lit majors only have to take Chemistry 200. And if you transfer your major from English Lit to engineering, you have to retake Chemistry or do annoying academic antics to get them to accept the lower level.
So my advice is, do one of these two things:
1) Narrow down your major to a certain college - like Engineering, Science, Fine Arts, etc. - where all the general requirements are pretty much the same, so you can transfer easily between majors.
2) If you can't narrow your preferences down to one college, and if you don't mind working hard, pick the major with the toughest general requirements (usually this is going to be either a Science major or an Engineering major. At my university, it was definitely engineering - you could go to a science major from engineering but not the other way around). Or if you absolutely know that you hate math, for example, and so you know you'd never choose an engineering degree, then choose the toughest major that you would actually consider, and do those requirements.
Those are basically your options if you want to buy loads of time (as in, years).
edit: Reading fail, I guess you have to go to a CC? Then as someone already said, they should have a general major, yeah? I would just do that if I were you.
The U of M is also hard to graduate from in 4 years due to scheduling issues. So once you decide on a major (even if that's in a year or two) make sure to plan out all the classes you'll have to take to complete it in 4 years. Another thing to keep in mind at the U of M is that the campus is split between Mpls and St. Paul, so make sure if you have classes at both campuses you have plenty of time to commute between them (it should take around 15-20 minutes using the free buses).
Switch community colleges?
Like somoene else said, pretty much all community colleges, and tons of universities have general studies/undecided tracks. It's kinda silly to even worry about majors as the majority of stuff you're going to be taking is basics anyways.
I may be wrong, but I'm under the impression that biochem won't help you get a job much, unless you go to grad school. It may help you get a job in a lab, but nothing you'll advance much with.
Chemical Engineering
CHEM 1061(1021), 1062(1022), 2061(2301), 2062(2302, 2311), 2073(perhaps in lieu of 2121)
ENGR 1000(Transfers)
MATH 1221(1271), 1222(1272), 2220(2263), 2300(2142), 2400(2066) {2300 & 2400 together equals Math 2243}
PHYS 1601(1301), 1602(1302)
Earth Science
CHEM 1061(1021), 1062(1022)
GEOL 1040(3004), 1110(1001), 1120(1002), 1160(3005), 1850(1006)
Additional courses in geology will transfer as elective credit.
MATH 1221(1271), 1222(1272), 2220(2263), 2300(2142), 2400(2066) {2300 & 2400 together equals Math 2243}
PHYS 1601(1301), 1602(1302)
Screwed me out of a semester of money when I switched over since I was doing most of mine online. >.>
I *think* it depends on when you switch.
Your early "Intro to Engineering" classes may be forfeit if you switch to biochem, since that major will not require those classes. On the other hand, if you delay any Eng or ChemEng classes, you risk not knowing much about the major and having to cram it all in later.
It might be beneficial to find a list of all classes that overlap in both majors and scheduling them earlier. That way, a possible switch won't erase a bunch of time.
I did Materials Engineering which is close to Chemical Engineering. Most people did not finish in 4 years. Those who did, had to sacrifice their eternal soul (i.e. zero social life). Almost no one had above a 3.0 GPA.
That said, it's probably the most valuable undergraduate degree available. You're looking at something like 99% employment right out school and $55k+ depending on location.
Let 'em eat fucking pineapples!
The short answer is no
The long answer is that if you're not good at math, getting an engineering degree is going to be difficult at best and also infinitely frustrating once you graduate and discover that you are still using the math you learned.
I've suggested in your threads before that you find a math tutor and go for it, advice which I think still stands. Start with pre-algebra/geometry/trig/pre-calc at the CC and then work your way up, you can totally do it.
Actually, to be honest, I think Chemical and Materials have less hardcore math than the others. Mechanical, Electrical, (maaaaybe Industrial) have the most math due to all the physics and stats. For us, after those math classes that everyone takes, it was pretty much "welp now you don't have to do this bullshit so here's regular equations again!" and everyone was overjoyed. Even the profs didn't like it. We got to concentrate on the concepts, theories, and applications instead of wading ass-deep in calc.
These fields are a different kind of tough. But people who did everything right (study with others, ask the prof questions, dedicate yourself to the lab reports and homework, take good notes) did well, even if they didn't quite "get" some of it.
Let 'em eat fucking pineapples!
Huzzah!
As a sidenote, it's really excellent to see you so positive. Good luck!