<p>How do yall suggest structuring an Emory College schedule? I am an incoming freshman (with 32 credits… so i guess im a sophomore). I took 6 years of social studies in high school because I was interested in it and made a “5” on all the AP exams. I do not have any SNT or HAL credit. I intend to major in poli sci, but I wanted to see if my possible schedule was APPROPRIATE and MANAGEABLE based on my background:</p>
<p>HIST 342 ROARK
HIST 232 CRESPINO
POLS 353 WALKER
SOC 190 FRANZOSI</p>
<p>Here’s what I gathered from the class comments section:</p>
<p>HIST 342- Roark has quite a few raving reviews from previous students. He is an engaging lecturer, laid back, and will help you with papers. However, many of his previous students also says that this class has quite a bit of work in the form of reading. </p>
<p>HIST 232- Crespino is also liked by his previous students, but I dont know much about the class.</p>
<p>POLS 353- Another good professor based on reviews. </p>
<p>SOC 190- Yet another good professor based on reviews. Man you are certainly good at picking professors</p>
<p>I am a science major but I think certain general principles no matter what you major in. You definitely have an interest in social studies and based on your test scores, you are quite talented with it, but I’d recommend having a bit more variety in your schedule. Here’s two reasons why.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>With all of these higher level social studies classes, you will end up with a huge load of reading and papers to write, and there is no guaranteed that they will be spaced out at all. The last thing you want is a couple hundred pages of reading and 2-3 papers in due in a week. Starting college is stressful enough as it is, why make it worst? Also, the first semester is the BEST time to make new friends and get settled in. You do not want to be stuck in the library all day doing work. </p></li>
<li><p>You’ll have plenty of semesters left to take social studies classes. Explore a little bit by taking a science seminar or intro class. They aren’t too hard and are a nice change of pace. You might end up with another interest to pursue and at worst, you’ll get some GRE’s out the way.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>My suggestion: Take a 2 upper level social studies classes, a language, and a seminar about a subject you don’t know much about that also nets you a HAL or SNT credit.</p>
<p>Thanks megasupa! Yeah, I mean, those are just the classes I’m looking at as possible options. Based on what everyone says, history and pol. science classes require you to be passionate about the subject and have a strong background in it- because I guess otherwise it’s quite easy/probable to drown in several hundred pages of reading per week and the essays you mentioned.</p>
<p>I guess most humanities students are wondering (including me!), what kinds of science classes/seminars would be a good fit for people who are not particularly good at science and do not have a foundation in it? I assume that there are certain courses for hard-core science-oriented students, and there are other science courses that are “lighter” and more manageable for humanities majors…</p>
<p>A sure sign of a easy science class is if it says something along the lines of “Does not fulfill major requirement” or “not appropriate for students majoring in science or on a Pre-Health track”</p>
<p>Based on what I’ve heard, PHYS 116 (Intro Astronomy with Lab) is one of the favorite classes for humanities majors that need to fulfill a lab science requirement. </p>
<p>Here are some from the upcoming semester that I’d suggest (without a lab component):
CHEM 105: How Things Work
NBB 120: From Botox to Behavior
PHYS 121: How Things Work
PSYC 110: Intro Psyc I:Psychobio&Cognitn</p>
<p>Keep in mind that you would be lucky to get into just 3 classes that you originally planned on enrolling in. One bad thing about having small class sizes is that easier science classes and upper humanities courses are probably filled up by now. You should make a much broader list of classes, so when registration comes, you are prepared when your favorite classes are fill up or there are scheduling conflicts.</p>
<p>Edit: Haha disregard what I said. I just did a quick search and every class you that want still has at least 10 slots left 
yay</p>
<p>One comment on your schedule - Walker is an incredibly good professor and you should take his classes at some point. His classes, however, are notoriously difficult for senior political science majors. Honestly I’m not sure if he will let you take the course since you are a first year. His classes are essentially like law school in that you are expected to know every detail of the cases you are studying. Students as a whole did so poorly on the first two of his tests last semester that he made a deal that he wouldn’t fail anyone who came to class everyday after that. </p>
<p>Long story short, he’s certainly worth taking but probably not in your first semester.</p>
<p>I would advise against taking 300 or 400 level classes your first semester. It’s not that I don’t think you can do the work, it’s just that you don’t have the background reading that the juniors and seniors have. It has nothing to do with intelligence and everything to do with experience. Consider taking some 200-level classes in those majors which will count towards the major and save the 300-level classes until your sophomore year. You have nothing to lose by saving those classes til later. Take time to get used to college and what professors are expecting you before making that jump. Trust me, AP classes are nothing like 300 level classes.</p>
<p>I agree with the rest on here. Some of those look intense. I have a high school social science background about the same as yours, and I love them (got “5” on APs too). But those 300 levels will give you a run for the money. And a thing you must worry about in college that you didn’t in high school is perhaps some sketch grading practices in humanities and social science courses. It’s not always like AP, “how much do you know”. And sometimes grading isn’t as fair as some would like. Also, experience is very important. It would be best to get at least some background in the area that your upperlevel course is covering from some lower level course. Don’t let your AP experience and credits allow you to overestimate your readiness. Keep in mind that most students here have a similar background to that of yours, yet many of us still struggle w/some of these courses. Like dgeball said, you can probably do it, but it will be much more difficult than you think.</p>
<p>Well, this is certainly helpful. I’m getting a clearer view of things. Alright so: </p>
<p>I’ll take megasupa’s advice on getting a HAL class in there</p>
<p>and amadani’s advice on waiting on Walker</p>
<p>and dgeball’s advice on waiting on the 300 and 400 levels altogether- at least for this semester</p>
<p>and bernie’s advice on taking a realistic approach to the coursework</p>
<p>idk I guess I was excited to dive right in and immerse myself in the subjects I really love (and part of it was probably the outpouring of this internal, ambitious drive to prove to myself that I can tackle a 300 level class), but maybe a dose of academic level-headedness and patience will allow for better long-term results. Pretty much based on the guidance, I’ll be taking a somewhat more progressive, gradual approach to the coursework.</p>
<p>If this were facebook, I would like that post of yours :)</p>
<p>Trust me, there are many good 200 level courses to take. And some social science/humanities depts. have really good 100 levels. You’ll be fine.</p>