<p>I applied undeclared but I am considering majoring in a field that is science related (maybe psychobiology or neuroscience). However, the science department at my high school was pretty weak (even though I took hon/ap bio, chem, physics courses) and I took chem/bio classes during my fresh/soph years (so it’s been a couple years). I’m worried that I will arrive at UCLA unprepared for college level science courses. (Especially since I’ve heard that many of the intro science classes are basically “weed out” classes for pre-med students…) </p>
<p>Should I take a summer course and/or self-study some science subjects so that I will be better prepared? At UCLA, does one already need to have a very strong foundation in the sciences when taking intro level science courses or majoring in something science related?</p>
<p>Any suggestions, tips, or insights into this would be greatly appreciated. : )</p>
<p>learn to love feeling stupid and scoring below average on midterms</p>
<p>Should you take a summer course/self-study to be better prepared?
Yes, especially if your high school science department was weak.
But do you need to have a very strong foundation in sciences when you enter UCLA?
No. Most of the first year (and also sometimes second year) courses are introductory courses. They are similar to some of the AP classes you might have taken in high school. They require you to have a little knowledge on the subject, but you don’t need a very strong foundation. If you took the AP exam and got a 4 or above, you can probably get through the classes fine without any summer preparation.</p>
<p>Just be prepared to work hard, you’re going to struggle until you figure out how to study and approach learning material/exams.</p>
<p>Fasttrack, thank you very much! This was exactly the kind of information I was looking for : ) I’ll definitely spend some time studying this summer, especially since its such a long one.</p>
<p>Deuces, I’m just hoping I don’t fail everything until that point. : P</p>