DISCLAIMER: ALL OF THESE TIPS ARE THINGS I’VE FOUND TO WORK FOR ME. THESE TIPS ARE NOT UNIVERSAL. I CANNOT GUARANTEE THAT THEY WORK FOR EVERYONE. THEY ARE ONLY MY OPINIONS.
Take your AP Credits and Run: Here are some things I’ve heard from students forfeiting their AP Credit and retaking it as a college class:
- “I didn’t really learn anything in the AP class and need a stronger base moving forward.”
- “My advisor told me to retake it.”
- “I want to get an easy A and boost my GPA.”
- “I took the class three years ago and forgot everything, but I need it for my major.”
Here’s why they’re all bad, in order:
- There’s a reason you have that credit. It’s not like Purdue Pete saw you got a 1 in AP Calc AB and said “Eh, go on and take Calc II, I want to see you burn”. If you have the credit, it means Purdue has determined that you are fit to move on.
- I’ve heard from a handful of people that they forfeited their credit because their FYE advisor said they should. Every one of them regretted their decision.
- If you want to boost your GPA, why are you retaking a STEM class? Get an easy A in an easy class, not calculus.
- I heard this from one person. After taking the class, he said he already knew everything and it was a waste of time.
If you haven’t gotten the message: Take. The. Credit. Never have I heard of someone who was elated to retake Calc 1 or Chem. I’ve only heard stories of indifference or, more often, regret for forfeiting AP credit.
Why take a step back to delay the inevitable? Move forth on your journey to be an engineer.
Advanced Credit: If you’re itching to study over the summer, then advanced credit may be for you. Click here to read about it. My opinions:
I never took AP Chem in high school (went with AP Music Theory instead), so I didn’t have credit for CHM 115, which every FYE student has to take. I did take a lower level honors chemistry class my freshman year, though, which essentially covered almost all of what CHM 115 taught. I didn’t want to take the class, so I bought a used $12 Chemistry textbook, reviewed what I learned 4 years ago for about a month in the summer, took the 60 question multiple choice advanced credit exam, got a 41/60 (68%), and received credit for CHM 115 because I only needed a 33/60 (55%). (DISCLAIMER: This is probably not a good idea if you want to become a chemical engineer. If you’re like me and you never once considered going into chemical engineering, then full speed ahead.)
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Everyone should test out of COM 114. Although communication is vital for your career, I firmly believe that public speaking and effective communication comes down to self-confidence. A low-level class meant for engineering students to pass through and get credit won’t suddenly make you a good public speaker. It’s easy to test out. Just get a textbook, study for the multiple choice portion, pass that, prepare and give a good speech and get a good grade. If you really want to work on communication skills, take a COM class on your terms, like Small Group Communication or Interviewing Principles and Practices. Or join a club that’s all about communication like PSEF.
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I studied throughout the summer in preparation to test out of CS 159, but decided against it because I never coded before that summer and wanted to go into Computer Engineering. I already knew I was just trying to get credit for CHM 115 and didn’t care to learn much, but for CS 159, if I happened to barely pass the test out and move onto advanced programming classes, I would’ve struggled. If you can work through the first 11 chapters of this textbook (you can find cheaper, older editions elsewhere, like the $8 one I found on Ebay), reading carefully and doing the programming practice problems by yourself, you could test out. Nowadays, computer science skills can be useful for almost any technical career, so it’s not a bad idea to take the class, but I will say that because I practiced programming out of my textbook over the summer, I learned nothing new from CS 159.
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In general, for advanced credit exams, if you don’t think you’ll see the subject in the future, taking the exam works out. On the other hand, I’d reckon that it’s a bad idea to take CHM 116 after testing out of CHM 115 with a 55% on the advanced credit exam. If you are confident in your self-studying abilities and ace the exam, then great, you’re obviously doing well and probably would succeed in CHM 116. Overall, just make the right decisions based on what you want and know.
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If you need general classes, you could take CLEP exams. I’ve never taken any, but apparently you don’t have to study much to pass and get the credit. Make sure you’re careful with what you pay for because many won’t count towards your degree. Just do your research and email your advisor if you’re not sure.
Sneaky Physics Trick: High schoolers who are taking the AP Physics 1 exam their senior year and know calculus – listen up. The AP Physics 1 exam doesn’t do anything for you. Only the AP Physics C: Mechanics exam gives you credit for the FYE physics requirement, PHYS 172. Not all hope is lost, however, because I, too, was once in your shoes but didn’t have to take PHYS 172. If you’re doing well in AP Physics 1 and think you’ll get a 5 on the AP exam, with a little bit of self-studying, you can take the Physics C exam as well. You just have to learn some calculus concepts to apply to some problems, but the rest of the exam is similar to the AP Physics 1 exam. Don’t be afraid to take both; it won’t hurt outside of the test fees. I ended up getting a 5 on both, so you can, too.
Getting Around Campus: Walking isn’t bad, but if you want to get around campus quickly, there’s better ways than your own two feet. Riding the bus, biking, and skateboarding (my personal favorite) are all quick ways to get around campus. The quickest is definitely biking, but you will have to always find space to lock it up (especially because of Purdue students’ affinity for bikes in trees). If you don’t know how to skateboard, you can easily learn if you’re willing to practice a few days. After some falls, scrapes, and bruises, I learned how to comfortably ride on a longboard in two days over a Thanksgiving break. I can simply carry it with me into class, and it’s pretty fast. More than once, I’ve left my dorm the same time as a bus and then beat it to its destination a half mile away.
Calc: Some things in life are just better than others. Lebron is better than KD. California sunshine is better than Indiana “snows in late March” weather. Purdue is better than…
Joseph Chen may very well be the best Calc professor. Many people watch his Calc 1, 2, or 3 lecture videos and find them very helpful. I personally have never watched them and just read textbooks on my own, but seriously, look at his RateMyProfessor rating. That 5.0 rating makes him rarer than a shiny Pokémon. If you find yourself struggling in Calc, look for his videos and see if they help.
