Berkeley 1st Sem Fall 2008 Courses
I have settled on my course list for the first semester! (which includes a final 3-hour exam on my birthday =.=)
So I submitted the following course list to be vetted by my Student Affairs Adviser…
Physics H7A (4 units)
Physics H7B (4 units)
Mathematics 53 (4 units) (already enrolled)
Computer Science 61A (4 units) (already enrolled)
Electrical Engineering 20N (4 units)
… and I got the following reply:
Hi Ern Sheong Lin,
… I received your schedule for Fall and it appears to be a bit heavy for a 1st semester at UCB. Taking five technical courses will be extremely challenging. Most freshmen usually drop down to the 12 unit required minimum. The 1st semester you will be trying to adjust here. I also noticed that you signed up for Physics H7A and H7B. We do not recommend that students enroll in honors courses. They are designed for students who plan on majoring in Physics. I tell my students at CalSO they should try and enroll in at least 16 units (usually 3 technical courses and a lower division humanities class). This way if one of their technical courses becomes to difficult to handle they can drop it and not go under the 12 unit minimum. Did you AP out of Physics 7A? Last year I was fortunate to have one of my best EECS students (3.7 GPA) assist me at CalSO. He highly recommended students to take Physics 7A even though they have scored a 5 on the MCH C AP exam. Below you will find your advisor code for telebears enrollment. With this code you can now enroll in 10.5 units. You will be able to complete your enrollment during your phase 2 appointment times.
Hahaha… a Berkeley senior expected this to happen. And I was guided to give the following response:
Thank you for your prompt and personal reply!
To be frank I think my 1st semester looks like the way it is simply because I would need to finish <4 years due to financial constraint (self-paying student). To further that argument I have actually gone through JC in Singapore, so I would think that I can handle the load, although of course if it becomes too heavy or unsuitable I would consider dropping Physics H7AB to 7AB or even drop Physics H7B to add on a breadth course. Nope, I did not do Physics AP, but a fellow senior in Berkeley thought that Physics H7AB would be more interesting for an A Levels student, so I thought that I would give it a go.
I really appreciate the time taken to address your concern, but not to worry, I’ll adjust accordingly as the fall semester unfolds 
Thank you very much for your kind advice!
Yes, I am a bit crazy! Finish in 2.5 yrs! Next semester I am set to petition to increase the maximum units from 20.5 units to perhaps 25 units, depending on results la.
Go Bears!
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Hey,
Trust me that having gone through a JC is nothing compared to what you will face at Berkeley. The honors level physics are very, very intense and extremely math focused. Much of the required math background is never covered in the A-levels syllabus. Don’t get fooled by the ‘honors’ title, it buys you nothing (compared to the pain endured - i.e. the pain to gain ratio) extra if your main goal is to do engineering.
My advice to you, clear the required classes in math and engineering as quickly as possible, and take the ‘normal’ sequence, and start taking the classes for your major if you intend to graduate early.
@anon:
Hey thanks for the input. In light of what you said, I think I would take Physics 7AB instead of the H7AB courses. Yeah, you are right. I should just aim to clear the required courses as soon as possible and with as little pain as possible. (”intense and extremely math focused” doesn’t sound good at all haha)
Cheers dude. I sincerely appreciate the comment.
Aiz… I don’t know all about the course codes and the difficulty level per each module, but if you want to zip through your degree, then I suggest that you clear your degree and major requirements as fast as possible and keep “for fun” courses out, or at least, keep them out until towards your graduation, when you have time to do them. This should lessen your load. (Is H7AB your graduation requirement? Haha from the reply from Student Affairs Adviser, it sounds like you can take 7AB and do fine, and H7AB is for students who want something extra.) =)
2.5 years is insane, but if you say you can plan it, you can.
I have not plotted my course beyond first year… still want to wait until end of first year to decide what to major. XD
@Ome: yeah man, H7AB is extra and all that is necessary is just 7AB. a senior told me that 7AB boring (for Singapore A level ppl), that’s why I went for H7AB in the first place. but well, i think keep things simple is better la. if really easy then good lo
yeah actually i plan to just crash all the “for fun” courses like business and entrepreneurship stuff, just sit in without actually claiming any credit. for the sake of learning anyway!
well i guess you have your rough idea of your major already (just waiting to “officialize” it :P)
2.5 years! Ahhhhh!
Haha. I know nothing is impossible, but maybe you can relax a bit too la, huh. =P
As long as you have a way to reduce the workload (drop stuff?) when you find it too intense, then go for it first! =)
Dude, I gotta say you got to chill a bit la. I know you’re all intent on finishing as fast as possible to save cash, but it’ll be better to spend a bit more and come back with and education than spend less and come back with just a degree. College years are meant to be the best of your life, and you don’t wanna look back in 10 years time and regret spending all your time studying and nothing else. And before you say ,you won’t, from what I understand you’re doing 2 modules more than most people do for your first year, all 5 are really hard and you wanna attend the lectures of other modules. Believe me when I say, unless you plan on sleeping 3 hours a day, you ain’t gonna get the all-round experience especially if you wanna do is it 6 modules in your 2nd year. Spend a bit more and enjoy yourself and gain an all-round experience instead of just studying studying studying.
@alethea: yeah I’ll go there and get the feel first
@nimalan: i have the mentality of AND. for me it is never study OR all-round experience, it is study AND all-round experience.
well nothing is set in stone now anyway, i’ll go there and see how things are before continuing. but yeah i’m a stubborn guy. i won’t stay longer than I have to, i suppose.
hmmm most Americans do 3 modules on 1st sem but being from Malaysia I think that is too slack for the average exam driven student. and i think i enjoyed too much during my 8 months in malaysia already. my opinion is that as long as I am in school, i am living in an idealistic world, so i can’t wait to get out and face the real stuff.
yup but thanks for the concern and advice. I’ll certainly do something if things get too intense.
physics in uni level is a different ball-game compared to what we are used to in JC. there is a great deal of focus on having a thorough understanding of basic concepts, and being able to apply them using various mathematical methods. so at a simple level, we’d be looking at various harmonic oscillations (not SHM aka f=-kx type) solved using ordinary differential equations etc.
of course, it’s great to challenge yourself. but it might be better to begin on a more realistic note, then to ramp it up if you know you can handle it. you know, kinda like finding the point you know you can push yourself to academically without compromising on other things.
at the same time, don’t forget that it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience you’re having. i know of some seniors in MIT, Cornell etc (these are really really brilliant people) that rambo through units to finish early/try more courses, and end up missing on the whole overseas undergrad experience. they regret it.
yeah of course self-financing is a pain. i can’t say i know what your situation is like, but i’d encourage you to enjoy the full breadth of your time at Berkeley as well.
I have done 21 credit hours during normal semester and 15 during summer semester while I was studying in U.S. The reason was the same as yours, trying to complete my economics cum engineering degree in the shortest time possible. It was tough, but again nothing is impossible, I was able to complete my economics degree which was added later in just a year. Of course, I have done some credit transfer here and there. Maybe, you could spend some time looking for scholarship while you are there. Continue to persevere my bro! 35 more days…
@Jared: Frankly I have also been thinking about “the experience” and from what I gathered it seems that “the experience” can only be fully enjoyed if I take it easier there. perhaps do the full 4 years, or 3 instead of 2.5… and do less courses instead of overloading. i am not sure though, i am more excited about the possibilities after Berkeley than Berkeley itself.
Nonetheless I will definitely open my eyes amidst the class juggling and extra course crashing. Yeah, typical Asian mentality that breeds workers but not revolutionaries. But then again I think 2.5 years is enough time to soak in the experience. Another point is to only take classes which I like and not shun classes which would jeopardize GPA (some ppl avoid those classes because they think it wud affect GPA). And take classes to learn and not for just credit’s sake.
Anyway my main intention is to go there and learn how to start a business through business/entrepreneurship courses, and my engineering courses are the technical background.
But then again hopefully I can one of those few ppl who can have “the experience” and yet study like crap. Haha…
@ruehyinn: thanks for the encouragement bro! wow double degree man! I wanted to do that but too tight for even 3 years duration. so i decided against it. yeah it is getting really near!
Thanks for the post