chem 112A vs. 3A and physics 7A vs. 8A questions
JOSH...@aol.com
I am a new student at Berkeley and I have to choose between the sequences
listed above. If anyone can list the advantages and disadvantages to these
sequences it would be greatly appriciated.
Thanks,
Josh
MCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCBmcbMCB
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Alan
pre-meds in there. So even though the classes are a little
more "in-depth", there's a little bit of a more relaxed
attitude.
---
Regan Ronayne
Judging from the grades I see our students get in these courses, this
decision deserves the careful consideration you are giving it.
Only a handful of our 1100+ MCB students take the Phys 7 and Chem 112
courses. Most of them get a grade lower in Physics 7 than in their other
science classes. Many switch to Physics 8B the second semester.
What are your goals and priorities? I'm sure you're planning to get all
A's in all your classes, but hypothetically, would you be happy with a C+
in Physics 7A when you might have had an A in 8B? What about a B in Chem
112 or an A- in 3A?
Physics 7A is a required course in the College of Chemistry, the College of
Engineering, and the Physics majors. Therefore, the majority of students
in those courses have much stronger backgrounds in chemistry and physics
than MCB students. Consider what that does to the grade curve and how you
would fit into it.
Chem 112 will provide you with a more indepth foundation in organic
chemistry than the 3 sequence. If you plan to pursue a career in
biochemistry research, then an understanding of Chem 112 would benefit you.
However, if you are planning to apply to medical or other professional
school, your grades can be more important to your acceptance than the
courses you take.
In addition, you state that you are new to Cal this semester. Regardless
of your academic potential, that's a strike against you compared to the
other students in your courses. For that reason, I always suggest that new
students take a relatively lighter load their first semester.
For all of the above reasons, strong grades in Physics 7 and Chem 112 are
very impressive and say a great deal about the few students who achieve
them.
I'm glad you are asking the MCB-Students list and hope you will ask others
as well. In particular, you might seek the opinion of someone currently
where you want to be someday (i.e. a medical student, a faculty member,
someone working in biotech). Feel free to contact me personally (see
below). And I welcome the comments of others.
Regan
******************************************************************************
Regan Ronayne, M.A.
Supervisor, Undergraduate Affairs Office
Department of Molecular & Cell Biology
2083 Valley Life Sciences Bldg, #3200
University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720-3200
PHONE (510) 643-8895
FAX (510) 643-2208
MAILTO:rron...@uclink4.berkeley.edu
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John Morgan
majors
and you are definitely at a disadvantage. They live and breathe chemistry. As
for 7A, you are competing against every engineering student in your class.
They
are nerds. Therefore, sticking with 3A and 8A like an average mcb student
would
be the safest bet. The question you should ask yourself is "Do I want to learn
more or do I want to survive?"
Andy
SAGE...@aol.com wrote:
> Well, I do not agree. In chem 112A, you are competing against chem/chem E
> majors
> and you are definitely at a disadvantage. They live and breathe chemistry. As
> for 7A, you are competing against every engineering student in your class.
> They
> are nerds. Therefore, sticking with 3A and 8A like an average mcb student
> would
> be the safest bet. The question you should ask yourself is "Do I want to learn
> more or do I want to survive?"
>
> Andy
Danielle Carlin
being more valuable than the letter grade.
I did take 112A/B, and though I had to work tremendously hard, and did not
do as well as I might have hoped, I am still glad that I took the course.
Being around other students who are interested in making chemistry their
career helped make organic more real, and more interesting. I think that
it's dangerous when you begin selecting classes merely on the basis of how
you might do in them. There are many Berkeley classes to avoid because of
their difficult, challenging and time-consuming material, but that is also
precisely why they should be sought out as well. If you like chemistry,
take a look at both of the books and compare and contrast the material
covered. Be realistic, but don't be scared of it--
I can't speak for physics, 'cause I took 8A/B--but I suspect it's the same.
I now wish that I had taken 7ABC
that's my two cents,
Danielle Carlin
Hao Hien Thai
throw in my two pennies concerning the physics classes. I took the
physics 7 series, so I can't really comment on the 8 series.
If you are a non-engineering or physical science major then take the
physics 8 series. The only reason why a bio major should take the 7
series is out of a very strong interest in physics, otherwise its not
worth the trouble. You won't be using anything covered in physics 7 that
was not covered in physics 8 in any of the MCB required classes, with the
exception of perhaps Chem 130A. With Chem 130A I found that the
thermodynamics covered in Physics 7B really helped, but other than that
you don't need the stress or grade bashing of the 7 series.
The physics 7 series is more useful as a launching pad into upper
division engineering and physical science courses. I also graduated with
an atrophysics degree and have been working in the astrophysics research
field for 4 years. In all that time I've only used what I learned
directly in physics 7 twice, with the most help coming out of my
upperdivision courses.
-Hao