Placing yourself in introductory classes

Soon after unpacking and meeting your roommates, you will be faced with decisions about classes. Amazingly, almost any class is open to you if you really want to take it. Several departments seem to have rigid prerequisites for certain classes, but Yale adheres to the general philosophy that students should be allowed to take any class for which they feel prepared.

Unfortunately, this freedom can add even more confusion to the first few days of school, as you agonize over which math class to take or whether you're ready for an advanced art history course. Fortunately, shopping period [see related article, p. 25.], faculty advisors, and freshman counselors can all help you narrow your choices. And even if you realize you've chosen the wrong course, there's always the option of dropping it later in the semester.

Many departments offer a range of introductory courses, almost all of which are open to frosh. Some departments require intros as prerequisites for later courses, while others allow you to jump into a course at any level. For instance, you can take almost any history class, and persistent frosh can sometimes even get into history seminars usually reserved for upperclassmen. On the other hand, students who want to take any courses in the psychology department must first take "Psych 110: Introduction to Psychology."

The first academic issues that most students encounter concerns the language requirement. Make sure in those first few days of school that you check the times and locations for the foreign language placement tests. Take one if you can't waive your language requirement through AP scores or are unsure what level class you should take. The test can't hurt you since your score doesn't stay with you. Some intro courses are filled with people who have already studied the language for a few years and don't feel the class so is introductory. Intensive language classes cover a whole year's work in a semester; they move extremely fast and have a large workload

The English department offers a wide range of courses open to frosh. 113 and 114 are one-term classes, designed to strengthen students' analytical writing skills, while 125 and 129 last the entire year, and assume that you already have essay-writing ability. Students read major English poetry from Chaucer to the moderns in 125, and survey the European literary tradition from the Odyssey to Ulysses in 129. If literary analysis isn't appealing, English 120 concentrates on polishing the personal essay. All introductory English classes are taught in small sections.

Lots of frosh decide to try out the intro science courses. Chemistry students will be placed into classes according to pre-registration cards collected over the summer. If you have either minimal or no experience with chem, you will likely be placed into 113. On the other hand, if you took a year of high school chemistry, 114 is probably the most appropriate course. AP chemistry is recommended for the semester-long Chem 118 course, which is followed by Chem 250, an introduction to inorganic chemistry. Lastly, with a 4 or 5 on the AP Chem exam, and a very strong chem background, you can place into Freshman Organic Chemistry or Freshman Physical Chemistry by taking a test administered during the first few days of school. As for the other sciences, many frosh opt to place out of introductory bio, although those who take it usually enjoy it. There are also five levels of introductory physics courses, depending on your interest and your background in math and physics.

If you plan to take math, placement also depends on your ability and interest. Math 112 is basic calculus, starting out with derivatives, whereas 115 covers integrals and series. If your calculus background is strong, you will probably do fine in Math 120, which is multivariable calculus. For a more hard-core experience, you can take Math 230--three semesters of theoretical math crunched into two. Be warned: many intro courses are taught in small sections by TAs who, despite their brilliance, are often poor teachers. Shop different sections!

When choosing your classes, try to strike a balance between challenging and killing yourself. Don't waste time in a class with familiar material. But remember your first semester is also a time to adjust to college, meet people, and get involved in activities. Ultimately, you must be the judge of your own abilities.

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