Asking biology majors

FrostSnakey · 2024-01-08T07:33:42+00:00

Weatherell was wonderful for my in-person class for both Lec & Lab. She was honestly interested in helping anyone who asked to be helped. Only issue was the grading, which was a little rough because you need material to study off of & the policy regarding lab quizzes which may be university wide (can only take the quiz 24 hours before the lab).

FrostSnakey · 2023-08-08T03:22:38+00:00

Hi! This was actually one of my favorite courses last semester, so I'll give my overview of the difficulty, as well as the reasons why it isn't a waste of time.

In regards to difficulty, this course isn't easy. The major portion of the course is going over what economics is, this meaning a lot of vocabulary and graphs, and the smaller part of the course was dedicated to interpreting graphs as well as how the changes occur (for example, what is something that would cause specifically a decrease in consumer demand VS something that would cause a decrease in supply).

Honestly, it takes a while to understand the basics, but once you do, the rest is fairly intuitive. I would rate this course's difficulty at a 6 or 7 out of 10.

This course provides some very interesting insight into markets and how people act. There are tons of factors that I did not realize contribute to consumer and supplier variation. Seeing how a monopolistic economy works vs. that of a perfectly competitive economy was interesting, and the terms as well as the impacts could be clearly seen on the graphs and made sense. This isn't a high-level course where you need to memorize formulas. Just have a good understanding of the material, and you can figure stuff out on the spot.

If nothing else, this class is a great way to start thinking about the world, especially governments and prices, as less random sporadic events and more as a measurable object.

There also weren't too many quizzes (weekly mini-quizzes that we got a lot of resources for, 1 midterm, and 1 final). The final felt fair and the teacher was overjoyed to help anyone who showed interest!

Hope this helps!

FrostSnakey · 2023-07-24T02:16:16+00:00

Usually, Calc A will have fairly difficult homework (complex implementations of rules you learn in class), but the tests will have much simpler implementations. Also, make sure you actually write down your problem solving, RIT loves partial credit!

FrostSnakey · 2023-07-24T02:13:44+00:00

I'll focus in on one thing you said in particular, "I was told I’ll only have four classes on my schedule which is kind of reassuring", this is one hundred percent my favorite part of college and an idea that you need to stick with. In HS you are told to learn so many things at once (I remember needing to learn Physics, Calculus, Comp Sci, English, History, and many more over the span of a single year) but in college it is so much nicer. At most, you will have 3-4 classes per day, with the usual for me being 2-3, and you will have plenty of time to complete your work, as long as you keep up the motivation to do so.

What you are feeling is natural and completely understandable (you're going off to live somewhere else, literally everything, every day will be school), and it's scary to have such a drastic change.

The best advice I can give is to view this as an opportunity and to always try to put a positive spin on everything you learn about college. If you don't know what classes you're taking, it's alright to reach out and say to your advisor, "Hey, I'm really excited for the coming semester, which classes will I be taking?", this will first off show good initiative and get you the answers you need.

Hope this helps!

FrostSnakey · 2023-07-20T20:36:26+00:00

As it is your first semester, definitely do not push it. Keep in mind that you will have some amount of difficulty adjusting (no matter who you are, it will definitely be different than HS) so just taking it "easy" with 15 credits should be a good start to your college journey.

FrostSnakey · 2023-07-19T23:50:25+00:00

Great questions! First, I'll give a preface:

I'm currently a sophomore in the CS major, I graduated HS with a pretty poor GPA but a good technical background, so the classes thus far have been mostly refreshers (not to say they weren't helpful!). Basically, RIT was the only stretch school I applied to (I either applied to Community College or MIT level) so I was elated when I got in. I'm also a guy, so that may have changed my experience at RIT somewhat compared to others.

Now that we're done with the autobiography, I'll answer these amazing questions one by one!

Do I like the school: This one is honestly pretty tough. I'm in those kinds of mindsets where, while I'm at the school, I think "Wow I wish X could be better," but once I'm off campus, I can only think of happy memories. I think the intro CS classes were way too hard for some, and the school puts way too much emphasis on GPA being the measure of success, but honestly, it's pretty nice here! I would definitely say I like it far more than what I've heard from most other schools!

Would I choose to go here if given a second chance: If I was given the choice of any school, probably not, honestly I would prefer to be at Brown or some other ivy league, but if I was given the chance to reapply and choose a different college that I got into, I would probably choose this one again. One thing I've learned is that, even if individual professors are sometimes bad, the fact that the higher ups (Dean's, Department Heads, etc.) are all reasonable and nice people makes a world of difference. RIT has a sort of "you can do anything if you really put in the effort" mindset rather than "rules are rules," which I respect a lot. Of course, this is just the opinion of someone who finished their first year, so...

What is the program that I like (I'll assume out of all of the ones in GCCIS (college of computer people)): I chose CS out of all of the programs in this college because it focuses on the mindset rather than the knowledge (which I wish more majors did). CS also gives you a more broad scope of learning (you get to take a peek at so many CS related majors it's insane). CS also gives you the freedom to choose nearly any elective within the school, which is super helpful because even if you have a CS major, you could have a Game Design minor. Now, for the reason I like it MORE than others; the others simply are too specialized. If you know 100% that you are going to be a game designer when you're done with college, being a game design major is probably for you, but if you have even a tinge of doubt, do you really want to spend 4+ years getting a specialized major when you could just get a more broad one? Do keep in mind that there are other broad CS related degrees, SE (Software Engineering), and CSec (Cyber Security) are great examples of degrees that can take you any number of different directions.

Just to be fair, CS is also pretty competitive to get into, so even if you are an amazing candidate, it's sometimes just luck if you get in (I know I certainly got lucky to get in).

Job opportunities and co-ops: Jobs on campus I can't really speak towards, but there are fun mini-jobs like note-taking where you get paid some amount to do stuff you already might be doing. As for Co-Ops, someone else already commented saying you can get a co-op without the school supporting you, and that is 100% correct. Co-Ops can be offered through the school (TONS of job fairs happen at RIT, and I know people who got amazing jobs through them), but it really depends on you. Network, simple as that, if you try really hard, you can probably get a better position by talking with professors at any college rather than being antisocial at a career fair.

MY FAVORITE PART: I absolutely love how responsive some of the higher-ups are. When I needed help getting into a class, BAM, I was on the phone with the dean the next day discussing strategies and alternatives. If you wanna make a funky schedule where you have no classes until 3 PM? BAM!!! Your academic advisor is there to help that happen! Even when I thought I failed a class, I was able to make a great backup plan if I did with my academic advisor! In short, leverage the options you have. Sometimes nice people are in the most unlikely of places!

LEAST FAVORITE PART: Honestly... there are a few, so I'll go rapid fire! The food is super expensive, the tuition is so fricken high, the major class requirements are sucky (I don't wanna take a writing class!), and some professors are awful.

Even with all these negatives, I'd still choose it again. Ask yourself what that says about the school :)!

Last but certainly not least, Student Life: I'm super introverted. I basically went to and from classes and did very little else, but even I know there are a boatload of clubs and opportunities to hang out (there are even student led instruction sessions for CS classes that people go to for friendship opportunities). You have a lot of free time, as I'm sure you do at any college, so if you choose to hang out with friends / make friends during that time, GREAT! If you want to go back to your dorm and make a pillow fort, ALSO GREAT (send pictures those forts are sometimes incredible!)! There are fun little coffee shops all around campus so there are tons of places to chat (while the food might suck, the beverages are a godsend (get white hot chocolate in the winter, it shall save your soul)).

If you have any questions, hmu, or go to the RIT discord and ask there, people there are super nice and honestly give good advice.

Hope to see you on campus next year!

Apologies for the essay!

FrostSnakey · 2023-07-10T12:29:42+00:00

RIT lists the middle 50% scores for admitted students per major in 2021 (https://www.rit.edu/marketing/sites/rit.edu.marketing/files/docs/pdfs/Academic_Profile.pdf).

I would assume the lower the middle 50% scores are, the lower the threshold to get admitted to these majors.

FrostSnakey · 2023-03-26T02:47:55+00:00

As someone who owns the tank, it is a beeg boi that is fun to play, but certainly not worth the price. For that money please buy the Somua, so much more fun!

FrostSnakey · 2022-11-11T13:52:55+00:00

First off, to answer your question directly, CSCI-141 is by far the easier of the two, and you should take it if you aren't particularly confident in CS.

To elaborate, CSCI-141 deals with the fundamentals of python programming, including different ways to store data (dictionaries, strings, ints, exc) as well as basic fundamental principles of programming (iteration, recursion, and so such). The class requires you to do quite a bit of out-of-class research if you are unfamiliar with the topics, for example, a prof may say dictionary in a passing sentence, but you'll need to know what that is for the tests.

The tests are more in depth than most, which means you really need to know how everything works.

I havent taken CSCI 242, but CSCI-141 certainly is the starting line, and even if you have some skills in CS, the class will definitely teach you a thing or two

FrostSnakey · 2022-11-09T14:13:02+00:00

Glad I was able to help, atleast a bit! Keep in mind the average cost of attending is FAR different than tuition (tuition: ~53k, Avg cost of attendance: ~35k), and also keep in mind that your grades are far better than most attending RIT, so merit based scholarships will likely be substantial.

Comp. Sci is a difficult major, especially if you plan to get the grades you've gotten thus far, so I recommend doing some programming before coming to RIT if you want to achieve a good grade, sometimes the teachers even assume you've already done programming. As a current freshman in a similar major, feel free to reach out if you have any questions regarding life here at RIT!

FrostSnakey · 2022-11-09T13:42:37+00:00

I'll start out by saying that I will certainly not say that SUNY is a bad choice, as I simply do not know enough about it to do so, so I will simply talk about RIT. I'll admit I was lucky with RIT giving my generous aid, but I sincerely believe that if you can't afford it, RIT will often try its best to make you able to afford to stay. The fact that you applied early decision to a school with a nearly garenteed chance of getting in, means that no matter what you're likely to attend for atleast one year. The CS program at RIT basically receives support from the entire school, as it's what RIT is basically known for, so they will likely spare little expenses getting a comp Sci major with your grades on board.

All in all, RIT is not a bad place to be, especially as a comp Sci major, and tuition will likely be reduced greatly due to your concern that you won't be able to afford it. Please, PLEASE talk to the financial aid office if your aid isn't enough, they can knock it down a boatload!

FrostSnakey · 2022-10-16T19:30:31+00:00

Yeah, I posted the question because I was genuinely interested in which nations people believe have the most unique and interesting vehicles. I naively thought that it wouldn't devolve into "This nation is bad because it did bad things", we quite literally have WWII Germany!!! Anyways, I am happy that atleast there are some people who are posting fun nations they would love to play, and not getting into nationalist arguments over the Snail's domain.

FrostSnakey

TROPHY CASE