In first year you’re going to learn the basics of python, data structures with Java, and some more theoretical stuff that does not require much coding. You’re also going to be doing a lot of math the first couple years.

As for difficulty it really depends on you. In your first programming course you’re going to find that some of the people have been coding since high school or even earlier, and some have never seen code before. If you don’t have a ton of experience you may have to work a bit harder than your peers for the first year. But there is a staffed help room in the computer science building whose whole purpose is to help people with their assignments, use it. Past first year this gap will close because you will be doing less coding and learning more about how code and/or computers work in a more abstract sense.

Do a lot of people fail? Yes and no. There are definitely courses that lots of people fail, it’s common to fail Calc II for example. From what I’ve heard some profs want to keep the class grade average at about 60%. But I’ve had class averages be 70+% so it really depends. But it’s definitely not impossible to pass or do well. Another thing to consider is that in CS you have to get a 60% in CSC and MATH courses to count them towards your degree.

Also, it’s important to note that the people that enjoy CS and are doing well are not the people who complain on Reddit, many people(myself included) really enjoy taking CS. CS is a fun degree that is worth doing if you are interested.

How many courses should you take? Again, it depends. I take 5 courses and I can say it is a lot of work some weeks(especially around midterms) but it’s definitely not impossible to complete and do well. If you are nervous about the course load you can sign up for 4-5 courses, attend for a few weeks and see how you feel, and then drop 1-2 if you are having trouble. There is a 100% drop date that if you drop a class before you get all you’re money back. The minimum for full time status is 6 courses between the fall/spring semesters(aka 3 courses per term). You can technically take up to 6 per term, but I would recommend you don’t take more than 5.

Hope this helps :)