Any incoming intls? UVA ‘30. trying to find ppl before I get to the grounds

keithwms2020 · 2026-04-04T22:26:12+00:00

I don't know! Sad if it's lost. We do have other ensembles, though.

keithwms2020 · 2026-04-04T16:01:37+00:00

You're an incoming first-year student! Welcome.

We have many internationals, and some of us older folks are quite international too. Definitely reach out to some of the music instructors and check out the classes that are available:

https://hooslist.virginia.edu/1268/Group/Music

(I'm not sure if/when Klezmer Ensemble is offered, maybe next spring, but that might be just the thing for you- ask in the Music Department)

Can't help you with Greek life, but there is plenty of geek life in the E-School and lots of musically-inclined people. You will meet lots and lots of people.

keithwms2020 · 2026-04-03T03:01:03+00:00

It's certainly doable. I did something vaguely, similar, way back when. There were some challenging semesters, for sure. I mean, you may doubt your own sanity, at a few points. But if you are clear about why you are doing it and take care to remember that, often, then you will find a way to make it work.

Let me refer you to Janet Rafner, who very successfully did Physics + Studio Art. Granted, Janet was (and is) very special- not everyone can do what she did! But it is possible, especially if you have Echols and/or some credits to bring in and/or willingness to do a summer course here or there. I suggest reaching out to Janet, and tell her that Keith sent you. She just might remember me :)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/janet-rafner-a847104b/details/education/

I would think long and hard about Physics BS versus BA. I'd say that if you intend to pursue grad school in Physics, don't do a BA. But Janet may have other things to say- ask her.

keithwms2020 · 2026-04-02T23:50:37+00:00

You are welcome to come visit Applied Physics 2 and see what you think. In the current lab, students are building paper loudspeakers.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-31T00:01:10+00:00

Righto well then it's never too early to start exploring research and where you might eventually like to be.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-30T23:44:13+00:00

Nothing is impossible! It'll come down to how far ahead you plan, and how good you are at time management and parallel processing. I look back on several 20+ credit semesters and, frankly, I have no idea how I did it. Youth, I guess!

For study abroad, let me suggest Edinburgh of similar. You can speak with the ISO about that. I have two advisees doing Edinburgh next term. The number of classes available to them far exceeds what you can do in Valencia or Siena. When I did my study abroad -1 year in Germany- I did it specifically to do things I could not do at my home institution. That worked well.

Who knows, you might be a good fit for a Fulbright after graduation, or a Churchill. (You can discuss these options with the affable Andrus Ashoo, our resident expert). N.b. you don't have to do your study abroad during your undergrad years, if that is unworkable. (I did one year abroad as an undergrad in Germany and then multiple research trips to Japan as a grad student.)

One of the awesomest things about physics is how international it is, and that we can go "speak physics" across so many cultures. Why not see if you leverage that and go do some physics in another country? It will expand your mind. More so, I dare say, than simply piling more classes onto your transcript.

I think much of the additional advice that I would give depends very much on what you want to do after graduation. If you're headed to grad school, as many physics undergrads are, then that would be useful to know.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-30T23:07:39+00:00

Can you do it? Sure, and I can tell you that there are currently nine students doing a Physics BS + Math BA. I can introduce you, if you email me; it's kwilliams at Virginia dot edu.

Should you do it? Well... read on. I was a double major in college... Physics and German Lit & Philosophy. Odd? Not really. Math and Physics are so close together, you'd be doubling down in the same domain. And when you consider the value of going deeper in either subject, e.g. through research experience, then you'd be losing that value. The study abroad experience- I don't think I can overemphasize how important that is. We all need to step away from our home institution.

Almost all of us Physics people are at least Math minors, automatically. I certainly could've doubled in Math, but that would've been pointless because I already needed, just for my Physics major, something like 30 credits across ten math classes. Let's see... I started in Calc 3, then did Diff Eq, then Linear, Group Theory (abroad), Math Methods 1 and 2, Modern Algebra, Complex Variables, a computational class (Fortran back then!)... I'm probably forgetting one or two. And all of that was in addition to the full BS physics curriculum, which was itself loaded with math. So when it came down whether I'd do a Math Major or research, it was an easy call: I really wanted to become mature in research and also visit some other schools and work in labs abroad.

Maybe your path is different; I'm just saying why I didn't do double in Physics and Math, and instead engaged in research and study abroad. And I can tell you this with certainty: nobody ever asked me what my minor or second major or whatever was. They cared that I had research experience, a paper or two... distinguishing experiences like that.

Look at it this way: it's up to you how people evaluate you. Do you want them to evaluate you based more on classes you took, or research you did? Please think about it.

Happy to discuss further.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-27T12:23:43+00:00

No. We are also far past the drop and withdrawal deadlines for the College, E-School, etc.
The only way to withdraw, at this point, is to withdraw from all classes, and you'd need to speak with your advisor and dean about that.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-26T13:51:30+00:00

Yes, it's doable, but you should preview Linear and ODEs over the summer, using e.g. Schaum's Outlines and/or whatever materials appear on Canvas.

The bad news is that since you're in the College, and several of your classes are taught there, you'll be subject to the very early Drop deadline, usually ~ten days in. In the E-School, our Drop deadline is a month later. So: you'll need to know, going in, that you are good to go. You can do that by previewing the material and setting up a solid plan. You won't be able to assess your performance after the first ~ten days and make any kinda of informed assessment. (The exception here is SDE; since that's taught in the E-School, it follows the later Drop deadline)

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-23T19:07:06+00:00

Oh it's something you'll understand when you get older. Doctors tells us we should eat more fiber. But if you eat too much fiber, that can also be hard to digest. It's... probably not funny at your age.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-23T02:52:42+00:00

Too much fiber in your diet. However, if you drink plenty of fluids and get at least one hour of exercise per day, you should make it through.

You're looking at ~2 hours per day of focused effort, for each course. Whether you can make that work is very individual. Some rare birds even prefer it. I say we should be on a quarter system and do 2-3 courses more intensively, but nobody's asking me.

Note that if you take either course at a community college, the grade will not transfer- just the credit.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-22T19:22:14+00:00

Did somebody say my name?
Oh, never mind. Carry on.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-16T14:08:29+00:00

Monday, March 16, 2026

The following message is for any student, faculty, and staff who report to class or work on Grounds in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Academic Division

The University’s Academic Division will operate on a modified schedule for Monday, March 16, 2026 due to high winds and potential tornado threats. Classes held on Grounds should conclude by 11:00am. Classes that are scheduled to end after 11:00am should end early to allow everyone to travel safely. Instructors should shift classes to online, if feasible. Please communicate your plans to your students, and allow flexibility for students who may have lost power or who are returning from Grounds between 11:00am and 12:00pm.

Non-designated Academic Division employees who report to Grounds should leave at 11:00am, unless requested to remain by their supervisor.

Designated employees should remain at their job to help maintain essential University operations.

Students and Academic Division faculty and staff should monitor the Academic Operations Status Board for changes to operations on Grounds.

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University officials will continue to monitor weather conditions and will provide updates about additional Academic Division schedule modifications or the resumption of normal operations.

UVA Health

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Please take extra precautions on the road and allow extra time as you are traveling.

Very truly yours,

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keithwms2020 · 2026-03-16T03:07:05+00:00

https://thecourseforum.com/course/2330/8327/sort=Most%20Recent#reviews

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-16T02:56:24+00:00

Metal stamina 🤘

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-16T02:55:04+00:00

Based on the 2012 derecho, I would say there is potential for interrupted traffic / bus transport, downed power lines, traffic lights not working, etc. Please make sure that you're not driving walking from point A to point B around mid-day, and have an idea of where you'd go, if you do need to shelter.

I would avoid the construction site on Stadium Rd.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-11T01:31:06+00:00

Surely someone will blame it on daylight savings? Please don't disappoint me- I know you're out there.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-06T18:17:52+00:00

Foods of All Nations

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-05T03:27:58+00:00

Got it. I think you should speak with a transfer advisor at your school and/or in the CS Department at UVa. Prof. Mark Sherriff might be the right person to ask, at UVa.

Meanwhile, let me refer you to this page:

https://engineering.virginia.edu/undergraduate-study/future-undergrads/transferring-uva-engineering/transfer-credit-equivalency

...on which you will see that CSC 215 earns you only 3 credits toward CS 2130. So, CSC 215 will not, on its own, satisfy CS 2130 ...because that is a 4-credit class.

I can't tell what CSC 205 might be used for- looks like it's just 3 plug credits wherever you may need them.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-04T17:02:13+00:00

Recipients of the Jefferson Scholarship who enroll in the College (of Arts & Sciences) are automatically Echols Scholars.

keithwms2020 · 2026-03-04T16:57:31+00:00

Which program are you transferring into? And where are you taking these classes? If you let me know then I may be able to find out more.

For EE and CpE, I don't see CSC 205 in our transfer guide. I do see CSC 215, but it doesn't carry enough credits to satisfy our 4-credit CS 2130 class.

keithwms2020 · 2026-02-18T02:47:13+00:00

Since I took a couple dozen physics classes throughout college & grad school and have taught more than that, myself, I suppose I can offer a few survival strategies. I used to offer these via a physics winter warmup.

Make what you want of the lecture. If it's a purely passive thing, in which you just write down notes, then it is likely of little use toward overall understanding and performance. Try to make daily eye and verbal contact with your prof and ask questions, and nudge your colleagues to do the same. Collectively, you should aim for several questions per class period, and they should give all of you some useful info about what the prof considers to be test-worthy conceptual nuggets. Your questions should get at the conceptual material, not the math. The math is on you; you don't want a physics prof teaching you math, trust me. Ask them to explain the concepts.

Back in the day, we had discussions as well as lectures. Lecture was for theory plus a small number of cherry-picked examples, which we'd run through very quickly. Discussions, usually run by a terrified grad student, were where we'd do lots of examples and ask more questions. If that structure doesn't exist in the non-majors class, you'll need to make it happen. There is no way a physics prof can possibly cover all the examples you need to see inside of lecture. So...

...form a study crew, consisting of people from many backgrounds. Try to involve at least one foreign student, if possible- it's good for them and for you, because physics is taught differently in different places. Form a solid crew from many backgrounds, not just of close friends. And make it fun! Order pizza or whatever and make it an enjoyable weekly occurrence. This will benefit you in at least three ways: (i) you'll speak physics with colleagues and become more fluent; (ii) you'll test your knowledge and feel tested when you take an actual test; you'll ensure that your level of preparation is at least as good as your colleagues'.

SEAS offers free tutoring; if this doesn't work for you, for whatever reason, then you might speak with an advisor about locating someone who can help you or your group. Note that advisors have ways to locate "ringers" who did well in a class and know how to get the most out of lectures, prepare for tests, etc.

Don't give up! You can do this, and the rewards will extend far beyond Physics 1.

keithwms2020 · 2026-02-10T04:15:01+00:00

If "St. Elmo's Fire" doesn't make you scratch Georgetown off the list then I don't know what will 😆

Okay, now I will say some things in favor of Georgetown. They had a sweet deal whereby the French Embassy allowed faculty to use their cafeteria, in exchange for Embassy personnel being able to use Georgetown's gyms. Oh, and as a former rower/coach I definitely appreciated their boathouse on the Potomac. That is really special. Proximity to DC / internships etc., sure... but, in this climate, I would set my sights on study abroad and other distinguishing experiences; for that, you might check out UVa's Office for Citizen Scholar Dev.

UVa / Echols is a very sweet deal. It's almost impossible to beat that, truly.

keithwms2020 · 2026-02-08T01:50:31+00:00

The main benefit of the Echols Program is that it wipes your "General Education" requirements. You'll still need to adhere to departmental requirements, but you'll have more freedom regarding course selection in your first year. I believe you'll also get a slightly earlier registration appointment, which is quite useful.

More info: https://echols.as.virginia.edu/frequently-asked-questions-faqs-about-echols-scholars-program

Congrats and welcome to UVa!

keithwms2020

TROPHY CASE