Take note of these as suggestions. Your first year is all about exploring and finding out what works for you. It does not have to look exactly like my own nor anyone else’s.
I had an oddly scheduled first year, with my “fall” being Spring 2021 and my “spring” being Summer 2021. Most students tend to take four (4) courses their first semester, and some - occasionally - will take five (5) courses during their second semester. However, don’t let this stop you from exploring all you can, especially during shopping period.
Links to the Critical Review listing for the course are included, if available. Hope this helps with your search!
Fall 2020
CSCI0111 – Computing Foundations: Data
- Great, kinda laid-back introduction to Computer Science from a data perspective. Also has ethics portions. Highly recommended especially if you are unfamiliar or unsure about CS.
- It is the first of a three-part sequence, but interested students can complete bridgework (I did, it wasn’t particularly challenging) to take the final part of CSCI’s two-course sequence (CSCI0200).
- CSCI0111 on The Critical Review
Spring 2021
Most classes, and myself, were fully remote during the Spring.
CHEM0330 – Equilibrium, Rate, Structure
- Fully online, with synchronous lab and lecture.
- Pretty much required for anything related to life sciences and medicine (Yes, this is required for BME).
- Success in this course is dependent on how much you can dedicate to doing the readings, GPS problems, and other practice. I took the lab portion fully online, so my experience may not line up with your own.
- CHEM0330 on The Critical Review
ENGN0031 – Honors Intro to Engineering (Not offered Fall 2021)
- If you got the time and a hankering for MATLAB, then this course is for you. I found it quite time-consuming, but very fulfilling and interesting. All intro courses have the same group design portions in the Brown Design Workshop (BDW), which I had so much fun with.
- For a slower paced introduction, consider ENGN0030 – Introduction to Engineering.
- If you are interested in entrepreneurship, design, or are unsure of ENGN, consider ENGN0032 – Introduction to Engineering: Design (which I will TA for this Fall 😃).
- ENGN0031 on The Critical Review
PHP0310 – Health Care in US
- Course was offered asynchronous (think recorded lectures and everything posted in advance) with some synchronous portions (review sections, etc.). Can go at your own pace or follow the recommended calendar. Note for Fall 2021: PHP0310 will be only offered asynchronous (some synchronous portions).
- This course gives a great overview of US healthcare and talks about many relevant issues facing it today. A must-take for anyone interested in medicine and/or public health. Professor Wilson has also taught the course for over a decade.
- PHP0310 on The Critical Review
SOC0300K – Inequalities and Health (FYS)
- Course offered hybrid, but I attended it fully remote. This has the WRIT designation, so expect to read and write quite a bit. In my semester, I usually read around 3-5 articles a week, with weekly journal entries, an individual midterm paper, and a group final paper. Both the professor and graduate TA were very kind and offered amazing feedback on my writing.
- Despite the sheer amount of writing, this course was truly eye-opening. The sociological lens on health and the systems and inequities surrounding it is an invaluable tool. Topics here crossed over well with PHP0310, and it was fascinating to learn the connections between the two.
Summer 2021
Some classes were fully remote during the Summer. Fortunately, I was not.
CHEM0350 – Organic Chemistry
- Fully online lecture and lab, with the latter being asynchronous. This course gets you thinking about how atoms and functional groups interact, and (somewhat) builds upon the knowledge covered in CHEM0330. Drawing reaction mechanisms and organic compounds is also a staple of this course.
- Lab was fully asynchronous and online, so my experiences may not relate as well. Here, you learn quite a bit about various lab techniques and ways to identify compounds (i.e. IR spectroscopy, calorimetry, gas chromatography, etc.), as well as a bit of “green chemistry” (ever important to know so we may reduce our environmental footprint).
- CHEM0350 on The Critical Review
ENGN0040 – Dynamics and Vibrations
- Lectures were asynchronous, with in-person/online tutorials to recap and practice concepts. Homework was challenging, but the collaborative culture I encountered here was truly stellar. Professor Bower goes over many examples in class, and professors and TAs are very receptive to questions.
- Group projects allow you to apply all your knowledge and make some really cool things (like a solar-powered car!). Overall, I found this course fun and it only strengthened my interest in Engineering.
- ENGN0040 on The Critical Review
APMA0330 – Methods of Applied Math I + II (No longer offered)
- For the most part, this is a pretty standard differential equations course, with weekly problem sets and all material taught via lecture (although in my experience, reading the textbook does help occasionally). Overall, it is very manageable and the capstones we did allowed me to apply my knowledge to real-life scenarios. Multivariable calculus isn’t really needed; Calc II is sufficient.
- If interested in diffeq and/or math, consider taking APMA0350 – Applied Ordinary Differential Equations, or MATH0520 – Linear Algebra (MATH0540 is the Honors variant).
- APMA0330 on The Critical Review
MUSC0200 – Computers and Music
- Offered fully online. This course is really two courses in one: history of computer music and the people who made it, and making your own music using a digital audio workstation (DAW). Music experience does help, but the professor, graduate TA, and the other students are very understanding and consistently give great feedback and advice.
- In my semester, I made 5 music pieces, all of which pushed my thinking out of the box as I often experimented with sound and its sources. I was out of my comfort zone here, but I had never felt alone.
- If you are curious (or don’t value your ears), my music is posted here.
- MUSC0200 on The Critical Review