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Frequently Asked Questions of Current Students

Questions

Questions and Answers

What courses should I take?

Start by studying the academics page, which has links for each major program; those pages include sample schedules which take into consideration prerequisites and semester-by-semester course offerings. Also look at the schedule of all our courses; some of our courses are offered in alternating years.

With that basic background, talk to your faculty advisor. He or she will be able to answer questions you may have, and will then help you craft a program that’s right for you.

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I want to get a job out of college; what will prepare me best for this?

Get a job while in college, either on your own or through our internship program. Employers tend to look for potential employees who have demonstrated the ability to apply what they’ve learned in a real setting. Also, get involved in extra-curricular activities, both computational and otherwise.

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I want to go to graduate school for a Masters; what will prepare me best for this?

Apply. And get involved in a lot of extra curricular activities. Do the same things that an undergraduate planning on a PhD would do.

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I want to go to graduate school for a PhD; what will prepare me best for this?

First you have to really consider why you want a PhD. If your goal is research (academic or industrial) or college teaching, then you’ll need a PhD; otherwise, you probably don’t need one. Even some industrial research positions will accept just a Masters.

If you decide you really do want a PhD, take the hardest classes in Computer Science and take a hard minor. The BCS is certainly good; if you opt for the BA in CS, you should have a hard minor or a second major. It used to be the case that graduates schools preferred a BA; it indicates a breadth of knowledge and an ability to learn without being spoon-fed the material. While this may still be true in other disciplines and while a BA won’t hurt your chances, the BCS is certainly highly regarded.

You need to do well in your classes, especially the upper-level electives. You need a a good score on the GRE, the general exam in particular. Not all graduate programs require a subject test, and generally that’s one of the last things that an admissions committee will consider.

Get involved in lots of extra curricular activities.

If at all possible, get involved in some research here at Calvin or elsewhere during the summer; a published paper while an undergraduate opens lots of doors!

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I want to do research in a particular area; what will prepare me best for this?

Generally, the answer is “take more math”. Computer graphics requires math; neural networks requires math; compilers requires math. They don’t all need the same types of math, so you have to choose those courses somewhat wisely (with the help of your advisor), but math is going to be probably your best bet. If your research is in a particular science (e.g., bioinformatics), then you’ll want to take courses in that area.

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I’m going for a BCS. How can I satisfy the science course requirements?

A few things to note:

  • A high school exemption for a core requirement does not count toward a BCS.
  • AP credit does count for the BCS if the corresponding department accepts it as an exemption for the right course. For example, AP Chemistry counts toward a BCS if and only if the Chemistry department exempts you from CHEM 103 or CHEM 104.
  • PHYS 133-135, PHYS 133-235, and CHEM 103-104 count toward the two-course sequence for a BCS and they satisfy both core requirements (physical and living world). This leaves you open to take any approved course from any other department. (In the past, BCS students were effectively required to take BIOL 141 for the BCS and to satisfy core; the new core requirements of 2004 give you more options.)

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I would like to get a Business minor in addition to my Information Systems major.

This is a popular choice since you’ve already taken many of the courses in the Business minor; however, there is a small problem because of that overlap: you are allowed only a two course overlap between your major and minor. The Business minor and IS major overlap in three courses (BUS 160, BUS 203, and ECON 221). You can easily solve this problem by taking one more BUS or ECON elective which will substitute for one of these three in the major. For example, many students take BUS 204 to satisfy the IS major instead of BUS 203; they take BUS 203 to satisfy the minor. Discuss your options with your advisor.

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Can I install course software on my own computer?

Generally speaking, yes. Most Unix-based software is open source (e.g., Linux, Java, C++, Eclipse) and most Microsoft software can be downloaded through our MSDNAA program.

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