courses,  weirdness

salem revisited

Is it true that 300 and 400-series courses are easier to do well in than 100 or 200-series ones? Because my registrar told me in 1st year that courses are more difficult in higher levels! Thanks!

At first I thought about organizing a university wide witch-hunt against that registrar of yours, for giving you that weird piece of information, which doesn’t make sense any way you look at it… but then I read the question again… and again. And now I’m kinda confused myself. Because I don’t think sentence 1 and sentence 2 have a whole lotta logical correlation, my hunch is- huge numeral misunderstanding?!

So let me give this my best shot- 100 and 200 level courses are considered lower level courses, and thus, arguably easier. 300 and 400 series courses are higher level, and usually thought to be more demanding (again there are exceptions). Now excuse me while I go and put out my torch…

2 Comments

  • Gloria

    I think 300- and 400-level courses are “easier” in that they have a narrower focus, which means you don’t have to cram the entire history of Western civilization into your head like you do for HIS109. But they’re not really easier.

  • Suz

    The pros of an upper-year course is the small size of the classes, hence more opportunity to interact with your peers and your professor, so in that sense it’s “easier”. It’s also easier in the sense that the topic will not be completely new to you (‘cos you’ve taken the 100- or 200- level background course(s)). But the difficulty is usually in the amount of mental work involved. You have to do more of your own thinking and you have to be more rigorous, and try to see the problem from many angles (or just learn more detail).

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