Since it’s the most wonderful time of the year (registration season duh) here are some of my favorite classes that I’ve taken over the past three semesters:
| Course |
Class Size |
Description |
| ASTE 101 – Intro to Astronautical Engineering |
25 |
- Has both a lecture and a lab section
- Get to learn about the different topics and software an astronautical engineer would have to use in industry
- Introduction to basic orbital mechanics, rocketry, and spacecraft systems
|
| ENGR 102 – Engineering Freshman Academy |
40 |
- Class where you get to interact and collaborate with other freshman engineers in various disciplines (great for meeting other engineers outside of your major)
- Get to learn about resources offered by Viterbi that will help enhance student’s experience
- Get assigned an upperclassman mentor
|
| WRIT 150 – Writing and Critical Reasoning |
20 |
- Topic based writing class (mine was about globalization)
- Class is small so it is very discussion based where students and teachers all work together
- Great intro to higher level writing and thinking
|
| HBIO 205 – The Science of Sport |
100 |
- Lecture section with about 100 people but lab section only has 15-20
- Human biology in an athletic application
- Got to use labs at USC to measure things like my body composition, vertical, and muscular power generation
|
| GESM 111 – Seminar in the Arts |
15 |
- An introductory drawing class
- All freshman must take a General Education Seminar or GESM for short
|
| MATH 245 – Mathematics of Physics and Engineering |
45 |
- Ordinary Differential Equations and Linear Algebra course that introduces MATLAB in a specifically calculation based application
|
| AMST 101 – Race and Class in Los Angeles |
150 |
- Lecture section with about 150 people but discussion with 20 people
- A history class that focuses on the development of Los Angeles as it relates to racialization and class struggles
|
| AME 201 – Statics |
35 |
- The application of physics principles to static systems
- Typically one of the first engineering classes to take
|
| ART 150 – Introduction to Photography |
15 |
- Class #1 of my photo minor
- Teaches students about the studio art process in relation to photography through project brainstorming and implementation
- Learn how to use a DSLR camera
- Learn about different styles of photography
|
| PHYS 172 – Applied Physics II |
45 |
- The second physics course that focuses on electricity and magnetism
- Had a lecture, discussion, and lab section
|
USC, and Viterbi specifically, does an excellent job of fostering a collaborative work environment by having small class sizes and extremely accessible professors. Additionally, by allowing for discussion and lab sections, students are still able to immerse themselves in the content being taught in the lectures.
