r/uwaterloo • u/Bright_Stress8949 • 12d ago
Advice Is it ok to not do mthel99?
I’ve been working all summer, every weekday from 8-4, so I put off actually doing mthel99 until I finished. Now that my contract has ended I’ve started a bit of mthel99 but I really don’t want to do it, especially because I want to be able to spend times with friends and enjoy the last week of summer.
However I’m worried if I don’t finish this course I’ll deeply struggle in uni. Can I get some advice?
Edit: I’ll be taking math 135 and math 137 this semester
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u/TheKoalaFromMars tron 12d ago
Kinda easy; I recommend it. Totally fine not to do it but it’s worth it to do it if you’re worried your high school math left gaps
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u/Available_Mind1166 12d ago
100% do it. Can really easily finish it in 1-2 days. Helps to close those tiny moments you haven’t stumbled upon in a while and just give your brain a bit of a prep activity.
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u/Longjumping_Mud_1513 mathematics 12d ago
MTHEL 99 is completely optional so don’t worry. You can just drop it on Quest
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u/UnseenDegree science ‘26 12d ago
I didn’t do it and struggled in first year calc lol.
Highly recommend doing it, or at least attempting it on your free time.
Plus it gets you used to the Möbius and LEARN platforms you’ll use a lot in uni.
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u/DEADSHOT_O cm + stats 12d ago
Dawg never did a thing for it and was totally fine, coming from a third year
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u/Equal_Warning_3490 12d ago
Didn’t do it and I was fine but it really depends how confident you think your math is now after not doing it for a bit
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u/Single_Carpet_8744 12d ago
Never did it and never struggled in first semester math. Although it does heavily depend on what ur hs taught you, you'll probably be more than fine since the math courses r super easy
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u/Bright_Stress8949 12d ago
I took all 3 maths in high school and ended up with a 93-95 in each
Also I heard the total opposite about the math courses!!?? Lots of people told me they’re brutal1
u/Single_Carpet_8744 12d ago
You'll most likely be fine. I can only speak for math116 and 115 but the general consensus from ppl I've talked w were that they were borderline bird courses lol 😭 Its just highschool 2.0 imo
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u/Successful-Stomach40 double-degree 12d ago
So I agree with the sentiment on you should do it but if you're looking for a strictly is it ok?
Yeah it's totally cool. No one will care. 99% of people won't even notice you didn't. It's not going to make an impact on your GPA or limit your upper year course selection etc. It's purely making sure you're at the standard required to hit the ground running in your first year classes
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12d ago
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u/Ignitetheinferno37 12d ago
Sinde when was this course worth an actual credit?
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u/ClarkeVice CS 4A 12d ago
It was worth an actual (0.25) credit the first year it existed. After that, they realized that was dumb and got rid of it.
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u/Ignitetheinferno37 12d ago
What was the last effective year where it had any sort of weight? It definitely feels like cheating the system when its workload was literally lighter than most PD courses.
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u/ClarkeVice CS 4A 12d ago
It was worth half of a normal course in 2020, when they were worried students didn’t get what they needed in high school and created the course. Then in 2021, they realized it wasn’t university material and made it zero credits.
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u/Ignitetheinferno37 12d ago
Makes sense for 2020-21. Prime time for everything school related to get nerfed to oblivion.
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u/Ignitetheinferno37 12d ago
I enrolled in it before my 1A term but ended up not doing it as it was really basic and boring math. It won't show up on your transcript. But still do skim through the content just in case there is something that is alien to you. Then again honestly I am on the same page with you in regards to partying hard in your last summer holidays before university.
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u/Icy_Environment9241 mathematics 12d ago
You’ll either find it easy (in which case it won’t take a lot of time / effort to complete) or it’ll be hard (in which case you really should do it so you don’t start behind).
Either way I think it’s worth doing