The department’s EE flowchart is relatively inefficient for most students given how late it places important classes like the circuits series. While I wouldn’t prescribe my flowchart to most people, I do recommend starting the circuits series as soon as possible (in your first quarter if you’re coming in with AP Calc BC). I was given the consensus that EE 111/151 (Introduction to Electrical Engineering) is usually a useless class, and thus didn’t take it (to the dismay of the department). This 2-unit class isn’t a prerequisite to any future courses and can be easily substituted with technical elective credit. From what I’ve heard, the lecture covers the EE flowchart and potential career plans (which can get boring over 10 weeks), while the lab includes some fun Arduino projects. I’d already done most of these on my own time prior to starting my degree and wanted to start the good stuff. If you choose to take the class and appease the department, know that you can start the circuit series in conjunction with it.
Credit PolyFlowBuilder
Above is the flowchart I used to graduate in two-and-a-half years. Note that I took many of my GEs at Foothill to avoid having to fill out an extended enrollment form each quarter (the maximum number of units you can regularly enroll in is 22). Additionally, all of my classes were virtual from Spring 2020 to Summer 2021. Still, taking so many classes each quarter wasn’t easy and required careful time management. Keeping track of every assignment and keeping a detailed calendar can do wonders and allow you to take plenty of time off for activities outside of school. Another practice that I found very useful was creating detailed review/equation sheets throughout the quarter. Updating these sheets regularly not only helped me review each course’s content, but also saved plenty of time near exams. Getting an iPad (I recommend the Pro) greatly facilitated this, and I now have many of my sheets available on Etsy (see below).
Of course, even with the best time management and equation sheets, you can only take so many classes at once and your GPA may suffer. This is a tradeoff I was willing to make in exchange for the time I saved, however.
Resources:
My Notes and Review Sheets
GE Courses by Area
PolyFlowBuilder
Typical Class Terms
Cal Poly EE Discord
Feel free to message me on Discord if you have any questions about my flowchart or Cal Poly in general!
@KingKPS#0001