Freshman Chemistry

How critical is it for a college re-applicant to take Chemistry during their freshman year? Engineering majors at Embry-Riddle are required to take Physics 1 & 2 freshman year and delay taking Chemistry until their sophomore yr.
DS was a 2020 waitlister who will be attending ERAU on NROTC 4-year scholarship. Anyone have any experience with this?

USNA has no required courses for college reapplicants. They just want to see that reapplicants can do (very) well on a plebe-like schedule. If DS is also taking calc, English, and other rigorous courses, he won't be dinged in the process because he did not have access to chemistry.

Admissions Office letter to 2021 applicants states (for Previous Candidates.) "You should pursue a technically oriented curriculum with at least 12 credit hours, including calculus, chemistry with lab, and English during the first semester..." The expectation is that a re-applicant will take Chemistry, because that's what Plebes take. I would expect (but don't have any first hand knowledge) that DS is better off taking Physics with his freshmen peers and getting an A, than taking Chemistry with sophmores who have a year of college level courses under their belt and not doing as well.

Agree with OldNavyBGO. Since you are going to a college, you can't completely sideline the curriculum that is handed to you. I believe the intent is to take challenging STEM courses that demonstrate your ability to handle those subject areas. Ideally, if you could take chemistry first...that would be optimal...but that isn't how your college has their program set up. In the comments section of your personal data record (where you fill out what courses you are taking for the upcoming year), I would state that your college program has physics before chemistry; this will help Admissions understand why you are not currently taking chemistry. It also might be a good idea to email your AC and just confirm that there is no issue (I don't think there would be one).

Norfolk63 said:

How critical is it for a college re-applicant to take Chemistry during their freshman year? Engineering majors at Embry-Riddle are required to take Physics 1 & 2 freshman year and delay taking Chemistry until their sophomore yr.
DS was a 2020 waitlister who will be attending ERAU on NROTC 4-year scholarship. Anyone have any experience with this?

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DS was a college reapplicant. He explained on the comments part of the application that freshman were not allowed to take physics (it was the opposite issue your DS has). He felt better about explaining to admissions why he wasn't taking it. It should be fine!