Is college precal too hard if you never took college algebra and have a little trouble with math?

Question

I switched my major to business and now I have to take a precal class. I never took college algebra, and my last experience with math was in high school 2 years ago. I took algebra 2. So, I am a little rusty most likely. If I listen and try really hard, do you think I will get precal and pass the course? Or do I absolutely NEED a strong foundation in algebra to pass the course?

Answer 1

I thought College Algebra was a prerequisite for precalculus. Anyway, I would definitley take College Algebra first. If not you'll be struggling in the class all semster and you don't want that on top of all your other classes too!! I took College Algebra last semester (Summer 2008) and it wasn't really that hard.

Answer 2

I would not recommend taking Precalculus if you have not taken a college level algebra class. Precalculus is similar to algebra, but on a whole different level of difficulty. You could try, but you'd be risking a horrible semester and maybe flunking. If you were a math whiz, you might be able to pull it off, but otherwise, no. Just take College Algebra first. It could even result in a better GPA.

Answer 3

I think there are a lot of topics in common between college algebra and precalc.

Yes, if you try hrad you can succeed.

Answer 4

Mathematics is something you need to practice to do well. It's like a muscle you need to flex.

If you haven't taken mathematics in two years, you really don't want to jump into a college level mathematics class that skips material you haven't seen before.

I would definitely recommend you start in College Algebra, even if it was below your level of knowledge.