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Bridge course instructions

Explanation of bridge courses

Courses such as EECS 47D, COMPSCI 47B, or COMPSCI 47C are referred to as bridge courses. They are not actual courses, but are an option for students who have completed some, but not all, of the material in the actual course (e.g., EECS 16A, COMPSCI 61B or COMPSCI 61C). If you enroll in a bridge course you will complete specific portions of the regular course to cover concepts not covered by your previous coursework. The instructor of the regular course will determine how much of the course you will need to complete via the bridge course in order to satisfy that course requirement. By enrolling in a bridge course you are able to receive units (usually 1-2 units) and a grade for the work that you are completing. Bridge courses must be completed for a letter grade.

Example of bridge course enrollment

You may have completed CS 1C at Foothill College. You will note on Assist.org that you must also complete a course at UC Berkeley in order to fulfill the COMPSCI 61B requirement. Students in this situation can either opt to take COMPSCI 61B at UC Berkeley or can arrange with the COMPSCI 61B instructor to enroll in COMPSCI 47B to cover the concepts not covered in CS 1C at Foothill in order to fulfill the COMPSCI 61B requirement.

Scheduling recommendations

We recommend that you enroll in the actual course (e.g., COMPSCI 61B, EECS 16A) during the enrollment period. You will not need to make a final decision about whether you want to enroll in the bridge course until after school has begun and you are able to consult with your instructor. You will have until the add/drop deadline to make a final decision about whether to stay in the regular course or complete the bridge course.

If you decide to take the bridge course it is likely you will need to attend the regular course for part of the time, so you need to keep that class time available in your schedule to be available to attend lectures, labs, and/or discussion sections as needed. You may also be asked to take the midterms and/or the final exam for the course so be sure you don’t have a conflict in your exam schedules for your other courses.

Important notes

Make sure you have copy of your course syllabus from your transfer institution for the instructor to review. It may help determine which portions of the Berkeley course you need to complete.

You are not required to take the bridge course. Even if your course was partially articulated on Assist.org, you are still eligible to take the regular course at Berkeley and you will receive full units for the course. Many students opt to complete the regular course at Berkeley in order to establish a solid foundation in the material and prepare for their upper division courses. After consulting with your course instructor about the bridge course requirements, you are welcome to consult with your ESS adviser about the possible advantages and disadvantages of enrolling in a bridge course.

Enrolling in a bridge course

To enroll in a bridge course for COMPSCI 61B if your course is already articulated on Assist.org:

  • Contact your ESS adviser with the following information: the college you attended and the department and course number you completed.
  • If you are approved to take COMPSCI 47B, you will be enrolled in the course during the adjustment period.
  • Remember that you are required to be enrolled in at least 12 units and at least two technical courses, and a bridge course does not count as one of your two technical courses.

To enroll in a bridge course for COMPSCI 61A, COMPSCI 61C, or EECS 16A if your course is already articulated on Assist.org:

  • Contact your ESS adviser with the following information: the college you attended and the department and course number you completed.
  • After consulting with your ESS adviser and the instructor of the course, if you decide to enroll in the bridge course you will add the appropriate bridge course to your schedule.
  • Remember that you are required to be enrolled in at least 12 units and at least two technical courses, and a bridge course does not count as one of your two technical courses.

If you took a course outside of the California community college system and you wish to enroll in a bridge course for COMPSCI 61A, COMPSCI 61B, COMPSCI 61C, COMPSCI 70, EECS 16A, or EECS 16B:

  • First, contact your ESS adviser to determine if you are eligible to take the bridge course.
  • If it is determined that you are eligible, you will be required to submit your syllabus and a yellow petition for a course substitution to your ESS adviser. This petition will then be reviewed by both ESS and the department. If the petition is approved by both the department and ESS, you will be able to enroll in the bridge course. Without this approved petition, the bridge course will not satisfy any requirements for your major and you will be required to take the full course. Please note that this petition process can take several months.
  • Remember that you are required to be enrolled in at least 12 units and at least two technical courses, and a bridge course does not count as one of your two technical courses.

To enroll in a bridge course for EECS 16A if you are a junior transfer admit:

Only junior transfer admits who completed Math 54 prior to transfer are eligible to take a bridge course for EECS 16A. However, EECS faculty believe that students who have completed a Math 54 equivalent course will greatly benefit from taking EECS 16A and will be better prepared for EECS 16B and upper division EL ENG and EECS courses. However, if you wish to explore whether or not EECS 47D is a good option for you:

  • First, contact your ESS adviser to determine if you are eligible to take the bridge course. You must have been admitted to Berkeley as a transfer student to be eligible.
  • If it is determined that you are eligible, you will be required to submit a yellow petition for a course substitution. This petition will then be reviewed by ESS and the department. If your petition is approved by both the department and ESS, you will be able to enroll in the bridge course. Without this approved petition, the bridge course will not satisfy any requirements for your major and you will be required to take the full course.
  • Remember that you are required to be enrolled in at least 12 units and at least two technical courses, and a bridge course does not count as one of your two technical courses.

Further considerations for junior transfer admits deciding between EECS 16A and EECS 47D

Professors Ranade and Arias recommend the following:

The EECS 47D (for EECS 16A) bridge course is intended to serve a narrow need — to help support some transfer students who have already taken a substantial subset of our lower-division courses in their junior colleges. Transfer students face brutal constraints on the time they are permitted at Berkeley, and sometimes, it is helpful for them to use these bridge courses to help get everything done in time. These courses involve doing all the exams and a subset of the homework for their respective courses. EECS 47D is not an option for students who began at UC Berkeley as freshmen. Additionally, taking Math 54 is not enough to be eligible for the bridge course for College of Engineering students.

Please note that taking these bridge courses is suboptimal since in reality, EECS 16A and EECS 16B are best experienced in their totality when the lab experience is integrated with the overall treatment of the material. Taking both of the courses in full will help you better understand the important parts of the circuits material. Moreover, any student who experiences either EECS 16A or EECS 16B as taking significant time almost certainly has significant gaps in their understanding and skill sets and so actually is benefiting from taking EECS 16A/B. This is why even most transfers opt to take the full courses.

Steps for eligibility:

  1. Make sure you have a circuits course/experience outside of your required coursework (i.e. Math 54, Physics 7B) that covers the EECS 16A material.
  2. Look over the previous homework, particularly the circuits portion towards the end of the circuits module and the linear algebra towards the end of the class.
  3. Complete a couple of recent exams for EECS 16A (note that EECS 16A is listed as EE 16A on this website). Make sure to write your answers down. If you take about 3 hours, and your answers are mostly correct, and you feel ready to move on to EECS 16B, then you may be eligible for the bridge course.
  4. Discuss this with your ESS Adviser who will further determine your eligibility and handle your yellow petition.

Additional considerations:

  • Your study habits. You will need to take the final exam which tests on the entirety of the class material, not just a portion.
  • If you took just the bridge course, would you feel prepared for your upper division coursework?