Academic Rigor in High School

Colleges and Universities A-Z Washington & Lee University
1

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I took a tour of Washington and Lee over spring break and absolutely loved the feel of it. I know that W&L, along with a lot of strong VA schools, stresses academic rigor in high school. I have done pretty well in a pretty competitive school district in VA (4.25 weighted GPA, 33 on the ACT, 1380 on the SAT, Merit Scholar commendation, A's in all three APs last year (US History, English, Psych), four next year (Government, Literature, Environmental Science, Computer Science). I have taken pretty much all honors classes, including Pre-Calc, Geometry, Algebra I and II, Geosystems and Chem. I will also be taking my fourth year of Japanese next year. I thought I was pretty well set, but now I'm not so sure. Is AP Computer Science not a strong enough math course for my senior year (when that just interests me a whole lot more than Calc)? Is AP environmental science not strong enough (even though I want to major in that)? Are non-AP classes OK if they fit my interests (like taking Creative Writing and Film Studies when I am an artsy-type)? Here is my planned course load if that helps:</p>

<p>AP Environmental Science
AP Government
AP Lit
AP Computer Science
Japanese 4
Creative Writing
Film Studies</p>

<p>Outside of that, I am active on our literary/arts magazine, an arts club, involved in several honor societies. </p>

<p>I definitely want to make my application competitive, but I also thought that a small school like W&L wanted to see who I am and what my interests really are. I can take another math or science course, but I've done pretty well in all of them so far. How much do I sacrifice my interests for the sake of my application?</p>

2

<p>Calculus will make you a much more competitive applicant than Computer Science. If you didn’t schedule an interview when you toured the campus, do that – W&L is the kind of place where your demonstrated interest is important.</p>

3

<p>As a current student, I agree with yaupon that W&L likes to see Calculus much more than computer science. But other than that, your scores and APs seem right in line with the students that W&L loves to admit. I’d recommend bringing up those classes like film studies and creative writing in your interview or essays to underline your passion for those subjects, and mention how you’d like to continue studying/participating in them in college. If you can’t make it to campus for an interview, try interviewing with an alumni representative that lives near you (these can be found on the W&L admissions website). Good luck!</p>