<p>I'm a sophomore, and at my school, we're in the process of scheduling our classes for next year. I can't decide between taking AP Bio or AP Chem. Which one is harder, and which one looks better to do in Junior year? What is the course load like for each of them? For reference, my schedule is currently as follows: </p>
<ol>
<li>AP English Lit</li>
<li>AP Spanish Lang</li>
<li>AP Calc BC</li>
<li>AP Physics C: Mech</li>
<li>WHAP</li>
<li>AP Bio/AP Chem</li>
<li>Religion (required by my school)</li>
</ol>
<p>Which of the two is better to take concurrently with physics. </p>
<p>With physics, AP Chem is better. However, given the rigorous courses that you are taking, I suggest that you relax and take an “off period” or a course that you are interested in. </p>
<p>I agree with halcyonheather; chemistry is more similar to physics than biology is. Chemistry is the link between physics and biology; it’s called The Central Science for a reason. I personally found AP Chemistry to be the easier of the two, but almost everyone I know would beg to differ. AP Chemistry has concepts that tend to be more difficult to understand; it requires a certain intuition. The math isn’t bad; it’s just basic algebra. In AP Biology, the concepts are easier, but there is more work and memorization. You don’t really use any math. You need to know basic chemistry (how many bonds different atoms can make, polar vs. nonpolar, maybe a little bit about acids and bases).</p>
<p>Hi! So I am a junior currently taking AP Biology-- and I feel like whether biology or chem is easier or harder certainly depends on your school, and personal preference! Do you have more interest for one over the other? Trust me, when you are interested in a topic, studying becomes much, much easier :)</p>
<p>For me, this was biology. So far I have excelled in the class, but certainly not without sweating. My teacher doesn’t really teach, so I basically self-taught. There is a lot of textbook reading, and certainly a lot of lab work. But theses are all easy to master after a couple of times. You will learn a lot of awesome topics, such as how respiration and photosynthesis works on the nitty gritty (it’s really cool!) and how animals are conditioned to act certain ways. While learning these topics, I will not deny that there is a good deal to memorize. This does not mean that memorization is hard. Just like in math where you get to know different graphs, or in English where you learn different writing strategies, biology allows you to learn different sets of processes. If you make plenty of connections, then it won’t be that difficult. However, I will not omit that we have had three people drop out of the class, and the fact that only a couple of people got A’s on the most recent semester exam.</p>
<p>I agree with n1414m, in that math is rarely used in biology. Depending on your teacher, you may have to do stat tests such as student t- tests and basic sampling math. And of course-- basic averaging and rate work for data! So you may take that into consideration if you want a break from all those math courses you have ;)</p>
<p>I wouldn’t recommend taking both AP Chem and AP Physics at the same time. Granted, I’m not sure how difficult things are at your school, but at mine both are known for being incredibly difficult. You don’t want to make yourself totally miserable.</p>
<p>I found AP Bio to be significantly easier than chem. It mostly involves a lot of memorization, and when you have to solve problems, they’re generally pretty straightforward. As far as I know, there’s a general understanding in admissions that AP Chem is usually among the more difficult of the AP classes. Honestly, though, taking AP Bio instead should make little to no difference in terms of your application.</p>
<p>Hey everyone, thanks so much for your responses!</p>
<p>To Hawkace, off periods are the best. My school has an 8-period schedule, so I will be taking one off next year with my current schedule. I should have mentioned that above. In my freshman and sophomore years, I have taken two off periods because we do not have any classes that we can take in addition to the six classes.</p>
<p>To Bluecloud9 and rhiannon14, of the two topics, Biology is definitely more interesting to me. AP Chem has a reputation for being really hard at my school, but I know the teacher, and she’s great. I have the AP Chem teacher this year for Chem H and I had the AP Bio teacher freshman year for Bio H. My Biology teacher is also excellent, and he gave me the department award for Science last year. I am planning to ask him for my college recommendation, so I definitely want to take AP Bio either next year or the year after. </p>
<p>How well do you all think that Bio H and Chem H prepares you for the AP classes? In Bio H, we used the Campbell Biology: Concepts & Connections book, and in Chem H, we are using Chemistry: The Central Science. </p>
<p>To n1414m and halcyonheather, During my junior year, I’m planning to take AP Phys C: Mech in addition to AP Bio/AP Chem, and in senior year, I am taking AP Phys C: E&M and AP Psych (counts as a history elective) in addition to AP Bio/AP Chem. For this reason, is it better to take Chem alongside E&M or Mech?</p>