Which AP should i take if I’m planning to go into software engineering?
My Schedule:
AP BIO or AP ENVIRO
PROGRAMMING
CALC 1
AP LIT
CHAMBER CHOIR 2-H
What science courses have you already taken? What kinds of colleges are you aiming for? What are you other courses for senior year?
Have you completed a sequence of bio, chem, and physics?
Yes, I have taken Bio and Chem honors and a regular physics class.
These are my other courses
AP BIO or AP ENVIRO
PROGRAMMING
CALC 1
AP LIT
CHAMBER 2-H
I’m aiming for colleges like University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
I think either class would be fine.
If you are interested in software engineering, I’d recommend AP physics over AP bio. I would not recommend AP Env unless you have some kind of burning interest.
No history or government class?
I don’t have the prerequisites for AP Physics unfortunately. Also, yes, I would be dropping history to take an introductory programming course! I assume it is alright considering I have already taken APUSH and WHAP.
Top colleges really like to see 4 years of each core subject: English, Foreign Language, Math, Science, and Social Studies. Are you in state for UIUC?
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No, I am out of state.
I am also taking AP Research to get credits, although I’m wondering if it is really a good idea to drop both spanish and history.
Although colleges say they want up to four years of a foreign language, I have heard anecdotally that a student should try to reach the highest level offered at the school (even if it’s past level 4). I think AP bio is a more “serious” class than AP Env Sci in the eyes of top colleges, but Env Sci is an important topic for all young people so that’s a bit of a trade off. I agree with prior comments about AP physics being an even better choice…what’s the prerequisite that you’re missing?
APES isn’t considered one of the preferred AP classes. CS and engineering will be a tough admits at UIUC for an OOS applicant. IMO, you should strengthen your application by taking AP Bio and a social studies class. You want to make yourself as competitive an applicant as possible when compared with others from your school and state.
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My math level is too low, as I am taking Algebra 2 as a junior and my school requires students to have completed precalculus for any of the AP Physics courses. I’m going to be doing a precalculus acceleration program over the summer so that I can do calculus next year. Also, for the foreign language, if I were to take Spanish next year, it would be Spanish 6. Is it a good idea to drop a course to take Spanish 6?
If you have not taken AP Seminar, I wouldn’t bother with Research. You would be better off dropping that and taking either Spanish (best choice) or APES (not terrible, if you are also taking AP Bio). What is the typical social studies class at your high school?
Not to turn it into a “competition” but the reality is you’ll probably be compared head to head with other applicants from your high school, so you might need to get some intel on that in order to make the best choice for what keeps you most “rigorous” for admissions purposes. Also check with your GC regarding whether the choice you makes has an impact on her decision to check off the “most rigorous schedule” box or not. Stepping back a bit to the real purpose of school — learning — there are arguments for breadth and depth…most people would say to keep a social studies in the mix, continue foreign language if possible, and choose one science based on your enthusiasm about the subject matter.
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This!
The school accepts the precalc summer accelerated course to skip into calc Senior year but not to qualify for Physics 1, which is the non-calc version of intro physics? That seems odd.
I’d repeat what others have said about many colleges preferring to see you do a social science all four years.
Your school on does 5 subjects at a time? That alone would make it hard to get through all the core subjects every year and have any room for electives, like Chamber Choir.
AP Bio might have a rep for being a little more rigorous but I would be surprised if the choice between either of those science AP’s makes or breaks you at any college so I would weight more toward interest.
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I failed to mention this earlier, but I am also taking AP Research as my school actually allows up to 6 subjects. I asked my current Seminar teacher if I could drop Research, but she said I wouldn’t receive credits for AP Seminar.
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