I would agree with what others have said and not put much focus on AP Stats. Many schools won’t take it or care much if you did. While Science is not a focus of Business schools, it will show your true capabilities of rigor in those programs and strong schools will see that. You’ll need to take Statistics courses anywhere you go but they’re all different. For instance, at Cornell, the Econ Stats requirement is completely different than the Engineering (where my other daughter is in) is. For that daughter they wouldn’t take her AP Stats. But if she was in another program there, they would’ve. She took it because she felt like taking the class for interest and challenge and had already taken BC previously.
As for the APs you have re CBHP, they won’t care much about AP English, because if you have the ACT/SAT score you automatically get out of the freshman English course anyway, and still have to take a higher English class. AP English is one of the classes my kids didn’t take, but the UT one was exempt from taking it because of her ACT score. Having AP CS they will like as that would count as a Science as would Physics. They recently changed the requirement that you can take any science sequence as opposed to being 2 in the same category (like Physics 1 and 2). She had Physics C in high school and was going to have to take another Physics at UT but since they changed now she can take anything. They also now changed where they also have to take a foreign language, but I’m not sure what that requirement is since she doesn’t need it, although she has Spanish credit, she can’t claim it because she has too many. I remember her telling me that a lot of kids in Texas for some reason don’t have both AP Micro and Macro which she found strange. If you can find a way to get both in that would be a plus. The only school I can think of offhand that doesn’t take that credit is Michigan. I’m sure there are others. But you would have to take it at UT and anywhere else. Cornell will give you the AP credit for both courses and again UT likes that. I know, the offset is usually AP Gov with the AP Micro but maybe you can find a CC to take it for the credit somewhere or a self study for it. But regardless the key really for CBHP is to get the interview will be your grades and EC’s and then how you do in the interview. If your school has Deca, that is something that UT really likes for whatever reason. If you’ve started a business, done something unique, are not super cocky, can have a cohesive conversation, are a good collaborator, not cut throat (although plenty of those have gotten through to CHBP), etc.
Spend the summer working on your resume and having it put together because you will need it and you will find it to be really useful even if you don’t end up there. My other daughter applied ED at Cornell and because she had also applied to UT had her resume all set and ready for when she applied to clubs and activities and even for sorority rush. The UT one, CBHP was her first choice with UT as her first choice school. Honors was icing on the cake as she was going to McCombs no matter what once she got in. She didn’t like Ross (you can only get a degree in Business Administration) so instead applied to Engineering and would’ve gone there for Engineering if not for Texas. She had no interest in the Ivy’s.
Feel free to PM for more questions but to give yourself the best shot at the biggest reaches you need the rigor. Your risk is if you don’t pull high grades next fall and you’re asked for your first semester grades. If you’re already AA at UT then you’ve cleared that hurdle and your rigor will look good and you should take BC.
Good luck! Also, don’t worry so much about the quantity of AP courses as so much of the quality of your grades in them. If you’re getting A’s then that’s great, but if you have a lot of APs but aren’t getting A’s then it’s hard to say how that will be viewed by colleges.
Since math is relevant to the major you’ve chosen, choosing the most challenging course when you have the option is expected of you for the most competitive colleges on your list.
All the kids who took both Calc BC and AP Stats with D19 found Stats to be pretty easy. So if you take Calc BC, taking Stats as well will not demonstrate any more rigor. If you were looking at being a life science major (Bio, Chem, etc), taking Stats could make sense, but those do not seem to be you interests.
So I’ll add my voice to those saying to take Calc BC, and forget about AP stats.
OP can take Cal 2 after getting in the school.
No school even Ivy assumes all incoming class have AP Cal BC even for engineering program.
Even I don’t argue it will or will not impress AO, OP should follow his ability, which we don’t know.
This is generally true (no difference for college admission since it’s calculus), but the OP is trying to get into programs that expect the highest level of math offered by the school; CBHP in particular will expect it since it’s offered. It will not impress adcoms, it’s just expected if you could take it.
Obviously if OP thinks they’ll struggle in BC they shouldn’t take it but the level of the programs aimed for would imply they’re relatively comfortable with math.
OP may have less chance but still have a chance with good grades in Cal AB, provided that OP has a great portfolio overall.
And it is a trade off. Even OP takes Cal BC and gets an A, he/she may still not get in that program. In case OP doesn’t do well in Cal BC, it hurts his/her chance to other school , had he/she has taken good grade in Cal AB.
I think the risk is greater than the reward in OP’s situation.
OP, does your precalculus class cover the beginnings of differential calculus? In my son’s HS, precalculus honors contained 80% of the content of AP Calculus AB. Most students jumped directly from precalculus honors to AP Calc BC and did very well. As a result, at his school, the AP Calc BC spent maybe the first month covering what would have been covered in AP Calc AB and then jumped directly into Integrals and Applications of Integration.
My son felt that AP Calc BC was pretty easy (i.e. easy to get an A and a 5 on the test). If you are really concerned about AP Calc BC, take the 18.01x (Differentiation) self-paced course on edx (free) during the summer.
“And it is a trade off. Even OP takes Cal BC and gets an A, he/she may still not get in that program. In case OP doesn’t do well in Cal BC, it hurts his/her chance to other school , had he/she has taken good grade in Cal AB.”
That’s a good point, AB and Stats would show some rigor and if it’s a more manageable workload, that may be the way to go.
realistically, do you have less confidence in Cal BC?
Because only you know where you stand. Your grades in Algebra 2 , pre-cal are great but don’t give me the true picture. At least I won’t bet $10 on it. Hope you get my point.
I would take the safe side, Cal AB and Stat is optional.
Since Math is crucial in Finance, I’d rather take Cal BC in college. I speak this on all science first year sequence courses. Taking AP is showing rigor but sometimes hs students do not learn a lot even they get a 4 or 5. Like Cal AB, 70% is still a score 5. I don’t know how good your teacher is. Do you get all the concept needed for intermediate college science courses? I quoted a statement from Wash U St Louis in other thread. WUSTL Chem department shares the difference between AP Chem and first year General Chemistry. it’s pretty good.
Of course there are top schools like Duke would let student start Organic Chem if a student has AP Chem score 5. But Duke still say if one forgets, or not too familiar, it is OK to take Gen Chem even the student gets a 5 in AP Chem.
Same principle, take Cal BC or not, make sure you have good foundation. Otherwise, re-take in college.
It really depends on your mastery of the current material. Talk with your math teacher: are you among the students s/he’d see take AB or BC?
What else are you taking BTW (full schedule, not just APs)?
Are you aiming for top 6% for UT and would your choices matter?
To give you an idea, a 5 in Calc AB is the assumed default at Wharton. If you don’t have that, you’re placed in a “remedial” class along with students whose school doesn’t offer AP Calculus (103). Assuming you have that 5 in Calc AB, you can then choose between 2 different classes, one that covers differentiation and integration quickly, and moves to differential equation applications for optimization, and one that is the foundational course for dual degree/engineering students and more quantitative majors. Most students in that class have already taken Calc BC.
Stern will expect you to have completed AB before you take Microeconomics in the Fall but your only requirement will be to complete one calculus course and if you don’t have a 5 on AB, you can still take Calc 1 there then Microeconomics in the Spring. (The other Calc courses will depend on your major, some may require more math than others.)
For CBHP, you’ll be in competition with other applicants from your school or schools with a similar socio-economic profile. Only you know how you compare. To make it in CBHP, AB would be sufficient so the issue is only how you compare to other CBHP applicants, keeping in mind math is only one criterion they’ll use.
One thing I did forget to mention about my Daughter in CBHP and math, is she actually had Multivariable Calculus for Dual Credit in High school. So she didn’t only have AP Calc BC and AP Stats, she also had that. So her math far exceeded their requirements.
Many kids in Texas that don’t have AP options at their schools either don’t apply to CBHP or aren’t accepted because there would be no way for them to finish the program in time otherwise, or at least no way to double major because of all the lower courses needed to take. Micro, Macro, Calc 1, Calc 2, Stats, etc. so whatever you can come tot he table with is a plus. But remember, you’re also applying to other schools as well.
For Dyson at Cornell, you would also need Calc 1 but they will take a 4 on the AB test. The Engineering majors take different classes than any other schools there, so you wouldn’t be with the Engineers, but you would be with the Pre-Med students. I’m surprised they take a 4 quite frankly! So there you don’t need BC.
You should look at the programs you’re interested in. Also, Dyson is primarily New Yorkers and a very small program.
But I agree with what another poster said, your teacher more than anything knows your ability and your thinking with solving problems most likely and you should definitely talk to him/her on what they recommend. Take that recommendation seriously. Many people often don’t. If you’re not in Precalc Honors now, then you really shouldn’t be taking BC.
My daughter’s HS makes everyone take AB before BC. My daughter took AB in 10th and BC in 11th; had she been given a choice however, she would have jumped straight into BC. She is actually taking AP Stats as a senior (in addition to an online linear algebra class) and she says it is the easiest math class she has ever taken.
I am not so sure it is a bad idea to take AB first other than it could be painfully slow for some students. My son to AP CalcBC his Sophomore year. Stats his Junior and independent study Linear Algebra this senior year.
We had a syllabus for Multivariable Calc and Differential Equations for his senior year but couldn’t get the teacher to buy off on that.
They probably do at your school because the courses are structured this way.
However as Skieurope explains, while some schools’ BC course cover AB with the BC topics at the end, many schools do NOT include the AB topics in their BC courses at all (save for a cursory review the first week) and focus the entire year strictly on the BC topics, with AB a pre-req for BC. In that structure, kids who are very accelerated in math cannot jump straight into BC.