AP CAPSTONE! TO DO OR NOT TO DO?!

Applying to College
1

<p>Hello, I am currently a 10th grade student. My course registration for 11th grade due in 5 days. I attend an American international school in Japan. My current unweighted GPA (cumulative with 9th and 10th grade) is 4.19. For next year, I have proposed this schedule.</p>

<ul>
<li>AP Biology</li>
<li>AP US</li>
<li>AP Lang</li>
<li>AP Econ</li>
<li>Honors Chem</li>
<li>Honors Pre-Calc</li>
<li>Honors French III</li>
<li>Study Hall</li>
</ul>

<p>However, everything has a twist! My school just introduced the AP Capstone program which is a 2 year program which features 2 AP courses (AP Seminar - 11th Grade) and (AP Research - 12th Grade). This program culminates at the end of the senior year, being a 2-year long program, with a 5,000 word research essay. To find out more, you can Google it up! </p>

<p>Now my crises is, I do not know what to do! My ultimate goal is to have the toughest-looking schedule which will allow me to have a chance for some of my hopeful colleges (UPenn, UChicago, UC Berkeley). </p>

<p>Now here are my options, I can either drop AP US History and instead take AP Capstone. Or else, I can take AP Capstone along with all these above AP's. Last choice, I can forge AP Capstone. Now, I am concerned that if I don't do AP Capstone, my peers will have a drastic advantage over me when in 2 years, it comes time to apply to college?</p>

<p>Can someone please shed some light? Please? What will the coursework in AP Seminar be like as compared to AP Lang or AP US? Please help!!!</p>

2

<p>ANYONE? My course registration is in ONLY 3 days???</p>

3

<p>Don’t do it. I had Capstone in junior year and Im taking the second half of the class senior year right now. Junior year was actually amazing, but right now, I’m in a total slump over my 20 page research paper. It’s stressful and honestly a stupid class. Used to be sponsored by University of Cambridge in England, but now it’s completely controlled by the collegeboard, a very bad organization. </p>

4

<p>Is it hard to achieve a grade of A in the class, in terms of your school? Wouldn’t people who take it in my school, Class of 2016, have an advantage when it comes time to apply to the schools? Have you ever considered this?</p>

<p>And also, for the 20 page research paper, I probably am not the concerned because it is senior year and most college apps have been sent and recieved already. Is that correct?</p>

5

<p>Yes, I suppose you have a leg up in terms of applying to Ivy leagues and schools like MIT because the collegeboard has been introducing this course to many colleges. I wouldn’t say the class is hard, just very stressful senior year if you don’t have a good guidance. </p>