AP Classes Next Year for a Rising Senior

As a junior, the AP classes I took this year are AP Physics I, AP Calculus BC, AP US History, and AP Lang/Comp. Next year, I was planning to take AP Physics II, AP Stats, AP Computer Science A, AP Psychology, and multi variable calculus. However, my guidance counselor advised that I should take AP Lit. She said that colleges would not like to see that I am dropping down to an honors English course after having done well in AP Lang this year. I was not planning on doing this, because I wanted to focus more on math and science.

Is AP Lit a good idea, or are the classes I’m taking now more beneficial in order to show that I am interested in studying engineering in college?

If I take AP Lit as well, should I consider dropping one of my other AP classes so that it is not too overwhelming?

Personally I would take AP Lit over AP Psychology mainly because AP Lit is useful for skipping some college classes (if you can get a 5 on the AP test, maybe even a 4 depending on the school). AP Paych really doesn’t buy you much and AP Comp Sci A is an interesting class but doesn’t buy you much either.

Now having said that, AP Lit was very hard for my left-brained kid. He says it was the hardest AP he took out of the 10 or 11 that he did take. It has lots and lots of analysis work to it, but more the interpretation kind rather than proofs - all very time consuming.

Your school doesn’t offer Physics C? That’s also a very tough and time consuming class but given your profile makes more sense.

If I drop AP Psych in favor of AP Lit, I would have to replace it with a regular (not honors) social studies class as my school has limited offerings. Would this look bad? That does sound like a good idea though, as I would have more time to dedicate to AP Lit since it would be challenging.

No, there are not enough students to run AP Physics C. So, does it still make sense to take AP Physics II, or would another science class like AP Bio make more sense?

She’s wrong. You have 4 AP’s and a post-AP. An AO will not microanalyze your transcript in the 10 minutes s/he devotes to an application if your GC marks your schedule as “most rigorous.” Now if your GC won’t give you a “most rigorous” without AP Lit, then that’s a different story.

That said, unless you really hate the material, I would opt for AP Lit over AP Comp Sci or AP Stats, both of which are more rigorous at the college-level and more applicable to your major.

Every part of the above statement is college-specific. Some colleges won’t give credit for both AP Lang and AP Lit. And, of course, each college can give credit (or. not) for any AP subject as it sees fit.

I see no benefit for taking AP Physics 2 for a potential engineer. Depending on the type of engineering, and your own preferences, I would opt for AP Bio or AP Chem instead, but it’s not a deal-breaker, and ultimately comes down to your own desires.

My daughter opted not to take AP lit senior year after doing great in AP language. (The head of the English department wasn’t happy but it wasn’t his decision). She took AP physics C, AP chem, AP calc, H organic chem, H/DC gov plus her mandatory theology class. AP lit just wansn’t a priority so she took British Lit. I dont think it hurt her at all with college admission as she applied to STEM focused colleges.

That said, she still had enough AP and honors courses for her counselor to check off the “most rigourous” box.

AP statistics is less likely to be useful for an engineering major than AP English literature or AP psychology, since an engineering curriculum that requires statistics will likely require a calculus-based statistics course and not accept AP statistics in place of it.

My daughter is a junior and her AP Lang teacher tried telling the class that too. Not many seem to have agreed with her opinion as few are taking AP Lit next year. But our seniors also have a number of dual enrollment English elective options they can take instead.

I agree that AP Lit is not necessary if you can take Honors English (as long as your GC checks the “most rigorous” box but really s/he shouldn’t refuse to do so for one AP).
Can you take AP Physics2 and AP Chem,AP CSA, MVC, Honors English, social Science?
AP Psych is probably a lighter AP social science but is more rigorous than a ‘regular’ social science class.
Are you taking Foreign Language level 4 (or completed level 3 and decided not to go further)?

I can take a semester of Honors English, and a semester of college prep. My school doesn’t offer honors for a full year. My guidance counselor did say that my schedule would qualify as “most rigorous.”

Would AP Chem be valuable as an engineering student even if I am not specifically interested in chemical engineering?

I am not taking a foreign language, I completed level 4 this year (but just 3 years of honors in high school, one level in middle school), and did not want to continue so that I could double up on Calc and Stats.

I would have 2 questions:

  1. What do you want to major in?
  2. What type of college do you want to go to?

If you want Engineering, I think it is okay to drop to Honors English…unless you want to go to an Ivy or the like. Also you don’t need AP Stat as you are taking MV Calc.
If you want science, then AP Stat might be good.

Yes, AP Chem is valuable as you hvae to take it freshman year for Engisneering.

I would check the schools you think you would want to go to and see what their AP acceptance criteria is for their English composition classes. All universities will have this requirement. If they accept the credit for Lit, I think you should go for AP Lit. You’re playing the odds here - do you want to take basically the same class over again twice, once in HS and once in college, or do you want to make the effort and get it done once in HS? This is not the same argument as retaking Calculus in college since its essential for your tech classes. From your standpoint this is purely a chance of getting a necessary evil class out of the way in college (plus every little bit helps in impressing an AO). Besides, it’s simply a matter of do you want to take it or not as opposed to, replacing with a better class.

I agree with those who suggest you speak to your guidance counselor. If you are aiming for top tier schools they will want to see that the guidance counselor has checked the box saying you have taken the most rigorous curriculum offered in your HS. If he/she will check the most rigorous box with your proposed senior year schedule (no AP Lit) then you are fine taking honors English – if he/she will not check the most rigorous box without AP Lit then you should consider adjusting your schedule accordingly.