Hey, my counselor is freaking me out about how many AP classes one needs to get into Wellesley caliber schools. Can you tell me if my load so far is good enough? My school doesn’t offer honors past sophomore year.
Sophomore year-
Honors Algebra
WHAP (didn’t take test for family reasons, did bad in class also for family reasons, but it’s a good enough reason I don’t think it’ll drastically affect me)
Junior year-
AP English Lang (4)
AP Psychology (5)
APUSH (5)
Senior year (haven’t taken the tests yet obviously so I’ll put my class grade- the highest grade available at my school is an A)
AP Biology (A)
AP English Lit (A)
AP Statistics (B, but I think I can raise it to an A/B by semester)
My sister got in with 3 APs total and no AP math courses. Our school also offers fewer APs, but I think as long as test scores, class rank, GPA, etc. are good you will have a good shot.
@goldenbear2020 Thanks for the response! You think taking AP Statistics helps weigh out the fact that I don’t have AP Calc? Math is the only subject I don’t excel in… @usualhopeful That makes me feel much better! Our school doesn’t offer that many, either. I was going to take AP French and AP Gov or Econ, but they cut all three at the end of last year because not enough kids signed up
the school will look at your APs in reference to what was offered at your high school. you won’t be dinged for not taking classes that weren’t offered. ap stats is still an ap. i’m in regular calculus b/c i’m terrible at math but i have a perfect score in the class so it all evens out in the end.
@Goldenbear2020, I think it depends on the student and the school. My kids’ high school offered both AP Stats and AP Calc. My kids both took AP Calc senior year, but a few of the very advanced math students took AP Calc their junior year and then AP Stats their senior year, because that was the only math left.
Still, I doubt Wellesley will hold it against a student who skips calculus but is strong in the humanities.
@Massmomm I hope you’re right! I don’t see why it would be a factor. I’m one of the few kids in my class who are doing very well in the class. A lot of smart kids are doing poorly and others are dropping at semester because they think Stats is hard. I think it depends on what you’re good at. @artsycyborg That’s the problem… my counselor put “We MAY offer these AP class at North…” and proceeded to list almost every AP class that the College Board administers, even ones our school doesn’t offer anymore. I put that they cut French, Gov and Econ in the “Additional Information” section of the Common App because saying that you “may” offer them doesn’t mean you actually do
I believe that if you’re taking a lot of the AP classes that your school/scheduling allows you to, you will be fine. I was accepted ED and only had 4 APs, one senior year and three junior year. For the three I had taken junior year, I recieved 4s on all three exams. Granted, these were the only AP’s I was offered at my small public school… I think that the most important thing to remember is that APs aren’t your whole application! It’s obvious to me that you are working hard and taking difficult classes, and if the rest of you’re application is just as solid, you have a very good chance!
Can anyone help with an opinion? My S took APUSH last year (sophomore) and got an A in the class but got a 2 on the exam. His teacher failed in his duty to prepare the class for the exam. The class average was in the low 3s and many kids got a 2. The teacher was removed from that class. Not looking to assign blame, just wondering what it all means. Anyway, do we need to show that AP score on his applications? Does it even matter tha he got an A in the class?
@STEM2017 - u don’t need to show the scores. they’re mostly for earning the actual credit. i’ve never seen colleges ask for scores that weren’t reported.
