Well, we’re in the first week of summer and already my senior year schedule is screwed up.
My counselor just gave me a call and apparently AP Physics won’t fit in my schedule like I was hoping. I tried to switch to AP Bio, but evidently that won’t work either. My only two options are AP Environmental Science and AP Psychology. I’m trying to decide which would be better for me.
Quick background: I intend to go into the medical field and major in biology, biochem, or something along those lines. Last year I took AP Chemistry, and the years before that honors bio and honors chem.
I believe I personally would enjoy AP Psych more, and although I don’t have a problem with APES, I’m not that interested in the subject. I just wonder if it would be more beneficial to take a science class vs a social science one. I have a vague feeling that my counselor prefers APES.
I’m really just disappointed that Physics AND Bio fell through. In all honesty, this post is more to help get my thoughts in order, but advice is very greatly appreciated. Thanks!
ES is a pointless class for you (it’s too easy and isn’t really considered a legit “science” class like physics). Psych would be much more interesting, and it does lead into the medical fields.
Yikes why can’t you take AP Bio or AP Physics? What class is messing up your schedule that will prevent you from taking Physics? If you can’t take AP physics, then take regular physics or honors physics if you have it. No physics will hurt your application. Colleges want the big 3 (Physics, chem, and bio)…
First, I’d see if you could move things around to fit in AP Bio or AP Physics. If it won’t work then take whichever class you are more interested in which sounds like AP Psych.
Take what you want to take. As long as you have the three science courses completed in the previous years you are fine. Psych is an interesting class, and a great TV show as well.
Thanks for the input guys! The main culprit in this schedule mess is my orchestra class, which can only be one specific period and is a class I’m not inclined to drop. My counselor tried her best but there’s only so much she can do when my whole schedule is AP classes, haha. It looks like I’ll be taking Psych (and hopefully the class will be as fun as the TV show)!
If it is the lab period that conflicts with orchestra, maybe the orchestra teacher would let you skip one class a week if you talk to him/her. But if a science doesn’t work out, enjoy AP Psych – it was one of my D’s favorite HS classes! She also loved HS orchestra and would not have wanted to drop it (she is in her college orchestra now and really enjoys it).
You may want to ask your GC to mention the scheduling conflict that led you to take AP Psych instead of an AP science senior year in his/her recommendation so colleges don’t think that you dropped science of your own volition.
That blows that AP Physics won’t work. I find it very beneficial for high school students to take the three sciences within the four years somehow, even if they aren’t going into a physics-related STEM field. I definitely say you go for AP Psych.
So you at least have some background in physics before college, I recommend you take a summer class at a CC or watch a bunch of videos on Khan Academy.
