<p>D. is a sophmore in HS. We're facing registration for next school year. She is strong in math, not too crazy about science. she has taken honors bio and is taking AP chem. She does well in both her science classes. But her passion is in social sciences, wants to do political science/law in the future. </p>
<p>Since she has taken bio and Chem, now in sciences there's physics. We decided she should take honors physics in junior year. Should she take AP physics in the senior year is the question. If she doesn't take AP physics, then senior year she's not taking any science class. She can do econ or an extra foreign language in a local college in her senior year. </p>
<p>Will it hurt her chance to get into a good college if she doesn't do any science in senior year? (she will still do math - she'll take AP calc in junior year and AP statistics in senior year.) </p>
<p>My older S is a sophomore at a top college. He had no sciences his senior year. Doubled up in Math instead…and took an AP & independent study in a language…it does NOT make a bit of difference if there is no science in the senior year except, of course, if a science or engineering career is known.</p>
<p>My younger S is now a junior taking honors Physics. He is doing well but are told that the AP’s are much, much tougher. He wants engineering, so he will probably take AP Calc, AP Stats and then AP Chem, possibly instead of AP Physics C. AP Physics B is only offered to Juniors at our h.s. and he opted for honors instead. If it’s available, he can try the AP computer science, but it’s not always offered each year.</p>
<p>My non-science social science kid did AP Physics C as a senior - he got a B and a 4/3 on the AP I believe. I think he got some brownie points for taking a challenging course - got into Tufts, Vassar and U of Chicago, but none of the Ivies he applied to. (Nor did he expect to based on other grades and SAT scores which were very good, but a bit lopsided.) Do you not have AP Bio? Not necessarily a better choice, but I’m surprised it’s not an option if she hasn’t done it. I agree with CSOHSIS that Physics B is easier than C.</p>
<p>Make sure she has the required math before taking AP Physics. Bio/Chem/Physics is generally the 3 that kids take and if they love Science then they take one senior year otherwise they take something that “fits” their future college interests. Sounds like your school has alot of AP classes, but I’d pick the class where she will be most successful. GPA and rigor are both important to selective colleges, but it’s always been our sense that GPA and adequate rigor and good test scores trump lower GPA, high rigor and good test scores but as the saying goes your mileage may vary.</p>
<p>To clarify - if she takes AP physics in senior year, it’ll be AP physics B. not C. By that time, she’ll be done with AP calc anyway. But she is not crazy about the idea of taking AP physics, would rather take something she loves to do, which is, sadly, not related to physics. (I am a serious physics person, so is my hubby, and we tried - in vain.)</p>
<p>If he is intelligent it is usually fine. I don’t find physics particularly interesting and I have taken AP and a university physics class and I got A’s in both of them.</p>
<p>I don’t think she needs to take AP Physics. She isn’t planning on engineering and sounds as if she has a rigorous schedule. Is there an AP course that relates to her intended major in college? I think that would be a plus on a college application. My son was accepted at an Ivy league school with 3 APs junior and 3 APs senior year. Math, Music Theory and U.S. History junior year and Biology, Computer Science and English Lit senior year. His other classes were honors level.</p>
<p>Since you mention that she will have already had a non-AP honors physics course, then that is normally sufficient to get the three way combo of sciences that is looked upon favorably. AP physics would not be a high priority course in this case. In any case, the B version of AP physics is rarely useful for subject credit anyway.</p>
<p>Her other course selections seem pretty well matched for her social studies / political science goals. For any social studies subject, economics is always useful knowledge to have, as is statistics. Calculus knowledge certainly cannot hurt, and may be useful if she wants to go deeper into economics or take more advanced statistics courses which may be useful in the social studies (and those who can think mathematically and logically likely have an advantage on the LSAT). Foreign language can certainly help if studying something in the country where the language is used.</p>
<p>D took Environmental Science, Biology, Chemistry, and now Anatomy and Physiology. She is not taking physics at all. Personally I don’t see the point of honors Physics AND AP physics if you are not in the sciences. If there are any other science options, I would look into those. A and P is surely a useful life science for anyone.</p>
<p>Hi, I am currently a junior and I am taking AP physics B. Like your daughter, I am not a science person and I much prefer the social sciences. I had a hard time for about the first four months of school, but with help from an amazing (and cheap) tutor, I was able to get on track and bring my grade from a B to an A. AP physics B is definitely doable if she is willing to work at it. Good luck!</p>
<p>I can tell you that things can change drastically from sophomore to junior year. There is no point in worrying about it now. </p>
<p>In our school AP Physics B is easier than AP Biology. By a factor of 3. In other words, AP Biology has the work load of about 3 honors classes, and AP Physics B is about the same workload as an honors class. </p>
<p>I think that AP Physics B is a terrific science class, but I don’t see any reason for a non-science person to have to take an AP science class that they don’t want to take. </p>
<p>Our HS requires 4 years of science. I don’t know many colleges that require 4 years of science, but you should check. Even if they do, I don’t think any college wants to see kids choose electives that they don’t want to take. I’d go with the extra class she’s passionate about at the local college. </p>
<p>I would say that if she may want to study econ in college, which to do well is very mathematical, AP Physics B is a great class because it teaches the thought processes behind rigorous multi-step problem solving. I view AP Physics B almost like an Intro to Engineering class. It also might give her credit for science classes in college and relieve her from having to take another one to meet distribution requirements. </p>
<p>But I would leave the decision up to her. She’ll be older than she is now, and fully capable of making that choice herself.</p>
<p>My S is now a freshman in at a highly ranked LAC. Not a math/science guy; plans to major in the history/political science area. As an 8th grader his HS needed him to play cello in the orchestra and because of block scheduling he also took Honors Biology at the HS that year, then Chemistry as a freshman, AP Physics as a sophomore, and then AP Biology as a junior. Didn’t take any science his senior year. I think as long as schools she’s potentially looking at don’t require 4 years of science and she is taking equally challenging non-science classes or doing interesting things she’ll be fine.</p>
<p>I agree with the advice that four years of science is not required for most schools. However, I think it is the rare student who will not benefit in the long run from exposure to four years of math and science in high school. With much parental encouragement our formerly math-averse junior D is taking physics B this year and pre-cal, both at the honors level. She is surprising herself and us with As in both classes. More importantly and largely because of good teachers, she is enjoying the subject matter in both. I believe that kids (frequently girls) tend to shy away from math and science at this age in part for social reasons and that as parents we should encourage them to hang in there with these subjects through high school.</p>