<p>hey, im gonna b a jr next year at local public high school. the thing is, my high school isnt of the greatest caliber. my schedule for next year is gonna be:</p>
<p>Calc AB AP
Spanish 3 H
US Hist H
English 11 AP
Bio H
Physics AP</p>
<p>im lookin into an engineering major. so my question is, which would look better when applying to a college - an AP class or a class at a JC? if i took classes at the JC, my schedule would be:</p>
<p>Spanish 3 H, US Hist H, English 11 AP, Bio H</p>
<p>then id leave campus at lunch and go to the JC for Physics and Calculus. the advantages i see of taking the classes at a JC instead of AP at high school are that the classes at a JC r easier than AP. also, you get a full years worth of credit in 1 semester AND theres no need for an AP test, college credit is automatic. also if i do this for the fall semester, i can take 2 more classes at the JC for the spring semester, probably courses in the math and science fields.</p>
<p>i just wanna know which would look better when applyin to college - a kid who took 3 APs his jr year, or a kid who took 1 AP and 4 classes at a JC?</p>
<p>The thing about JCs is, if you're the kind of person who's taking 4 APs, you're looking at top schools, and JC classes usually don't count for credit. With APs, the college knows what they're getting when they take you, because they know that you've been taught a standard curriculum.
Where I am, we had the option for taking calc at GA Tech, and if you have a similar caliber program available I'd say take it, but otherwise go with the APs.
Sometimes you gotta go for quality over quantity, and they'll see that.</p>
<p>well as i stated earlier, im lookin into an engineering major, particularly Comp Sci Eng or Aerospace. money isnt really an issue here, so im willing to go to the school that offers me the best education and the best opurtunities.</p>
<p>i live in so cal, and ive been looking into the UC system for a while. id love to go to UCLA - its an awesome school, its been ranked high, beautiful campus, awesome location, close to home, all at a great price - completely idealistic.</p>
<p>im not worried about credit, all the JC classes will be UC/CSU transferrable, so i kno im gaurenteed credit. im pretty confident that i would be able to get A's in the JC classes, where id b must more likely to get a B or a C in the AP class. also if i were to take the classes at the JC, i would be able to fit in alot of classes that would pertain to CSE or AE that my high school doesnt offer, thus make myself look like a better applicant.</p>
<p>You said yourself that the AP classes are more difficult than the JC courses. I assume the difference between 3 APs /1 AP 4 JC classes comes from the fact that JC classes are one semester and AP classes are a year. Unless the JC offers something different than your high school, take the AP classes, as they will probably be better respected.</p>
<p>yeah, i guess the AP classes will be more respected, but wont it look unique for a student whos still in high school, yet takes classes at JC's while in HS? also, ill be able to take 4 JC classes in replace of 2 AP classes. if i were to take classes that interested myself and my major, such as comp sci or aeronautics (classes that my crappy public high school dont offer) in addition to high school classes and Physics and Calc at the JC, wont i appear as unique?</p>
<p>Many schools will say that high school is a time to have a broad education, and waiting another year or two to specialize (that is, wait until college) is just fine. Since you're headed into engineering, I would say it's better to have a strong foundation in physics than sorta know physics and take an aeronautics class. Beginning computer science material can be self-studied quite easily, and most people I know have had bad experiences in both high school and JC/community college computer science classes.</p>
<p>I think JC classes are a good way to distinguish yourself if APs aren't offered, but since they are, I would suggest taking them and trying to get A's.</p>