Was just about to say the same thing.
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but dont colleges want to see you taking courses that are tailored towards your interests?
Not at the expense of other core courses.
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but I would do 4 years in English, 4 years in fine arts, 3 years in history, and 2 years in language
Iâm not sure what this means?
Also, I am not saying you canât be accepted with only 2 years of FL, because some students are. But having a 3rd year of language would make you more competitive.
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The core courses are English, math, science, history, and foreign language. The most competitive applicants will have 4 years in each area.
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As someone mentioned upthread, look up section C5 in the CDS of each school you are interested in. To be most competitive, conventional wisdom is to meet or exceed the RECOMMENDED academic units, especially if the majority of high achieving students at your high school will have done so. This is not a hard and fast rule, but posters here are trying to help you have the most competitive application possible for these highly rejective schools.
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So do I have no hope then?
Of course, there is hope! 
None of us have seen your complete application so can only respond to the information you have shared and provide feedback on areas that may be improved for the most competitive schools. You will have no problems as long as you apply to a balanced list of schools, not only the reaches.
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FWIW, Cornellâs C5 section is blank so unfortunately not helpful.
OP - no one is telling you there is no hope. We are giving your suggestions on how you can be more competitive since you are still a junior and there is time to change your senior year courses to position yourself as best as possible. The schools you listed are uber competitive for all students. I think what many of us are saying is donât handicap yourself unnecessarily.
And be sure you have a balanced list of schools with safeties and targets you love as much as the reaches.
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Ok so, I really want to apply to schools that have a major focus on STEM. Will this be an impressive math course list to take by the time I finish highschool?
Honors Algebra 2
Honors Pre Calculus
Calculus I
Calculus II
Calculus III
Differential Equations
Linear Algebra
Discrete Math
Complex Analysis
Your math achievements are impressive. What we are trying to convey is that many of the competitive schools use a holistic admissions process so all aspects of your application will matter. That said, it does not mean âpointyâ students will never be accepted.
Do you have strong college advising at your high school? What does your GC think?
This article is worth a read.
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As noted above many colleges look for students to get a well-balanced HS education and then specialize during college in an area of interest.
That said, nobody is saying you have no chance at a competitive college. You have impressive accomplishments. But you need to view colleges with low admission rates as reach schools (as does any unhooked applicant) and expand your application list according.
As many have said UMD is very strong in engineering and you should apply there early in the process.
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Iâll reiterate what others are saying-many competitive colleges(such as Stanford) recommend three or more years of foreign language. Youâll make yourself a more competitive candidate. Just my opinion, but you should definitely take Spanish 3, even if it means dropping a math class or two.
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I think the main takeaway is that you are a competitive student with a great transcript, but some schools will want to see a more well rounded student. Note that isnât all schools - for example MIT only requires 2 years. After that itâs a bit of a guessing game as to what an admissionâs officer is looking for - maybe theyâll want a more well rounded student, and maybe theyâll want someone super focused. Really look at that Common Data Set and you can start to get a picture of what theyâve looked for in the past.
Make sure you are exploring your interests outside of school in clubs and internships, jobs and/or research.
Expand your list to some schools with higher acceptance rates. You have a good chance at competitive schools, but the landscape is very difficult, find a safety school that youâd be really happy to attend - a safety school is both one you can get into and one you can afford.
Talk explicitly with your parents about what they can and will pay. If your dad is a doctor, thereâs a good chance you are a full pay student - meaning some schools will expect you to pay $70,000 per year. Explore schools that offer generous merit scholarships (Alabama, Arizona, etc)
To expand your list, besides engineering what are you looking for in a school? UIUC, Univ Maryland, Virginia Tech, Rose Hulman, Worcester Polytechnic, RPI, Olin, Purdue â all have good engineering programs but are very, very different.
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My suggestionâŠtake Spanish 3 your senior yearâŠ.at least. To not do so could very well limit your options at some universities.
While some college engineering programs do not require a foreign language to graduateâŠsome do. Check that too. And some will require this if you donât meet their minimum bar in high school.
Also, there is a possibility you might pick up a double major which does have a foreign language requirement in collegeâŠand you need to be prepared for that.
IOWâŠthis need to take 3-4 level of foreign language can very by college. If you want to put your best total foot forwardâŠtake Spanish 3 as a senior.
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I donât know though, I mean I do play music (Tuba) since I was in 7th grade and will continue that throughout my highschool year, couldnât that serve as a counterweight?
NO. Your music studies are not considered a core course. Foreign language IS a core course.
My opinionâŠ.you need Spanish 3 more than you need more than one math course your senior year. But thatâs my opinion.
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Ok, thanks for the suggestion.
Some colleges do consider visual or performing arts to be core, but they typically require or recommend one year, which the OP already exceeds, so raising the foreign language level to 3 is like to be more helpful for college admissions than another music or math course.
A college foreign language course may raise the foreign language level more quickly than a high school course, if you can place into a suitable level based on completion of high school level 2.
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