Hi, so I am not sure what course to take this fall, because for both, pros and cons are about even and my mind cannot make a decision! Biology Honors, obviously goes more in depth and we do more lab work, reading, writing, and researching. Regular Biology teaches you the necessary portion of biology education needed, with a good and standard amount of coursework. My guidance counselor said that if you take biology honors, and don’t get the best grades, it could ruin your GPA, and thats the first things colleges look at, Regular Biology with a 100 would look better to colleges instead of a lower grade in honors. I am not sure whether or not to challenge myself and risk lowering my GPA or take the regular class, and have an excellent GPA. Any advice is appreciated.
At my school, honors biology is nothing more than a few extra assignments and a few extra lessons. Honors and regular kids do the exact same coursework at the exact same time (with honors assignments/lessons in between). Are you good at science or memorization? I suggest taking honors biology. I’m horrible at biology, but I still passed honors with a high A.
I am good at memorization, and I do enjoy science. I forgot to include that if I do take Honors, I have to take the SAT II in Biology in June, as well as the final exam. @Shanban1607
You have to take the SAT II? Is that mandatory for the class? Even so, there’s nothing wrong with taking the test, you could always take it later if you don’t like your score. Final exams are ok if you make sure to study.
I have not done Biology HN in ninth grade yet, but I will do it in the fall like you. Nice to see a fellow class member on here!
I am not sure how your county did it, but where I live, we also took a year of biology or biology honors in 7th grade. As of what they told us, they said 9th grade biology is a build up from what we learned in 7th grade. If your grades in that 7th grade biology class were an A or A-, then taking the Biology Honors is a good idea. Especially, if you were in Honors 7th grade Biology.
In my county, also, Honors added a 0.5 weighted GPA boost to your final grade. For example, this is the GPA code:
A: 4.0
A-: 3.7
B+: 3.3
B: 3.0
B-: 2.7
C+: 2.3
C: 2.0
C-: 1.7
D+: 1.3
D= 1.0
No A+ or D- in my county.
F= 0.0
If you take Biology Honors in 9th grade, and your final grade is an A, then you will receive a 4.5 on your weighted GPA instead of a 4.0. But if you take Biology Honors, and your final grade is a B+, you will receive a 3.8 on your weighted GPA, which means you have a higher GPA than a kid who took regular Biology and got an A-, but you will have less than a kid who took regular Biology HN and got an A in it.
An easy way to sum this up is that if you think you get an A or A- in Biology Honors, you should without a doubt, do it. If you are not sure whether you can do it or not, try taking Biology Honors anyway as I think you will be able to do it. If you are sure, however, you will get less than a B in Biology Honors, you should try taking regular Biology and then try to improve.
So, overall, try going for Biology Honors.
I apologize if this answer is not good. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I love to help others!
Have a good day!
Thank you so much!!! This actually helped a lot!!! I think I am going to take Biology Honors. Have a great day too, and thanks again @anthonytheboy
I think you can, and I hear its easier to take earlier @Shanban1607
@writer80 I am glad I was a help!
I haven’t taken the SAT II biology tests, but I’ve heard they’re much easier after completion of AP biology. With only honors under your belt, you probably have to study a lot of material you didn’t learn for the test. This is just what I’ve heard, though. If students at you school take it and do well after only honors, then I’d say there’s no problem with you taking it.
Yeah, I was a little apprehensive at first, but I also think I’ll look into the SAT II a little more, to see what some good study tools are, thank you for your help! @Shanban1607
Hello @Shanban1607 @anthonytheboy After carefully discussing the biology situation with my parents, it is decided it would be best for me to take regular biology, which in my state is regents biology and obviously is rigorous at its own pace. My school does not have weighted GPA and taking Biology Honors is a lot different and statistics at my school shows that freshman taking biology honors leads ultimately to grade deflation. Instead to further my interest in science, I am taking a rigorous elective called the Principles of Biomedical Sciences which is a four year course, with different classes. Biology Regents and Biomed are supposed to compliment each other nice. Thank you both for your thoughtful and helpful advice that helped me lead to the better decision in my high school career! 
Colleges would rather see a B in an honors class than an A in a regular class. I would go with honors, especially if you want to major in STEM
My school has a strict system with GPA, so that wouldn’t actually work @nyuhopeful44
And as I put before, the regents level is rigorous enough, while the highly advanced elective compliment its nicely. @nyuhopeful44
Thank you though
@writer80 That is alright. I am glad I was a help! But @nyuhopeful44 is right. It is true that colleges will like seeing a honors class with a B+ or higher better than a regular course with an A, but the choice is up to you. I hope you have fun in Biology!
I wish the best of luck to you!
Have a good day!
I took Honors Biology last year, and I know it was much harder than standard. I’d say it was closer to the difficulty of AP Bio than regular Bio. That being said, I think its a good idea to challenge yourself if you think you can handle it. If you think you can get a B+ or above, go for it.
My school’s statistics show most kids do poorly in honors biology as a freshman. I am already loaded with a very rigorous AP this year, as well as other commitments and plans to follow out through high school. In English, I get 100’s, obviously I will challenge myself when they start offering honors and AP in that subject. In Social Studies, I get 100’s and that is why I am taking AP World History, basically the same for every subject. I don’t like the way biology honors teaches, as its basically AP Bio coursework, in which that is why kids perform so low in it at my high school. That is not always the case, but I am trusting some pretty structured stats. Majority of the kids who go to Ivies, top-tier schools, or STEM schools take regular biology, in eleventh they do AP Chem, and AP Physics and AP Bio in twelfth. The kids gets C’s or lower, a rare B, and a once in a lifetime A in honors biology. Kids with regents biology take biomed, like as I said compliments the field of science. The Biomed path is really special. Stats at my school keep showing horrible grade deflation for kids who maks the jump to Biology Honors. I don’t doubt @nyuhopeful44, in fact I think she is absolutely correct, but judging by the grades and context of the program here at my school for kids to jump like that, I am so not risking getting a proven C in a class that really doesn’t help me in the long run, and I am certainly not suffering from grade deflation my freshman year of high school. I’d like to thank @anthonytheboy @LeopardFire @nyuhopeful44 @Shanban1607 for your advice. You guys are truly what this site is all about. Your devotion, your wisdom, it really matters, and I feel like people like you aren’t thanked enough for your polite demeanor on this site, and I wish all of you the best, please come to me with any questions, because this was some of the best work I have seen on this site! Great job!
@writer80 Glad to have been of service. 
Another fallacy that just gets repeated over and over on College Confidential. The Bio Subject Test does not require AP Bio. NO Subject Test requires an AP class. The Subject Test tests HS bio; the AP exams test college bio. I can’t speak specifically for bio, but the AP Chem and Physics classes cover the subject in much less breadth and more depth than the intro classes. Certainly one would want to prep for this or any test, and one may feel more comfortable with the material after an AP class, but it is not needed
Different schools/districts have different policies. I’ve seen a 0.5 bump, but I’ve also seen a 0.05 bump, and everything in between. At my own HS, no classes were weighted.