Hey CC,
I am currently in 10th Grade and if all goes well I will have finished all my APs, Classes, SATs, Subject Tests, etc… by the end of Junior Year.
This means that I wouldn’t have any courses worth taking Senior Year (and I’d have already fulfilled all the needed credits for Graduation).
What I do plan to do however, during Senior Year, is to do regular Senior Year Activities (Applying to College). However, instead of doing classes, sports, and others. I would actually be in a University doing Research (Preferably relating to Neuroscience) for a full year (from Summer 2018 to Summer 2019). I’m class of 2019.
As per my career/major in College: I plan to become a Neurosurgeon and pursue Neuroscience.
So, My Question is, Would I be able to go through Senior Year without Having to take any Classes So that I could focus FULL TIME on Research and College APPS?
Any Help Would be Greatly Appreciated!
TL;DR Want to do Research, Met Grad req., can I not have any classes Senior Year?
Will your school allow you to do this? You should be asking your guidance counselor about that. (It effectively amounts to graduating a year early, which is also a decision you’d want to discuss with your parents.)
Will you be able to get a full-time neuroscience research position as a high school student? If you have a concrete plan in this area, that’s great. If you don’t, then I have to say that my instincts are that this is not so doable. You definitely need to look into the feasibility of this plan (eg, which university? through what research program? etc).
Is it a good idea to do this? I’m not as sure here, as I’m only a high school student myself. However, if you are looking to apply to highly competitive schools, my sense is that they would prefer you to continue to challenge yourself through a variety of academics (not just neuroscience research). If you will have taken all the rigorous courses your school offers, would dual enrollment at a nearby college/community college be possible? That would allow you to continue taking a variety of subjects, and it is likely you would also be able to do research on the side as an extracurricular.
Lastly – nearly every high school student manages to juggle class, extracurriculars, and college apps in their senior year. Although the process is long and involved, I really don’t think you need to take a year off school to focus on your applications.
Second student (senior) here.
Two friends of mine who are GENIUSES (MIT applicants who finished Calc by 10th grade) are choosing to graduate early and enroll in the local college for their spring semester to take higher level classes before heading off to college. This could be a viable option?
Agree with the above; although impressive, a year off of school may not be ideal to top colleges, unless you’re accomplishing MAJOR leaps and bounds in the field of neuroscience, and have a definite, concrete plan.
Are you sure that your school doesn’t have anything left to offer? Have you taken every AP available? Senior year is supposed to be your most rigorous; I’m taking 6 AP classes, in addition to an almost full-time job and a large role in my schools theater production, and I’m still behind most kids at my school, with top colleges being a pipe dream at best. A friend of mine takes a train after school three times a day to do research in the city, in addition to being Salutatorian with 6 AP Classes, and leadership in many clubs (bless her heart). It’s definitely possible to balance it all - even expected.
Talk it over with your guidance counselor to see if its possible, and then call up the schools that you’d most like to attend and get their two-cents; that would be my advice.
Here are my current Courses (the ones that say college are at the CC):
Spring
College Biology Equiv. to AP Bio
College English Equiv. to AP Lit
College History 17A Equiv to APUSH (1/2)
Fall & Spring
AP Calc BC
AP GOV/ECON
Academic Decathlon
Spanish 3
Chemistry 1
English 2
Athletics
Orchestra
Next Year as a Junior (2017-18), here is what my schedule would look like
Fall
College Chemistry Equiv. to AP Chem
College Physics Equiv. to AP Physics
College Multivariable Calculus
Spring
College History 17B Equiv to APUSH (2/2)
College Philosophy
Fall and Spring
Academic Decathlon
AP Spanish
AP English Composition
AP World History
Orchestra
Senior Year: Neuroscience Research
My College Counselor has approved me for Graduating Early, However, I feel as if this is a better option because it enables me to have some research in regards to Neuroscience (I do have a position at a nearby UC). Additionally, even if I opted for Dual Enrollment Full Time, there would not be any courses worth taking other than Differential Equations Senior Year.
@augustuscaesar27 I definitely will talk to my counselor and the reason I am not opting to do the Research as a simple extracurricular is because I want to envelop full time into the research which includes reading, writing, studying, and executing whatever I have planned for the project which will take far more time, energy, and dedication than that of a simple extracurricular research opportunity.
@natmadison
It’s awesome that your friends finished Calc in Tenth Grade. The Reason I’m opting not to take any classes is because then I would have ten hours more, everyday, to do the research. Additionally, perhaps I could take classes but they wouldn’t be more difficult than the ones I’ve taken before.
I think you should make sure you have a very concrete plan for your research before you commit to this. That is, plan out exactly what you’re researching, the timeline for your research, how much time you’ll need to spend on each phase (in hours and in days), and so on. I’ll be honest, I can’t quite imagine a high school neuroscience research project on which you could spend ten hours a day, or forty hours a week, for ten months straight (I typically spend about ~2000 hours in school per year). Maybe this is a flaw in my imagination, but you should make absolutely sure that you’ll really need all that time for your project.
Talk to your guidance counselor but I would classify this plan as graduating HS early and taking a gap year to do research. I would be sure to have your research opportunity firmly locked in before you decide to follow this plan. I would also lock in your HS teacher recommendations before you leave the school.
IF you graduate early and enroll at ANY college for ANY classes, you CAN’T apply to colleges as a Freshman- only as a transfer student, which will GREATLY reduce your chances of acceptances at top tier private colleges.
It would be FAR better to take extension classes in college, while still enrolled in HS, IF your HS will allow that and give you credit. OR apply to colleges that accept HS Jrs that are ready for college- such as USC.
It is an EXTREMELY RARE 17 year old who can land yearlong ,meaningful research positions that will actually add to a overall resume.
@happy1 Ok, I will definitely get my recommendation letters during Junior Year (Next Year).
@menloparkmom I won’t be Officially Graduating Early, I would be doing my full four Years, however, the last year, I simply wouldn’t be taking any classes. Additionally, I am aware that it is rare for a High Schooler to land a meaningful research position, however, I do have an available backup for Research.
Don’t get the actual letters, just arrange which teachers agree to write them in advance.
I don’t know if a school will allow you to not take classes but continue to be an enrolled student. Often once you complete all of the requirements you will graduate.
I would seek out your guidance counselor’s assistance with this plan.
And I agree that it will be very difficult to get a meaningful research position (doing independent research isn’t a great idea IMO). I
Maybe I am misreading or misunderstanding but it simply does not make sense that you would be completing a full four years of high school while not taking any classes for one of them. Yes you may have already finished your requirements, but you did that in three years not four. There’s no reason for your high school to say you’re enrolled if you’re not taking any classes. To me this seems like you’re trying to cheat the system. If you will be doing undergraduate research at a university why should you be considered a high school senior?
Obviously you are an impressive candidate if this is an option you are considering, but I don’t think it would be yur best choice. It sounds like you have taken most of the classes you need to prepare you to be a neuroscience major not just all the courses available at your school. I would say take some classes you normally wouldn’t. If you pursue neuroscience you may never have the option to take classes like history or art again. You say you are already doing research part time so continue to do research part time. I think it is more impressive to have the part time research along with classes. It would show you are broadening your knowledge while still focusing on your dreams.
Also, as a user or two have pointed out, you do not need to take off from school to focus on college applications. High school senior years, even those applying and accepted to top tier schools, balance school and applications. Attending a class or two will not jeopardize the quality of your essays. Maybe take a few classes at your high school and a few at a local college? I’ve known kids who do that in order to take more challenging courses. I think you have more and better options than what you think.
Agreed with @CathJR, what you want to do doesn’t really seem possible.
If you aren’t enrolled in any classes, then you aren’t a HS Senior. Even if you were able to take no classes, you’d still have to show up to school every day, no?
@CathJR @natmadison
Ok then, I will definitely ask my Counselor, and If I must take a few courses they will most likely be Differential Equations, Biochemistry, Neuroscience, and Physics 2 (All at the CC). The only two courses that would be possibly worth taking from my school would be Academic Decathlon and Orchestra.
I’ll definitely update the thread once I’ve talked to my counselor.
My advise is you take the 4 CC classes and the 2 at your HS.
Together they will be FAR more impressive to college admissions officers than only 3 years of grades and a year off for research , for the very important reason that you wont have done the research long enough to get a VERY STRONG LOR from who ever you are doing the research with for college admissions purposes.
You will have PLENTY to time to do research in college.
I had a similar dilemma as I was entering the junior/senior years with whether or not to do research or take classes at a nearby university except I had this problem for math, not neuroscience.I would probably go the route of doing community college courses and neuroscience on the side if possible. my dad gave me some good advice during this time: your skill level going into your neuroscience class (very likely) isn’t going to be even close to what it’ll be in college. i’ve always been good at math, but I knew that with even college classes (advanced calc, elem linear alg, calc of several variables), my research wouldn’t probably get anywhere, which is why I chose to strengthen my foundation and keep enhancing the spike.
I think right now, it’d be best for you to keep expanding your base so your research can be more meaningful in the future. of course, maybe lessening your workload to do that research (research is very useful for showing your passion which colleges love to see!) would be feasible (our class offers research/internship blocks for people who want them) but forgoing academics altogether would not be the best move in my opinion.
anyway, I’m still a high schooler, and I hope you consider my thoughts, and best of luck in the future!
If you do decide to finish HS early, then go ahead and do just that: graduate in three years. Then take a gap year to focus on your reasearch project while applying to college. Provided you don’t earn any college credits in that year, you will maintain your freshman applicant status.
One difficulty I can think of with the gap year plan would be if you can’t get permission to work in the lab as an unpaid volunteer who is not a student at the institution where the lab is located. Sometimes only people with formal affilliations are allowed in a lab because of safety and insurance concerns.
