<p>I'm a freshmen in high school and I'm in a wealthy school and I plan on majoring in Trombone Performance but I need help picking classes for the rest of high school. We take 4 core in Science, English, Math, and History which I plan on taking at the highest level (AP, honors), 2 LOTE, 1 Fine art, 1 Speech/Health, 1 PE. To be considered distinguished I would need to take a tech course and another LOTE course which limits me. Should I take more music related courses like humanities and theory classes instead of the distinguished stuff? Also I will take H Bio, H Chem, AP Physics, and one other class, should I pick Enviromental Science or another one of the ones I took before. Any other recommended classes would be nice. My school pretty much has everything too plus recommendations of good extracurriculars would be nice.</p>
<p>What is LOTE?</p>
<p>I would just say that it is important to live your high school life and not base what you study or what you do for an extracurricular on future college admissions. If you follow your interests and work hard, things will fall into place and you will end up at the right school.</p>
<p>I would also say that many musicians actually take less “distinguished” classes, or fewer of them, so as to be able to focus on music, practice, rehearsing and performance. Some can do it all, but it’s tough and not always necessary.</p>
<p>In reality, many colleges appreciate dedication to a particular “passion” or interest or talent, so taking classes in humanities, theory and so on can actually work well. What do you want to study? What classes really interest you? And how stressed or overloaded do you get with your current schedule?</p>
<p>Are you planning on conservatory? Then making sure you have enough time for music is important. Do you play in a youth orchestra? Study privately?</p>
<p>My D did the all AP route and Dual enrollment. She is now in a conservatory program. I would say as a freshman, focus on getting a good education first and foremost. Next, work on your music. You want to have as many options as you can in 4 years. A good academic background can help open up more options, especially if you do not choose the conservatory route. To get into traditional schools, you must meet the minimum requirements for the university regardless of how talented you are. Keep you options open and get a good high school education. And have some fun!!!</p>
<p>LOTE= Language Other Than English (What we used to call “Foreign Language”, but since so many kids now speak more than one language at home, it’s been changed to a more pertinent term)</p>
<p>Take whatever you can that would help you fulfill your Gen Eds in college. My D attended a conservatory and was able to fill all of her required Gen Eds with her AP courses and dual credit courses. (Get at least a score of 4 on your AP exams to be sure of getting credit). You won’t shorten your 4 years, but you’ll lighten your load a bit and have more time to practice!</p>
<p>My kids found AP Music Theory to be helpful for college music study, even if their schools did not accept the credit. </p>
<p>@megpmom I agree. Music theory is good. My D’s school did not accept her AP or DE. Frustrating since at some of the schools were she was accepted she would be a “sophomore”, but due to her rigorous HS courses and music lessons, she is well prepared to deal with her current college courses and balance practice time. So it all worked out.</p>
<p>Definitely take at least 3 LOTE courses and a fourth year will only help especially if it is a dual enrollment/or AP one. It will help fulfill a general education requirement at the college level and make you a stronger candidate for admission should you chose a conservatory within a university.</p>
<p>I guess I disagree. If you have a genuine interest in music, top colleges may very well be fine with you sacrificing some other classes for the sake of music theory etc. In fact, you can explain your choices in a note that goes with the guidance counselor recommendation that goes with the transcript to colleges in senior year. Also, try to participate in music outside of school, summer programs and so on, and take private lessons with a good teacher.</p>
<p>I might advise to skip rigorous AP type classes if OP was a Jr or Sr in HS. But he/she stated they were a Freshman. 4 years is a long time and many things can happen to change your focus. A good education is never wasted.</p>
<p>Good point. It depends on the scheduling at the school. We have a small high school and taking anything in music meant getting off the track of all AP’s. Our kids took the AP’s they were interested in. One daughter even had to drop back a year and a level in math to take theory. She doesn’t regret it, but if she had wanted to go into a math field later it would have been a problem.</p>
<p>I guess sometimes our attitude, since the school wasn’t that inspiring, was that free time at home was the real education 
The less homework from school, the more educated they became!!</p>
<p>Nothing beats family time. Empty nest not so much fun. :(</p>