Hey everyone, I hope you find this well! I wanted to have y’alls thoughts on courses that a high school junior that is interested in medicine should take. Not really sure how threads work, but for my specific case, I wanted to know if you recommend taking AP Spanish next year or AP Comp Sci. To be frank, which one would be more meaningful to colleges? because I am not particularly interested in one more than the other, but I have maximized course offerings at my school so I have to decide from these.
Other background info: I have taken Spanish 1 (8th grade), 2 (Freshman), and 3(Sophomore), but do not have much of a firm grasp on it. Additionally, I have no background in Comp Sci.
Not sure if this is how it works but, feel free to answer my questions and put any other questions for your specific case.
Ideally, you would take, over the course of 8th-12th grade
-biology, chemistry, physics, perhaps honors, + ap biology and ap chemistry. If you can only take one make it AP chem.
-Then you’d have math through calculus (honors or AP) and perhaps a statistics class (regular is fine, it’s just to have a taste before you take biostats). Precalculus honors is the minimum you need.
AP English Language: you’ll need to take 2 English courses in college, AP English will prepare you well (if you skip Freshman composition in college thanks to that AP, take intercultural or interpersonal communication for one of the 2).
AP Foreign Language: taking AP Spanish will probably allow you to place straight into Spanish for Health professions. Fluency will be a major asset (some health centers only allow you to work there if you speak another language, because between tourists in distress and migrant workers with chronic illnesses, just speaking English can be a flaw wrt your usefulness).
(AP) US history and (AP) world history are probably good choices but taking those classes in college and complementary classes (in American studies, women’s studies, US history, cultural anthropology, sociology, anything that can allow you to understand human diversity better) would be just as fine. Note that med schools and the MCAT expect a class in psychology, a class in sociology, and a diversity focused class of your choice.
As a result, make HS course selections that either facilitate or prepare you for work in these areas.
Do you mean that there are absolutely no other classes that you can take, or no other APs?
If you have already taken a course load that your GC considers to be in the ‘most rigorous’ category (which does not mean every advanced class offered), then taking extra APs just to take them will not be particularly meaningful to college admissions. What would hurt you is taking an AP in a subject for which you are not prepared and not doing well in it.
Do any of the colleges you are considering say that they prefer 4 years of a FL? Some do.
Medical schools often do expect that students who skip frosh composition take advanced English composition/writing/rhetoric/literature beyond the AP credit. This is also often the case for other AP credit for pre-med courses. Note that they may also look down on repeating AP credit, since it looks like grade grubbing.
Some elite colleges don’t grant AP credit for Freshman Composition and no one can skip it. However, at colleges that do, the student ould still be expected to complete 2 classes. One of those can include communication, comparative literature, etc. Most colleges require a more advanced comp class in addition to that.