AP Calc and Econ.
No college will expect her to double up on math, so while stats would be useful, it will be less critical than calc. Econ is usually a social studies class so a logical choice given her interests.
Both these classes will be required in college for someone doing business/economics and they may also be classes that require a minimum grade to move on in the major. It will help her to have had exposure beforehand.
Which course schedule does your daughter prefer ?
If no clear preference, then taking all 3 AP courses may be the best schedule as it would help with admissions (most rigorous course schedule) & colleges & universities know what they are getting in terms of student preparation = which is the main reason for the creation of the AP curriculum.
The original main reason for AP courses came from what AP stood for: âAdvanced Placementâ. In other words, it was a convenient way for colleges to give placement into higher level courses for new frosh who studied college frosh level material in high school and showed sufficient knowledge of such, without having to have their own placement tests.
Thank you everyone for your comments, they have all been valuable.
I want to clarify that if my daughter takes AP Statistics and AP Economics but elects not to take AP Calculus, she would still take Calculus ⊠just not AP Calculus.
I think the option of AP Calculus and AP Statistics but no AP Economics is out of the running.
The options at this point are:
AP Calculus AB
AP Economics
Regular Non- AP Calculus
AP Economics
AP Statistics
AP Calculus AB
AP Economic
AP Statistics
Regarding my daughterâs opinion, she has strong opinions about many decisions regarding her education and future academic and career plans. But she admits that she doesnât feel like she knows enough about the ramifications of taking or not taking these 3 APs related to college admissions, so she says that she will go with the schedule that I recommend.
If she has a concern, it is that at her particular school, AP Economics is considered âthe hardestâ class that is offered and she thinks taking all 3 APs (along with AP Biology, 3 other difficult classes, sports, other ECs and college applications) will be too much. So at this point, I am leaning toward option #1 AP Calculus AB and AP Economics.
Is AP Econ considered âhardestâ by the students or the guidance counselors? A major consideration should be whether the GC will check off the âmost rigorous boxâ for your daughterâs courses. If the GC will regardless of which option she chooses, fhat takes some of the pressure off the decision.
However, I believe AP Calculus is the âmust haveâ of the 3 - therefore, I would eliminate your middle option.
That is an insightful question âŠ. I shall find out!
Also, the academic strength of students choosing the course matters in how hard it is perceived by students. A typical example is that AP calculus BC tests have a much higher percentage of 5 scores than AP calculus AB or AP statistics tests. That does not mean that AP calculus BC is easier than AP calculus AB or AP statistics â it is an indicator that stronger-in-math students choose AP calculus BC, though they may consider it easier than the students in AP statistics consider that class.
Very true
I believe that your understanding, while reasonable, is not correct.
I suggest a quick google search. The results of my google search indicate two reasons, one of which was to make sure high school students were prepared for college.
Care to link the results?
My search found this: https://www.oakparkusd.org/cms/lib/CA01000794/Centricity/Domain/295/APUSH/AP_History_history.pdf
You two know what Iâm going to say without having to say it right?
In case there in uncertainty, I will state that @ucbalumnus and @Publisher need to take it to PM if they want to continue discussing the history of AP.
I would wait for test score. If sheâs thinking Wharton, Ross or Stern or similar then sheâll need a 1500 SAT. I would do option 3 at that point.
If sheâs looking just below that level then option 1 would be OK.
Although I find the ancient history of the AP exam fascinating, the point made up-thread is relevant. It doesnât matter what the kids or teachers say about the local âweightingâ of various classes. No Adcom is going to be convinced that AP Environmental is as rigorous as AP Chemistry or Physics, and no Adcom is going to be convinced that AP Stats or Econ is as rigorous as BC Calc. Tough teacher, lots of reading, tons of material to absorb⊠they know whatâs covered in each AP class.
Having said that, itâs important not to over-reach. Your D should take the load she can handle comfortably and still sleep, eat, be a teenager. So If it were me, Iâd be taking a hard look at dumping both Statistics and Econ, and having my kid focus on knocking the cover off the ball in the classes sheâs taking. Plenty of people apply to top business programs without statistics, and plenty of people major in econ without ever having taken an econ course in HS. Iâd encourage my kid to focus on the basics-- sheâs taking AP Bio, an English seminar, lots of other things for her to do senior year besides load up on stats and econâŠ
I conduct alumni interviews for Harvard and canât tell you the last student I met with who hadnât taken AP Calculus if her school offered it. And that includes prospective English concentrators. Your daughter is already at a disadvantage applying to T20s as a prospective business major if she doesnât have an AB score to submit. Taking regular calculus is not an option.
I saw AP biology, English, journalism and a history elective. What does that mean? That she is taking 1 AP besides what is on the table here? If thatâs the case, I would suggest all 3 APs, but Stat is the one to drop if she can only take 2 of them. Neither Macro/Micro or Stat is âhardâ in terms of the exam or the work intensity.
Either way, to piggyback what others have said, she needs to take an AP social studies her senior year.