So I am going to be a junior this year and I am was going to take 3 APs, AP CALC,CHEM, and ENGLISH. But the teacher at my school is notorious for not teaching ap chem well, and i see that we have a test on the first day of school. I am also not a science/math person (I’m looking to go into business) and seeing that I will have a hard time with both calc and chem, I am worried about my gpa. I want to get into a highly selective school (Stanford,IVYs) and I was wondering if it would hurt my chances if i just took regular chem and AP macro instead of AP chem (and saved my gpa). (or do i not even have to take 4 years of science??)
For the tippy top schools, you should really take 4 years of science. But, whether you take AP macro and regular chemistry or AP chemistry and regular economics doesn’t matter. If you are interested in a field that is not science/math, then don’t worry about taking AP’s in it.
If you have your science requirements fulfilled I would take AP Calc and AP English. Those will both serve you well as a business major. AP Chem will not be as beneficial.
The odds at all of those schools are slim as they cannot take all of the qualified candidates so I’d take the schedule that makes sense for you – I think AP macro sounds like it would work well. And most very selective colleges want to see 4 years of science but you should check the recommendations/requirements of each school you plan to apply to.
If you want to apply to the best schools, you must take the most rigorous courses possible. This includes not taking any regular classes when AP’s are offered.