<p>My son is a junior, and as of the end of this school year will have gone as far as he can in math (Calc BC) at his HS. He wants to take multivariable calculus in his senior year. We've looked into local colleges, but there's nothing nearby that his schedule would accommodate. Any opinions on the value of an online course such as available at MIT or Stanford? Such as, value to an admissions officer?</p>
<p>Question: is your son really interested in taking it or is he doing it just to impress the admissions?</p>
<p>Funny, I asked him the same question. His senior schedule is going to be very full. But he says that he would really like to find a way to take multivariable. He is a math fan. I’m just trying to figure out a way to get the most “bang for the buck”. If he is going to take it anyway, I’d like it to be of value to his college future, if possible. I was hoping to see if any CC families have had experience with this matter.</p>
<p>We were lucky that enough kids were available my son’s senior year to offer the course in the high school, but yes colleges will be happy to see him continue on in math. And most kids who like math will be happy to take the next course and it will benefit them not to skip a year of math.</p>
<p>Oh, that makes sense. Sorry I don’t have first-hand experience with any online math courses - my offspring were anti-math (LOL!). A friend’s math whiz kid took a few Stanford online classes and really enjoyed them. Do not know whether it helped with the admissions. IMHO, a really bright kid with a specific area of interest and a lot of related activities (e.g., math olympiads) will be viewed positively by admissions no matter which online class he takes.</p>
<p>The EPGY courses are well known by adcoms at most top universities and colleges. If your son wants to take MVCalc through EPGY, by all means encourage him to do so.</p>
<p>Thanks, Marite. I had never heard of the EPGY courses. My son went to CTY camp and has taken a CTY online course before. The EPGY prices may be more reasonable. EPGY also looks to be geared to the university level.</p>
<p>Our school district was willing to foot the bill for the EPGY MV class since they were not able offer it themselves. I was glad, I felt they had an obligation to continue to support their students.</p>
<p>Interesting idea, DeniseC. I will put out some feelers to the district about monetary support. I won’t hold my breath, though. Times are tough. And thanks, mathmom and BunsenBurner for your input. This is our oldest child. .so all of the precollege and college issues are new to us. It’s eyeopening!</p>
<p>My son’s friend was in a similar situation – took AP Calc BC as a sophomore (got a 5) and then Differential Equations as a junior. That exhausted the entire math sequence at his high school. Since he was required to take 4 years of math as a high school graduation requirement, he took Stanford’s Multivariable Calculus course on-line as a senior.</p>
<p>He thought the course was hard but fair. He learned a lot. He also got into nearly every school he applied to, including Stanford, Notre Dame, and some Ivies.</p>
<p>We’re in the same boat and I’d like to hear any opinions about CTY versus EPGY. We were leaning toward CTY based on a couple of student experiences with poor tutor feedback from EPGY. BTW, the next course in the sequence with CTY is linear algebra, which must be taken before MV. EPGY goes straight to MV.</p>
<p>To answer to OP’s question, my D decided to take an online class even though she can (and will) take AP Stat. So we decided it was worth it. I think admin officers are impressed when kids go above and beyond, even though they take into account the offerings at different schools. If he’s aiming high, I would say do it.</p>
<p>Tadah:</p>
<p>I believe that the CTY courses make use of EPGY materials but supply their own tutors. I do not know whether there is much of a difference in cost. EPGY, I believe, has a larger range of courses going well beyond MVCalc and LA. I have heard somewhat mixed info about the EPGY tutors. Some are truly excellent, others not always responsive. I don’t have personal experience about either types of courses, but I know that many college-bound students who did not take math at their local uni or community college have taken EPGY.</p>
<p>MV calculus is the next “usual” step in the sequence, but deeper investigation into other math subjects may be more interesting. (The EPGY MV course is quite good and well known to adcoms.)</p>
<p>The AMC 12, AIME and USAMO exam series provide interesting, challenging work that is well known to college admission committees.</p>
<p>[What’s</a> What for the MAA American Mathematics Competitions – AMC 8, AMC 10, AMC 12, AIME, USAMO, MOSP, IMO](<a href=“http://www.unl.edu/amc/whatswhat.shtml]What’s”>http://www.unl.edu/amc/whatswhat.shtml)</p>
<p>Our son used UIUC NetMath for MV and Linear Algebra. Good tough program but you have to learn how to program in Mathematica and you need a Mathematica license.</p>