Dual-Enrollment vs APs

Applying to College
1

<p>Okay, well this is a bit different than dual-enrollment because I will be a full-time student at a community college while taking high school courses.</p>

<p>Hey guys! I'm a rising junior in Texas who's planning on transferring to a "middle college" which is kind of like an early college for juniors and seniors only. While I complete my district's general graduation core requirements (english, math, etc.), I can take community college courses towards my associate's degree. </p>

<p>I just want to know what you all feel about this. Here's some in-depth info about me as a student.</p>

<p>gpa: 3.81 UW 4.6875 W (end of sophomore year)
SAT: 2090 single sitting (will aim for 2250+)
Asian male
income: ~90,000 </p>

<p>I have taken NO APs as of now, school doesn't allow 'till junior year >.<</p>

<p>Currently, I am registered for 5 APs and 2 honors classes at my local school. If I choose to transfer to middle college, here is what my schedule would look like:</p>

<p>High school courses:
AP Calculus AB
AP Calculus BC
Honors English III
AP US History
Honors Spanish IV</p>

<p>College courses (fall):
Computer Fundamentals I
C++ Programming
Object-oriented Programming
Writing and Inquiry
Calculus II</p>

<p>College courses (Spring):
Java Programming
College Physics I
C# Programming
Calculus III</p>

<hr>

<p>30 Credits</p>

<p>Here is what my local high school schedule looks like if I choose NOT to transfer.</p>

<p>AP Calculus AB
AP Calculus BC
AP US History
AP English
AP Physics
Honors Chemistry
Honors Spanish IV</p>

<p>Which, in your opinion looks better?</p>

<p>Would it seem more appealing that I'm earning an associate's in science with a CS concentration, my intended major?</p>

<p>Also, although middle college does have SOME EC's, still not as many as my local school</p>

<p>Here are some colleges I'm planning on applying to:</p>

<p>Carnegie Mellon (most likely ED, SCS)
UC Berkeley (EECS)
UC San Diego
UC Santa Barbara
UT-Austin
U Washington (Not going unless directly admitted into CS)
Georgia Tech
U Michigan
U Illinois
Harvey Mudd
Caltech (legacy here)
and maybe 1 or 2 ivies if I can get my GPA up to at least 3.9</p>

<p>IMPORTANT***** I'm NOT applying as a transfer to any of the above colleges except for Austin. So I'm pretty much a student who will enter college as a freshman with an associate's degree.</p>

<p>So overall question: what do you think would look better? traditional high school or non-traditional middle college?</p>

2

<p>IMO, traditional HS, as AP tests are standardized, while colleges are forced to evaluate DE courses which will vary from school to school.</p>

3

<p>True, but in that perspective, how is it guaranteed that all AP courses are standardized as well? At my school, AP Calculus is a joke while it’s comparable to math 55 at our rival school. Also, I’m taliking specifically about the classes themselves, not exams or exam credit.</p>

4

<p>I think going to middle college would be a great opportunity, and I envy you greatly for that. It would really show that you’re getting the best education possible. On a side note … what do your extracurriculars look like? An application to any highly selective college (such as a few you are interested in) won’t be complete without doing what you love to do.</p>

<p>The high school/college schedule looks like it would be MUCH more time-consuming, so make sure that 1. you can handle it and 2. it doesn’t take over your life. It is more impressive, but you have to ask yourself if you’re ready to pile on so much more to your schedule. Have you taken any college-level courses in the past? I know you said that you haven’t taken any APs (not your fault at all), and I’m just worried that you might be overloading.</p>

<p>One more thing - Why would yo take both Calc AB and BC? It would be much better to just take BC (it has an AB subscore). Basically BC has all of the material of AB and then some. It would be pointless to take both courses. And also, how do you plan on taking Calculus II in the fall concurrently with Calc BC? I assume yo would need to have some previous knowledge to succeed in Calc II?</p>

<p>Overall, make sure that you will truly be able to handle all of the work. Don’t make it too much of a struggle for you. If you think you can, totally strive for that Assoc. degree. If you can’t do that, that PERFECTLY fine. Just by taking college classes you’re above average - you don’t necessarily have to finish some degree.</p>

5

<p>Teachers can make or break an AP class, I will grant you that. If the students are poorly prepared for an AP exam, as shown by the results, that will come into play somewhere, either in the school profile or the Secondary School Report.</p>

<p>I highly doubt that any HS Calc course in the world is comparable to Math 55.</p>

6

<p>Thanks for the reply! I do understand that it requires a lot of time and commitment. I am in fact sacrificing a few of my ECs. But in return I get a more promising schedule as well as a higher weighted/unweighted gpa if I were to succeed in these courses. </p>

<p>Our district requires that we take both AB and BC, but since I had previously self studied for and passed the AB exam (I took it just for fun :P), I’m also taking calc II so I can take calc III in spring (my goal since freshman year).</p>

7

<p>^Also CB doesn’t allow you to take the AP Cal AB AND BC exam in the same year.</p>

8

<p>How many ECs are you sacrificing? How may will you still be in? Admissions officers will want to see you pursuing things you enjoy outside of the classroom. GPA isn’t the most important thing on your application; it’s merely a component.
Nevermind about the calculus then … If you think you’ll be able to do it, go for it :)</p>

9

<p>College calculus 2 and the part of AP calculus BC that is not AB are generally considered duplicates of each other, so there should be no need to take both. If you did well in the AB exam, and can easily do the college’s old calculus 1 exams, then you can drop the AP calculus in high school and go on to college calculus 2 and 3.</p>

<p>If you take physics at the college, be sure to take the calculus-based one suitable for physics and engineering majors for maximum transfer subject credit.</p>

<p>It looks like you want to take many CS courses. Be aware that lower division CS courses vary significantly across colleges, so the subject you may get from transferring CS courses may not be that good at many schools. Your local CC in Texas probably matches one or more Texas public universities the best in terms of course equivalency.</p>

<p>You also should not need three introductory programming courses in three somewhat similar computer languages.</p>

<p>If you do the middle college option, then what is probably a more sensible schedule would be:</p>

<p>HS honors English 3
HS honors Spanish 4
HS AP US history or college US history
college calculus 2 and 3
college physics 1 and 2 (calculus-based)
college CS (C++ or Java, object oriented programming, optional)</p>

<p>Note: this assumes that you have taken high school biology, chemistry, and physics. These are often recommended prerequisites for college courses in those subjects, which would be harder if you have not had them at the high school level.</p>

10

<p>Are you planning to take 10 classes per semester if you choose the college option between high school and college? If so that is way too much. Or is it that you will only be taking college courses if you choose the college option? If this is correct then it is too focused on computer science.</p>

11

<p>AP Calc BC includes Calc AB already. If your school requires you to take both (or AB before BC), then your school may be dividing the AP Calc BC into 2 sequential courses that you need to complete AB in one year and the rest of BC in another year. Many school just have the whole BC in one year and does not require taking AB first. It is just like an accelerated course.</p>