<p>When looking at your college transcripts, what do admissions officers think of the electives you take? Will they care as much as they do for your solid classes (math, science, social studies, English)?</p>
<p>Keep in mind that the admissions officer doesn’t know which of your courses were required by the curriculum and which you chose as electives. They can make guesses, but there’s typically no indication on the transcript. What they’re doing more than anything is counting units of subjects. 4 math? Good. 4 science? Great. Just 2 language? What did you do instead of another 2 of language? 1 basketweaving and 1 woodshop? Oh dear.</p>
<p>If you did take basketweaving and woodshop, what did those classes entail? Sometimes those are considerably more demanding than the casual observer might suspect, and sometimes those could be of critical importance for your college goals: particularly for a student in the visual arts.</p>
<p>I doubt they make that much of a difference but they can show focus. For example, taking chorus if your main ECs are band and an a capella group or want to major in music makes a lot of sense, and same with taking a current events class if you’re a potential poli sci or ir major. Because colleges don’t care that much, you should really choose your electives based on your interests and focus on your main classes when it comes to admissions.</p>
<p>Taking 1 or 2 “fun” electives won’t kill you in terms of college admissions. If all your core courses are honors/AP’s, you’re looking good.</p>
<p>Most colleges consider core classes much more important. However, if one of your electives is in a subject you list as your intended major/EC (art, music…) then colleges may pay more attention to them.</p>