Hello, I am a Canadian high student about to enter grade 12. I am planning on applying to business programs in the US and have 3 questions about course rigor.
- In Canada, grades 12 only have to take 6 courses of their choice because Canadian universities look at the top 6 marks from grade 12 courses. However, I know that American universities look at students' overall averages, and I also know that american high school students take more than 6 courses in grade 12. Therefore, I was wondering if I should take more than 6 courses (Maximum of 8 courses).
- Also I had a question about my course selection. In my high school, there are very few business related courses, and as a result I have to take non-business related courses. After taking english, math and other important courses, I still have to choose 2 more courses. I was wondering if I should take science courses like physics, chem, bio, or take eaiser courses like family studies, or antro. (I am comfortable with taking science courses as I took them all throughout high school and did well in them). I know you might think that there are no "Easier" courses, but for me, science courses take more effort and time to get a higher mark than courses like antro.
- Lastly, my high school offers 5 ap courses, 3 of them being science courses (bio, chem, physics). The other two are calc and stats. I already took calc in grade 11, and I am contemplating of whether or not I should take ap stats, and the science ap courses if I do take science courses. What's keeping me from taking ap stats is that recently, a couple university students whom I am friends with told me that Canadian universities don't give a lot of credit for taking ap courses. They said that getting a 99 in normal stats course is better than a 95 in ap stats. As a result, my question is how do American universities value ap courses? Also whether or not if I should take ap stats and other ap science courses (Depending on your responce for question 2).
In order to help answer my questions, here are a list of business schools I am planning on applying to:
New York University (Stern)
University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
University of Michigan (Ann Arbor)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan)
University of California - Berkeley
Georgetown University (McDonough)
University of Texas - Austin
For all those of you who have read until now, I sincerely appreciate the time you have given to read my post, and please help me by giving some guidence and insight to my problem.
Thank you very much.
At some of those schools you are going to be competing for admission against some very serious students who took a full and demanding load. The recommendation is that you take the most rigorous coursework available to you, lest your application look anemic.
AP courses are generally considered to be rigorous and you can take the AP test to show how well you did.
Most American high schools don’t have many (or any) business courses so you aren’t at a disadvantage there. Most students will have taken chem, bio and physics and you would also be expected to have taken these. Indeed anthro will be considered an ‘easy’ class - and it may look like slacking if you take it instead of one of the core sciences.
As for the schools you are considering for business, they are as you know among the most selective in the US. You will need more than excellent grades and test scores to get admitted to most of them. You will also need to have taken the most rigorous class schedule available to you. And, in your ECs, you will need to have demonstrated a level of enterprise, innovativeness, and business acumen that would be considered unusual and outstanding among high school students.
This depends on the school; I took 5 as a senior, and at my school it was/is physically impossible to take more than 6.
Your GC (or whatever administrator fills out the GC form) rates your schedule. If 6 earns you a “most rigorous,” you don’t really need additional courses unless you want. Don’t take more than 6 courses in order to game the system; it won’t work. If you have an interest in a 7th course, and have the time to devote to it without risking your grades/EC’s/college applications, go for it. But, it’s not mandatory.
Yes there are 
. I know it, you know it, and colleges know it. You want to take the hardest schedule you can handle without impacting your grades.
They value them more than regular college prep courses.
An “A” is an “A.” There is little distinction between a 95 and a 99.
So are you guys saying that to universities, a 95(A) in ap stats is better than a 99(A) in normal stats? Since an “A” is an “A”, and an “A” in an ap course is more diffcult to achieve? (But please keep in mind that american universities don’t convert canadian students’ grades into a GPA format. They directly use the mark (out of 100) and compare with other international students. Thanks!
Also I know you guys recommened taking the more diffcult science courses, but will it be ok if I only take chem and physics (I can get a high mark in bio, but I really dislike the subject and I have to invest a lot of time into the course). Also in terms of taking ap courses, if I recieve an A in an ap course compared to an A in a normal course, how much advantage will that give me? I know it’s very diffcult to answer this question but please answer it in any way you can. Thanks
No, I’m saying that an “A” is an “A.” There is little distinction between a 95 and a 99. However, for course rigor, AP Stats is better than regular stats.
It is better to receive an A in an AP course, but it doesn’t give you an advantage; for many colleges, that’s the expectation.
Check with the colleges in question. For most, it will be fine; for tippy top colleges, they may prefer a year of bio, chem, and physics.