<p>
[quote]
If your courseload is generally tough, take the easier class and get the A. Aim for the tougher classes as a general rule, but don't ruin your perfect unweighted GPA to take that extra AP.
[/quote]
top colleges don't necessarily like to see kids who get straight As in regular classes. They want to see kids taking the hardest course load possible.</p>
<p>I'd rather do the AP and get a B. At least then I'm actually learning something.</p>
<p>Just my preference though.</p>
<p>My observation: if you are applying to public flagships, watch your rank carefully. A lot of decisions are made strictly by the numbers, including eligibility for some scholarships. As some posters have pointed out, not all schools calculate rank using a weighted system. In this town, the public schools do not give any weight whatever--gpa or rank--for AP and honors classes.</p>
<p>An anecdote about a private university: one of the vals (4.0 and varsity athlete) at one of our publics was denied admission to the same private univ. that my son attends on a very large merit scholarship. My son's grades were not perfect, but his schedule was full of AP/honors/university classes, while the val took the easy route in almost every case. They noticed. </p>
<p>tokenadult, I just don't think there is an easy answer here. It really does depend on where you are applying and what your school's profile says about what other students are doing.</p>
<p>I agree with those students above who take the harder class because they feel it is intrinsically more worthwhile and will be better preparation for college. My 10th grader has just made the same decision with regard to her math curriculum; she has decided to stay with the honors version of algebra II although she managed only a B, even though she could drop to non-honors second semester if she wished. I'm proud of her, and I think she made the right decision.</p>
<p>Always take the toughest classes if you're interested in an Ivy-caliber school.</p>
<p>i think it is important to admissions committees that you show improvement. Last year at my high scool AP Chemistry and AP Calculus were both split into two parts. I got B's in both for my first semester (I have block scheduling. I only take around 4 classes a semester), and A's in both in my second semester. I also managed to get 5's on both the AP exams. I got into my ED school and I think it's because I IMPROVED and I challenged myself. My classes definitely were not easy last yer.</p>
<p>"Always take the toughest classes if you're interested in an Ivy-caliber school."</p>
<p>This is good advice only for the absolute top students. Take the toughest classes if-and-only-if you can get high grades in them. If you take the hardest possible classes, hoping to get into Harvard, and do poorly, you may be sabotaging yourself for other "lesser" colleges.</p>
<p>People need to be honest with themselves and think strategically. Harvard and MIT and wherever may want you to take the hardest courseload possible, but the vast majority of people are not going to end up at Harvard and MIT and wherever. That vast majority should take a rigorous curriculum, of course, but one that also allows them to earn very high grades.</p>
<p>Let's say, for example, your high school offers Chemistry, Honors Chemistry, and AP Chemistry. You need to pick one to take in 11th grade. If you are not very good in science, you are much better off taking the Honors Chemistry and earning an A than taking the AP Chemistry and getting a B and a 3 on the AP exam. You can always show your rigor by taking AP Biology in the 12th grade, a lot of schools will never even see that 12th grade grade or AP score.</p>
<p>This goes for people trying to accelerate as well. Pushing yourself to take classes you aren't ready for, then ending up with a low grade (i.e. not an A), isn't a good strategy.</p>
<p>"Take the toughest classes if-and-only-if you can get high grades in them."</p>
<p>That's seems to me - especially w/ AP classes- the smartest route to take. I am strong in History, so I'm taking the AP World History Class, but weak in math so I'm opting to NOT take AP Calculus next year. At my school, if you take ONE AP class, they expect you to take up all five or six the offered AP courses in your senior year. So it does backfire on some seniors you end up destroying themselves senior year, GPA wise.</p>
<p>What if you're in a school where APs aren't weighted very much/at all, and you can take honors and some APs and get 4.0, or you can take almost all APs and get around 3.8-3.9 with a lot of work? UW</p>
<p>When you say a grade of B, do you mean B as in 83-86 or B as in B-, B, and B+?</p>
<p>You all need to be researching your intended colleges. How do they weight AP and honors classes? Do they count plusses and minuses? The question isn't just how your high school handles things, it's how your target colleges are doing things. This is the type of strategizing you need to be doing. It's not a one-sized-fits-all question or answer. You have to look at your individual situation.</p>
<p>I know how you feel, next year I want to attend Penn State, now, one of my friends has been accepted with a 1250 SAT and a 3.5 GPA with ZERO AP's and 2 Honors classes, I have a 1180 SAT and a 3.4 GPA but I have 9 AP's and 7 Honors classes, I hope that I get in, I am so nervous. I hope the harder course load was worth it.</p>
<p>what do you think my chances are? Be honest please.</p>
<p>Black male, first generation college student,from Caribbean,come from poor family
GPA: 4.76W/3.71(4.0)
Class Rank: 8/376
SAT: 1770/2400, Subjects: 720 bio, 720 US history
AP SCHOLAR WITH HONOR
A-HONOR ROLL (3 YEARS)
National Ventures Scholar
AP WORLD-4
AP US HISTORY-4
AP BIO-4
AP Lang-3
Dartmouth Summer Program
Delegate at the College Board Forum 2008 in New York.</p>
<p>Senior classes
AP Lit
AP Gov
AP Calc AB
AP Psych
Mandarin Chinese</p>
<p>EC'S:
Student Coucil-4 years (Prez)
National Honor Society-2 years (VP)
Volleyball-1 year
Memorial Hospital-200 hours
FASHION SHOW LEADER-I rose over $1,000 to sponsor a village in Sudan for genocide.
Fashion show leader this year for villages in Thailand and Uganda for child sex trade.
Good essyas, great recs, great interview with Duke. I am "save the world" type of person.</p>
<p>Chances at the following schools:</p>
<p>Emory
Duke
Columbia
Yale
Dartmouth
Vanderbilt</p>
<p>Being a first generation student should help.
Emory- Match
Duke- reach
Columbia- reach
Yale- rejected
Darthmouth- deferred
Vanderbilt- slight reach/ match</p>