D is junior, and they will need to register soon for next year’s classes. She is a very good student, but math is her weakest subject. So far she has had Alg, Geometry and Alg II/Trig. She heard AP Comp Sci is an interesting class, and she knows kids who have enjoyed it.
She has no intention of majoring in a STEM subject, but she may want to major in business possibly.
Another issue is that I worry that colleges expect to see Calculus.
If she takes the AP Comp Sci next year she will have 5 AP classes senior yr, and overall she will graduate with 8.
Thoughts, opinions? I don’t want her to sell herself short or lose out on a good school, because of the lack of Calc.
I’d have her take calc, honestly. If she somehow ends up in a major that requires it in college, she will be sorry if she didn’t take it in HS. One of my kids didn’t take it in HS, but wished she had later when looking at some grad school options.
I just asked her, and she said she didn’t know much about it and whether she would be good at it or not. I think she’s afraid that she will have a hard time with Calculus. I told her that statistics sounds scary, but it’s mostly memorization. @3scoutsmom
@intparent Thank you. I’m sure she would survive calculus if she has to take it. She thinks comp sci is more practical and more interesting. I’m so anxious about steering her in the wrong direction.
@AroundHere at her school, AP comp sci falls under math. Her senior math options would be ap comp sci or ap stats or ap calc ab or bc or regular calculus.
Also, at her school AP psychology falls under science.
Next yr she planning on AP Lit, AP French, AP Gov, AP Psych or Env Sci and then whatever math we decide. Oh then there’s 4 periods a day besides that in a specialty area (perf arts)
If she cannot take both computer science and math, she should pick a math. Also, just because your high school considers psychology to be a science credit doesn’t mean colleges will. Psychology is a social science and would not be considered fulfilling a science class requirement during admissions.
Check your final schedule against required courses to apply to your state flagship and one or two other colleges she is considering.
@AroundHere Thanks so much. I know psych is a social sci so it had me concerned. I was thinking of having her email the admissions reps at her 3 favorite schools to see what they think. I’m not sure if that’s appropriate or not.
Calc without a doubt. If she wants to go into business, she will likely have a Business Calc requirement in college. Having exposure in high school will make her freshman year easier.
I’d strongly recommend that she take calculus especially if she is considering business. While there is some variation from college to college, business majors are typically required to take at least 2 semesters of math including one semester of business calculus. My S did not take calculus in HS and was a business major in college. He really struggled to keep up during calculus in college as all but a couple of students in his class had already taken calculus in HS – he got through it (used the tutoring center a lot) but it ate up a ton of time and was not a great way to start a college career.
Would calculus AB be an option? It would be a slower gentler introduction to calculus with the possibility that a high enough AP score would be allowed subject credit for calculus in college for a business major.
Calculus hands down. If she is not strong at math and ends up having to take calc in college, that will be far more painful than taking it in high school. And it’d be lousy for her to avoid classes and majors because she’s afraid to take calc.
If she’s really worried, she may want to consider a tutor (even online ) if there isn’t additional support at school.
Regarding AP CS, for a non CS major, the principles course or a similar college course like http://cs10.org could be useful. The A course would not be that useful except to a CS major at a college where it matches the introductory level course.
I’d suggest that a student who isn’t very strong in math just take regular calc. Then she has some grounding if she does have to take college calc. But it sounds like this student already has a rigorous schedule next year. I wouldn’t tempt fate fall of senior year by overloading her with an AP Calc class.
For the schools your D is considering (based on what I have seen you post about), the calculus option will put her in a much better position for acceptance. Is there a pre-Calc option available?