<p>Hello all,</p>
<p>I am a current sophomore in high school and have so decide my classes for next year within the next few days. I want to carefully select the courses I'm taking next year, as 11th grade is arguably of utmost importance.</p>
<p>Some stats about me:</p>
<p>SCHOOL: large renowned N. Virginia public high school (highly competitive to get into college from my school)
ETHNICITY: white female, dual citizen of Germany and the US
COLLEGE GOALS: somewhere in the range UVA-Ivy League
CURRENT GPA (after freshman year): 4.23</p>
<p>High school classes so far on my transcript:</p>
<p>(7th grade)
Algebra 1 HN (B+)
Credits earned for German 1, 2 without taking the classes (through a proficiency test)</p>
<p>(8th grade)
Geometry HN (A)
French 1 (A)</p>
<p>(9th grade)
English 9 HN (A)
Biology 1 HN (A)
Health & PE 9 (A)
French 2 (A)
Algebra 2 HN (A)
World History/Geography 1 HN (A)
Intermediate Band (A)</p>
<p>(10th grade) I am currently enrolled in the following classes and have (as of the semester mark) As in all of them:</p>
<p>French 3
AP World History
Health & PE 10
English 10 HN
Chemistry 1 HN
Precalculus w/ Trigonometry HN
AP German Language</p>
<p>These are the classes I have selected for Junior Year as of now:</p>
<p>French 4
AP US History
AP English Language/Composition
AP Chemistry
AP Calculus BC
Advanced Composition 1 (an advanced writing elective in which we tutor peers to help them improve)
Physics (regular, HN, or AP 1)</p>
<p>I am pretty sure I'm going to take all of these classes except I am unsure about the Physics class. As you may know, the College Board gave the AP Physics program a makeover for this coming school year, and divided AP Physics B into AP Physics 1 (a course for juniors) and AP Physics 2. I have the option of taking AP Physics 1, HN Physics, or regular Physics next year. As the four APs I'm planning on taking are all very challenging, I initially wanted to take regular Physics to have an "easier" class so that I could preserve my sanity. However, I'm concerned that colleges like the Ivy Leagues will see four APs as not challenging enough and am thus considering taking AP Physics 1 next year. It has never been taught before, so nobody knows exactly how difficult it will be, but it is supposed to be around the level of HN Physics, but covering fewer topics (into which it will delve deeper). The problem is, I do a lot of extracurriculars, too. I am a varsity athlete in the winter and do my sport at a club year round. I also do debate, varsity math team, clarinet, German school, and volunteer at a museum in Washington, DC regularly. Additionally, I have numerous academic and athletic recognitions and awards, especially for German, a language that is my mother-tongue in addition to English. I am worried that I will become too stressed out with five APs, and am not willing to sacrifice my extracurriculars, especially my sport, for grades and/or more sleep. Conversely, I am also concerned that taking a regular class would jeopardize my chances at an Ivy or comparable school. Do I still have a chance? Will my extracurriculars and already four challenging APs balance me out? Or should I go full force and bulldoze through next year? FYI, Since HN Physics and AP Physics 1 are relatively similar, if I took one of them it would most likely be AP Physics 1 due to the added benefit that it's an AP, giving it more prestige and a +1.0 boost to my GPA. </p>
<p>Thank you! I'd appreciate any input.</p>