Hello everyone!
So, I’m currently a sophomore, and I’m sort of lost as to what I want to do in college. I know that if I want to get into a college for a certain major, I need to show passion for it through courses and extra curriculars. That is why I inquire on thee, the college confidential, for some guidance as to what majors I should look into.
Course Load:
9th Grade - Honors English, Honors Alg 2/Trig, AP Human, Honors Bio, Intro to Engineering, Spanish 2
10th Grade - Honors English, Honors Precalc, APES, AP Compsci, Honors Chemistry, Spanish 3 (US History over summer)
11th Grade - AP English, AP Calc AB, AP Biology, AP Psychology, Honors Physics, Honors Spanish 4
12th Grade - AP English, AP Calc BC, AP Chem, AP Macro/Micro, AP Gov, AP Spanish
First off, throughout freshman and sophomore year I have excelled in all my courses but math sadly (could help indicate what I have potential in). Secondly, as you might notice, not a big fan of history courses (Will this hurt me in the long run when I apply to prestigious institutions?). Essentially, I just want to know certain majors which correlate with my performance in the given course load. I was thinking something along the lines of the sciences, such as engineering, but engineering requires a lot of math, so are there any other profitable majors which could align with my performance?
I was thinking maybe materials science engineering??? Its built upon a lot of chem (which I enjoy), it is engineering, and it seems less math intensive compared to mechanical, electrical, etc.
Here are my two cents:
You don’t need to choose a major anytime soon.
You should not base your college major on your 9th grade performance.
You are two years advanced in math - it is unlikely that you are “bad” at it. Maybe the foundation wasn’t quite sufficient for the amount of advancement. (For example, middle school algebra 1 courses have a reputation for not being rigorous enough to support honors algebra 2 in high school, though obviously this varies widely by school.)
If, by the time you actually get to college, you still want to avoid math, engineering would be the wrong direction.
You are planning 13 APs. Seems like overkill.
@evergreen5 how about economics? I enjoyed computer science and English, and my clubs revolve around this major. Too bad Econ doesn’t have to do with science qq, but it still looks fairly interesting.
Cognitive science seems pretty cool too anyone know anything about that. Also I’ve been told that I messed up regarding social studies… is my social studies course load fine for colleges (ap human, ap psych, ap macro/micro, ap gov, us history)
I see five years of social studies there, what’s the problem?
I think you have an overly narrow list of colleges if those classes are not enough.
Wait management information systems seeems like engineering but less math based and more psychology based that seems lit someone tell me is this a profitable major.
Why are all the good majors math intensive ;(
Does double majoring in polysci and statistics have potential? It seem’s less math intensive compared to engineering. Also, how math intensive is economics?
Yes, econ is somewhat math intensive, if you do it right (i.e. if you take econometrics, which is highly recommended for an econ major, and now at some schools required). Stats, obviously, is math.
However, I suggest you stop pigeonholing yourself as weaker in math. Your evidence is slim, for one thing. For another, I imagine that you might be quite good. For example, you enjoy chem and that involves plenty of math. And, as mentioned above, you were advanced in math in middle school.
Perhaps all the majors that sound good to you are math intensive because…you like math.
Perhaps, rather than spending your winter break fantasizing about college majors too far in advance, you ought to spend a couple of days beefing up your math skills. I have no idea where your glitch might lie, but prealgebra and algebra 1 tend to be areas that trip kids up when they get into higher math. Go to Art of Problem Solving, sign up at the site (free) and get lost in Alcumus for a few days, prealgebra and algebra topics, perhaps. Don’t think of these as “levels” that are “beneath” you, but as fun problem solving areas that might get you where you want to go. Seriously, Alcumus can be addictive (and I’m a parent LOL… don’t start just before bedtime because you won’t be able to stop).
@evergreen5 Yes, in the wake of my upperclassman friends receiving acceptance letters to prestigious universities, I have become more eager about my future, dismissing that I need to improve myself in the moment. Thank you so much.
First of all, I agree that you are thinking about this way too early. Your interests and career goals may morph and change as you learn more; if you are a sophomore in high school, you’re only even halfway through your sophomore year, and still have 2.5 years left of high school.
You don’t have to demonstrate “passion” for your major through classes and ECs. First of all, most college admissions officers don’t expect that students have decided what they wanted to do at age 14 or 15 for the rest of their life and then logically followed that path throughout. Most colleges don’t even admit by major; they admit students. Most colleges therefore just expect you to have a well-rounded college prep curriculum with classes in every area.
But even at universities where they do admit by major, you still need to have a well-rounded schedule of classes - so you can satisfy certain requirements. Really, you wouldn’t have the opportunity to specialize until you are a bit further along, and even then, you shouldn’t unless you actually have a deep abiding interest in something (and even then, not too much).
So take what you want and do what ECs you want, and worry about your major later. You’re on track for math even if you wanted to do engineering or physics.
I would suggest that your 10th grade year looks a bit science heavy (environmental science, computer science, and chemistry?) and that you should think about taking U.S. history during the school year rather than over the summer, to make sure that you have the social studies credits you need.