High School Classes and Their Affect on Admission

Applying to College
1

My apologies if this has been discussed before. If it has, a link to the thread would be appreciated.

I will be going into my junior year of high school after this summer.

Due to transferring schools, I have had to take multiple classes I did not wish to take, so I could fulfill graduation requirements. As a result, I have a lack of classes which I would have liked to take, and what I believe would enhance my application when applying for certain majors.

I would like to apply as a science major, more specifically along the lines of biology. However, by the time I graduate it is possible that I could be applying without a single AP science course on my transcript… This may not seem like a big deal to some, but I would like to attend relatively competitive colleges such as the UC’s.

So, this is where my question comes in:

Normally, my school only offers regular or honors chemistry. But next year is going to be an exception. They are bringing back AP Chemistry, which hasn’t been a class for a year or two. At my school, AP Chem is known to be the absolute hardest class, and according to rumors, having a C puts you at the top of the class…

I am currently signed up for Honors Chemistry (which is also known to be QUITE challenging). Would it be worth getting that AP Science course on my transcript along with a lower grade, or would sticking to Honors and possibly taking the AP test be a better choice?

Senior year I will most likely have an open spot for an elective, which I will definitely use to take a science class. Physiology is very appealing to me, as I would like to enter the medical field. However, I would also have the option of taking AP Biology. I realize that it is impossible to say exactly which would be better, if one is better at all in the first place, but in your guys’ opinion, which would be the best choice when it comes to getting into college with the major I would like (disregarding anything that happens Junior year with chemistry)?

Of course, there are people that tell me “Just apply as a history major, and then switch,” but transferring majors, especially if it is to a major that is competitive, is not that easy…

Thanks for your help and advice.

2

I just did some research for the UC schools (which I am very interested in) and it seems like for majors under the College of Letters and Science (which includes biology) an undecided major does not affect admission. However, I am sure there are other universities and colleges where it does have an affect. Either way, regardless of applying as a certain major, advice on what to take would be great.

3

Generally, it is best to have bio, chem and physics in high school. I imagine that UCs like to see four years of sciences. Have you done regular bio or chem? If not, doing APs for those classes might be very challenging. My kids’s school doesn’t allow kids to take AP without the regular class first. You should look at UCs website and see what the recommended classes are. You will want to be competitive. I would certainly take both AP chem and bio, but not in the same year.

4

Don’t drop English. https://www.vocabulary.com/articles/chooseyourwords/affect-effect/ :slight_smile:

5

My son’s guidance counselor advised him to only take advanced classes if he was sure he wouldn’t get a C in them.
I agree with PP, be sure you have Bio, Chem and Physics.

6

Would it be possible to take honors chem junior year and AP chem senior year? AP Chem is a very rigorous course in general, and I wouldn’t advise taking it without a pre-requisite.

OP, sorry to hack your thread, but quick question to @uwalummom and @Lindagaf . Would it significantly hurt a student’s application if they didn’t take one of those 3 science courses (particularly for UCs)?

7

Significantly? I guess it would depend on the rest of the application. But I understand the UCs are all highly competitive today, so the rest of the app needs to be good. I have seen other posts about this, so do a search, or post your own thread.

8

I think Honors Chem junior year and then AP Bio senior year would be a good plan.