<p>If you want to be competitive for the selective schools you should take physics.</p>
<p>OP I think you should see physics as a course that is part of a good HS education, rather than an option.</p>
<p>Some other relevant threads:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/766788-know-anyone-who-got-into-ivy-league-school-without-taking-physics.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/766788-know-anyone-who-got-into-ivy-league-school-without-taking-physics.html</a></p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/505062-will-duke-rescind-me.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/505062-will-duke-rescind-me.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-california-davis/726880-i-have-d-physics-will-i-get-my-admissions-rescinded.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-california-davis/726880-i-have-d-physics-will-i-get-my-admissions-rescinded.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/princeton-university/777305-so-ive-got-36-2-ap-physics.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/princeton-university/777305-so-ive-got-36-2-ap-physics.html</a></p>
<p>There are bunch of problems with physics in high school. Teach it in 9th grade and there’s not enough math even available to the kids for physics. Then you get to 12th grade and you have kids with AP math who can kind of do stuff but not really. My feeling is that anyone wanting to do physics needs to learn the math as fast as possible and then get into the physics. </p>
<p>I also think a more valuable class for almost any kid, but particularly those who take calculus (AB more than BC), is stats. The world revolves around stats. Want to do PoliSci? Need stats. Medical research? Need stats. Sociology? Need stats. Kids take calculus and I’m not sure why - because they’re supposed to? - and pass up the single most valuable area you can study for a growing number of careers. I would most definitely take stats before a meaningful physics class.</p>
<p>If you are going into Engineering or Science, you would need to take Physics, sooner or later. For institutions like Caltech, not having Physics in high school is as close as you can come to instant disqualification. Not many schools offer AP in Physics, but if they offer Physics at any level, you should take it at least in the senior year, preferably earlier, if you are interested in science and engineering and are applying to fairly focused institutions. LAC’s even with engineering programs may be a little less demanding, but then you would have to make it up in college, so may as well get an head start and take a class in HS.</p>
<p>Wow… physics is the only class my son has an A in. Biology was the only other A he ever got. I don’t know the level at which these where taught.</p>
<p>My D’s school is one that requires physics, chemistry, biology for the 9-11 science sequence. The physics is what they call “conceptual” and requires only basic algebra. Plenty of kids get into top schools having taking no more rigorous physics course.</p>
<p>I’m not sure why the OP doesn’t want to take physics. Is she worried that it would be too hard? It certainly sounds like the OP’s course load is very rigorous. Is there a non-honors, less quantitative physics course that’s available? I think dropping the IB Environmental Science class (which I assume is some honors level) to take a less high-powered physics class would be a better choice, if such a thing were offered.</p>
<p>Physics in high school does not need to be calculus based at all. Only AP Physics C is calculus based. My kids took honors physics in high school along with Algebra II.
Surely anyone trying to get into a selective college can handle Algebra II.</p>
<p>As far as stats goes - it used to be calc was required. Now we have graphing calculators and kids just learn forumulas and plug in the numbers. Many colleges have Stats as a part of their core curriculum now.</p>
<p>Two reasons to take both physics and calculus (at some point) - it is part of a well rounded education. One would think a kid who is smart enough and ambitious enough to go to a top college would be able to handle and even want a well rounded education.
Secondly - these courses teach you how to think and problem solve.
I could go on and on about the lack of science education many college educated people have - but I will spare you.</p>
<p>In reading the OP’s post - it sounds like laziness. He is looking for an excuse to justify not challenging himself with a class he already perceives to be difficult.</p>
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<p>The courseload OP describes doesn’t indicate laziness to me. It indicates someone who has taken on a very rigorous high school curriculum.</p>
<p>I’m with JustAMomof4. It indicates intellectual laziness. It also indicates a schedule designed specifically to maximize GPA while appearing rigorous. We are not talking about AP Physics here, just an ordinary HS intro physics class.</p>
<p>In my opinion, physics is too fundamental a course to throw away. In college you may not be able to catch up, you need a basic background in physics. It is intellectual laziness if you look at it through that lens.</p>
<p>They should put a warning on the Parents Forum that if you politely ask an honest, reasonable question, people, who know nothing about you beyond your single post, might label you with harsh terms like “lazy”.</p>
<p>^Surely that doesn’t just apply to the Parents Forum!</p>
<p>More info from the OP, please. Where you’d like to apply, and what kind of work you think you’d like to do when done with college.</p>
<p>If you’re currently taking BC Calc, then you’re a strong enough math and science student to take Physics, even if math and science aren’t your thing. A little knowledge of physics can be useful in the most surprising ways. For example, [Physics</a> for future Presidents](<a href=“http://muller.lbl.gov/teaching/Physics10/PffP.html]Physics”>Physics for future Presidents)</p>
<p>Grumpster - hmmm let’s see. The OP asked his parents who think he should take physics. After 4 years of high school he admits he will only have 3 years of science. he says “math and science just aren’t my thing”.</p>
<p>Sounds like he is trying to justify the easy way out to me. If he were ambitious he would take physics and 4 years of a science - which last I looked is a core course.
The opposite of ambitious is laziness.
Sometimes parents can present a harsh reality.</p>
<p>I’m the OP. </p>
<p>I’ve always been more inclined toward English/History and foreign language, and I don’t intend to pursue a career in math or science. My school encourages us to meet with our counselors to discuss our courseloads, so I recently sat down with my IB coordinator to discuss this. US History is my favorite subject and I really wanted a chance to take it at the AP level. (My school offers both AP and IB classes.) Because of county graduation requirements and school restrictions (3 years of history required - USH, Gov’t, and World; no AP’s as a 9th grader), most people have to take APUSH as seniors. </p>
<p>I don’t know how familiar most of you are with the IB Program, but it begins in 11th grade and requires a combination of Higher Level (HL) and Standard Level (SL) classes. HLs are taken for two years and SLs are taken for one year. Due to county requirements, my school requires that IB English and IB History are taken at HL for all diploma candidates. (The only IB History offered is Euro, to meet the World History county mandate.) I’ll also be taking IB Math HL as well as Spanish HL (levels 6 and 7). <em>The IB Program allows students to take a maximum of 4 HL courses.</em> As it stands now, my SL courses will be IB Environmental and IB French 5. There’s also a required philosophy class, TOK, that I have to take as an elective.</p>
<p>Where physics comes into play – IB Physics is only offered at my school at HL. I already have 4 HLs, the maximum possible, and I do not want to drop Spanish. The two other IB sciences are Environmental and Chem. It makes more sense to me to take 3 different classes rather than 2 years of chem. <em>However, I’ll have an empty space in my schedule in senior year because Environmental is a one year class.</em> I have the option to take Honors Physics in this empty space, but would prefer to take APUSH or a third foreign language. (I have a much higher personal interest in this that physics.)</p>
<p>However, I don’t want a decision to double up on social sciences/languages to negatively affect my college applications. I’d like to apply to selective liberal arts colleges and universities (my dream is Penn Huntsman or Yale). Will having no physics on my transcript be a dealbreaker?</p>
<p>I’m sorry for the length of this post – I just wanted to explain everything in light of some of the more negative reactions!</p>
<p>@JuatAMomOf4 - I’m a girl. I know it’s petty, but your references to “him” bothered me a little lol.</p>
<p>I would agree that for the most selective schools, especially ivies, it is likely they will want to see physics.</p>
<p>But I also agree with Post #32. This student is taking 2 advanced classes in foreign language, along with a rigorous course load. If she wanted to pad her GPA and take the easy way out, the courses she’s taking would not be the ones of choice. In her school. physics might actually be “easier” than some of the advanced classes she is taking.</p>
<p>cryingcloud - Please accept my apologies. I actually have 4 daughters myself. It did occur to me as I was writing “he” but my <em>laziness</em> got in the way.
I humbly apologize.</p>
<p>Now, since I know you are female - I still say take physics. You sound like my oldest - she did take physics in high school but never took Calc. that still bothers me! In college the only science course she took was something called “Voodoo Science” which was interesting but a “gut” course indeed. Chances are you will never take physics if you don’t take it now.</p>
<p>However, I don’t know anything about the IB program. It’s all greek to me. are you saying if you took any physics at all it would be IB physics? Is it calculus based?</p>
<p>My son got accepted RD for last fall at GA Tech with no physics. 4.0 WGPA, 630CR/690M/740W and ACT 28 (34M 27E). However, he didn’t send the ACT scores to Tech. His guidence councilor told him he’d never get in without physics. He did take AP Calc(AB) though along with the other 4 APs his school offered.</p>
<p>JustAMomOf4 - First off, no problem! I know it’s kind of difficult to tell online ;)</p>
<p>Anyway, the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program is an internationally standardized secondary curriculum (it grants a separate diploma) that’s comparable in rigor to AP classes. It’s recognized by all US universities and by most foreign universities. It requires 6 classes taken over the junior and senior years of high school (first language, second language, history, math, science, and art/second foreign language/second science) plus a philosophy class called Theory of Knowledge, plus 150 hours of community service, and an “Extended Essay” (a 4000 word paper on a topic of choice). Exams and the essay are evaluated by the IB Organization. AP is much more dominant in the US, but I understand IB is common in international schools. My school is public and offers an array of AP classes as well as the IB Diploma. A Google or Wikipedia search of the IBO should get you a full description of the program. </p>
<p>There aren’t many explanatory threads on the IB here, but here’s a discussion on IB vs. AP:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/ask-dean-topics/475905-ap-vs-ib-do-colleges-prefer.html?highlight=International+Baccalaureate[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/ask-dean-topics/475905-ap-vs-ib-do-colleges-prefer.html?highlight=International+Baccalaureate</a></p>
<p>As for physics: IB Physics as offered at my school (HL, 2 years) begins with introductory physics and continues up through quantum. It’s a challenging class and I know the second year is calculus based. (You could consider it AP Physics B and C combined into one class.) I couldn’t take it anyway, though, because it is only offered at HL and I’m already at the maximum (4) of HL classes. </p>
<p>I do have the option to take Honors Physics as a senior, but I haven’t done any research into the class (lack of interest more than anything else).</p>
<p>Basically, my choice comes down to Honors Physics vs. APUSH or Italian 4 (I’ve self-studied Italian on my own; I’m fairly proficient.) If it helps to know, I’ll most likely declare a History/International Relations and Romance Languages double major. I’ve definitely ruled out pre-med or engineering. It does seem like the general consensus favors physics, though.</p>