Hi,
My son is applying to W&M, RD for fall of 2019 admission. He is taking AP Calc this year and is really struggling, to the point where he wants to drop the course as he doesn’t think he can pass if he stays in it. This is his fifth HS-level math class, all were previous As. If he withdraws by Tuesday, it will not show up at all on his transcript. His teacher is advising that he drop the class as he wants to study international relations and is not interested in pursuing a STEM-related degree.
Aside from calc, he has what we think is a pretty good application: Super scored SAT of 1470 (780 verbal, 690 math), UW GPA of about a 3.95, weighted at around a 4.2, top 10% of his class, Eagle Scout, and very good recs, essay, and ECs. He had a 5 on his AP tests for Environmental Science and English Writing, and is currently taking AP Gov, English Lit, and Calc, as well as non-AP Physics, and 20th century history.
So the basic question is how much would not having Calc hurt his application? Would he be better off staying in the class, even if he could possibly fail it or probably do no better than a C?
I think it would depend a lot on what his intended major is. It it’s STEM, it would be a big problem. My daughter (W&M '22) has found calculus to be important in some social sciences as well.
thanks Prodesse, his intended major is International Relations, I guess I’m wondering if they take intended major into account when evaluating an application.
Unless someone works for W&M admissions it is impossible to say if not having calculus will be a major issue in terms of admissions. If he doesn’t think he can pass and if the teacher is recommending he drop the class then that is probably the wise move. Calculus builds on concepts learned early in the year so it would be tough to do well later on if he didn’t process the information from the start of the class.
I would discuss with the guidance counselor. Is there a lower level calculus (non AP) that he might be able to switch into and do OK in?
Also keep in mind that:
– A D or F as a final grade can be grounds for having an acceptance rescinded.
–If he already applied to any colleges and has calculus on the list of courses he is taking senior year he would have not notify each school that he dropped the class.
I would also suggest enrolling in regular calc instead of dropping it completely if that’s an option. If he hasn’t actually applied yet, then he won’t need to notify W & M or any other school of the change.
Would it still be possible to switch to AP-statistics or another applied statistics class instead? It’s potentially easier than calculus and it should be more useful for an international relations major.
so to revisit this, We spoke to an admissions counselor at W&M who said they do like to see a fifth year of math. It was too late to change into a different course, so my son decided to stay in AP Calc AB and work with a tutor, ended up with a 69 / D+ for his first semester, so all As and a D+ in calc are going to out to W&M and the other schools. Fingers crossed that this doesn’t torpedo his chances.
@VaParent19, I just wanted to say that I’m sorry it worked out this way and my fingers are crossed for your son! Everything else looks really good for him. I have no inside knowledge on admissions but have heard that W&M likes to see student-led community service (like Eagle Scout), and that boys who want humanities are a smaller group of applicants.
