I have a 3.9 GPA at a competitive private school and got a 1440 SAT. However, this year, my junior year, I elected to take only one AP class and the rest are honors classes. I have great letters of rec and solid extracurriculars. People have told me that I should not even try to apply to the Ivy’s or little Ivy’s because of my taking only one AP class this year. What do you all think?
What has your guidance counselor said? There are many variables here. Are you hooked? Do kids at your school tend to take a lot of APs, say more than six? Are you even interested in applying to those types of schools?
Your main problem will be if students at your school take a lot of APs, you could find that it will indeed be difficult to be competitive. Colleges assess you against the rest of the class and what your school offers. If your school only offers four APs, then a top college will expect you to take as many as possible. Maybe your school offers 15. If most kids take a lot of APs and are applying to HYPS, and you just have one, that’s going to hinder your chances. Also, you do have a very good SAT score, but for the tippy top schools it ideally needs to be a little higher.
Your school counselor should have a good idea of the types of colleges kids get into from the school. Schedule a meeting to see how you measure up and ask for some suggestions of colleges to apply to.
It will come down to what courses your HS offers and what your guidance counselor thinks of your level of course rigor. The top schools will want to see that your guidance counselor has checked the box on the recommendation saying you have taken the most rigorous course-load available at your HS. Talk to your guidance counselor about your schedule and see if he/she would be able to check that box based on your past and projected schedule.
As long as your GC think you are taking rigor courses, you are fine. Some HS don’t even have AP.
Depends on whether your counselor will mark “most demanding” for his/her rating of your course selection.
“People have told me that I should not even try to apply to the Ivy’s or little Ivy’s because of my taking only one AP class this year.”
Are any of these people your guidance counselors or trusted teachers? If so, your course rigor may be too far below that of your classmates and they’re warning you that you are not competitive. As posters above have noted, context is key for APs. If the people telling you these things are not your guidance counselor, then what does the GC have to say?