<p>I was at the info-session and the dean of admissions stressed rigor as the most important:
3 APs
2 Honor Classes
1 College prep class
I didn't realize how much the cp class would lower the rigor when selecting classes a year ago. It's an elective class (accounting). I know this may sound whiney and annoying, but being in such a pool of qualified applicants, will having a low-level elective class be looked down upon by admissions? I'm out of state...</p>
<p>It will not be looked down upon.</p>
<p>alright thanks haha. I moved away from richmond after freshman year and UVA is my #1 choice.</p>
<p>from what i’ve read in the last few months,
admin understand that students will take elective classes,
such as art, cooking,painting,& many other very interesting/useful classes that further enrich the student’s life.
Your accounting class is fine.</p>
<p>Yes, that’s exactly the same course load I took my junior year. It is definitely not looked down upon as I got Echols. I did take 6 AP classes my senior year though.</p>
<p>haha thanks. i’m taking 5 APs next year and 4th year of language. i’m guess i’m just being a worrying jerk</p>
<p>Virginia also stresses context. GPA is nothing without context, and a schedule is nothing without context. The kid who takes all four APs offered by his school as soon as he can looks just as good if not better than the kid who took 6 APs at a school that offers all of them.</p>
<p>If you are out of state, I really can’t tell. I’ve known people with all APs get denied and people with only one or two APs get accepted. I think it depends on the course offerings at your school and how rigorous your schedule is v. how rigorous it could be.</p>
<p>For the record (more anecdotal evidence is better than less, I guess haha) I was accepted to CAS as an Echols Scholar; I took one AP sophomore year, three APs junior year (one covered two exams though), and am currently in 6 APs. So I was in roughly the same boat as you. I wouldn’t be too stressed. :)</p>
<p>ArK you’re fine. Don’t worry. I had 3 APs and probably 3 Honors my Junior year as well. </p>
<p>Overall I took 7 APs and a lot of Honors (we don’t sign up for them, my school just puts us in them so IDK which classes are and aren’t honors). </p>
<p>I don’t think taking 4 APs senior year is wise, unless you’re certain that you will remain studious and devoted to your school work! You’d be surprised at how strong the effects of senioritus are…no joke! Haha :)</p>
<p>It depends on the APs. </p>
<p>You could be taking AP Environmental, AP Human and AP Psych, which aren’t really that tough or you could be taking AP Chem, AP Physics, AP Calc, AP Bio, AP Euro, AP US or another hard AP.</p>
<p>If it’s the second set I listed, you should be fine. If it’s the first set I listed and that’s mostly what your school offers, you should be fine.</p>
<p>I took 2 sophomore year, 3 junior and 3 senior (senior should have been 4-5 but scheduling conflicts kept me out of 2 APs). Just don’t slack senior year. Know a kid that got into Vandy and a bunch of other schools but had a bunch of B-s on his semester report and one sent him a letter to tell him to work better or they’ll take his acceptance away.</p>
<p>^^I don’t think it matters so much as to what APs you’re taking. As long as you’re taking any AP course, you should be fine. While some are supposed to be more challenging than others, UVa will not devalue the AP classes you took because they’re “too easy”.</p>
<p>Just take what makes you happy. Don’t take what you think a college would like to see. This led me–and several of my classmates–into a horrible, year-long trap that we all deeply regret!</p>
<p>I think it does matter which AP’s you take. But you should still consider what you’re really interested in and enjoy.</p>
<p>I totally think it matters what AP classes you take. Taking core subjects for AP classes (traditional core classes, such as Bio, Chem, Physics, Calc, etc) I feel is more important to the eyes of an applicant reader than AP Psychology, Environmental Science, etc. That being said, taking an AP class in general does not HURT your application, EVER (unless you fail). I took 4 AP core classes junior year, and 5 AP classes senior year, with 1 of them being AP Computer Science A. </p>
<p>If you take the highest level courses your school has to offer, you’re fine. Let’s just leave it at that. =]</p>