Is this course load a good idea?

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

I am a rising senior who is currently taking 4 AP classes;

  • AP Biology
  • AP English Lang
  • AP US History
  • AP Seminar

I have only recently discovered the beautiful world of online classes and also did not have the chance to take more APs previously.

Next year, I really want to up my acedemic rigor. So, the summer I plan on taking American Government at a local university and precalc online in addition to retaking a semester of a seperate math class.

So in the fall, I plan on following this route;

AP COURSE LIST;
AP Spanish language
AP Computer science
AP Statistics
AP Spanish Literature
AP French
AP Research
AP Art history
AP European history
AP Human Geography
AP English 4

INTERNATIONAL COURSE LIST;

CLASSICS ( A-LEVEL)
LAW ( A-LEVEL)
CHEMISTRY ( A-LEVEL)
SPANISH ( A-LEVEL)
SCIENCE (GCSE)

IB COURSE LIST;
TOK
PSYCHOLOGY HL
MATH HL
PHILOSOPHY SL
ECONOMICS HL

CONCURRENT/DUAL-ENROLLMENT COURSE LIST:

SOCIOLOGY
MULTIVARIABLE CALC ** One Semester
LINEAR ALGEBRA ** One semester
INTRO TO RELIGIOUS STUDIES

OTHER:
MARINE SCIENCE
FORENSIC SCIENCE
PHYSICS HONORS
COMPEITIVE MATH
AVID

Keep in mind, 90% of this course load would come from online sources ( for example, you can pay to take A-levels online, Dwight has an online global school which in turn offers online IB courses, I would also be taking several AP classes online along with the extra science classes and some college classes are online as well.)

2

What exactly are you proposing to do?
4 AP classes is already a respectable course load.
You can’t take many of the classes listed above because you don’t have the pre-reqs. For instance, you need to have AP Spanish language before you take AP Spanish literature, and you need Spanish 4 or Spanish 3H before you can take AP Spanish language. You need calculus 1 or AB before you take calculus 2 or BC before you take calculus 3 or multivariate calculus or Math HL.
What classes did you take this year beside the APs you listed?

3

I probably should have mentioned that, my bad. But I already speak spanish fluently at home so the AP Spanish teacher said I could just test out to be in that class, I already took french and at my school you only need 2 years of it since there are not enough students to have a french 3. I should have been clearer on the college math, I am planning to take those two over the summer after senior year, also, I have had multiple friends take two math classes at the same time ( ie. geometry and algebra 2,
calc BC and college math.) as far as math HL goes, I believe that at least for the first year they basically cover the same stuff as BC so if that is true then its possible I could be allowed to take BC at the same time (unless I’m wrong) but I also need to talk to the online coordinators and see what their pre recs are for IB as a whole since I couldn’t find their specifications.

And this year aside from those APs, I am taking two fine arts classes ( chior and band), last year I took AP world history, Freshman weren’t allowed to take AP until my sophmore year and sophmores were limited to AP world history or AP biology ( at my school it’s deemed the hardest class to pass). I want to take advantage of online IB courses and online A-levels because it will hopefully help me get into a school in the UK ( specifcally I want to go to Cambridge) and gain as many college credits as I can.

I also want to get the AP scholar award (national is the goal) and the AP diploma but to do either I need to take multiple AP classes and pass the tests.

If I don’t get into Cambridge, I still want to be a compeitive applicant for other schools such as Cornell, USC, UC Berkley, TUFTS, etc. All of which have many applicants who have taken many more APs or IBs than I will have when I graduate and will somehow have a 4.8 GPA in the process. So I just want to stand as good of a chance as I can now that I have found resources that may help, even if it is just my senior year.

4

AP scholar means nothing though. I mean it’s nice to have but it changed nothing.
And Cambridge admissions are decided well before any A-Levels, deadline is October 15 - 5 relevant AP’s is sufficient, what will matter is your ability to sit the qualifying exams and/or oral exam, which require your reading a dozen books over the summer on the subject you plan on 'reading ’ (majoring in).
Duplicate exams don’t count.

Why are you interested in Cambridge? They take very few Americans. Which other UK schools are you looking into?

As Stanford puts it, " it’s not a game of whoever has the most AP 's, wins. " Top schools expect 6-8 AP 's, judiciously chosen. They don’t look at weighted GPA, they look at how many honors + AP 's you have and what grades you got in those. Then they look at your essays, your recommendations, and whether you’ve made an impact through one or two ec.

5

Wait, I’m so confused… are you really asking if you should take 29 classes in one year?? NO Absolutely not.
Prereqs, although you can sometimes get around them, are important.
Math: you cannot take Multivariable Calc and Linear Algebra without first taking Calc 1 and 2 (or equivalent). Plus Math HL and Competitive Math? What??
Spanish: You speak Spanish at home, but do you write/read well enough to do fine in an AP level class?
French: AP French after French 2? I don’t think so.

I could go on, but this is absolutely ridiculous assuming you want to take these all. There’s literally not enough hours in a day to do this.

6

No no, I don’t want to take 29 classes lol I’m only taking four of those APs at school and maybe three or four more online and the rest is self studying for the exam.

Competitive math is a course/ elective in my school.

And also yes, french two, then french 3/4 are in one class due to the lack of students at my school who would fill up a class for french 3, did you not read that part?

7

My school doesn’t offer honors, I’d have to take honors online which I want to, but they still wouldnt weigh it in.

Anyways well Cambridge is my dream school and always has been, before they decided to leave the EU, I thought it was idea because EU citizens ( I am one) apprently someties pay less ( though still more than british citizens) than other international students, but I know it’s a long process to leave the EU so there is the chance that policy could still be in affect for at least two more years.

University of Birmingham, University of Manchester, Oxford are among a few other UK schools that sparked my interest.

My school doesn’t even do weighted GPA, they claim they do but each time they gave me my transcript it never showed the weighted GPA.

8

But taken in class or online, those are real classes.
Would you take French 3/4 or AP French? (You need French 3&4 before you can take AP French - the content is sequential.)
Colleges don’t care if you self study. They want you in class, participating, taking tests.
So, which of the dozens of classes you listed do you intend to take?
Your post is confusing because you didn’t specify which you intended to take, which you had questions about, and which were not under consideration.

All in all, you need to have:
English
Math
Social Science
Science
Foreign Language
one “personal pick”

5 of these should be either honors or AP.

Can you fill the list above with what you intend to take, indicating those you’d take in class and those you’d take online?

You could potentially take Spanish online and French in school if you really wanted.
In terms of level, you could take A-Level Spanish OR AP Spanish depending on how well you speak Spanish (Spanish Language would be relatively easy for a native speaker who reads and writes well, but would be difficult for a heritage speaker who has little contact to reading/writing. Spanish literature requires a high level of proficiency because the list of novels, poetry, and plays you must read in Spanish is very extensive and difficult, think Ap English Lit but in Spanish.) A-Level Spanish covers both Spanish language and literature.

9

I apologize for my post being so vauge I’m kind of new to this whole making posts on CC thing, and I wrote it at night when I was half asleep.

So let me fill in those boxes for you;

AP English 4 ( online) or AEGIS ( basically an honors type of english course you try put for and preps for the AP exam, in person)
Math HL ( online)
AP Euro ( in-person)
Physics honors ( online)
AP research ( in-person)
French ( in-person)
Classics a-level ( online)

Under consideration are:

AP/A-level Spanish lang and lit
Economics HL
Psycology HL
Compeitive math
AP computer science
AP art history
AP human geography
Philosophy SL
TOK
Forensic science
A-level law
Marine science
BC Calc
A-level chemistry
Science IGCSE
AVID

All of these would be online courses.

The dual enrollment classes would also be taken under consideration.

I realize I need to narrow down I just don’t know exactly how to since each course plays into either my top two career choices ( law and medicine) or my interests.

And no my school does not because again there are so few students past french 2 that you could take french 3/4 and you could still take the exam, according to my french teacher. I was actually considering taking Spanish online anyways, just not sure if I should take AP spanish lang or A-level spanish and take the AP exams

10

Edit: all classes taken under the consideration tab are online except AVID and dual enrollment classes.

11

1° don’t take duplicates (you won’t get double credit for double the work)
2° okay, you see the need to streamline
3°
1° English: AP English 4 ( online) or AEGIS ( basically an honors type of english course you try put for and preps for the AP exam, in person)
2° MATH: Math HL ( online) => if I understand correctly, you’re taking precalculus over the summer, so the course you should be taking is Math SL or Calculus AB, either one being sufficient for premeds; Math HL is for future math majors, engineers, etc, it’s exceedingly difficult.
3° Social Science: AP Euro ( in-person)
4° Science: Physics honors ( online)
5° Engish? AP research ( in-person)
6° Foreign Language: French ( in-person) => dubious that a combined 3/4 class would allow you to pass the AP French exam but you can try
7° Classics a-level ( online) => check the specification; it used to be “Classics” at A-Level was Latin, Classical Greek, Archeology, and Ancient History, but the 2018 specification has changed.

Of those, 5+7 are expandable if necessary.

4°:
You should only take one or two from the other classes under consideration. Your total shouldn’t exceed 7 or 8, combining all types (online, in class, dual enrollment…)

AP/A-level Spanish lang and lit => you need to evaluate your mastery of written Spanish. Have you read classical Spanish Literature? Have you tried reading El Cid, El Lazarillo del Tormes, Cien Anos de Soledad… in Spanish?
A-Level Spanish is the most complete ; otherwise, stick to AP Spanish language.
http://www.cie.org.uk/images/203203-2017-2018-syllabus.pdf

Economics HL => you can’t, this has pre-reqs
Psycology HL => same thing
“HL” presupposes you took the SL class or the pre-reqs OR that you will only complete one half of the course. Typically the HL course takes 2 years.

Compeitive math => check with your high school. If it’s AoPS why not, but based on your current schedule, probably not a good idea; if it’s Math Olympiads etc, not possible.

None of the following would be a core class; Philosophy SL or TOK would make the most sense in relation to prelaw.
AP computer science
AP art history
AP human geography
Philosophy SL
TOK
Forensic science
Marine science

A-level law => this is British Law, so, not useful to you, especially since Law School is 5 years down the road

BC Calc => take instead of Calc AB or Math SL, but not recommended if you’re taking Precalc over the summer; for a premed, Calc AB is sufficient and would get you credit (whereas Math SL wouldn’t).

A-level chemistry => what’s your chemistry background? + probably not very worth it/doable without the labs.
Science IGCSE => pointless (IGCSE level)
AVID => are you in a lower-performing school?

12

Your ideas as to what will impress admissions are simply off-base- for the US and for the UK.

You don’t say what you want to study in college, but here are some pointers about university in the UK:

=> you apply to study just one (occasionally 2/3 pre-set) subject, and that is all you study. Every UK university posts both the admission requirements and the course outline for every course online, so you can look them up. The courses are extremely specific, so it is important to read the whole description- by US standards they are not very flexible.

=>You can apply with AP, IB or A level scores- you don’t need more than one category.

=> In general, with the exception of the tippy-tops, if you apply to a UK university as an international student and meet the posted requirements, and make a decent fist of the LoR and the Personal Statement (PS, which is an essay about why you are a good candidate to study the course you are applying to), you are likely to get an unconditional offer. If you apply with some requirements still to be met (eg, an AP/IB/A level that you will take in May of senior year) you may get an offer that is ‘conditional’ on getting a specified mark).

=> Oxford and Cambridge have admissions tests for most subjects. Examples of the tests are available online.

=> Oxford and Cambridge use your standardized test scores, marks on their test, LoR and PS to short list for interview; once you get to interview you have about a 1 in 3 chance of an offer. The interview is done with the professors who will be teaching you, not an ad comms, and they specifically look for students who have a serious and deep interest in their subject. The interviews are like a cross between an oral exam in the subject you are taking and a mock tutorial / supervision (lesson), and are very intense.

=> fyi, you can only apply to either Oxford or Cambridge.

=> EU citizenship is not the qualifier for tuition, tax residency is. If you are an EU citizen but not resident within the EU you pay international rates. That may still be less expensive than the US, and they are generally FAFSA eligible, but there are essentially no other scholarships

13

Thanks for the help! This is highly appreciated.

So I definitely will rule out A-level chemistry since I’ve only done regular chemistry freshman year and that’s probably not enough.

Also AP research is part of AP Capstone… so I don’t think it’s technically an english class per say is it??

I’ll definitely consider A-level spanish, since if it really is a combination of AP lang and lit then I may as well take that one.

Also define low preforming. I mean, my school is public and a very large school ( in terms of student count) and it’s a university town place, but then again, my state in general is one of the lowest ranked in education in the US and about 85% of all college attending students will simply go to the university in the college town

14

Thanks for the clarification! This information is very much appreciated!

Just two questions;

1.) do you know why you can’t apply to both oxford and cambridge? Is there some kind of joint admission team or something?

2.) what if you do not know what major you want to get into? Or what if you have multiple interests?

15

Not a joint admission team, but a joint decision between them which probably has a lot to do with how much work they put into selecting the students.

Starting with ~20K applicants (for Oxford, Cambridge is ~17K), they interview ~10K to get ~3,200 undergrads accepted every year (about 400 of whom are tax-resident outside the UK/EU, btw). Applicants are put up on campus and fed during their interview days, interviewed by at least two tutors, usually twice or more, for at least 20 minutes each time. Those tutors, after a day of interviewing, have to meet to discuss who to keep in the pool, who to cut, who to call for another interview. After several days of this the tutors have to meet again (for several days) to cut the numbers down to the final count, including an individual offer for each student. They do this over the Christmas break. If applicants could apply to both unis, most would apply to both and they would essentially double the workload.

If you don’t know what ‘major’ you want to get into, or if you have multiple interests that aren’t contained within one course (such as PPE: Philosophy, Politics and Economics), the UK probably isn’t the place for you, and Oxbridge is definitely not the place for you. Although I do know a few students who chose a subject they didn’t love, and lived to tell the tale, it takes rare determination to get through the intensity of Oxbridge in a subject you don’t have a real interest in. Over-generalizing a bit, but the US is better for people with broad or undecided interests, the UK for those who know what they love. We have collegekids currently in both places, happy as larks b/c they are in the place that suits them better.

16

In the UK you apply for one “course”, ie., one subject you’ve focused on and are passionate about. You will only study that subject and will take exactly the classes listed on the “course” page, no electives, no free choices, no general education classes, no “exploring”. Your oral exams (they’re not “interviews” in the US sense) will test your knowledge and ability to think deeply and quickly. Your knowledge of the subject must be advanced enough that you can establish a list of a dozen books essential to understanding the subject.