<p>Hi there,
I'm a rising junior and now, I'm fretting over which courses to take next year. I've been visiting CC for a while and this is my first post ever outside the high school prep admission :) As I have only one year at Choate (i'm an exchange student), I'll try to take the most challenging courses possible. I would love to see how far I can push my own boundaries and experience the true value of learning. Colleges surely care a lot about the rigor of secondary courses, so I've invested quite some time and thoughts into this, as to be able to fully consider both my personal interests in the subjects and the courses' significance to adcoms. Now I really need your advice :D
The school recommends taking 5 courses per term, so this is my almost final list:
1. AP Cal. I'm not sure if I should take AB or BC. Any advice here?
2. AP Physics C. I hear that C is more math-intense and since I'll be taking AP Cal alongside with it, hope I'll be fine. :)
3. AP US History. I plan to spend the rest of the summer working on the AMSCO book and the Kaplan SAT II USH prep book.
4. An English course. I'm not sure which one yet. Any recommendation?
5. I'm torn between AP Psy and Chinese I for beginner. I like both Psy and Chinese, but since we're not taught these 2 subjects in high school here, I don't have much background knowledge. Only students who took Intro to Psy can take AP psy, but as I'm an exchange student, maybe they'll let me have a chance. Do you think I can handle the work load in that course with no prior knowledge?
And also which one would look better in combination with the 4 courses above, Chinese I as a foreign language or AP Psy?
Thank you!</p>
<p>taking a foreign lang. is important especially a certain number of years. If they are willing to let you take AP Calc BC w/out AB than I would say go for it, but I would all recommend familiarizing yourself Calc AB concepts decently this summer.</p>
<p>Thanks, so that means I should take Chinese I instead of AP Psy then? Will the level of the courses matter a lot here? I'm just asking because the Chinese class is basically level 1 with no prior knowledge whatsoever of the language the the Psy class is AP level. Any other inputs would really be appreciated :)</p>
<p>"If they are willing to let you take AP Calc BC w/out AB than I would say go for it, but I would all recommend familiarizing yourself Calc AB concepts decently this summer."</p>
<p>This makes no sense. The BC course is the AB course with extra chapters.
You don't need to familiarize yourself with AB topics because your first semester of BC will be the entire AB course. </p>
<p>I would do the chinese. Maybe take AP psych next year?</p>
<p>AP Psych has the general reputation of being a relatively lightweight course, nowhere in the league of Calc BC or Physics C.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for your prompt replies, christalena2 and greennblue :D
@christalena2: I'm just an exchange student for one year, that means this is my one and only year :P
@greennblue: you're right about the lightweight course thing. I actually consider AP psy because I'm afraid I can't handle the work load If I take another 'hard-core' class which is more likely to be on par with CalBC or Physics C :P.
Any other advice ?</p>
<p>which sounds like more fun?
chinese or pysch?</p>
<p>also, what kind of english classes are you offered-- poetry? AP? shakespeare? etc...</p>
<p>personally, i love pyschology (esp. cognitive). so i would say that psych. is more fun.</p>
<p>uh well Physics C generally needs calculus unless u have done Physics B already.</p>
<p>Take APsych and self-study/internet course your foreign language.</p>
<p>Some schools consider Calc BC a continuation of BC, & require AB as a prerequisite.</p>
<p>that made no sense</p>
<p>i think s/he meant to say calc AB is is prerequisite</p>