Junior Year Schdule// C in pre-calc

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

Hello! I’m a rising junior in high school and I’m really struggling to make a final decision on my class schedule for next year, my guidance counselor is very busy and I don’t have many upper classman to give me genuine advice about these courses. It would really help me up out if I could revive some truthful tips and advice on my schdule! Thank you for taking the time to help if you can, I will mention the possible uclasses I could take below.

*Also, I am in precalc at the moment and finishing up my final assignments as well as preparing to take my exam next week. The final grade I currently have(though it will still change a bit) is not where I want it to be, and the exam is notoriously difficult. Will getting a C in precalc effect my chances at the type of schools I’m aiming for? I’m interested in the schools listed below.
Schools I’m Interested In:

  • Boston College
  • Boston university
  • UVA
  • Tufts
  • Virginia Tech
  • Clemson
    -UMass Amherst
  • Northeastern

*Before I start I will also mention that I have a 3.94 UW &W(my school doesn’t let us take APs freshman year), my only non A is a B in trigonometry. After this school year(next week) if I get that C in precalc and I keep an A in all my others(one being AP Human Geo) I will have a 3.83 UW& 3.89W. I’m really hoping to someone pull my UW up a bit and my W back to a 4+.

Possible Classes:
(BTW, at my school we take 8 credits a year( 4 classes a day). APs must be year long and paired with either year long Econ or another AP, so this is how I will explain my possible schedule.I will also mention why/ why I might not take these classes.

1st Block: A Day- Ap Lang(I’m very strong in English and enjoy it, it’s also fairly expected to take if you are taking an AP social studies at my school.)
B Day- APUSH( Notoriously difficult, but with a teacher I have for AP Human Geo and love. I also love history, and have heard it looks good to colleges if you do well on the exam&class. Problem// Most don’t get As, I don’t know if I can handle another B to my UWgpa and I want my W to go up)

2nd Block: A Day- AP European History( Many would probably wonder why Apush and ApEuro. Well, I really enjoy history, I have had the teacher love her and I have heard she is really “dumming the class down”, and after this very difficult and (honestly rather uninteresting year curriculum-wise, this enjoyable class seems like it could keep my interested through the upcoming year.)
B day- Econ/ Personal Finace(Non Ap) (State requirement, and again I would need to take this if I’m taking an odd number of APs. Saying this, I am planning on taking 2 more or 1 Ap that’s 2 credits(see below).

3rd Block: These are non- Ap smemester classes
1st semester(everyday): Gym 2
2nd sem(everyday): Calculus

4th Block:
Option 1: AP Chem(worth 2 credits but one class. It’s known to be difficult (but I have heard so many different things about it.)I’m willing to work hard but scared of the possibility of getting to Bs. I took regular Chem this year, we don’t have honors, it was fairly easy and I got an A without stress. I know it may seem like I should totally go for it and take AP Chem since I have heard just regular chemistry is thought to be difficult nation-wide. I am confused though, because most people in my class/ school do fairly decent and know it as an easy class. They don’t offer honors so we are all in regular, and I don’t feel as if they are “dumming it down”. In other words, I’m just very conflicted)
Option 2: AP Bio and 1 more AP(possibly Stat, Psych, Econ, or should I just take 4 APs?)
The problem with bio is that I don’t really like the subject, and despite getting an A in Honors Bio I didn’t think it was super easy, while many others did. Still I’m thinking maybe I could survive and get and A and possibily enjoy it with a new teacher, again still conflicted.)

If you have made it this far, thank you!
In conclusion, my major problems are…

  • ApEuro?, APUSH?, or both?
  • AP Chem? AP Bio alone? Or AP bio with what other AP?
  • Will my very likely C in precalc hurt me academically?

I would really love to actually look forward to school next year. I’m extremely willing to work hard, as I did this year, but I just want to actually be interested in my classes again but still get the grades I’m striving for.

Any advice is very appreciated!

2

If you are planning on majoring in something history related, you can take both APEuro and APUSH. If not, then usually most people just take APUSH and maybe APGov during high school. AP Chem will definitely be a step up from regular chem, so if you’re not very comfortable with math I wouldn’t recommend it. However, if you are willing to put in the effort the class is doable. If you don’t really like bio I don’t recommend taking AP Bio because it will be a lot of memorization. You should take a look at your school’s AP Bio syllabus to see if it is truly something you want to take. Does your school offer APES? It has some elements from both chem and bio and can be quite fun. Your C in precalc will probably hurt you for schools like Boston College, UVA, and Virginia Tech, but grades aren’t everything. You should look at the GPA and stats of accepted applicants to see where you currently stand.

3

I see two issues.

One depends upon your intended major. If you want to major in anything STEM related, then you are going to need to work to improve your math skills. If you are intending to major in something that is not STEM related, then this is not a major issue.

Perhaps more importantly, in my experience if you are very good (easy A’s) in algebra, trigonometry, and precalculus, then calculus is quite an easy class. However, I have consistently heard that people who have trouble in algebra, trigonometry, and/or precalculus find calculus to be very difficult. As such, with a B in trigonometry and a C in precalculus, it appears that you are not ready to take calculus.

I think that you should very seriously consider working on your math skills over the summer.

4

Thank you for the advice! I’m not completely sure yet, but I would like to major in something business related. I see what you’re saying, I’m planning on reviewing some basic trig and precalc skills before I take calc.

5

Where are you with foreign language?
Have you taken Conceptual or regular physics already?

6

I have take spanish through spanish 4, and no I have not taken physics.

7

Then take regular or conceptual Physics instead of AP chemistry.

8

Would taking AP spanish be a better idea than AP Chem, or just good to ad in in general?

9

Physics is better than both; you can take AP Chem as a senior.

APUSH is likely a graduation requirement, so I’d take that. I’d push AP Euro to senior year. APUSH and AP Euro (and AP Lang) are very reading/writing intensive and you’re likely to wind up with major papers due very close together.