Hi everyone, so I’m currently going through the course selection process at my school and since Penn is my first choice school, I thought I would ask my question about my schedule here.
There are seven periods in a school day for us and right now this is the course load I’m thinking about:
AP Calc AB
Spanish 4 Honors
AP US History
AP Language and Composition
AP Physics (At my school this class has 2 additional lab periods every 6 day cycle, so it takes up more time in my schedule)
Accounting 1 (one semester class)
Gym and Health over the summer
So my original question was, under this schedule, I would have 4 study hall periods every six day cycle (this is the way my school structures things we have A-F days) during the semester I have accounting I, and then during the semester when I don’t have it, an additional study hall every day, would look bad because for half the year I will have 10 study hall periods per cycle? Should I try to take another half year elective, or replace accounting I with a different full year class?
I stated in the other forum that I was thinking about trying to replace accounting with AP us gov, and one poster suggested that accounting would be looked down upon by top colleges because it’s too “applied” and I should try to take a dual-enrollment philosophy class at a community college because I need to show my ability to conceptualize. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Would taking accounting hurt my application and should I take AP gov instead? The only other class options I have are public speaking or entrepreneurship. Additionally, if I were to take a philosophy class it would have to be over the summer. Any input would be much appreciated. Thanks!
The original thread:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/1863155-junior-year-schedule.html#latest
IMO, You need to replace the half semester accounting class with, at the very least, a full year course. I would say with another AP class if you can, if not, then an honors level, or if none of those are available , a class that is related to your intended field of study.
Study Halls don’t show challenge…
@NicholasT I think it depends on what other half-year courses your school offers. I think the chance to take an accounting course as a high school student is a great opportunity. I took accounting my junior year of high school (it was a full year course, but not a big deal whether it’s full or half), and I really enjoyed it and helped me assure myself of my interest in business, leading me to Wharton. If you think business is a potential interest of yours, I’d recommend that you stay in the accounting class.
Does your school offer any other half-year courses that can be of value to you? That can help resolve your issue. With regard to the too “applied” thing, I really disagree. At least for me, I think taking accounting was one of the things that helped my application, as I was able to discuss how I really enjoyed it and had a understanding of the kind of program that I was entering. I don’t see any reason to do a dual-credit community college philosophy class over the summer. Unless you want to study philosophy at college, I don’t see much upside to that.
Are the entrepreneurship or public speaking courses one semester or full year? If they are one semester and you’re interested in Wharton, I think entrepreneurship + accounting would look really good. If you’re not as interested in Wharton, public speaking is a really useful skill no matter what you want to do in life that you can pair up with accounting. If neither are one semester, then while the 10 study hall periods is not optimal, I don’t see it as the end of the world (maybe you can do gym or health during the school year instead of over the summer?).
The rest of your schedule seems fine to me.
I’m going to disagree with @runswimyoga here. I don’t think you need another AP class. You’re already taking four, plus a language honors. That is plenty. Make sure you leave yourself some breathing room for activities and homework time.
@nicholast
I think it depends. I like the idea of an accounting class, if you are interested in it. The only drawback could be if it could impact your class rank. I would check on that. If it will not impact you much, then I would keep it.
The two things I would consider, regarding rigor, would be changing Calc to BC, and taking Physics C, if that is not what you are taking. If you think you can manage to get an A, I would change to BC Calc and Physics C.
I would not recommend another AP assuming you have taken a few during Junior year. The reason is that four APs for high school is not quite enough. I think top schools would look for at least 6 during high school.
The study hall is a good idea. Use the study hall to take a rigorous schedule and keep your grades high.
Thanks for the responses everyone. @WhartonPenn2017 business is my main interest, so that’s why I was thinking about accounting. There aren’t too many other valuable half-year courses at my school, but I really like your idea of accounting and entrepreneurship (which is also half-year), and to be honest, I think that might be what I go with. @Much2learn my school doesn’t have class rank, just deciles, so I would be fine in that respect. Also, regarding Calc Bc and Physics C, can you do that? My understanding was you had to take Calc AB first and Physics I first before you could take those classes. Perhaps it’s different at different schools but could you clarify the differences in content and difficulty between the courses? I’m not quite sure what you are saying about the Ap’s, but to clarify, I am currently a sophomore, and right now I take Ap world and Ap psych. Senior year I will probably be taking 5 AP’s, so I’ll have a total of 11 by the end of high school if I take 4 next year.
Thanks again, and if anyone else has input it would be much appreciated.
Drop Accounting or AP Physics. You can take AP Physics 1 or AP Physics C during senior year. AP Physics 1 is not an easy class and only 4% of students received score of 5 on the exam.
Take Gym and Health during the regular semesters instead of during the summer. Why hurry? You need some easy class to relax during your junior year.
Maybe you should take regular Physics/Chemistry/Biology then take AP Physics C during senior year.
@NicholasT Regarding your question about taking AB and Physics 1 before Calc BC and Physics C, that depends by school. For example, at my high school, it was highly recommended to take Physics B (Physics 1 didn’t exist when I was in high school) before Physics C, but students were discouraged to take AB before BC (we were encouraged to take one or the other, but not both). If your school has a policy about taking AB and Physics 1 first, I would just follow your school’s policy, as the teachers may teach the class in such a way that it helps students who follow that path.
I like the idea of @WhartonPenn2017 to take Accounting and Entrepreneurship combined for a full year course since your indicating that your interest is in business… I would also just add to maybe think about AP Macro Economics if it is available… It is an “easier AP” and is more along the “conceptional” rather than “applied” lines…
(IDK, for my son, there were many easy AP’s that were not a lot of work, so I wouldn’t let the AP title necessarily scare you. He found that Science, English and History AP’s were harder and time consuming, but the others were pretty easy and rarely required homework… including AP Econ… but that probably varies per school)
Definitely discuss all of this with your guidance counselor - he/she will have a better idea of your school’s level of workload for these classes along with your individual ability to handle the rigor … The GC’s can also tell you what students from your school have taken who have been accepted to the more selective schools…
I agree that if you want to have a tiny window into those business subjects, Accounting and Entrepreneurship would be a good choice (also, lighter courses, which may be good in a heavy schedule). However those classes are not considered as rigorous. Since the rest of your schedule is rigorous, it shouldn’t matter.
Physics C is considered the second level in a Physics sequence which could start with Honors Physics, Physics1, or Physics2.
Calc AB/BC are treated differently depending on high schools: at some high schools, they’re treated as Calc1 and Calc2, one year each taken in a sequence. At other high schools, they’re treated like Calculus/high-school paced and Calculus/College-paced (with students being placed into one OR the other).
The most important thing for Wharton will be ability to conceptualize, as demonstrated by a sound grasp of calculus and anything else you can use. High test scores (750+M especially) are also a necessity. Keep in mind that Wharton will essentially ask you to double major in a very demanding business field AND a liberal arts field (unlike random schools of management or business colleges, business majors do NOT have a special-light general education curriculum with little reading/writing and quantitative skills must be excellent.)
Philosophy IS concept-heavy and, associated with math, is a good choice to prove your ability to adcoms. It does not directly relate to business, obviously, although you’d be surprised how much it can be a “signal” and an ice breaker in top-level firms (head hunting, consulting…, not IB).
OP. I see you haven’t had any Physics yet. Then Physics 1 is fine. At our school about the top 10% of students in a grade take BC as a Junior and do it directly from pre-calc. Some schools don’t offer it. The colleges will notice if your school does offer it and you don’t take it. If they don’t offer it, then AB is fine.
Again, keep the study hall. Fewer classes with higher grades trumps more classes and lower grades.
^ actually, even Harvard doesn’t distinguish between ab and bc as long as calculus was taken (and even there calculus is not necessary if you have something else that makes up for it such as artistic talent or two foreign languages at a high level).
Some engineering program may put a premium on bc but all in all what matters is taking challenging classes every year (ie, dont accélérée inlyvto end uo in AP stats senior year). Have a game plan.
Regarding ab/bc: some high schools offer it as a sequence like they would offer calculus1 and then calculus 2. Other high schools offer either one, with ab being calculus at a high school pace, and bc being calculus at college pace, so top pre-calculus students would take bc while good pre-calculus students would take ab and lost students would take stats.