Hey so I just scheduled my junior year and this is what I have.
1st semester:
APUSH
AP Calculus AB
Orchestra
Spanish 5
2nd Semester:
AP Spanish Language
AP English Language
Business Management
Physics
Keep in mind I’m in a 4 by 4 schedule so the classes go twice as fast as a usual high schools 6 classes a year.
I’m not sure if this will be too much for me but I’d like to know anything you guys know about these classes.
Also I don’t know what kind of colleges I should be applying to with these classes considering I’ll be getting mostly As and probably a few Bs. I love McGill University, USC ( I know it’ll be a reach, but people tell me it’s not that hard to get in to), Boston University, University of Washington (Seattle), and others. I don’t know what kind of colleges I should be looking at but currently I have a 3.84 unweighted and 3.96 weighted (I only took one AP class this year, and I got a few Bs last semester unfortunately). Please tell me what you think! And any help on what colleges I should aim for would be great.
also I got a 1240 on the new psat and am taking an sat prep class over the summer that’s specifically for a goal of 1400 (this is the new 1600 scale test)
Quick thing, the PSAT is out of 1520. I took it and got a 1280. My score on the 1600 scale would be around a 1350 and yours would be around a 1300 on the 1600 scale.
@vgklol that’s not true, because the PSAT is slightly easier than the SAT. It’s meant to give an accurate representation of your score if you took the SAT that day. @championworrier can you move APUSH and/or calc AB to second semester? You will probably score higher on the AP exams if you have the material fresh in your mind.
USC is hard to get into. Anyone who tells you it isn’t is probably overconfident. That being said, you have a shot, but I wouldn’t count on it- many qualified students get rejected.
Make sure you apply to universities in your home state in case you can’t afford/don’t get into OOS schools.
If you can, switch AP Calc and AP English Language. Both subjects require different skills and “process” differently. AP English Language will benefit from your having longer exposure (you can continue applying th skills you learned by reading a variety of texts even after class ended) while taking the Calc exam while everything’s fresh is typically easier.
Can you replace Business Management with something? NOT an AP … why not continue Orchestra?
USC is VERY hard to get into and yes it’d be a big reach for you.
If you like USC, think of ASU Barrett, terrific Honors College, good weather, and easier to get into than USC.
If you like McGill, think of Concordia and UBC.
Run the NPC on all universities, but especially BU since it’s known to be stingy for aid.
I assume you’re in-state for UWashington?
Before you decide reaches - which is easy-, you need to find 2 likelies and 3-5 matches/targets. A likely would be a school where you’re above the top 75% percentile for test scores. A match/target would be a school where your scores place you between the average and the top 75%.
Look at Whitman, Lewis&Clark, UOregon, Sonoma State – go visit if you live on the West Coast
@MYOS1634 AP Calculus AB and APUSH are both only offered in the fall terms at my school so I can’t change them to spring. Also, I’m taking business because I need to get a practical art to graduate and I’m thinking that business might be a good fit for a potential career, but who knows. That would be the only semester I would be skipping orchestra in all my years of high school. And yes, I know now about USC and McGill. I was talking before to this kid who thinks it’s not hard to get in for anyone as long as they can pay. In California, I don’t really know what I’d be good for , but I like Loyola Marymount, Chapman, Occidental and maybe SDSU or SFSU. Thanks for the advice btw!
@annana Thank you! But unfortunately I can’t switch APUSH or Calc AB to spring because they’re only offered in the fall. And yeah, I’m looking into schools in my home state (Ca) currently, though I would love to go away for college.
I’ve always wondered how AP exams work with semester schedules. If you take APs 1st semester, you have to take the exam 4 months later and basically self study the whole course again? That doesn’t seem fair.
@lilacwaves Yeah, that’s kind of how it works. But, teachers offer review sessions starting a month before the test so that helps and they encourage you to study. Honestly, I thought it was enough to get me through my AP test but it kind of sucks we have to remember a whole class we learned months ago.
