<p>So, yeah. Post it here. :).</p>
<p>Prospective (I think of applying to schools like MIT as buying a lottery ticket):</p>
<p>Freshman: Precalc w/Trig
Sophomore: AP Calculus AB
Junior: AP Calculus BC
Senior: AP Statistics</p>
<p>9th grade: Algebra 2
10th: Geometry
11th: Pre-Calc
post-11th summer: Calc
12th: Multivariable, Linear Algebra possibly</p>
<p>9th grade: Geometry
10th grade: Algebra 2
summer between 10th and 11th: tested out of pre-calc
11th grade: Calc AB
12th grade: Calc BC</p>
<p>Current student. School did not offer Calc BC at all unless there were people who had already taken Calc AB, and in order to take Calc AB before senior year one had to test out of a math class.</p>
<p>prospective, incoming junior (high school class of 2011)</p>
<p>9th grade: Algebra II and Geometry combined (course name “Enriched Math” in a private school in Montreal, Canada)
10th grade: Honors Pre-Calculus
11th grade: AP Calculus BC
12th grade: no idea yet, would like to take courses at a college like everybody else here on CC but seeing that I’m a foreigner living in Mexico City and am not the most fluent in Spanish… no idea how that will go. Maybe summer classes? </p>
<p>That’s it. :]</p>
<p>Status: Accepted EA for Class of 2013</p>
<p>I self-studied calculus the summer before my freshman year, but my school made me take algebra and whatnot because I didn’t have “official credit” to show for my independent math studies in middle school…haha. Anyways, here’s my official sequence, according to my transcript:</p>
<p>9th: Honors Geometry
10th: Honors Algebra 2
11th: AP Calculus AB (My school finally gave in and let me skip to calculus and not take Analysis (AKA Precalc) after bugging them for two years, thanks to the math department head)
12th: Took Multivariable Calculus through Stanford’s EPGY online program, and then self-studied Differential Equations and Linear Algebra through MIT’s OpenCourseWare</p>
<p>I would guess that mine is pretty standard…:
9th grade: Geometry
10th grade: Honors Algebra II & Trig
11th grade: Honors Pre-Calc
12th grade: Calc BC</p>
<p>Mine –
9th grade: Geometry
10th grade: Algebra II
11th grade: Honors Precalc
12th grade: Calculus at a local community college (my school didn’t offer it)</p>
<p>My husband’s –
9th grade: Honors Geometry
10th grade: Honors Algebra II
11th grade: Honors Precalc
12th grade: Calc AB</p>
<p>My daughter (2011) had a schedule similar to some of these:</p>
<p>Freshman: Precalc w/Trig
Sophomore: AP Calculus AB
Junior: AP Calculus BC
Senior: Multivariable Statistics (Stanford EPGY)</p>
<p>I’m a current junior:</p>
<p>9 - Algebra II
10 - Precalculus
11 - IB Math HL I
12 - IB Math HL II</p>
<p>Any other IB-ers out there?</p>
<p>9th: AP Statistics
10th: Credit by Assesment-Geometry & AP Calculus AB
11th: AP Calculus BC
Mites 08 Summer- Multivariable Calc
12th: Linear Algebra & Differential Equations</p>
<p>MIT 2013!</p>
<p>Not an MIT student here and just a question – anyone make it into MIT who didn’t take calculus in high school? And how do you think you convinced MIT to accept you?</p>
<p>I am fascinated by the fact that it seems to be drive, passion, and a spark that produce talented math/physics/engineering students that could remain dormant until much later. A good friend of mine, whom I referenced more than once started college literally not knowing how to factor polynomials. Ended up having a great math career when he decided to turn it around.</p>
<p>How does a school like MIT strive to discover people like him? (Note – he didn’t go to MIT, but just saying).</p>
<p>prospective</p>
<p>FR: Alg II H
summer: Trig
SO: AB AP
JR: BC AP, AP Stats
SR: Multi</p>
<p>accepted EA class of 2013</p>
<p>freshman: Honors Geometry
sophomore: Honors Precalculus
junior: AP calculus AB
senior: AP calculus BC and AP statistics</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>By chance. Admissions tries their best to identify depth in an applicant, intelligence and ambition and accomplishment in SOME area that is indicative of potential. It could be music or art or a really magnetic personality or unique outlook, but it’s kind of a dangerous game to play because really it’s very hard to know. At least at MIT, for every “successful” faith or hope-based admit, I’m willing to bet there are 2 unsuccessful ones. Now, I’m saying this from the perspective of someone who would have never gotten into MIT w/o this particular policy… haha, so I’ve definitely benefited beyond belief, but I’ve also seen many of my friends suffer. So I’m kind of torn. Admission to MIT isn’t a “gift” by any means.</p>
<p>But yeah, to answer your question, there was nothing remarkable about my high school education, esp in math/science. Math up to single-variable calc (senior year), algebra-based mechanics (no AP) (also senior year), AP chem (this was my forte :), I was more educated in chem than in anything else I knew thanks to an amazing teacher). I think her recommendation was probably explosive, she liked me a lot, I can’t imagine anything more integral. I liked to write, I sent in some photography, I played 3 sports, I had strong SAT scores in single sittings. None of this really proves that I can do well here, haha, unless you see something I don’t. I guess being a strong test taker by nature helps. Anyhow, it’s official, I’m graduating as a physics major now (just turned in my thesis today, to thunderous applause… in my head). This experience has blown my mind by the way. I am so grateful for this opportunity.</p>
<p>Thanks very much for your account, pebbles – awesome story of yours, I’m sure those who know you are proud of you. Now you can only imagine what an extreme example my friend is. Forget single-variable calculus…not knowing to factor polynomials. He didn’t apply to anywhere but California schools, so not a chance we could’ve known, but anyway. Obviously MIT saw something in you, and I’m wondering how they did. Could you guess yourself?</p>
<p>My philosophy is that a school should admit students who’re most likely to use <em>its</em> environment + resources to do great things and/or transform themselves. For instance, people going to MIT probably should thrive in an environment where there’re lots of people interested in the technical fields around them. </p>
<p>Mollie might’ve come close, but she just had to go over to that community college now didn’t she :)</p>
<p>My question still stands, though – something I came to this thread very interested to see.</p>
<p>^^MIT does not have remedial classes, so strictly speaking, it shouldn’t admit anyone who is not ready to take single-variable calculus as a freshman. You learn how to factor polynomials in algebra I. Algebra II, geometry, trig are all after that and are pre-reqs for single-variable calculus. Plus, most of the GIRs assume this knowledge.</p>
<p>People who have a serious holes in their fundamentals would be better served by taking classes at a slower-paced university that will actually teach what these people need to learn.</p>
<p>^^ Ah, but this case was one of someone transferring as a junior out of community college. What if he were to try then? His background likely included (coming in as a junior) multivariable calculus and linear algebra. Which is pretty fast if you think about it. I think he did something ridiculous like taking high school geometry and calculus classes at the same time.</p>
<p>This is why my question addressed people who didn’t take calculus, or have a sort of standard indicator/check as to ability to survive a technically rigorous university, rather than explicitly someone coming in not knowing how to factor polynomials. I think there is a <em>significant</em> difference between an application with zero calculus and one with it, in terms of a technical school prospective. I’m wondering if there’s so much involved in gauging this “spark,” how it might’ve worked out for these less common cases.</p>
<p>Yeah, overall I agree w/ collegealum, I think banking on future potential of mediocre admits over the accomplishments of stellar high school students, is kind of iffy. Especially at MIT, it’s probably not a good policy- it is very easy to fall through the holes here and end up worse off than if you hadn’t come to this school to begin with.</p>
<p>^^ Oh don’t get me wrong, I am actually one of the most conservative people you’d meet, when it comes to admissions questions. If I had to run a technical school, I’d probably do things how Caltech does it. Nevertheless, my question stands out of interest.</p>