So I am a freshman and will take the 3 following AP courses next year:
APUSH
AP Bio
AP Calc BC
There are about 5-10 freshmen (out of like 1000 of us lol) that are going to take 4 AP’s next year, basically with all of those plus mostly AP Comp Sci A. I am just as accomplished as them, so should I add another course to increase rigor? I am very interested in Bio/Calc, will power through APUSH as all smart kids at my school are expected to take it, and I like psychology. Should I carry this out to stay at/near the top?
Sure if you are absolutely sure you can handle the work load. I’ve seen kids at my school do well in one AP class, then dive headfirst into 4+, and get like straight Cs.
Oh I apologize, I thought you were a freshman taking 4. AP Calc you should not take, that is more of a senior year class. I’d say drop that, and take AP Computer Science principles A
Take Calc next year. Although, if you are jumping straight from Precalc to BC, be careful. It will be very difficult.
Don’t underestimate the workload from APUSH. It varies per school and teacher, yes, but it is a very reading-intensive class.
AP Bio and APUSH and BC concurrently? You know your strengths in ways we don’t, of course, but that isn’t easy. What are your grades like right now?
And I wouldn’t take a 4th AP just because a few kids are doing it. You are not those few kids. You are yourself. If you’re taking that many as a sophomore, and you have at least as many as a junior and senior, then you will have over a dozen APs probably. The difference between a kid taking 12 and 13 and 14 APs is negligible, if at all existent.
I disagree. I always advocate taking the next math course in the sequence.
Agreed. None of use know what you are capable of. Some kids thrive with 4+ AP’s; others struggle with one.
At the end of the day though, AP’s are not an arms race where the one with the most wins. Although if you are applying to top schools with other applicants form your HS, you should still take a competitive amount over the course of your HS career.
Don’t listen to the people above. Definitely add AP Comp Sci A. It is an easy class in my school so many sophomores and freshmen take it and have like 98% in that class. You should also maybe take AP Environmental science since its also easy.
Have to majorly disagree with @maxim2001. The point of the comments above was to say that you shouldn’t take an easy AP course just to take AP. I agree with that. If you have a genuine interest in learning programming OP, please go for it. If not, then it won’t matter. I currently have a 99.5% in Comp A right now, but I still have some regrets about taking it, as I feel like the hour I take every day to finish some of the longer, harder programs can easily be better spent elsewhere. Only if you REALLY need the grade boost should you take an AP class for the sake of AP.
The rest of your classes look good though (if you are sure you can handle them). Just get involved in some EC’s, and you will look just as good as anyone else. Only add the extra class if you want to.