I really need help. I am trying to figure out my schedule for next year. Right now I’m signed up for AP Stats, AP English, AP French, and AP Government and Politics and Human Physiology, Spanish One, adn a semsester of a Teacher Internship Program. I am debating whether or not to take AP Biology in place of Spanish, Human Physiology and the teacher internship (AP Bio takes up a lot of schedule space) becasue I want to be able to get into highly selective schools (like ivyy-leagues or univ. or chicago) and I’m also afraid that it looks bad to only have 3.5 years of science instead of four. I think having all AP’s will look much better on my transcipt, but I am afraid I will drive myself insane next year with the amount of work I have to do in additon to my involvement in extracurriculars, which inlcude school plays, speech team( which I’m captain of), NHS, drama club, and piano lessons. I’d also like to enjoy life at least a little bit next year, and not have to be continually stressed out.
I probably will not end up majoring in anything math or science-I’m leaning towards political science, international studies or French, however there is always a possibility for pre-med. Any advice?? I could really use it, since time is running out for me to change my schedule.
Furthermore, I’ve been reading that collges look much more favorably upon students who take calc instead of stats. If I took calc I’d take AB, since math is not my strongest subject area. Should I take it instead of stats?
PS In case this helps in any way, I have taken all honors and two AP classes up until this point and I have a high GPA and a 32 on my ACT. I haven’t gotten SAT results back yet.
PLEASE HELP!!! Thanks you so much-Trying to make this decision has been incredibly agonizing. I really would appreciate other people’s insights and comments. Sorry the post is so long.
<p>AP Bio would probably be the toughest AP to take. English and Gov shouldn't have too much work, Physio in my school is very easy, Spanish 1 seems unnecessary since you've already done French, but it's easy. I don't know about Stats or French. Bio is a big time committment, but if you're up to it, it would certainly look good. Keep in mind that in Senior year, you don't necessarily have to get great grades. Get the B and you're golden (unless you're applying to some schools that look at 1st semester).</p>
<p>the hardest AP depends on your school and teacher!</p>
<p>Jewls, I'd take what you feel you would like to and will challenge you but not overwhelm you. I decided to drop foreign language and i talked for a sec to an admit person at Amherst and they said that as long as i was taken a challenging course (AP stat) it was fine--then again, i got waitlisted at Amherst, but probably not because of that...
Also, the Yale rep told a story about students who overloaded their schedule and ended up getting some Bs at semester, and I guess they got their early admit put under review or revoked. It was funny because after that he talked about how people ask whether its better to get an A in a regular class or a B in an AP class and they always say "an A in an AP class"---but I think his previous story answered that question.</p>
<p>Anyways, I am by no means an admissions officer and I don't think anyone else on this board is either. Personally, I really impacted my schedule this year and there have been a lot of sleepless nights (like tonight! haha, essay due tomorrow) and I don't know that I would have done this much looking back. I don't think colleges are particularly critical of one's schedule, as long as you are still clearly showing that you are challenging yourself, pursuing your interests, etc. Also, a lot will depend on how you compare to the rest of your school and you GC report, so its difficult to judge without a background-not to mention that this is all just guesswork on my part.</p>
<p>But the bottom line is: no one college is worth killing yourself for...Admissions is so random anyway, so go with your gut and make sure you are challenging yourself without overwhelming yourself. Since you just joined, my guess is that all the posts on here freaked you out and now you are reconsidering your chances of getting into say an ivy league (okay, so maybe that's what happened to me when i saw CC for the first time). Yes, it's hard to get into these schools. No, no one can tell you that if you take XYZ you'll get in but if you don't take Z you won't. So don't read any of the chances threads, really, and don't compare yourself to others. If you get into your top choice, then that's great, and if not then I'm sure you will still get into a fantastic school that you will ultimately love; so go with what will make your senior year pleasurable.</p>
<p>Oh, and one more thing (ugh, this is sooooo CC obsessive!) if nothing else, you will have time to really concentrate on your college aps if you aren't overwhelmed by schoolwork :)</p>
<p>AP Stat is much easier than AP Calc. Why are you taking Spanish 1 in senior year? The internship is going to be easy. You do have a lot of EC's and applying to college takes a lot of time. </p>
<p>Colleges like to see the main five categories each year: English, Math, Science, Social Studies and Foreign Language. Could you take AP Biology to get your science, but lighten the load by taking one of the other AP's (such as French) as a regular non-AP class? Your proposed schedule looks out of whack. I think it would be better both from an academic and an applications viewpoint to take one class each from the five categories. You need a science course on there much more than an AP French class.</p>
<p>i would advise against taking the AP bio then. make sure you can maintain your grades, sanity, and level of senior fun, otherwise senior year is gonna suck. you have a good load already, so i say concentrate your efforts on your extracurriculars and your senior year experience rather than on AP bio. i'm sure you want to finish your debate career with a bang or put out your best showing on your play. </p>
<p>"I probably will not end up majoring in anything math or science-I'm leaning towards political science, international studies or French, however there is always a possibility for pre-med."</p>
<p>possibility for pre-med.... well, if you REALLY want to survive medical school, or pre-med for that matter, you'll have to have genuine interest in it, and it seems like you have your interests elsewhere. </p>
<p>if anything though, don't sacrifice spanish for AP bio if you're looking for international studies. i know you have french already, but an additional foreign language is always a plus for international relations. </p>
<p>"Furthermore, I've been reading that collges look much more favorably upon students who take calc instead of stats. If I took calc I'd take AB, since math is not my strongest subject area. Should I take it instead of stats?"</p>
<p>i personally recommend taking stats because you'll have to take stats as a political science major, which is one of your prospective majors.</p>