I’m currently a junior in high school and, due to scheduling conflicts, have been unable to take chemistry. I may be doing physics C next year, meaning that, throughout high school, I will never have taken Chemistry. The schools I’m planning applying to (Gtech, CMU Info Systems, Cornell A&S, etc.) don’t require or even recommend chemistry. Admissions wise, could not taking it still put me at a disadvantage? I’d hate to get denied because of something like that so I just wanted to get an idea now so I can make adjustments needed. Any help is appreciated, thanks!
I plan to major in IT or Computer Science, by the way.
What science courses will you have taken?
Our school offers only 1 section of AP Physics but has a section of chemistry every single period. You really haven’t been able to fit it in?
Which science classes have you taken so far? A pretty standard science sequence would be physical science/earth science in 9th, bio in 10th, chem in 11th, and physics in 12th (for students headed into a science or engineering major). However depending on what the school offers, some students pick up other sciences instead - forensic science and environmental science are hugely popular at the HS near me.
My son took very little chem or bio in high school, but he did take a very little (he was homeschooled). He did a year’s worth of bio labs, and a semester of chem labs along with some AP chem videos, so sort of a year of chem? He took 8 college physics courses, though (he was very pointy in math and physics). He was admitted to all his schools including MIT, where he graduated from, Princeton, Caltech and some others.
The key is to be very, very strong in your other STEM areas. You can also contact the schools this year, explain the situation, and see what they say. That’s what I would likely advise one of my students to do. Also, be sure your GC is on board with it since he/she will be writing your counselor letter.
I question this as well. It’s typical to have scheduling conflicts for upper-level electives, since they generally only offer one or 2 sections. Core courses, though, are generally taught every period.
@skieurope @VickiSoCal @happymomof1 So essentially I took physical science before freshman year and biology in 9th grade. My sophomore year, I decided to go for AP Physics 1, as my counselor believed it’d be a good fit. Then, in junior year, I’d signed up for AP Chem. However, due to IB Computer Science and Orchestra, I was told I couldn’t fit it in. I tried to do Physics 2 then, but that yielded the same result. So I decided to do Business instead, since that’s something I’m interested in for a minor. Therefore, I was unable to take a science class my junior year and didn’t want to do something like enviro that I had no interest in.
This is very dependent on the school.
@bondangles Understood. Hence the qualifier “generally.” 
My point being that there are generally more than a couple of periods from which to choose.
Does your HS not require an intro chem class before AP Chem? If not, that would probably have been good info to provide at the outset. If the conflict is truly a conflict and/or a result of GC suggestions, then the GC should talk about it in his/her rec.
Georgia Tech requires 4 years of science. Are you going to have that?
4 Carnegie units of college preparatory science
The 4 science units should include two courses with a laboratory
component. Georgia public high school students should have at least one unit of biology, one unit of physical science or physics, one unit of chemistry, earth systems, environmental science, or an advanced placement course, and a 4th science
I question whether “I couldn’t fit in AP Chemistry” is a good reason for not taking general chemistry.
Ask your counselor to write about it. The problem looks to be scheduling conflicts for AP and IB courses. Does your school offer chemistry classes that aren’t AP? If so, there is nothing wrong with taking the on-level class if it os the one that fits your schedule.
Can you take chemistry next year?
I would look at the curriculum for your major at the colleges that you are looking at. Do they have chemistry in the curriculum? For example, Engineering does. If so, definitely take some level in HS.
Thanks guys! I’m planning on doing IB or AP chemistry next year then.