I’m a high school junior, and so far, my science classes have included the following: Honors Biology in ninth grade, CHS Chemistry in tenth grade, and AP Biology in eleventh grade. Next year, I plan on taking AP Environmental Science. Now that I’m looking thoroughly into schools, I’m a nervous wreck that I won’t be admitted because I haven’t taken a physics class. My top school at the moment is Kenyon College, and I’m looking into more selective schools. Anyway, does anyone know if not taking a physics class is going to hinder my chances of getting into a more selective school like, for example, Kenyon?
Top schools suggest a year each of bio, chem, and physics, with an advanced class in at least one. Kenyon does suggest physics. Will not taking it get you automatically rejected? No, but I’d strive to see if it could be worked into your schedule.
Is physics not an option? If this is the case, schools will understand that. If you can take it, why aren’t you? Schools might wonder why you didn’t. Not make or break, but it is something that sets you apart, but not in a good way.
Okay. Thank you. I’ll have to see about adding it into my schedule. Thank you again!
DON’T make yourself crazy and take 2 AP science classes! Just take AP Physics. ESPECIALLY since you havent taken an intro Physics class.
Your whole HS transcript is important- both your Grades and the classes taken. Getting a C in AP physics because you are too stretched, wont help you get into selective colleges. Take only the number of classes you can handle without killing yourself.
Another option might be AP Environmental Science + honors physics, if that’s offered? Easier than 2 APs and still get to do both.
I certainly did not suggest taking 2 science classes; I was suggesting physics in lieu of AP Environmental. Nor did I suggest that the physics class needed to be AP; it does not. OP already has one advanced science class with AP Bio. If s/he wants AP Physics, fine, but it is not necessary.
^^ skieurope,
the OP said the following-"I’ll have to see about adding it into my schedule. "
I was only reinforcing the same concept- Physics instead of ES. But dropping down to a non AP science class her SR year will not show as much “rigor” and may generate questions from ADmins who look at her transcript.
I know that feeling. My school offers no AP Classes in the Sciences. The closest thing I could take was AP Calc and even that won’t be offered at my school next year. My school is trying hard to replace all our AP classes with Honors level community college courses. Many colleges here in NC will take AP credit but won’t take the credit for Community College courses. While I personally think the plan is stupid I managed to get AP Computer Science and AP Environmental Science through NCVPS or the North Carolina Virtual Public School. AKA I have them both online and will be the only person in my class to graduate with 4 AP classes. To take AP Physics on NCVPS I have to have taken Honors Physics. Maybe there is a similar program where you live. You can even talk to your counselor about taking classes at neighboring high schools. I might be taking AP Stats at a high school about 20 minutes down the road from my high school. If non of the above works then Colleges will definitely understand and you have little to worry about. Be careful though Physics as an online class sounds like a disaster.
Perhaps, but we can’t really say that for sure because:
• we were not made privy to the balance of the schedule
• we are not admissions officers 
At the end of the day, all that matters is which combination of classes will result in the GC checking the “most rigorous schedule” box.
Hi! For what it’s worth, I’ve never taken a single physics class in my life, never taken a single math class above Calc AB, and I’m headed to Yale this fall (I turned down Columbia, Stanford, and Penn). Honestly people make such a big deal out of the “right classes to take” in high school. I only took one year of Chinese and one year of Japanese and got into amazing schools, despite everyone telling me that I wouldn’t get in anywhere selective because I didn’t have 4 years of a foreign language or physics. Good luck!
Are you applying to Engineering or Tech programs? If so, the absence of Physics might be a problem, but it shouldn’t be otherwise. It is suggested, but not required, by most selective colleges. My younger son took Honors Chemistry as a Freshman, Honors Bio as a Sophomore, no Science as a Junior, and IB/SL Bio as a Senior. He got into ten good colleges, and was waitlisted at two others. I doubt that the lack of Physics played any role whatsoever in his three rejections: they were reaches for his GPA and test scores.
I just wanted to say that I took the exact same classes you did/are going to and I got into most of the universities I wanted without physics.
“But dropping down to a non AP science class her SR year will not show as much “rigor” and may generate questions from ADmins who look at her transcript.”
All AP classes are not created equal, and all non-AP classes are not created unequal. APES is known to be one of the fluffier science offerings and physics is known to be the hardest of the science subjects. Besides which, most colleges specify (or “recommend”) a year each of bio, chem and physics. That “recommendation” trumps the AP label.
So the clear answer is, take physics. Even if it means dropping APES.