Only took 3 science courses in high school

Applying to College
1

So I took physics in 9th grade, bio in 10th, AP environmental in 11th but now I don’t have an actual science. I have AP psychology but I hear it doesn’t count as a science. I went through a long period of time with my guidance counsellor choosing my courses for senior year, so one of my friends told me not to worry because the guidance counselor is fine with my schedule, but the vast majority of my friends said I should be concerned I’m not taking a science this year. I also dropped my Italian class because I have all credits for it.

At this point I think it’s too late to add a science, but does anyone know if my situation is ok? Thanks

2

Check your school list to see if they require 4 years of science.

3

I might be able to join a science course late during the period I dropped my Italian course, but if science doesn’t matter then I’d gladly stick with my free period

4

well they don’t, otherwise my counsellor would have required it, but i mean, does it affect your chances of getting into college?

5

wait actually ignore what i said about italian. i have a class in “speech” that replaces my dropped second semester italian period, so i cant take sciences anyway. there is no possibility i can take a science course this year

6

What might you want to study in college? I find it absolutely bizarre that you’re not required to take Chemistry. Does your guid counselor know you want to be going to college?

7

What colleges are you aiming for?

8

Correct; it counts as a social science.

You misunderstood Erin’s Dad. He said that you should check to see if your prospective colleges require/request 4 years of science. Whether or not you’ve met you HS’s requirement is irrelevant. It will matter to some colleges, but they may not be colleges that you’re targeting.

Again, just because you’ve met your HS graduation requirements does not mean that you have the required preparation for all colleges. Without knowing your targeted colleges, nobody can give you better advice.

9

sounds like you’re going to have to be the one to do the research regarding what classes COLLEGES expect.
Your counselor sounds like she/ he has no idea you want to go to college or she is only checking off the boxes that pertain to what your HIGH SCHOOL requires for you to graduate- which has no bearing on what classes colleges want or require students to take.
Better get going.

10

You need to look at the required/recommended classes for colleges you are considering. This information can usually be found pretty easily online.

11

If you have only three years, it is best to have one each of biology, chemistry, and physics.

But you need to check each college to see what they want.

12

ok, so my guidance counselor knows I’m going to college guys, he helped me pick out colleges with him. We looked into SUNYs and then for my reach we looked into schools like bing and stony brook. Hofstra, Albany and Sacred heart are within my range.

I realize at this point there is NOTHING I can do because my schedule for semester 2 is completely filled up. And I can’t take a science for
Half a year. Some of these colleges have distribution courses that include “General Chemistry” so do I really need to have a high school background just to apply to these schools? Seems ridiculous

13

Now you get snippy and take a stand about what’s ridiculous? What’s ridiculous is that your HS didn’t already have you set up for success to achieve in college. Getting angry at college requirements is misplaced. If I were your parent, I never would have let your school direct you to such a thin curriculum since it’s clear that you want to be on a college prep track.

What’s also head shaking is YOUR attitude towards broader subjects. You realize it’s not simply the info you learn in the class, right? I mean seriously, I’ve not thought of diff calculus since my lone semester in college – ever. But you’re taught how to learn. HS Chemistry is one of those basic “weed out” courses between the kids just gliding along and those serious about readying themselves for broad college courses.

14

“General chemistry” is an in-depth class that assumes at least one year of chemistry but where the best students will have taken chemistry and advanced chemistry too. It’s NOT the class you want to take. You’ll want “introduction to chemistry”, if you choose to make chemistry one of your two lab sciences.
A huge problem with your list is that Sacred Heart and Hofstra are unlikely to be affordable (they’re very expensive AND very stingy with financial aid, so unless your parents make 250K+, those schools won’t be affordable).
Are you a first generation student - neither one of your parents got a 4-year degree? Would your family’s income and your school results qualify you for Heop or Eop? What are your GPA and test scores?
Among the SUNYs, universities like Cortland, Dehli, even Oneonta won’t mind. New Paltz may “forgive” you since you have 3 years after all (is it environmental regular or APES?) depending on your SAT score and GPA. Among the CUNYs, Baruch would be a reach but you’d likely have a shot at CUNY Brooklyn and CSI on Staten Island (they have a cool new dorm to boot).
You should have 2 safeties you can afford (check with your parents and run the Net Price Calculators - Sacred Heart can’t be one of them because it’s unlikely to be affordable), then add about 3-5 matches (those would be Hofstra, SUNY Albany, CSI, CUNY Brooklyn, SUNY Cortland, SUNY Oneonta) then as many reaches as you wish and can afford (so, for you, that’d be SB and Bing, depending on your GPA and SAT you could even add Geneseo.)
It’s also too bad you dropped Italian, because with 3 or 4 years you’d only have to take one semester in college but now you’ll have to take at least 2 semesters at most of your colleges and foreign language classes in college are brutal (expect about 3 hours of work for each class period just to get a B or higher, or 2 hours to get a C).
But what is done, is done. Your schedule isn’t so bad considering the universities you target, so you’re okay, but beware that any chemistry class in college is going to require tutoring since almost everyone else will have had it in HS.

15

Yeah I’m definitely looking into cheaper safety nets as well. My GPA is a 3.0 which isn’t very great, but I go to very rigorous school in NY. I took my ACT raw without preparing and got a 25, but I think I’ll get at least a 27-28 in October cause I have a tutor now. I took wrestling for 3 years of high school and im about an easier sport this year, and I also had a job over the summer. So those are some factors that play into my app as well

Both my parents got a 4 year degree my dad has a masters. I took APES last year not regular environmental and I got a B overall and a 4 on the AP exam. I guess I definitely have to look into cheaper colleges. But at this point there’s nothing I can do about my schedule. I’m gonna see if I can talk to my guidance counselor today as a last ditch effort but I think his schedule is fied up by other students today

16

Your schedule is okay for the match and safety schools. Your reaches are big reaches for your current stats. So, don’t worry about it.
Instead, spend time identifying good match schools that you like and can afford - schools for the B/B+ student with a 27 ACT. You may want to read “Colleges that change lives” and run the NPCs on the colleges you like from that book.

17

What does your school offer as science classes (other than the ones you took)?

18

Agree with others that it’s very strange that you didn’t take chem. A “normal” course of study is bio 9th, chem 10th, and physics 11th or 12th. (Or some variant of that)

19

Some of the SUNYs are starting to recommend 4 years of all the core subjects, but I don’t know how strict they are about it. Check the Common Data Set of each school to see their specific requirements.