<p>college4many: I sort of mentioned the SAT II for World History to my son months ago – well before he took the class. I’ll have to say something soon to see if he wants to register for it. He probably will not attend a school that requires the SAT II, but at least he would be ready should he apply to a school that needs it. My older son took his SAT II exams during his sophomore and junior years, so he would not have them during a busy senior year.</p>
<p>Could really use some scheduling feedback for D14’s jr year…D14 is looking to get out of physics next year. She went from being a math & science honors student back in JHS to a math & science-phobe in HS. She has taken HS level earth sci, living environment, and is currently in chem. She does OK (high 80s/low 90s) but hates it and has to work hard/struggles. Instead of physics, she would like to take AP Psych or AP Environmental Science because she feels she’ll do better in them…but her gc feels she should try to do the physics (regents level, not honors). The rest of her sched is: AP Lang, APUSH, Italian Honors, 12th grade regents math, chorus, art. She know of other kids who have skipped or who are skipping physics and taking one of these other options. At the same time, we don’t want it to look poorly on her transcript that she did not continue on the science track with physics…especially too since her math performance is not stellar (high 80s). Not sure how to best guide my daughter and if this is worth taking up with the gc myself. Any thoughts?</p>
<p>pinkmomagain - A lot of schools are going to be looking for three separate lab sciences to be covered…biology, chemistry, and physics. Have you looked at the websites of the schools that she might be interested in to see what the requirements are? Earth science is not considered a ‘lab science’. I’m not familiar with ‘living environment’. Is that perhaps a biology course?</p>
<p>Yes, Living Environment is Bio. She did have a separate lab period with her Earth Science course but it’s interesting to hear it’s not considered a lab science. I have not looked at the college websites we are starting to consider but that is a great idea. I will poke around and take a look.</p>
<p>I would speak with your GC about this. We were always instructed that Earth Sci was not a lab science and to plan for three areas to be covered. Based on what is available at your school your GC would be the best source to guide you. This may be why they are suggesting physics. I would certainly ask. At this stage it doesn’t hurt to poke around those college websites either. We learned a lot, and often wished we had known information a few years earlier for planning purposes.</p>
<p>pinkmomagain: Thank you for asking this! We have a slightly different situation on our hands regarding physics but sophomore daughter seems to be headed down a road that is going to leave out physics. She took Biology 10 in 9th grade, is in pre-AP chem now, will take AP Chem in 11th grade, and her plan is to take AP Biology as a senior. She did start AP Physics B in 10th grade…stayed in it for a few days and felt it was going to be too much even though she met the one requirement to take it. She quickly dropped it and went to pre-AP chem. I am curious…Does not taking physics create a problem for these kids? Our school does have a general physics course that my child could probably take as a senior.</p>
<p>I would talk to your GC. Our kids are required to have three different areas for graduation and I know many schools we looked at for our older son preferred this. Is it going to be a requirement for all colleges? Certainly not! Look at the websites for the schools your kids are potentially interested in and talk to your GC about what would be best for your student.</p>
<p>Regarding SATIIs, son’s precalc/trig teacher recommended waiting until junior year to take SAT Math 2, but I think he should take it in June. I think he should sit for World History too, since he’s taking APWorld. He is also taking Honors Chem with no plans to take AP Chem, so I’m wondering if he should sit for the SAT II Chem? Too much for a sophomore playing baseball?</p>
<p>He doesn’t have any idea where he wants to go to school-- just wants to play college baseball – and is leaning toward studying finance or engineering (which is why I’m wondering about the Chem SATII). I’m just wanting to help him get the testing over and done with and keep his options open. I’m coming to the realization that he has a good chance of acceptance at UVa (instate for us. and SATI scores from Jan are very good) if he keeps his grades up, but he may not want to go there if he can’t play baseball – yikes! Since they’re Division 1 and ranked number 1, UVa baseball seems almost impossible. a crapshoot at best. He’s a solid player – was thrilled this week to be invited to try out for Varsity next week – but it’s too soon to tell whether he’ll become the star he would need to be for a Division I school. I don’t think his great academics are a chip to get on a baseball team, especially one as competitive as UVa. I imagine the coaches don’t care so much about academics so long as the player can get admitted.</p>
<p>So for all you experts out there on cc, I’d love advice on the SATIIs. If anyone has NCAA insight, would appreciate that too. Thanks!</p>
<p>dpr2college,
I can’t speak to the sports component, but my older son is a first year student at UVa (SEAS) so I do have some experience there. I’ll give you my opinion, FWIW. </p>
<p>I would certainly have your son take the SAT2 for World History this May/June in conjunction with his AP exam. I am going to agree with his math instructor on the Math 2 subject test and say waiting until Jr year would be better. The biggest issue the kids have with this test is simply finishing. My son took it Jr year but did much better fall of his Sr. year (first semester of Calc). If your son is applying to the e’school (SEAS) he wants a strong Math 2. I wouldn’t potentially sacrifice points just to get the test out of the way soph year. </p>
<p>Regarding the Chem subject test, this is a personal choice. It is notoriously difficult even after having finished AP Chem. Have your son take a practice test and see how he does before you make a decision. Keep in mind, with the exception of Georgetown, schools that require/recommend subject tests only ask for two. </p>
<p>Feel free to PM me if you have any questions re UVa SEAS.</p>
<p>dpr2college: I may be able to offer some insight regarding the NCAA.</p>
<p>First, your son will need to register with the NCAA Eligibility Center. The reason is, any D1/D2 school will expect him to be. Fortunately, our HS did a program on this, and my son asked to attend. It was wonderful. The college counselor said that she would help him with the registration later this spring – he would like to run at the D1 level.</p>
<p>Playing at a top-flight baseball school like UVA is a tall order. Is your son playing travel ball this summer? Or for a top summer league? Has he looked into attending a showcase event so he can be seen by college personnel? My husband is in professional baseball, and many of his players attended top schools. Colleges usually do not come to see a student play at a high school game – unless it’s an all-star or state tournament situation. Several of my former students played college ball at the D3 level, and they were quite successful. Got academic money to attend their schools. So never rule out the D3 option – there are some excellent D3 programs with good engineering or finance options.</p>
<p>BTW, many coaches do care about academics, regardless of the level. we have a friend who coached an ACC baseball team for years. He explained that often, if he had a prospect with excellent SAT/GPAs, the school would offer academic money. This would free up the coaching staff to offer a prospect with less than stellar (but still good) stats the athletic scholarship.</p>
<p>As for the SAT II in chemistry, my older son took it in the spring of his junior year. He had no trouble, because he had an AP class in chem. A friend took it, but he only had regular chemistry. He struggled with it and did not do well on the exam.</p>
<p>Thank you, momreads and blueiguana! </p>
<p>Regarding SAT II, it seems the next step is those practice tests. If he feels good about the Chemistry, he can take World History and Chemistry in June and wait until next year for Math 2. I appreciate the insights you’ve offered on those tests. Blueiguana, thank you for offering a PM. You have provided so much helpful advice on the Music Major thread already related to my 2013 sone, and I noticed one of your previous posts pertains to music accompaniment? I will take you up on the offer regarding a PM on UVa’s SEAS, once I have looked at it a bit more closely.</p>
<p>Momreads, regarding NCAA, does it matter when he registers? I was thinking the time for that is September of his junior year, but maybe sooner? We haven’t ruled out D3. My current thinking is that a D3 school would be the best fit for him, but I am struggling with how to sort through the schools. I see now the complexity of finding the fit all the way around. UVa is a fit academically and financially, but maybe a bridge too far athletically. He has played travel ball since age 12 with a variety of Northern Virginia Travel Baseball League (NVTBL). I don’t know if they are considered a “top Summer league.” What are the top Summer leagues? Last year he played with an independent team which played in a bunch of mid=Atlantic tournaments (winning one at JMU, I think). That team joined the Richmond Braves organization, and he was invited to join them, but he wanted to stay local and play with his high school teammates, so he’s back in NVTBL this Summer and may play Little League Seniors baseball if he can manage it. He has played Little League almost every season since Tball. The All Star season a couple of years ago was a really fun experience for him. He did one showcase last Summer (through the Richmond Braves organization, I think) at which he didn’t have a good outing. We’ve been focusing on skills development, thinking the showcase time is between junior and senior year. His trainer, who also coaches or has coached/trained at the pro level, is telling him to forget about showcases for now so he can focus on improving his bat, arm, and running speed. I apologize for going on and on – really appreciate insight about how to best help him find a good baseball/college fit. If you are open to a PM, please let me know.</p>
<p>Regarding the SATIIs for Math and Chemistry. My 2014 S signed up to take both Math 2 and Chemistry this past January, when he was finishing up single-semester classes in Honors Precalc/Trig and Honors Chemistry. At the last minute, he decided not to take the honors Chemistry as there was a lot that had not been covered in his chemistry class, and he wasn’t doing as well as he’d like on the practice tests. So he only took the Math 2. We just got the scores back, and for him it was definitely the right move for him to take it when he did. </p>
<p>My older S “had to” take the Chemistry SAT II because he was applying to an engineering program that required a science subject test <em>other than biology</em>. He was taking AP Bio Junior year, and AP Chem and AP Physics senior year, but had taken Honors Chem Sophomore year, so Chemistry was the only “hard science” he had any chance on. He did a substantial amount of self-study for the chemistry and did well on it. (He also took the Biology one, which was pretty much a freebie after AP Bio)</p>
<p>For this S, he’ll take Physics C mechanics Junior year. But I don’t think that will prepare him for the Physics subject test since the subject test also covers E&M. And he won’t take AP Biology and AP Chemistry until senior year. So for engineering programs that want a science subject test, he’s kind of out of luck. I think he will have to do the same as his brother and self-study for the Chemistry.</p>
<p>One thing to keep in mind for subject tests is your fellow test-takers. Fewer kids take Subject tests in areas like Chemistry and Physics and the ones that do are generally pretty strong in the subjects. My ds12 took the Subject test for Chemistry after completing AP Chem. He got a 760, which is a great score. However, that put him at 80% for all kids taking the test. A 760 in Environmental Bio puts you at 93%. Your average kid isn’t going to take these tests if they need another test, so your comparison scores are higher.</p>
<p>Thanks mathmom and momof2. I know the science SATIIs are a challenge. I feel like it would make sense for S to take it if he thinks he can score over 700, and your info. on scores confirms what a friend told me. I had him take the Bio practice tests last May to see if he should sit for the Biology SATII after taking Honors Bio. He said he wasn’t interested in AP Bio, so I figured it would be the best time to sit for it. Practice tests confirmed what the teacher had told us – not enough genetics covered in Honors, and he didn’t have time or inclination to learn it on his own. He probably would have gotten mid600, so he passed on it. Will have to see if same is true for Chemistry. This weekend he’s taking advantage of a heat wave. Today he spent four glorious hours on the baseball field getting ready for tryouts on Monday, after three hours of touch football yesterday afternoon. Feels like Spring already!</p>
<p>The crazy thing about the SAT IIs is that a score that would seem terrific on the SAT I is only fair to middling on a SAT II when you look at the percentage. When my D13 scored a 770 on Spanish, I thought that was great but the percentile was 83. After her freshman year I had her take the World History SAT II. She scored a 4 on the AP exam but only 580 on the SAT II which was in the 40th percentile. UGH! When she applies to college she will have to submit all her SAT scores. Her French and Chemistry scores are even worse. I wish I had never had her take them.</p>
<p>Many/most colleges won’t make her submit all her scores, so she may be able to take advantage of “score choice” to make sure most places don’t see those low scores.</p>
<p>Took 2014 son to visit state boarding school for gifted youth today. While the visit went okay, I am reallllly hoping he gets an interview for United World Colleges. That would be a much better fit for him. The problem is that the standards in our state aren’t nearly as high as in some other states such as Illinois so my son still wouldn’t have many peers. Also, he really cares about music and the concert band program at the school we visited is really pathetic. The school is on a university campus but the band director is the gatekeeper to the university music resources and it sounds like he really wants to keep any talent that comes his way in his very small, poorly equipped band instead of letting talented students audition for university opportunities. If S14 gets the opportunity to go to one of the United World Colleges, he could study IB music higher level at a well equipped international school with great opportunities in every subject matter. Interview notices come out on Wednesday or Thursday… Here’s hoping he has a chance.</p>
<p>I just wanted to stop in and say hi! I’ve been reading for several days and have learned a lot! </p>
<p>My son is a sophomore in what seems to me a large high school, but maybe not compared to others - graduating class around 450. He does well in school - doesn’t have to work hard to get good grades. He took the ACT in 7th grade and is scheduled to take it again in April. I had not even thought of college until the emails started coming in following the PSAT & PLAN. He is not taking any AP classes this year - the only offered to sophomores were for history related classes and that is not his strong area. Next year he will be taking three AP classes - English, US History & Biology. And also three Pre-AP classes - Physics, German II & Pre-Calc/Trig. The last class is Cross Country for one semester and a required Art class for the other. He plans to go into Electrical Engineering - but I imagine he would do well with most engineering programs. </p>
<p>I’m anxious to see what comes over the next two years!</p>
<p>Welcome, beadymom! I’m fairly new myself. Like you, I was catapulted here by the college mailings. I can be obsessive, and practically worked myself into a frenzy checking out various schools. I think I have more of a grip now. At any rate, I’ve calmed down and am in it for the long haul. Isn’t it nice to have a forum where we can all support each other? </p>
<p>Apollo6, good luck to your son! I’ve never heard of United World Colleges. Since it seems a good fit, I hope he gets an interview!</p>
<p>This article appeared in our local paper over the weekend. Thought it was good info to share with other sophomore parents!</p>
<p>[Get</a> savvy and you can boost college aid | OregonLive.com](<a href=“http://www.oregonlive.com/finance/index.ssf/2012/02/get_savvy_and_you_can_boost_co.html]Get”>Get savvy and you can boost college aid - oregonlive.com)</p>