We have about three more weeks before S2 has to think seriously about his course choices for next year. And about the same amount of time before we have to face facts re his first semester grades. Trying to enjoy the not-knowing for the long weekend, at least.
Out D20 just picked courses last week. Required senior social studies here are 1/2 year each of Politics and Econ. She’s also taking band, non-AP physics, non-AP senior English, AP Comp Sci and Calc BC. She’s taking AP lit and bio this year. Next week is mid-terms. D20 is currently entirely surrounded by her AP bio notes in our living room.
We’re into taking as many APs as possible, and not into prestige either. In our district some of them are seemingly intentional GPA killers similar to what @lkim10 described, especially the history APs.
D20’s senior fall schedule:
AP Calc AB
AP Lit
AP Gov
AP Art History
Student Government
Elective?
Also taking a 4th year of Spanish online, interning at an advertising firm and working part time.
I think her “weakness” will be lack of real impressive ECs, awards and no focused spike/passion. She’s your typical well-rounded, 4.0 student with decent test scores.
While some don’t like the idea of “packaging”, it will be interesting to see how she can position herself during application season?
@bigmacbeth, regarding the CA public school fine art requirement, it is my understanding that it can be met by taking a class at a community college or possibly online. I have not researched this extensively, but you might consider checking it out if that is the only barrier.
From the UC website:
“What college/university courses satisfy the VPA requirement for high school students?
Any transferable course of 3 semester (4 quarter) units that clearly falls within one of the four visual arts/performing arts disciplines (dance, drama/theater, music or visual art) will satisfy the VPA requirement.”
S2 is almost certain to take AP Lit and AP Euro, and some form of high-level Latin (his school no longer offers the two Latin APs - which I think are actually down to one anyway). Who knows what the math will be - possibly AP Stats since he will be done with calc, his bete noir, after this year. (And yes, we now know/see that for THIS kid, waiting another year to take calc probably would have been wiser.) If he does AP Stats, he can’t take a fourth AP (school policy), so he would likely choose among some challenging/interesting science seminars. Then again maybe he’ll choose to forego math altogether and do an AP science.
Beyond that it’ll be another year of academic choir, probably a different studio art class (possibly AP, but that would require a petition), possibly a creative writing class, who knows.
There will probably be a week or so when I need to do a lot of venting about his choice paralysis. 
8-|
Still, grateful he has choices, grateful that he is genuinely interested in those choices, grateful that chances are good he will get out of calc alive.
@pickledginger Thanks for the info. We (ok, ‘I’) communicated with an admin at the school, and they said the requirement had to be complete by the end of senior year. Unfortunately, she’s already got a full schedule for the summer. Online might work, but I think she’s OK with her current list of schools.
The other issue for us OOS folks that would consider CA schools (I’ve never looked before, having learned the cost, lack of merit, and difficulty of admission when my D17 was looking), is that the decision comes later than a lot of other state schools. I think D20 will have made her mind up by this time next year, but CA decisions don’t come out until mid-March or so? Not sure, but I remember it being late.
Can’t beat the weather, though.
@bigmacbeth, I hear you about the late decisions - some not until almost the end of March, although a few early notifications for some campuses come out in December - and the OOS cost!!!
Can someone let me know about AP Spanish Lang? The CB site, I believe, has that there’s no pre-req but it would seem unadvisable to take without some Spanish if you’re a non-native speaker. So, just wondering in your districts do kids take the this class after Spanish 3, 4, or 5?
Courses so far for Senior year are: AP Physics C, AP Stat, Adv Band, AP Lit, and AP Spanish or Spanish 4.
My d20 was considering UC Davis since they have an amazing vet school but the OOS cost just doesn’t make sense when she is looking at the eventual cost of vet school if she makes it that far. She can still apply there for vet school in 5 years. She is still considering Colorado State University since we can get in state pricing with her test scores and grades but it still will probably be more than in state. Glad she is being practical about the cost issues of things. I wasn’t so thoughtful about those things when I was her age.
@SoccaMomma In our district, it’s the AP Spanish Lang is the Spanish 5 year (after Spanish 4).
Like @HarrietMWelsch we’re still a few weeks away from sketching in senior schedule, but it will probably look something like (no APs at D20’s independent school):
Majors:
Senior English (with spring quarter elective)
Latin V
Stats (taking equivalent of AB Calc this year)
Advanced Bio or Advanced Chem or Env Science
A history elective or another science
Senior Art Studio
Minor:
Advanced Photography
Maybe another art minor
Might also apply for a 4-week exchange program at a British boys boarding school in January while her school is on J-term.
We have the same problem at our school but with AP Chinese, only native speakers take it at our school. Last year DS18 was one of the few non native speakers to take it; even though his Manderin is very good, he only pulled a 4 on the AP exam. DS20 wants to take it next year but I’d rather him skip it, he has enough credits for an “off period” and only needs 3 years of a language.
Here’s his current plan:
AP Chinese
Multi/linear (post AP)
AP English 4
Advanced Stats (post AP)
AP Ecco Macro/ AP Ecco Micro
Comp Sci Independent Study 2 (post AP)
Some non-weighted class (required) digital art 2 or app design
@stencils I’d love to hear your overall impression. We are also wondering if NJIT is a suitcase school. We’re OOS, and it seems so many of the NJ schools are a majority of in state residents. Do they both have traditional campuses? Son will be majoring in Civil Engineering, if you know anything about the major at either school. What was the general vibe like?
@SoccaMomma In our district, AP Spanish is usually taken after Spanish 4H. D20 is in 4H this year, but not a great languages student, so will not continue, unless she decides on Spanish 5, which our HS also offers. Her top choice school would not require a language at college once she satisfies a 4th level in HS, so she is probably done.
And, yes, I would not expect a stellar AP score in AP Spanish unless your child has had an immersion opportunity or is just damn good!
AP Lang is fourth year here, AP Lit is fifth year (for the languages that offer 2 APs)
Non AP fourth and fifth years are not offered.
D20 stopped last year after Japanese 3. She was terrible at it.
Next year we are hoping she can take physics at Cal State because her high school does not offer calculus based physics. Possible plan
4 classes at high school fall:
APMicro
AP Lit
AP Bio
Cross country:
At college:
Physics Semester 1
Photography
Spring:
APMicro
AP Lit
AP Bio
AP Calc BC
Maybe second semester physics at CS maybe not.
@SoccaMomma It is the same where we are. You can take AP Spanish after Spanish 4. D17 took AP Spanish got an easy A in the class but never planned to take the AP test. It was probably a good move as most likely she won’t score a 5, even if she did, no college on her list (engineering school) would care or give her useful credit. S20 is likely to do the same thing.
Senior year will be the first year S20 has some real choices in selecting classes. I plan to make it a serious event with him 
His classes for senior year:
English: AP English Lit (or British Lit, no other choice, but at least he will have a choice )
Math: Data Sciences (no choice)
Science: AP Physics C: Electricity & Magnetism
Foreign Lang: AP Spanish (doesn’t have to take, but I think it’ll be good to continue with a foreign lang)
Social Study: Will decide between AP European or AP Econ
Electives: AP Chem or AP Econ depends on social study’s choice
2 other mandatory full year classes (no choice)
He seems to be getting more and more interested in CS/AI. Does anyone know if CS degree generally require a college level chem course?
DS '20’s Plan, still in progress though.
Math - Calc AB
English - Probably World Masterpieces (Accelerated - Our HS has core, accelerated, AP/Honors Levels)
SS - AP Macro or just Econ or Consumer Ed - One must be selected as a graduation requirement
- AP US Gov or just Government - graduation requirement
Lang - AP German 4 (German 3 was DE at Loyola, not sure if he will get more credit but he likes it)
Science - AP Env Science or maybe AP Chem or AP BIO
PE - PE leadership (Helps the PE teachers as a student-teacher)
Lunch -
And most importantly
8th Hour Free, a senior privilege.
I made a mistake. D20- will have one semester of AP Macro and one of AP Micro.
AP Calc BC is also only one semester (spring only), because at our school you take AB first. So AB + BC is three semesters.
Hmm, I am not sure what S20’s schedule will be exactly. He did register with the counselor the other day. I think he opted out of AP English because he’ll take that exam this year so he’s not sure there is a point to taking it, but he’s still pondering. The rest that I can remember:
Journalism
PLTW (2 courses to complete the sequence)
Calc
Micro/Macro AP
English 12
Euro AP
And I think there is another elective in there. He was pretty happy with his schedule. He’s not a tippy top school candidate due to his GPA (hoping to end the year with a 3.4 UW) so this should be more than sufficient.
Our school has “course preview” day in 2 weeks where the kids have an opportunity to go visit 3 classes that they are thinking about taking next year. That should help solidify D20’s schedule.
The definite classes -
Concert choir and chamber singers (that one is after school);
Regular English;
Calc BC;
either AP or regular of government and econ (likely AP but that’s one thing TBD).
Spanish 4 AP.
Not quite sure - will likely take 2 of the 3 of these and need to decide-
AP Stats, Biotech 3/4, and/or AP Chem.