We have the same math scenario at @3kids2dogs. Kids don’t take AB and then BC. Sophs in precalc take BC and then MV. Most juniors in precalc take AB but they can also choose BC.
AB is the first semester of college Calc taught over one whole high school year. BC is the second semester. Kids taking AB have that whole year to learn the first college semester of Calc. BC kids learn all AB material and the BC material in one year so it moves as a fast clip. I never really get how high schools allow kids to take AB one year and BC the next as the BC AP test covers AB and BC so, if kids have already taken AB, they must learn it again when they take BC if the high school lets them take AB one year and then BC the next?
Love the survey. We have a very similar one and it’s due at junior planning conferences. Our conference is mid March. There’s also a parent survey that asks you about your student. I think our GCs rely a lot on these answers to write their recs since they don’t know the kids very well!
@Darcy123 So she would be taking 5 AP classes: AP LIt, AP Gov, AP Spanish 5, AP Psych along a few other semester classes that meet graduation requirements. She wanted to take AP Enviromental Science, but it’s only offered every other year and doesn’t want AP Bio. Does this seem rigorous?
@3kids2dogs she took Precalc Sophomore year and students are generally expected to take AB before BC on this path.
I’m just concerned about the load and keeping all the balls in the air and two- if BC vs Stats will be seen as much rigorous and that she took the easy out. (At her school the kids and her current Math teacher says Stats it is easier)
Her high school is average at at best in ranking and very few go to any top schools in the country. Her sister is at Amherst and no one really knew what that was when she got in, one got into an Ivy and three got into a top 30 school out of 600 kids.
D21 will likely be a Humanities major and she would like to apply to schools like Amherst and that is why I’m even questioning how it looks. Help!
Mine is taking AB this year and wants to take BC next year, in lieu of stats or Comp sci.
We are currently debating the merits of AP Lit vs English 4. I thought for sure she’d take Lit, this is the kid I had to take books away as punishment! But “the teacher’s bad and no one gets an A”. She doesn’t want to suffer through the year with a teacher she doesn’t like. Along with Calc BC, she’ll have AP Gov/Macro, AP Bio, Health Science/clinical rotations, PE and either Orchestra or AP psych, depending on whether they have a conductor next year. She’s in AP Lang this year. Looking at the schools she’s interested in, the credits for Lang and Lit overlap a lot.
S21 is in Calc AB now and will take both Calc BC and AP Stats next year. He loves math and expects to major applied math or statistics. At our school only a very small group go straight from pre-calc to BC. The math teachers really prefer that the kids who are in pre-calc in 10th do the 2-yr series.
My D23 is more interested in environmental science/ecology and will be in Calc AB junior year but I expect she’ll just do AP Stats senior year.
@Meddy what do kids say who take BC? Is the teacher good? Do kids struggle? I would ask around.
I think Amherst (and other schools like it) are looking for highest rigor and, if your D has the option to take BC, she should do it. Amherst is ranked very near the top of all list for LACs and they get kids who can do it all. I think the best chance of admission to schools like that includes an app with as much rigor as possible in all subjects.
It’s hard to give good advice without knowing the student’s high school. I feel like everyone needs to evaluate classes by talking to kids who have taken them. AP Lit at some schools isn’t that hard. At others, it’s a ton of work. Same with the rest of the classes. So your D needs to figure out the rigor of her classes at her school to decide if she can take that schedule or if it will be too much.
DS21 recently returned from an academic contest at MIT and while he realizes the odds are incredibly slim, it is the first time he has indicated that he would love to attend a specific uni. Up until now he would never indicate any preference. A few kids get in each year from his HS so at least this will help keep him focused/motivated
He scored well on the SAT the first time (not counting middle school for Duke TIP) and will take the ACT in April to confirm his PSAT score. He participated in math competitions since he was very young and while he did well, he was not at the very top. I do believe it paid off though as he has no problem with the speed of ACT/SAT and I know that trips up many kids.
@Meddy D21 is in calc AB. Half her class signed up to take AP stats, the other half calc BC. Our guidance counselors say calc BC (even though you are essentially repeating the first part of the year) is more “rigor.” But, everyone says stats is a good class to have. So, I don’t know if there’s a “right” answer.
Our older S took AB then BC. He wasn’t bored (and he was good in math, but was a year ahead so this slowed it down, so he still had another math senior year). We suggested stats to D, because she’s thinking she’s more humanities, but she signed up for BC. She was worried that because she’s taking the easy physics (AP phys 1), and an unweighted elective, her schedule wouldn’t be rigorous enough. I think she should take what’s more useful, but she overruled me.
I really cannot believe that Amherst or similar schools will care much - if at all - that a prospective humanities kid takes AP Stats after (presumably) acing AB Calc, rather than BC Calc.
I think I would be more inclined, though, to add AP Bio to the schedule, if possible. AP Gov is typically a one semester course at most rigorous high schools I have seen, and AP Psychology is widely seen as one of the easiest of AP courses and exams. AP Bio plus AP Stats to my mind rounds out the “quantitative” side of the course load nicely, and the bonus is that neither course is particularly quantitative.
I appreciate all the feedback. It is so helpful. I think she can finish this last semester of AB and make a change in her schedule for next year depending. We know the teacher is good and fair for BC, her sister had her. We don’t know anything about the Stats teacher, other than kids and her AB teacher think it’s the easier way to go, but there is time to find out more.
I do find it interesting the various Math paths that different schools offer. The Math pathway I explained is considered two years ahead of grade level at this high school and three years above at a couple of neighboring school districts. My daughters made the transition way back in 5th grade to get where they end with BC. There are very few kids that do anything beyond the math mentioned. I tell you it’s really incredible to think how the AO’s have to sift through all of this when evaluating thousands of transcripts.
Now that the steam has stopped flowing from my ears and I can see and think straight let me report to you all that ya girl here came darn near committing homicide today at a certain test prep center in a neighboring city. Here’s the back story:
Signed The Boy up for a free SAT practice test that was advertised on Facebook as a President’s Day promotion, since we were off from school I thought, sure, why not (knowing full well that they were going to try to sell their services).
I went to pick him and up and go
over the assessment…We go into the center directors office and over the next 30 minutes was told (in no particular order, but repeatedly)
my son is not college material
2)my son has no chance of getting into the schools he’s interested in
compared to the students at her center, my son is way below standard
he’s not qualified for a business major
even if he does manage to get into his desired school, he doesn’t have the aptitude to graduate with a degree.
After about 10 minutes of her BS I put my hand up to interrupt and gave her the what for…I had had enough of her insulting my son, his class rank and his aptitude…her answer to me: “if you know so much about college admissions then why are you here?”
I know and acknowledge that I am not the typical Asian Tiger Parent. I fail at Asian Parenting and I damn proud of it. My son may not be in the tippy top of his class but IDGAF…he’s kind and compassionate and funny and respectful and SMART…standardized testing is not his strong suite and that’s okay.
To this person who almost met their maker today at my hands: take the $24,987 you just quoted me and use it to by yourself a soul…after you dislodge it from your ass
/rant over.
P.S…my son walked out of there saying to me “I know I’m stupid”.
P.P.S…he went to the gym to blow of steam and came back in better spirits. We hugged it out and he’s okay. He’s starting private tutoring/prep this weekend.
Thank you…he’s okay, I will be okay lol…but sheesh, no wonder anxiety, depression and mental health issues are plaguing our society…this whole college admissions thing has gotten way out of control. I get that times have changed, it’s a different competitive environment from when we were that age but gosh, at what cost?!
FWIW regarding classes senior year. My non-STEM D20 will be attending a top 10 college in the fall and while she did take 9 APs in high school, her highest math class was AP Calc AB, only 3 years of a foreign language, regular Physics at DE, no subject tests submitted and dropped her Varsity sport senior year.
My point is that highly selective colleges with “holistic” admissions don’t necessarily need to see the absolutely most rigorous courses possible. Your child can certainly have great college results without doing the arms race.
@Momof3B Hugs to you and your boy. Your son is fortunate to have you in his corner. I think if kids can love the school that loves them (and it is affordable) then there will be a lot less stress.
Kudos to you. @momof3B - D goes to one of those pressure cooker schools. Had another suicide 2 weeks ago. Last weekend an 8th grader at a neighboring district killed herself. It’s terrifying.
And was $25k really the quote??? My brother spent about $10k and I thought that was crazy!!!
@NJWrestlingmom that is heartbreaking, I can’t even imagine…the $25,000 quote was for 500 hours of tutoring lol, she then casually mentioned that they have financing available, looked me over and said “if your credit score qualifies”…umm…okay…I was thinking “I’m sure my 805 credit score will suffice you dumb twat” I left out the twat part but did drop the credit score on her lol. Then she goes “I’m suggesting the biggest package because he really needs all the help he can get…and any unused hours can be transferred to your twins!” Like that is ever going to happen lol.
