@nichols51, do call the GC. I also called D’s guidance counselor last year about the “most rigorous” designation as I was trying to imagine D’s possible course trajectory through senior year and math is not her favorite subject (was wondering whether AP calc/AP chem would be necessary or if she could still get the designation with either honors calc or AP stats and AP ES). The GC asked what D’s likely major will be in college. When I said that she’s undecided but won’t major in engineering or other STEM-heavy major the GC said she would certainly give her the “most rigorous” recommendation for her APs in Lang/Lit/History/Gov, etc. The GC said that, whatever that particular student’s goals are (even if the goals are more trade-school/tech-program/culinary or art-school oriented and won’t involve APs at all) the student will get the recommendation if that student’s courses describe the most rigorous path offered by the school toward that particular goal. I thought that was a really appropriate way to look at it. It was a relief to know!
Daughter IS slogging through AP physics 1 (and pulled off an “A” this grading period) because no other physics class is offered in the school and I thought it was important that she cover all the sciences. She still may choose to take AP Bio or Chem next year but (for her academic goals) I feel she will have truely covered her bases science-wise and will be able to make a free choice next year whether to take APES or something harder.
So I get an email today from D’s high school advertising a free 10 week SAT prep course being offered to all juniors in the school in preparation for the school administered SAT in April. It’s 2.75 hours once a week starting in January.
My daughter had previously said she wanted to do some prep for that April SAT (even though she achieved her goal score on the ACT), but I think she was thinking to do a couple practice tests.
Now that a free prep course is available, it seems hard to turn down. But, it’s also very much likely to be overkill. I wish they had it before the PSAT honestly.
I think the best thing to do is to leave it up to her. If her friends are taking it, I’m sure she’ll want to. If they aren’t, or if she thinks its too much, she’ll have my blessing to skip it.
If she has truly met her goal score, are there other, better uses for her time, EC-wise (or just extra R&R so she can continue to do well at school?)
Sounds like a good opportunity, but OTOH, if she’s looking at holistic-admission schools, you know what they say…stats open the door, but it’s ECs and character that let you walk past that door …just a thought!
@3kids2dogs If she reached her target ACT (congrats!) I would be inclined to let her decide. I think it’s really hard in today’s competitive climate to say, “that’s good enough.” If you and she have gotten to that point, good for you!
@inthegarden I really like the approach of “most rigorous” being related to academic interests and future goals rather than having to take APs in all subject areas. Sounds much less stressful for the students.
@nichols51 , I would look at a couple of things… First, map out the proposed schedule for the next 3 years. Get a physics class in there. No need for it to be high level, but that’s a great foundation course in a well rounded student. As you do that sure that as you are managing sophomore year, you aren’t making junior or senior year impossible. Make sure that as you are managing sophomore year, you aren’t making junior or senior year impossible. There are a million reasons to focus on balance of which the ability to have time for all classes is only one!
As for the AP Chem or AP Bio… My guess is that Bio, which is more about memorizing, might be easier for your D based on how you have described her.
I would also consider which think one will be easier without a year “off”. On that front, I would say that’s Chem. It seemed, as a broad generalization, that it was harder to get a 5 on the AP exam in Bio (in spite of the class being easier) than it was in Chem, but that is merely an impression, not based on data. That may or may not factor into your decision.
Some schools, primarily LACs, do have proficiency requirements (particularly in math and FL) that an AP can allow you to place out of. No credit, but it opens your schedule for other things – particularly useful if you didn’t plan to take math or FL in college.
My son’s advisor (in college) suggested he not use his 5s in his major to skip the intro level. He felt that the college foundation, while it would include some repetition, would be critical to being able to do the intermediate level. DS took that advice and while the intermediate level was still very challenging, it was doable. A friend’s kid skipped the intro level and was so challenged, she decided not to major in that subject. Just mentioning this in terms of APs, their value, etc. It differs from school to school and subject to subject. Pre meds almost always repeat AP classes as it helps their GPA. But college advisors can be very helpful in strategizing when you get to this point.
My D18 is a BS Econ major and used her AP credits in Micro and Macro to bypass the intro level and took intermediate level In both her first year. Still made A’s in them. Highly school and student dependent.
I spoke to the high school counselor who avoided being too specific (in reference to the checking of the most rigorous box)…talked around it, mentioning that there are many other things on the counselor form, that GPA and SAT scores will matter to the colleges as well, etc. (which, of course, I knew), and she worried me a bit by suggesting that different counselors within the high school likely have different criteria for checking that box so it’s just not all that predictable anyway and also that she (who already has a bit of relationship with D23) may be retired in the next three years…but I don’t know whether that will happen soon or right before college application time for D23 (would certainly be disappointing to have a relationship with a counselor for 3 years and then get someone new right when doing applications).
She did say that kids who take 12 instead of the 13 required for the “capstone diploma” at the school (the capstone is a very STEM focused diploma) would still get the most rigorous box checked, but my D23 won’t be taking 12 - I know that for sure…in the end, if a school doesn’t want my kiddo because she “only” took 8 or 9 APs, then it’s not the right place for her anyway, so we’re perfectly happy with her following her authentic path and challenging herself and will leave it at that.
@gardenstategal agree. I would note it is not only school dependent for college but also school dependent for the HS attended. Not all HS AP classes have the same rigor.
Like I think I might have said earlier, it’s not just content, it’s speed. Math and Physics AP classes are one year high school classes and that same amount of content is taught in one semester in college. That is a BIG difference. Getting used to that pace is rough. That’s the biggest reason why I think kids need to be very careful using AP credit, especially if they didn’t get a 5. Moving onto the next class in the series and having it move twice as fast is only for the strongest of students.
Talking to our D21 last night, she seems to be focusing on Virginia Tech as her top choice. Based on what she wants to do, it seems perfect for her: she plans to study animal science with a pre-vet focus, it’s our state flagship (so tuition will be more reasonable) and almost everyone who goes there seems to love it. Oh, and the food is supposed to be great.
So why do I feel a bit let down? Is it because after all the visits and the lists and the research, she will probably end up at our state flagship anyway? I guess I always saw her at a smaller school where she would get more individual attention. Also, there are some things that turn me off about Tech, first of which is their admissions fiasco last year when they enrolled almost 1000 more students than planned and some freshmen had to stay in hotels. Plus she’s not into big time college sports or greek life.
I know this needs to be more about her than me, and I think when all is said and done, we’ll all end up loving Virginia Tech.
Thanks for reading and…GO HOKIES! (There, I did it.)
@Muad_dib Big colleges can be overwhelming, but it sounds like she has good reasons for choosing Tech. Is there an Honors program or some other smaller community there for her to join? S19 is at our state flagship with 25,000 other people, but between his Honors group and his program, it feels very personal to him.
@Muad_dib Tech is a great school and I know several kids who have gone there and loved it! However, if she’s still open to smaller schools, you might look at Ohio Wesleyan. It offers a few undergraduate animal science tracks and generous merit scholarships. It also has very interesting study abroad options integrated with courses where kids can do short stints during Spring or Winter breaks. It’s near Columbus and student population is around 1,500.
Any NC people on this thread? I was looking at NC State…seems to tick a lot of D’s boxes. But I’m guessing little to no money for OOS? Having a budge stinks!!! LOL
@Muad_dib Not that you’re looking at schools even farther away but I have a friend whose daughter is at University of New Hampshire for animal science. She’s trekking out there from southern CA. Looked at a lot of schools across the country and chose UNH. I bet there some merit there. I’m also guessing the program is small and the kids get a lot of attention.
@Muad_dib Been there. After visiting a bazillion small- to mid-sized schools and not even wanting to visit Penn State because he thought it was too big… S19’s German teacher took them up to PSU’s main campus on a field trip to the German Dept’s German Day event. And that was it. He wanted to go there. And, he is currently a freshman there now. It’s all good.
Now, I’m not gonna lie. Breaking up with Susquehanna was really hard for me. And S19 has had a few moments of wondering “what if” about Susquehanna. But my not-into-football-or-greek-life kid is really happy with his decision to attend PSU. He even went to his first football game a couple of weeks ago and had a great time.
S21 thinks that PSU is “way too big and way too in the middle of nowhere.” LOL!
@Muad_dib my son has settled on VA Tech as first choice too. I’d been kind of looking forward to the college exploration and touring but we ended up just looking at a handful of schools and he quickly decided he liked the big state school environment and wants to go to VT. He wants to do something with statistics/math. We’ll go to the Spring open house for a second look.
I expect we’ll do a lot more exploration with D23 – she wants to go to a smaller school that’s good for undergrad research in environmental science.