Hi! I’m currently a junior and need to pick my classes for my senior year next week. Here are all my schedules throughout HS:
Freshman: (school doesn’t offer AP)
Common Core Algebra (regular)
Global Honors
English Honors
Living Environment Honors
Italian 2 Honors
Sophomore:
Common Core Geometry (regular)
AP World
English Honors
Earth Science (regular) (something really complicated happened and they dropped me to a regular class)
Italian 3 Honors
Junior:
Common Core Algebra 2/Trig Honors (teacher from last year recommended me into honors)
APUSH
AP English
Chemistry (regular)
Italian 4 Honors
I left out all my electives for each year because they were pointless to mention. Anyways, this was what I thinking about taking for senior year:
Common Core Precalc Honors
AP Stats (would it be difficult to take this AND precalc?)
AP Gov
AP Lit
AP Environmental or AP Bio
So here are my questions:
How bad would it look to drop Italian senior year? I’m sorry, but I currently have the teacher who will be teaching it next year, and she is TERRIBLE. Barely teaches and gives very difficult exams. This is the only class the brings down my GPA significantly. I will not be majoring anywhere in the language field. Next year will be a level 5 Italian class.
How hard would it be to take 2 math classes, precalc and AP stats? Is AP stats easy, hard?
Biggest thing I'm deciding on: AP Bio or AP Environmental? I know I won't major anywhere in the science/medical field. I want to major in business or journalism, so I was just thinking about taking AP environmental because I really do not like science. I did score a 650 on the sat II for bio, but that's because I only got lucky. I know I won't be able to score a 4 or 5 on the AP. But would it look like I'm taking the easy route if I take AP environmental during my senior year?
Your schedule seems very time-demanding w all the APs, but if your motivated I would definitely encourage taking pre calc
dropping Italian shouldn’t have an impact, it may be more valuable than a science for business/journalism though
if science isn’t what your into just pick whichever one seems interesting, both are AP- I know at my school bio is a much more popular course but there are people that like apes too
Ap stats and precalc shouldn’t be too bad considering they’re 2 different areas of math. Dropping language would be okay although some colleges like to see 4 years of the same language. AP bio is also more popular at my school but apes is also a very valuable course and combines bio and chem. AP bio is time demanding but if you work hard it’s not too bad. Plus you take ap exams in may so besides a follow up grade report, it’s not a huge deal to get a 3.
Completing level 4, even in less than 4 years, counts as 4 years of foreign language for that vast majority of colleges. If you don’t want to continue, it will make no impact.
Agreed.
No, considering the balance of your schedule. Choose the class you like better/has the better teacher/has a better track record on AP exams/you will do better in.
For me, AP Bio is much harder than people make it out to be, and I’m very much science person. AP Environmental is harder than expected too, but it’s definitely manageable and very interesting! I’d take Ap Environmental if I were you, since you won’t be majoring in science.
How bad would it look to drop Italian senior year?
Not bad at all, since you’ve already taken the 4th level. There’s no requirement or expectation that you have to take a language every year.
How hard would it be to take 2 math classes, precalc and AP stats? Is AP stats easy, hard?
Shouldn’t be too difficult, since AP Stats is one of the easier APs (it’s typically taken by seniors who want to avoid AP Calculus).
Do colleges know that AP Environmental is easier than AP Bio?
Definitely
Will that fact hurt your applications?
Probably not, since you’re not majoring in STEM and your senior courses include 4 APs and 1 honors.
Because you have a lot of APs, taking APES will not hurt your application.
You reached Level 4 in a Foreign Language, so you’re fine on that account too.
You’d need another class though.
