<p>If you don’t want a heavy core, you may want to take Columbia off of your list. When my daughter was applying 2 years ago, she took it off of her list for that reason. Also, you may want to look into how many credits your AP’s will get you. There are places that my daughter could have been a semester ahead, earning all 5’s on her exams. Instead, she got nothing for them at Harvard…look into your schools and see what they will give you, especially if this is something you are counting on.</p>