hello
my name is Adam l and I am a freshman, right now I have algebra1 so in 10th grade I will have geometry, algebra2/trig in 11th, and pre-calculus in 12th. I really want to take calculus in high school but is cant. I talked to my counselor but she didn’t help, some lucky kids took algebra 1 in 8th but I didn’t know I could take algebra 1 in 8th so I didn’t. Calculus is the highest level of mathematics Do you guys have any idea how I can take calculus in high school, maybe some online calculus course accepted by colleges. Also does not take highschool impact the college I get into? if I took calculus in highschool do I have to retake it?
thanks
Adam
See if you can take geometry as a summer course.
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Very few colleges require calculus in high school. While it will help at other schools, especially if you are planning to go into engineering, it isn’t necessary. While it is a bit early to think about this, do you know what are you planning to study in college and what level colleges you may be targeting?
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I am thinking about computer science. I want to get into a good top college
okay I will ask my counselor
Calculus is not required to get accepted into many CS programs (my son just got into a number of them with precalc this senior year). That said, some smaller programs and more competitive schools like the top tiers will likely screen out someone without calculus, because of the level of competition.
Not being able to take calculus by senior year can also affect whether or not you can take honors then AP hard sciences like it does at my son’s school. He could have tried to take summer school earlier in high school but we made the decision that his summer camp (wilderness adventure) was more important for his overall development as a person than pushing the hardest classes. By summer of junior year, his school wouldn’t let him take precalc in a community college, saying even if he did they wouldn’t admit him to calculus as a senior. He has since been admitted for CS at RIT, Colorado School of Mines, UC Santa Cruz, San Diego State, and Binghamton. He is still waiting on a few other schools. All of these programs will give him a great CS education and good job prospects in the future. And… while being in a top school might open the door to more job opportunities, I also know many people who took coding boot camps when they had majored in other subjects (studio art for one person) and is employed (and well salaried) as a software engineer.
More information than you wanted, I know! Just wanted you to know that for CS, an education in a top tier school is not necessary. And neither is calculus in high school.
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I wouldn’t worry that much about it. My D took pre-Calc in 11th but Calc didn’t fit in her schedule without sacrificing her foreign language or giving up her instrument and all associated extracurriculars. She is attending a top LAC, which was her first choice. Colleges aren’t going to penalize you for a decision you made in 8th grade.
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thank you very much for your reply. You made me less worried. The good thing is I am taking a lot of ap and honors classes and I am also thinking about taking ap statistics. Anyways thanks
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I skipped pre-calc and went straight to AP calc BC and am doing fine, so that is also an option for you 
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okay thanks, In 8th grade I was new to school district and I didn’t even know our school had algebra 1. once again thanks for reply
okay I will talk to my counselor, thanks for replying
I would strongly discourage this route, even if permitted (which is unlikely).
If you’re looking for an accelerated summer course, Geometry would be a much better choice than Algebra2 or PreCalc.
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okay, thanks for sharing your opinion. I asked my counselor and she said I cant skip pre calc
You can probably also take Geometry on some online classes like BYU over the summer. Ask your counselor if your school accepts something like that. Definitely also check if you can take summer courses to skip Geometry.
that you for you reply. What do you mean by BYU?
BYU offers online courses for high schoolers, there are many other online class providers as well.
Another option to ask your GC about is to take geometry and Algebra 2 concurrently sophomore year, provided you have room to do that. But taking geometry in summer after freshman year is the best option IMO. You will be a more competitive candidate for CS programs if you have had calc in HS.
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my counselor will not allow me to double book geometry and algebra and I emailed her asking if I can take geometry in the summer and I am waiting for her reply and after she replies I will ask her about BYU
Does your HS offer geometry in summer school? That would be better than online school. Don’t ask specifically about BYU, just ask if there’s no opportunity to take geometry at the HS in the summer, can you take it from an online school and from which ones will your school accept that credit.
Only a small number of colleges require or recommend calculus in high school for admission:
If you do take calculus in high school, whether you have to retake it in college depends on how you do on a placement test (including AP, IB HL, and/or a college’s own placement test).
If you really do want to reach calculus in high school after starting in algebra 1 in 9th grade, the main practical way to do it in a traditionally-sequenced math curriculum is to double up geometry and algebra 2 in 10th grade. However, if your school includes trigonometry in algebra 2, that may not be possible if geometry is a prerequisite for algebra 2.
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Although this is sometimes an option if the high school offers an honors accelerated algebra 1 - geometry - algebra 2 sequence that prepares strong students for calculus immediately thereafter, it is not generally a good idea if the algebra 1 - geometry - algebra 2 sequence is not designed for that.