So I’m taking 7 AP courses this year (my school is on the block schedule) - due to the difficult nature of my combined courses, there is the possibility that I will be receiving 2 or 3 Bs (yeah, I know, that’s not actually bad). Thus far, I have a 4.0 GPA and am currently class valedictorian.
My dream college is Harvard - and while I know that admission is nearly impossible for everyone, I was wondering what the effect on my chances are with said Bs (obviously, there is no standard which can be universally applied, but in general).
Just keep doing your best. If you can get those B’s to A’s next semester, that will still give you a good chance for admission. A couple B’s certainly does not help you, but they are not the end of the world.
The acceptance rate to Harvard is under 6%. You need a very high level of rigor and very high grades to have a shot. But there are tons of other amazing schools out there so you would be wise to expand your horizons.
But just to interject, rigor is important, but it isn’t everything. Sometimes, those countless hours being spent on extra AP courses could be put to better use developing accomplishments with your ECs.
Harvard wouldn’t automatically take someone with 7 APs in one year over someone with 4. But they might take someone with 3 in one year who has extremely interesting ECs that really demonstrate his intellectual energy more than AP courses.
Again, not minimizing the importance of rigor and grades. But you can apply the law of diminishing returns to this - the more AP courses you add to make yourself look better as an applicant, the more room for lower grades and the less available time you have to do activities that Harvard (and others) may find more meaningful.
Depending on what your interests and EC’s are, I’d probably opt to take fewer AP’s (like maybe 4-5) and then use the extra time to develop your EC’s more. Too many kids do well in classes, and get good grades to make it a differentiating factor. And no school is going to expect their students to load up on 7 AP’s and mark them for ‘only’ taking 5.
Most kids that I know that got into HYPSM didn’t necessarily overload on academic courses, but had a phenomenal hook outside of school.
Thanks.