I’m a junior and hope to apply ED to Columbia this fall, and currently I am making my course selections for the next school year and was wondering if it would be wise to forego taking another AP science senior year and take European History or Psychology instead, which I am much more interested in? Would Columbia look unfavorably upon three years of science when I could probably have done four? Looking at Columbia’s website, I know they recommend three to four years of science, and by the end of this school year I will already have five credits finished. Freshman year I took Honors Biology, sophomore year I took Honors Chemistry and AP Environmental Science, and currently I am taking AP Physics 1 and AP Chemistry. Senior year I am also planning on taking Computer Science, but at my school it counts as a technology credit rather than as a science one, so I was also wondering if Columbia considers that as a science? I would definitely appreciate anyone’s insights!
I think taking European History/Psychology is fine. You have a solid science background so Columbia definitely wouldn’t look down on that! Although Computer Science is a technology credit, a lot of Ivies consider the course similar to a math/science class so don’t worry too much about fulfilling the science “requirement”. It’s only a recommendation anyways! I strongly suggest you take classes you enjoy, especially since it’ll be your last year of high school. Enjoy senior year!
You are one course away from completing the “holy grail” of HS science classes, AP Physics, AP Chem, and AP Bio. Completing those three will look very good to Columbia or any other college.