<p>Sounds like an awful lot of classes. I would try to take the math during this summer instead at a community college. My son went from Algebra 2 straight to Calculus.They give you a placement test and into Calculus he went.You can take at least a term of it. He really enjoyed the math at the community college as he felt it was far superior to the IB/AP Calculus at the high school as the teachers were considerably more qualified.The end result was he tested into the 3rd semester of Calculus in the first term as a Plebe. Also, the only IB/AP that my son took was Physics/Chemistry/History....A lot of time the AP/IB stuff is just the same class with extra busy work...Thats what our experience was.</p>
<p>^^^^^
Ditto. My son ended up taking Calculus and Physics in the evenings at local community colleges this year.</p>
<p>Check with kids from your school. The school my son went to the AP classes were consistantly good and the kids usually scored either 4's or 5's on the college board AP's. Mine placed out/tested out of a lot of Plebe and some Youngster classes with taking the AP's at his highschool. He had 5 AP classes his senior year so the work load at USNA was not a shock to him.</p>
<p>The Seniors at your school can tell you if they feel the AP courses at your school are worth while. The quality of the AP classes are really dependent on your school.</p>
<p>if it's any help--ive received an appointment and my senior schedule is:
1-AP Lit/Composition
2-AP Calc AB
3-Weight Training/Conditioning 2
4-Leadership Training I (Leadership is our Student Govt. Class)
5-Leadership Training II
6-AP Physics C
7-Government</p>
<p>**Weight training is an elective class. PE is only required by 9th and 10th grades.</p>
<p>DON'T DO IT (you who is considering AP Physics C without having taken calc).</p>
<p>I took AP Calc BC at cram school (did not take exam) and then did AP Physics C the next year (without taking any intro or state level course) and it was HORRIBLE.</p>
<p>I highly recommend AP Chem and AP Bio. (Coming from a biochem polysci major, go figure)</p>
<p>USNA I Hope:</p>
<p>RE: senior year classes. </p>
<p>Drop AP Physics. If you have not had calculus or are not taking it concurrently then just forget it. AP Physics is calculus based.
Probably not a wise idea to schedule AP Chem and physics in the same year - unless you are very highly gifted AND very highly organized.
I think USNA like you to take an do well with Chem so if you did well in Honors Chem, take the AP Chem. If you want to take physics then take a college prep or honors phyiscs, not AP.</p>
<p>Also, the PE discussion, at many schools PE is alive and well and required and graded. This may not be a class he can drop.</p>
<p>If you can take AP English or an AP history class?
The strength of your schedule (esp junior/senior year), IMO, is very important to admissions. Just don't overdo it.</p>
<p>
[quote]
AP Physics is calculus based.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Not necessarily true. AP Physics B is not calculus based and AP Physics C is calculus based.</p>
<p>You are techinically correct but why bother with AP Physics B? Our local high school only offers AP Physics C - they must take a year of Honors physics prior to AP Physics C.
He won't get meaninful credit for AP PHysics B anywhere.... I stand by my advice - Drop Physics B take AP Chem instead.</p>
<p>All of this advice is sort of meaningless anyway without knowing the academic abilities (strengths and weaknesses) of the student anyway.</p>
<p>What is Math Analysis??? Is it like a Pre-Calc class with trig as well?</p>
<p>One more piece of meaningless advice for rising seniors - if you survived pre-calc then take Calculus. My kids said it is actually easier than pre-calc and the academies really want a strong math base.</p>
<p>I don't know how much has changed over the last 10 years but my son took the solely offered AP Physics B, with no prerequisite regular Phyics course, concurrent with AP Calculus. He then took the Academy-administered validation tests and validated a year of both calculus and physics. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out the formula correlation between the two.</p>
<p>And I concur strongly with queenbee. If at all possible, even if it requires attending the local community college, plan to take a year of calculus.</p>
<p>How on earth can you people take all these classes?! We just switched to block scheduling this year so my schedule has been a little crazy. I was accepted about a month and a half ago and I am currently taking yearbook, Computer 2 (fundamentals of web design), Honors English, Physics, Trigonometry, and College Early American History. I am taking the Early American History concurrently and I took College Algebra the first semester. For all of those considerign taking college algebra don't, its a waste of time. Right now I have to take Trig through independent study (i.e. I go get the work, do it, and turn it in on my own time), but i am only doing this the 2nd semester. Our school offers no AP/IB courses. We are a very small school (graduating class of 34). Our physics teacher told us that we were doing physics that you normally won't see until college so I guess it's kind of an advanced class. Oh and I got a 27 on my ACT (32 Reading, 28 English, 27 science, 24 math). I'm going to try and take some kind of calc this summer but I have no idea how (its not offered at our school) Any suggestions?</p>
<p>Most of the IB/AP physis is not even calculus based.</p>
<p>I'm not sure how the curriculum goes with other schools, but all AP sciences except AP Physics B and C require 2 class periods..so naturally, AP Physics was more convenient in picking an AP science..
The calculus needed in Physics C...so far...has just been with derivatives and integrals...but the calculus was taught in the physics class, just the basics of course..so you might be fine taking it if you can't take the Calc class...and your school lets you do that.</p>
<p>The difference between physics C and B, is that B-covers the basics of a wider variety of material, mechanics based. Whereas C covers a smaller amount (Kinetics, energy, work, force, momentum, circular motion...etc. along those lines) in much more depth and detail.</p>
<p>Physics AP requires 2 periods at my school.</p>
<p>I will have 10 AP at the end of this year. Will probably make AP National Scholar for whatever that is worth. Just means that I have an apparently strong looking transcript…so I’ve been told (we will see how strong by the end of the month I guess – I have had the appointment since last December so within the month I should be able to make a final decision about life in the future!)</p>
<p>AP Euro History – 10
AP Am History – 11
AP French – 11
AP English Lang – 11
AP Bio – 11
AP Calc BC – 12
AP Physics C – 12
AP English Lit – 12
AP Art History – 12
AP Env Science – 12</p>
<p>My school teaches the calculus in Calc class and we apply it in the Physics class. Calc BC has been much easier than Physics IMO. If I could do it again I would not take the Physics but take AP Chem. I have been told that it is “easier” to validate Chem than Physics. My cousin scored 5’s on both sections of the Physics C AP and ended up writing letters during the Physics validation test. My aunt had some chart from Parents weekend that showed how many plebes validated classes and there were only 21 physics validations where as there were 145 validations for Chem. My cousin also said languages were not that hard to validate. </p>
<p>I would take the hardest schedule you can, if you can’t handle it in HS how will you be able to handle everything at USNA. If you take an easier schedule to assure good grades you will only be cheating yourself, at least that is the way I’ve always looked at it.</p>
<p>Can anyone tell me if this is a solid senior schedule
AP Physics
AP Government
AP Calculus BC
Honors Intro to Engineering
Honors English 12
JROTC III
IT fundamentals</p>
<p>It looks solid...
assume you have completed the highest level chem courses offered at your school (if not, might want to trade out IT fundamentals)</p>
<p>Best of luck.... now go and post some great grades in those classes!!!</p>
<p>USNA, I Hope- I don't recommend taking pre calc with AP Physics be it B, C, or parts of C. Public speaking is a great idea because you'll need it in the future (not your first academy year, you won't be talking too much for the first bit!) Try to stay with sports and me personally in all my high school years I never had a lunch period and always had a full 8 class load grabbing and carrying lunch after homeroom.</p>
<p>USNAbound, I echo atr mom about the calc and everything else sounds lovely :)</p>
<p>Futurewarrior, As per taking the classes, it depends on your school. My school currently averages 2.7 APs per student with like a 98% passing rate with the majority scores being 4s. We only have so many spots and so many AP courses. It depends heavily on what your school wants you to do. My school reserves APs for the higher scoring as to ensure that everyone passes (heck, what's the point of paying the 82$ per test if you're not certain if whether or not you'll do well?)</p>
<p>My senior schedule was as follows
Academic
American Literature
AP Stat
AP Bio
AP Physics C
EHAP (I decided rather late, I know)</p>
<p>Electives
Lifetime skills (some sort of red cross cpr cert class)/Gym
The above two courses were mandatory with Lifetime skills as a graduation requirement and PE was mandatory for one semester per year except freshman year when it lasted the whole year. There were no sport exemptions for anyone.</p>
<p>AP Art 3-D (I started that program at my school by being test subject after proposing it to the art department)
Took two blocks because I would work in one portion and then student teach for another. </p>
<p>Pick your courses for teachers. Don't just take an AP because it fits your schedule and you want to rack up the credits. Make sure you know the department and try to coordinate with the best teachers you can even if it means having the most sadistic schedule out of all of your friends.</p>
<p>Even with sports, you can still do it. That's what weekends are for...then again, coming from a kid who used to go to Saturday cram school...haha.</p>
<p>My son also has 10 APs</p>
<p>Chem
Calc BC
Eng Lang
Eng Lit
Physics C
Stat
Bio
Pysch
USHist
Comps Sci</p>
<p>Three varsity sports, hi SATS, other EC's and hasn't heard a word from USNA.:( As of today.</p>