Having a bit of a tough time picking courses for next year. This is the first time I’ve actually spent time thinking about courses and being unable to come to a decision. My first three years, I dove in headfirst and easily picked classes within an hour, and now I’ve made three charts, talked to my counselor, asked my parents for input, and even resorted to (lightly) considering advice from friends and current seniors. Still nothing.
So, I’d really appreciate some input!
I know I will be taking:
AP Lit. (Yearlong)
AP Psych. (Yearlong)
AP Gov. (Yearlong)
AP Calc. AB (Yearlong)
Physics (Yearlong)
Public Speaking (Semester)
Economics (Semester)
I have 2 credits left because our school has an 8 period schedule, so these are my options:
A TA position (Semester)
Senior Waiver (Semester)
Spanish 4 CHS (Yearlong) [Credit in the High School: We get college credit for doing a university course, and it's accepted by all universities in our states except for two, which I'm not interested in.]
Journalism (Yearlong) [I'll be an editor next year if I choose to continue with it.]
Forensics (Yearlong)
Culinary Arts 3 (Yearlong) [I will be a third-year manager next year.]
I plan on going into corporate law through a political science/business double major.
I will be applying to [in order of safety/match/acidtrip-dream]: Arizona State University, University of Washington (Seattle), Whitworth, Seattle University, UCLA, UChicago, Stanford, and UCBerkeley.
I’m doing well in Spanish, I’ve heard that Economics and Forensics are easy classes, Civics and Contemporary Issues seem okay, I’m close with the Culinary teacher, and Journalism can be a bit stressful but I would have an editor position for the next year.
I took one AP last year, I’m taking four this year, and taking four next year. My grades have been oddly constant, with one A- in one class first semester each year, A’s everywhere else. I have a 3.978 GPA (UW) and about a 4.3-4.4 GPA (W). Our school doesn’t rank officially, we’re switching to an honors system, and I would get highest honors (“summa cum laude”) if I maintain at least a 3.9.
I know this is extremely text heavy and I sound slightly insane, but I will shower you with appreciation for even the most meager bit of input, because I’m in a tough spot. *
You should definitely take Spanish 4CHS because FL4 is an indicator of academic rigor (a “marker” for top colleges) and will be expected at your top schools.
For the 8th period, it depends on your EC’s: do you have activities you’re involved in? In that case, take Culinary Arts in the Fall (intriguing and “different” for colleges, and VERY practical for you, whether to woo a girl or feed yourself in college!) and a Senior Waiver second semester, or if you don’t mind having another fun/useful class, take Contemporary Issues.
I’m most likely going to be JSA president next year; I’m currently Book Club president, KEY Club president, and math club VP; I’m an Honors Society (will have officer position next year) and National History Day member.
On college apps, I will be putting JSA, Key Club, Honors Society, and MAYBE NHD, as I’ve won awards for papers I wrote for History Club.
I’m involved in clubs because I genuinely enjoy them, but I do understand that colleges prefer “depth not breadth,” so I’m only listing the important ones.
I’d roll Book Club and National History Day together under a heading (think about it…)
Math club and Honors society would go under the heading of Academic, but you could have Math and History club as “Academic clubs” and then “Service and Leadership” with Key Club and NHS.
you need to create a cohesive narrative for colleges and that’s create “depth”.
Journalism is very time-consuming and doesn’t bring anything “extra” compared to the EC’s OP listed though.
(And I think Culinary Arts is a VERY VERY useful skill to have… and it’s a bit unusual when anything unusual helps :p)
@tspmf12 Yeah, I took it freshman and sophomore year, and then this year, journalism and my AP’s took the available periods for culinary, so I was thinking of going back next year.
@MYOS1634 Haha, we learn some basic skills, and then managers and Culinary 1’s run an entire cafe at our school.
Lol, it’s a wild ride from start to finish, but we’ve never had a case of food poisoning. We were the best high school culinary program from 2004-2009 in our state.
Shoot my edits were edited.I wanted to add… Just kidding, it sounds awesome, and what a great essay it could be. What do you exactly? How do you handle it?
For the first two months, the teacher focuses on the teaching the Culinary 1’s basic culinary skills and getting them Food Handlers’ Permits, and Culinary 2/3’s (managers) just do small projects like coming up with new recipes, menu items, and making nutrition guidelines. Once we get into the cafe, we all have stations: Beverages and Smoothies, Grill, Sandwich/Salad, Bakery, and Dressings. Each manager runs one station, and they get four or five Culinary 1’s to their station, and they rotate the first years throughout the year. We open for lunch, and we make atleast $300 a day in sales. It’s stressful when you’re in the cafe, but outside of class, homework is minimal if existent at all. We also cater for events in the district, and we’re expected to do culinary-related community service for leadership hours. I had a great relationship with the teacher, so it was manageable. I just didn’t think it pertains to what I want to do in the future, but I agree, it might make for a great essay.
You’ll need to eat. (You’ll need to know how to shop, choose, chop, cook, re-use, and generally prepare a nutritious meal including how to make a shopping list beforehand. VERY FEW college students know how to do that.)
You’ll need to know how to work under pressure. You’ll need to work in a team. You’ll need to manage others. So, while your goal in life may not be in the hospitality business, all these skills are definitely relevant to your life after high school.
It sounds like an awesome program, with lots of responsibility that everyone rises up to.
