<p>Even though I just started junior year, I'm planning ahead for next year.</p>
<p>CURRENTLY:</p>
<p>Spanish 3
AP Chem
AP Psych
Honors English 11
Lunch & Homeroom
Honors Precalc
Study Hall
Religion 11: Morality and Social Justice
Pep/Marching Band</p>
<p>NEXT YEAR (assuming I make the required grades and whatnot)</p>
<p>Honors Physics, as my school doesn't offer AP Physics
AP English Literature
AP US Government
Print Media 1 & 2, also known as the student newspaper
Lunch & Homeroom
Math (see below)
Religion 12: World Religions & Christian Lifestyles
Elective (see below)
Pep/Marching Band</p>
<p>QUESTIONS:</p>
<p>1) As I'm planning to major in journalism, would taking Honors Calculus 1 or Honors Stats (which are basically AP Calc AB and AP Stats, respectively, though neither requires the AP test as part of the course) be more beneficial?</p>
<p>2) Should I take Honors Physics with a full year study hall, or drop it for Honors Spanish 4? I'd do both, but as I'm taking two APs my mom's requiring me to plan on a full year study hall.</p>
<p>3) How important are AP classes, anyway? The only Ivy Leagues I'm planning on applying to is UPenn (which isn't as selective as most of the others) and Columbia (middle of the group as far as selectivity), but I know that me being accepted is probably not going to happen (And yes, I know UPenn doesn't have a journalism program; I'd plan on a major in English instead). My top overall choice is Northwestern, but will the 4 APs I plan on junior and senior year, plus APUSH as a sophomore and whichever math I take senior year's corresponding AP exam be enough?</p>
<p>Hmmm I would think that Stats and Spanish would help you out with journalism…
You will be better at analyzing, and when you are looking for a job, will they want the person who can interview and write in Spanish or the one with just English and background in physics?</p>
<p>It is much more important to have physics than a 4th year of spanish. Calculus is thought of more highly than stats, so if you’re aiming high its a must if your school offers it and you have the option on your math track. We’re not talking about getting a job here, we’re talking about getting into college.</p>
<p>So… even though I’m going to major in linguistics I should take AP Physics instead of Honors Spanish 5 and AP Chinese? (Sciences at my school take up 2 periods) I don’t understand how that would look better when I don’t want to go into the sciences…?</p>
<p>1) Neither make much of a difference for a journalism major. For more selective colleges, definitely Calc.</p>
<p>2) I never had study hall at my school so I’m not entirely sure. Between the two classes, however, having four years of a foreign language is a strong recommendation at some universities. As far as practicality goes, a second language would be a nice advantage in the communications field, so I’d opt for Spanish 4 over Physics. Though, I’m not sure how study hall should affect your decision.</p>
<p>3) It’s impossible to say how many APs are “enough.” Yes, you’ve taken fewer APs then many of the applicants that are also applying to theese schools, but APs aren’t everything, and some admissions officers have specificaaly said that they don’t like students that take all APs just to impress them. Colleges look at AP classes in context; if a lot of students at your school have taken 12 APs, but you’ve only taken 5, it won’t look that great for you, for example. </p>
<p>Overall, it’s hard to say how much your number of AP classes will impact the admissions decision without knowing other parts of your application (GPA, EC’s, essays, recs), and even then, it’s still a crap-shoot with selective schools. </p>
<p>Honestly, the main thing that strikes me as odd about your choice of APs is why you didn’t take English Language.</p>
<p>@Spiral7 you don’t have to take AP physics but you should take physics (honors or regular will suffice, some schools also have conceptual physics, which is fine too). Most schools, especially top schools, recommend if not require one year each of chem, bio, and physics to be admitted. Most schools recommend or require 3 years of foreign language- in addition, you are taking 2 other foreign languages, which is unheard of. You are reaching AP level in one of them which is all that matters. Most schools also do not care what your intended major is for admissions. You have to meet the required high school classes to be able to be considered for admission, regardless of major. (You learn this when you start researching and applying to schools).</p>
<p>@Spiral7 yes, that actually might be a great option for you! (I forgot about your college courses, you can use these to fulfill minimum requirements too, just make sure you send your transcript when applying).</p>
<p>Thanks everyone who’s replied so far for your input!</p>
<p>To answer @d33d33 about why I didn’t take AP English Language: it’s not offered at my school (yet they can offer two AP foreign languages and an AP art class as well as five health/PE classes). Also, I was considering ignoring my mom’s advice and doing both Honors Physics and Honors Spanish, but knowing how bad I am at time management, that’d probably be a bad idea…maybe I should clear that up in my original post.</p>
<p>And @guineagirl96 wouldn’t getting a job AFTER spending all that money on college be a workable plan? So yes, I get what you’re saying, and I’ll keep your suggestions in mind; however, I’ll still probably have to take at least a semester of college calc and possibly college physics either way.</p>
<p>As for my ECs and school competitiveness: varsity bowling (at least two years, hopefully all four if numbers stay high enough), student council, marching band, and (if everything works out) eventually NHS. I supposedly go to the hardest private school in my state, but even so, a good 65-70% of the kids who go onto college go to either the local Catholicuniversity (makes sense, as we’re a Catholic school), the local public university, or the community college.</p>
<p>@ThatPurpleKoala ah well if your school doesn’t offer it then it’s definitely not a problem! Be careful with choosing to take both classes. With apps coming up, it may be a little strenuous.</p>
<p>@ThatPurpleKoala Your job will be based on what you take in college, not in high school. You need to meet the minimum requirements however to be admitted to a school. Calculus is recommended but not absolutely required. If you choose not to take physics, however, look at the websites of every college you might want to apply to, email them and ask if you have to, but make sure that it won’t affect meeting minimum requirements. I would hate for you to get rejected for that reason because your academics look very strong and rigorous! Good luck with whatever you decide!</p>