Should I Skip Pre-Calculus?

Hey everybody, I have some questions about my sophomore schedule next year.

To first provide a bit of background, I’ve been self-studying Algebra II over the summer. I thought that I could handle the extra challenge, as I seemed to do well in Honors Geometry and Algebra I. With some more thought, I came to the decision that I wanted to go through with my plan and around 3 months later; I’m 70 days into my studies, having worked for around 3-7 hours a day continually.

At the moment, I would say I have an advanced grasp on algebra 2 concepts and consistently score 98-100 on NY Regents Algebra II/Trigonometry tests. My question at this point is whether I should go along with taking honors Pre-Calculus, which was my original intention, or skip ahead to Calculus AB?

I know that programs vary from school-to-school, but from what I understand, the algebra 2 content I learned covers a majority of Pre-Calculus.

Is this a good idea or in the long-run will I be screwing myself over? Please post your thoughts as to what my next step should be. I know that you probably don’t have a full grasp on the situation, but I’m looking to hear your own experiences with Pre-Calculus as a way to gauge its necessity. Before I end this post, I’d also like to bring up that I have a few weeks to still study Pre-Calculus concepts, if I do decide to take that route.

Hey Nick,

It seems a little risky to skip Pre-Calculus, given that you only have a few weeks to study the subject. You are, however, doing very well in Algebra II/Trig, so props for that!

I took an Honors Algebra II class, which covered Algebra II and about half a semester’s worth (or more) of Trig. Yet, Pre-Calculus was still a considerable amount of even more Trig that I feel my Algebra II class only touched a little of. Especially given how integral a strong foundation in Pre-Calculus is for Calculus and above, it might be safer to opt for Honors Pre-Calculus. If you had more than a couple weeks to study the course, then I might say otherwise.

If math is really your strong suit, then maybe spend the rest of the summer doing something else math-related that’s fun! You could pick up programming, start an interesting science fair project, or prepare for/enroll in a math competition. I know this doesn’t really pertain to the question, but colleges sometimes prefer to see summers spent like that, rather than simply using them as extension of school-work.

If your school counselor or the course director is available, you can also email them and ask whether it’s practical to study Pre-Calculus for the next couple weeks. Of course, providing all the information you posted here.

Hope this helped!

Thanks for your feedback @innevitablewinner,

I think I’ll heed your suggestion and just stick with Pre-Calculus. As you stated, it is probably best to have a strong foundation for calculus.

Yes, I have taken college algebra at CC. Barely aced it. Then pre calc honors at HS A both semesters. You’d think I’d be ready for calc right? Well at a university I took math placement and while I did place into calc 1 it was like 50 something% so I took pre calculus over the summer and would’ve had a C. Retook assessment and went up by 14 % so point is…you can never have a good enough math foundation. Take pre calc. Or maybe my HS sucked… But yeah pre calc.

Thanks @JadeRock

Sounds like Pre-Calculus is necessary for me to take. I think I’ll go that route.