I’m a sophomore and have decent grades. I take honors and AP classes, and plan to take more in the future. My dream college is UCLA but I think my chances are slim because of financial reasons and I’m probably going to end up into
CSU/ccc. These colleges are going to be easier to get into and won’t have as high of a standard compared to UC’s. So my question is, should I be taking hard AP classes that I don’t like just to impress these colleges?
You should take as many as you can handle. A lot can change in 2 years, and you don’t want to deny yourself the chance to go where you want to go. That being said, make sure you can actually get good grades with a rigorous course load. Consider looking at private colleges that can give you a good financial aid package.
You should take hard APs if you are interested in them, not to pad your application.
Definitely don’t take AP classes you know you wouldn’t like; if you’re not interested, the class will seem even more strenuous. There are so many AP courses that I’m sure you can find some that will interest you, whether you take them in school or just self study.
Take as many as you feel you can succeed in. My D now is in quite a few. For me older step-daughters, they would not take more than three. It really depends.
I’d say yes if you can handle it, but not really because of college. It’s just that high school is too early to only focus on subjects you like.
Find your favourite field, not your favourite college. Your job is not to impress colleges, but to impress yourself. What is your passion? Load up on classes centred on it, and don’t restrain your ambition from flaring to its full extent. If you can do that, if you can put all your efforts and sacrifice the stereotypical “take ten APs to be successful at life” endeavour in order to realise your dreams, achieving an Ivy League is child’s play.