Sophomore: Should I take AP Stats and AP Calc AB?

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

Hey y’all,

I have an extra period next year (sophomore year, currently a freshman). I was wondering if I should take AP Stats and AP Calc AB. I am currently taking Honors PreCalc, and my counsellors say I’m on track to be going to the U of MN for math classes during my junior year. My questions are: has anyone else done this? (if so, let me know how it went) Does this look particularly good on transcripts? I am pretty gifted in math and believe I can handle the load.

Also, while we’re on the topic… Does a high school student that has taken 2 years of college-level math have a good advantage in admissions?

Thanks

2

AP Stats is an elective. It wouldn’t really matter one way or another for college admissions.

3

Either one is fine because you are a freshman and have lots of time left before graduating. Because you say that this is an extra period, does this mean you’re already enrolled in another math course? If so, what is it? This may help us provide better feedback.

In terms of transcripts, both AP Calc AB and AP Stats look good, especially if you’re going into STEM or business, but AP Calc is known to look a little better, and AP Calc AB and/or BC is highly recommended for anyone pursuing the STEM field. But at your age, it does not matter whether you take AP Calc AB or AP Stats because you have a chance to take both before high school ends, and both are beneficial to you. Also, because colleges put an emphasis on AP Calculus for STEM fields, it is a good idea to take AP Calc AB or BC at some point before graduating high school. AP Statistics is definitely useful, but it isn’t a necessity unless you plan on going into business. Honestly, I would recommend you take the class that is more interesting to you. If both are equally interesting, just go with AP Calc AB because you can come back to AP Stat whenever you want, and AP Calc AB provides you more of an advantage.

Sadly, I can not answer your most of your questions as I am currently in Honors Algebra 2; however, most high school students in the United States do not reach college level math before college and even if they do, most only reach 1 year. 2 years of college level math is impressive and more than enough. You should be fine in admissions, and yes, it will give you a good advantage if you get good grades in the courses!

Hope this helped. Let me know if you have more questions. Best of luck and have a good day!