We can take 7 classes per year. Should I take 6 classes (4 honors, 2 regular) and 1 study hall or 7 classes (2 honors , 5 regular) classes next year? Suppose I get A in all my classes. It seems like 6 classes will have a better GPA than 7 classes. Does college care how many classes that I take or just GPA? I will be in Grade 10 next year.
It depends on your school. At my dd’s HS, no one took study hall. There were only 7 classes/day and one of those was a mandatory theology course leaving only 6. The local public HS had 9 class periods/day but required at least 1 study hall, but most students took 2. Talk to your guidance counselor.
You should take the classes you want to take and are appropriate for your ability and intended efforts. Why would you take 4 honors classes under one scenario but only 2 under the other?
Honor class take more efforts therefore 1 study hall to balance the workload.
The study hall is neutral as far as your application goes. As long as you have all the core classes, or at least those required and recommended by the college - and your HS graduation requirements, a study hall won’t “look bad” on your transcript.
What would the classes be in each situation?
What’s your current GPA?
Current Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Weighted: 4.25 out of 5.0 (2 honors classes + 6 regular) took a 0 period class
If I didn’t take the 0 period regular class, I would have a higher weighted GPA this year: 4.29
Next Year: 7
3 Honors + 1 AP + 2 Regular+ study Hall - Weighted GPA: 4.67
1 Honors + 1 AP + 5 Regular → Weighted GPA: – 4.29
Does college care about weighted GPA?
At our high school students take 7 classes though it is a rotating schedule with only 6 classes a day. Study hall isn’t an option except for struggling students who take it with extra tutors to help. Often in 9&10th grade one period is gym/health and maybe art/chorus and all others are honors in 9th grade, maybe 1 -2 AP in 10thand by 11th it is primarily all honors and AP though a few students still do classes like chorus because they want to. To me it seems like for students capable of doing honors level classes they may find regular a bit too slow paced. Many colleges do look at weighted gpa though they may redo it to their own weighted scale or know what it means for your school.
Will you be applying to highly selective colleges? Think of it not so much in terms of minimum requirements, but in terms of what classes your competition is taking. For the tippy-top colleges, the applicants will have taken the most demanding classes available and received all "A"s, or nearly all "A"s, in them. If you are only intending on applying to your local state colleges, you can probably get by with a lighter course load.
Edit; On the common app, there is a section where your guidance counselor evaluates your schedule. You want them to check the box labeled “most demanding”. So you should ask them what classes you need to take for him or her to check that box.
“Does college care about weighted GPA?”
No, because every school weights differently. Judgement about rigor really comes down to whether your guidance counselor checked the “most demanding” box, as @damon30 suggested. If your school doesn’t rank, your weighted GPA plus weighted grade distribution on your school profile could let colleges guesstimate approximately where you would stand in comparison to your high school cohort - but the reality is they are spending 8-10 minutes on your application, and they are much more likely to take your guidance counselor at his/her word.
It isn’t about the number of classes, which also varies by school. They’re looking to see you have all the cores, they’re looking at UW GPA, and they are looking at the rigor of your schedule. Plus test scores, essays, LORs, ECs, etc. etc.