<p>My D is a a rising senior. She has taken AP eng and will probably get an A or A-.
Next year, she does not want to take AP Eng Lit because...she's not interested in it! She prefers to take 2 english electives - interesting course matter and GREAT teachers. I want to support her in this but am concerned about the "most difficult course load" thing. Any advice?
PS She is not applying to top tier schools.</p>
<p>I'd say let her take what she wants to take. How boring it would be to sit through an AP English Lit class if she had no interest in the material. She will probably get a better grade in the class she wants to be in. I think if she's already taken AP English, she's in good shape.</p>
<p>I agree with momof3sons - it sounds as if your D is choosing her courses for the right reasons.</p>
<p>In any case, her GC is the only one who could answer whether or not she or he will check the "most rigorous course load" box, so if it's keeping you up at night, ask him or her.</p>
<p>Again, though, sounds as if your D is making the right choice for her.</p>
<p>If you check the catalogues of the premier private schools, you'll notice that many do not offer "AP Lit" but do offer a menu of English electives..and that the students take and do well on the AP Lit exam; i.e., the schools recognize that you can learn much and do well on the AP by taking interesting courses rather than being locked into "teaching to the exam". I agree w/ momof3sons and harrietmwelsch.</p>
<p>Some colleges only take either AP Lit or AP Lang. Not both. And getting an A or A- means nothing, whats the AP score? I would recommend taking atleast 5 AP courses in your high school career to have a rigorous course load. But having the most rigorous would be atleast 7, probably 8 or higher. </p>
<p>I took 11 but I love history and science. I did take AP Lang and AP Lit. HATED AP Lang but loved AP Lit. Literature makes you think and analyze really good novels.</p>
<p><em>shrug</em> At my high school, as long as you took a couple of AP classes, you got "most difficult course load". And who is to say that the electives that she wants to take aren't also challenging? If she's already taken a challenging schedule, I don't see this being an issue, but you can always ask the GC.</p>
<p>It sounds like she wants to take the classes for the right reasons. AP English Lit is pretty torturous if you don't enjoy the material (and really, though I enjoyed all the reading and did very well in the class, I thought the literary analysis, and lit crit in general, was pretty torturous anyway).</p>
<p>I actually enjoyed the lit crit and analysis. Found it very interesting, although finding the "deeper" meaning in obvious themes were tedious sometimes.</p>
<p>Post #5 could be very misleading. There are no objective standards for "rigorous"/"most rigorous". It's supposed to be based on what's available at the particular school, and what students actually take there.</p>
<p>That's why the ONLY useful advice is to talk with the GC. (And to lobby him/her gently, too.) If the teachers in the electives are strong, and the content is good, there's no reason that shouldn't be part of a "most rigorous" curriculum. Also, for many/most GCs, "most rigorous" does not mean "every AP that might fit into her schedule". However, it is possible for GCs to be bureaucratic about it, too, and to take that position or something like it. That's why the only way to know anything is to talk with the GC.</p>
<p>Separately, if your daughter is not applying to "top tier" schools, I question whether the difference between "rigorous" and "most rigorous" matters. Even if she were applying to HYPS, I would question that -- but I would definitely be wary of losing the "most rigorous" designation, and angry about being placed in that dilemma if that were the case. I don't know for sure what you mean by "top tier" -- the importance of "most rigorous" curriculum extends well below HYPS on the USNWR rankings. But for the vast majority of reasonably selective colleges, mere "rigorous" will do just fine.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I would recommend taking atleast 5 AP courses in your high school career to have a rigorous course load.
[/quote]
What determines a rigorous courseload is determined by the GC based on what is offered at a particular high school. The number of APs taken is not important. Without the context of the h.s.'s overall curriculum & scheduling process, the number is meaningless.</p>
<p>Woody, ask the GC. Perhaps those electives are condsidered more rigorous than the AP course. Perhaps below the top tier it doesn't much matter. Regardless of the answer, I think you are smart to let D take interesting courses rather than force an AP into her schedule just to gain a bump on the "rigor" scale.</p>
<p>edit: what JHS said....</p>
<p>If she is not applying to top tier schools, then the rigor of the curriculum is probably not that important to make a difference, although its always a good idea to check with the GC. I would definitely let her choose the classes she loves with the great teachers</p>
<p>I wonder, in a school that offers IB, if it's possible for any non-IB kids to be marked as having taken the most rigorous course load.</p>
<p>lethargytm, our district is a USNWR high school, small with smallish graduating classes that offers only 5 "AP" courses total. I think it does a dis-service to throw out commments like "take 7 or 8" of this or take "this" not "this". If kids take a rigorous schedule it is relative to their school and the school profile elucidate the facts. We have classes (English lit classes, math classes and science classes) that are "rigorous" and considered on par with the handful of AP classes but are not connected to the Collegeboard test. This is pretty much what stickershock and others are saying so I'm duplicating and probably not adding much value here.</p>
<p>"I wonder, in a school that offers IB, if it's possible for any non-IB kids to be marked as having taken the most rigorous course load."</p>
<p>My understanding is yes, if there is also AP.</p>
<p>I must say I was a little nervous about what kind of responses I would get. I am so pleased with what most of you have to say - I guess it was more of a gut check. I personally think it's terrible to load up on APs when there is no rhyme or reason to them. I've been through this before when S did his own thing as well. Thanks to all.</p>
<p>There's a good chance that "most rigorous" is clearly defined by your GCs. At my kid's school you get it if you are full IB diploma OR have 7 AP classes/IB certificates (or combo of the two).<br>
It will be different at every school but it will not be subjective.</p>
<p>I've heard Ivy admissions officers say that you should take the APs that make sense for your interests. You don't need to take every one offered by the school. I think our school offers 14 of them - no one takes them all.</p>
<p>My daughter is a freshman at Dartmouth this year. She took 8 AP's in high school, but she opted not to take AP English because she hates English & couldn't stand the thought of suffering through AP English well into spring of senior year:-) Instead she took 2 seminar classes on things she was interested in: Shakespeare & Mythology. One of them wasn't even an honors course. It didn't prevent her from getting accepted by dartmouth. Her course load showed what her passions were.</p>
<p>Chill out everyone. I dont know why you guys insist on relying on the guidance counselours. Just see how many your school have college level courses. Not even college level courses, I should say anything above a "normal" class; i.e. Honors, AP, IB, GT, etc... I would say that if your school has 10, take 5. If your school has only 3, take all 3 then. Its not hard. I do understand some smaller schools might seem at a disadvantage but colleges will see what courses were offered and what kind of opportunities you had. Alternative to AP classes are college classes at a community or at a 4 year college which offer classes to certain high school students.</p>
<p>your rigor of class load is NOT determined by your guidance counselour. its the school you're applying to.</p>
<p>lethargytm, the reason people keep talking about Guidance Counselors is that the Guidance Counselor recommendation is a big piece of how a college application works: The GC is the only one who can indicate in any official way what the rigor of a student's course load is considered to be, by that high school, as compared to the course loads taken by other students at that high school. The GC's recommendation is a complement to the school's official transcript. It puts the student in an official context. And that's what the colleges are looking for. </p>
<p>It isn't about students at other high schools - the colleges see all that for themselves - and it has nothing to do with what college the student is applying to.</p>
<p>All though I disagree with your last sentence, I stand corrected.</p>