What classes should I take to go to a top college?

Applying to College
1

I’m currently a sophomore with a GPA of 4.42 (weighted; our school doesn’t give unweighted GPAs). Also, I’m taking AP history next year and all honors. We’re allowed to take up to two electives next year, and I will definitely be taking two. Additionally, we are allowed to drop language and take another elective. Which three of the following courses would be best to take to get into a school like Princeton?

Latin 4 Honors
AP Statistics
Engineering Honors (fall) and Physics 2 Honors (spring)
Chamber Singers Honors (it’s a select a cappella group, and I got in)

The only AP courses my school offers for juniors are AP statistics and AP (world) history, so if I took AP statistics, I’d be in both. Which three would colleges like Princeton (my dream school) most want me to take, as they all interest me greatly?

2

You should not drop your foreign language. If you go to PTon’s site, they’ll tell you that most viable applicants have3 or 4 years of foreign language.

3

Thank you! I did see that, but I wasn’t sure if it mattered if I would be taking other difficult, main classes. I know that if I take AP statistics, I can probably get a good score on the test because I’m good at that kind of thing, but I’ve been dreaming of being a part of the a cappella group since I was little, and I’m really passionate about engineering. Do you have any other input? Thanks for the response though!

4

Take a full year of all the highest level classes available in all of the major subjects – English, History, Science, Math and Foreign Language. Anything else you can fit in and want to take is fine.

5

No. Princeton really could not care less what you think :slight_smile: They’ve spelled out what they want.

You are looking at this the wrong way. You cannot construct a schedule based upon what you think will look good for Princeton. You should take a variety of challenging classes and perform well in them.

I would say Latin, stats, and chamber singers. But, really, as long as you have latin, you really cannot go wrong with any combination.