<p>What would be better?</p>
<p>For a junior year:</p>
<p>3 Weighted Classes
3 Bs / 3 As</p>
<p>OR</p>
<p>2 Weighted Classes
5 As / 1 B
Less Rigor Though But Higher GPA</p>
<p>???</p>
<p>3 Weighted Classes
6 As/ 0 Bs</p>
<p>I'm completely serious.</p>
<p>However, most adcoms want to see you taking the most rigorous classes and doing well in them. Taking APs you don't want to take isn't something that you need to do. You should have a well-rounded curriculum, but one in which you explore the areas of interest as deeply as possible.</p>
<p>^ This is true. If you get a B in the AP, college adcoms will wonder why you even took the AP in the first place.</p>
<p>I have to bud in that this really depends on the type of school you're looking at and how competitive it is.</p>
<p>I don't know about a B, lolilaughed (love that screen name). But if you got lower grades, like multiple c's or d's, you'd be better off with regular. But if you think you'll get a B- or higher, go with AP.</p>
<p>Colleges want to see you do well in classes of high difficulty. They want to know that you will be able to handle the course work that is required of their school and if you can show them you can (for example, getting A's in AP and honors classes) then you will have a much better chance of getting in.</p>
<p>Really? People at Berk said what I just regurgitated to you. Apparently, the mentality is "Why did you take something you can't handle". I'm just saying that a B in Chem AP would be worse than an A in Chem H. A B in Chem H is worse than an A in Chem reg.</p>
<p>how would it b worse if, weighted, it's the same grade (at least, in my school...)? it just proves u challenge yourself...</p>
<p>^ We are looking not from a GPA standpoint but the COURSE standpoint.</p>
<p>While it is true that if you get all B's in AP it would equal all A's in normal classes. However, looking at a transcript with all B's in AP classes shows that you couldn't handle the rigorous course load. Having all A's in normal classes means that you either 1) didn't challenge yourself 2) challenged yourself and succeeded.</p>
<p>Either way, it's much better than seeing you failed in handling your course load. </p>
<p>This is assuming we are talking about the top tier or near top tier schools.</p>
<p>What if you got a B in an AP class, but then got a 5 on the corresponding AP test? :/</p>
<p>I cannot see how a B is not handling the course load. A few Bs are fine. Just don't make a habit of it and a few Bs in AP courses, in my opinion, will look better than As in honors and especially regular courses. Very typical high school unweighted GPAs at top-tier schools are 3.8, which translates to 1 B for every 4 As. The most selective schools have averages at 3.9, Bs in roughly 3 courses throughout high school. If those students had decided to drop those 3 courses from AP to honors I firmly believe they would've had a much harder shot at those top schools. I think schools find it commendable to see a student who strived for rigor and in a few cases it only netted them a B: it's more respectable than the student who can't let hold of the impeccable 4.0 unweighted.</p>
<p>OP, even after what I just said, I think the second schedule would look better. It would have both higher weighted and unweighted GPAs and the change in rigor isn't as big as the change in GPA. But like MissJoy said it's difficult to say without you mentioning what school you're aiming for and even information about the courses.</p>
<p>
[quote]
^ This is true. If you get a B in the AP, college adcoms will wonder why you even took the AP in the first place.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>It's official, guys. If you get a B in a challenging course, you are too stupid to handle it. Spread the word.</p>
<p>An important thing to consider is the rigor of the honors/AP classes. Some schools have AP classes in which nobody gets an A, and regular classes where over 80% get an A.</p>
<p>kingofqueens-hahaha, true dat ;)</p>
<p>PBailey-will colleges know the difficulty of an ap/honors course from every kid's school? how can they?</p>
<p>I would say that you should challenge yourself to the full extent of what YOU can handle. Showing that you are willing to push yourself (adding APs) but knowing what your limits are (not so many that you cannot achieve good grades).</p>
<p>On a side note, D attended info session for a very competitive school (therefore may be over the top). The presenter brought up this topic and said "We are frequently asked which is better to take APs and get a B or not and get an A. We say it is better to take the APs and get an A." They didn't really mince words. </p>
<p>A different prestigious school flat out said "4 - 6 APs would be best".</p>
<p>You need to access this in context of the schools in which you are interested.</p>
<p>As for schools knowing the rigor of the APs in your school, they will have a sense of that for any APs taken before your senior year. You will have submitted your AP exam grades. Those exam scores will help them to determine the true value of your class grade. If you get an A in your AP but get a 1 on the exam they are likely to conclude that your grade is very inflated.</p>
<p>
[quote]
If you get a B in the AP, college adcoms will wonder why you even took the AP in the first place.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>omg. lol. omg. lol.</p>
<p>Paris Gellar, is that you?</p>
<p>lololol^^ :)</p>
<p>i am just aiming for middle UCs, not like princeton or harvard or anythign just to let you guys know.</p>