Which AP Class Should I Take?

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

My senior schedule:

AP Lit
AP Macro
Govt Dual Enrollment
AP Calc BC
AP Spanish Lang
Tennis

AP Comp Sci, AP Stat, or AP Physics 2

  • I was considering AP Bio earlier, but then I found out it's the teacher 2nd year teaching it and she is not a great teacher.
  • I've been told AP Comp Sci at my school is a good class to balance out a lot of hard classes.
  • I don't know much about the teachers for Stat and Physics 2.
  • Does Physics 2 look much more rigorous? I'm going to be applying to some top schools.
2

If you already know what you want to major in, that would be helpful when choosing one :smile:
Computer anything = AP Comp Sci
Math = AP Stat
Science = AP Physic 2

3

Since you already have a heavy course load, I would suggest that you take the AP Comp Sci that being said, you should actually want to take this course as opposed to just doing it to make your schedule look more rigorous, since it already is.

4

@arios98o‌ I would love to take all 3; I’m very much a STEM kind of guy. I am interested in all of them, not merely for the course rigor.

@what2dowithlife‌ Definitely the STEM field, but I’m not sure about anything more than that, which doesn’t help much in this situation. :slight_smile:

5

So then I would suggest to take the most difficult class that you’re choosing from so you have a thorough knowledge of the topic before taking the AP exam, it seems like this would be Physics 2. From there I would maybe self-study for the Comp Sci and Stat and you can then determine whether or not you are ready.

6

Choose your favorite between CS and Physics 2. If you already have AP Physics 1, you can take CS without fear :slight_smile:

7

Do what your heart tells you would be a good class for you :smiley:

8

I thought I was certain about going with AP CS but now I’m having second thoughts. If I don’t choose AP Physics 2, then I won’t have a science class senior year. Would that look bad/strange to, say, an MIT admissions officer?

9

Well if you want to major in science… yeah

10

Yes; for any top stem college, you’re expected to have English, Math, Science, Social Science, and Foreign Language all 4 years, plus electives that reflect your interests; 5 of the 7 classes should be Honors or AP; Math should be taken to the highest level offered by the school or Calculus; all three of Bio, chem, and physics should be taken, plus at least one at the AP level if offered by the school, and preferably more than one Ap science; electives need to show initiative and curiosity toward science-related projects; if possible, at least one science or math class should be taken in college at the post-1st semester level (ie., Multivariable Calculus, Discrete Math, General/Engineering Physics1 &2, etc.) to demonstrate ability to handle pace and depth; research or projects, state-level or national-level awards are also expected. If you don’t have all that, you can still apply, but your odds are low; if you have all that, your odds are much better, but still not high; any college with less than 30% acceptance rate is a reach for everyone, that is to say, a lottery regardless of your stats and accmplishments, hence the necessity of composing a balanced college list with plenty of matches and 2 safeties (typically your flagship’s honors college and another college.)

Note that AP CS is a science. You can, of course, take both AP CS and AP Physics 2 if you have room in your schedule. However, AP Physics 2 is at the exat same level as AP Physics 1 (algebra-based physics), they just cover different areas; the “stem” marker class is AP Physics C, which resembles a 1s semeste, calculus-based General Physics college class.

11

Don’t take any APs

12

@MYOS1634‌ that was the longest sentence I have ever seen no offense lol.

13

LOL Decepters… Read Proust. :smiley: .
Technically, this was a sentences due to the semi colons, but it was essentially a list of “things to do”, so not really a sentence.