<p>I was placed on the regular math track back i 6th grade because the school I attended right before didn't have an advanced math track. So anyways, now, I'm a junior taking PreCalc and I am signed up to take AP Calc AB for senior year. Our school won't allow kids to skip to BC, and everyone who takes BC have taken AB (The guidance counselor told me that the curriculum is designed so that the BC class quickly reviews the AB material, then spend the majority of the time on BC specific material, and is impossible to learn the AB material in that class from scratch). Back on topic, I've talked to many of the seniors that are applying to these top Ivies or Non-Ivies (UChiago, Carnegie Mellon etc) , and they are all on the advanced math track to begin with and are now all in BC. So if I apply to any of these top schools, will having AB but not BC stand out negatively, especially since I plan on doing a STEM major?</p>
<p>Interesting question. Most STEM applicants to top schools will have taken BC by senior year. Your reason for not having BC is understandable and seemingly out of your control. Our HS has the same policy. It would probably be a good idea to ask your counselor to make note of the reason you couldn’t take BC on their recommendation letter. </p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>You are a year ahead of the standard sequence which has students completing precalculus as high school seniors. Given that your school does not have an appropriate BC course that does not require AB as a prerequisite, your choices are:</p>
<ul>
<li>Take AB in your high school.</li>
<li>Take first semester freshman calculus at a local college in the summer, then take BC in your high school.</li>
<li>Take freshman calculus at a local college during senior year.</li>
<li>Take first semester freshman calculus at a local college in the summer, then continue with second semester freshman calculus in the fall, and multivariable calculus in the spring, at the local college.</li>
</ul>
<p>Given your high school’s limitations, the first option would still be taking the maximum math available to you in high school.</p>
<p>(When I was in high school, the advanced students in math took precalculus as high school juniors, then took calculus BC as high school seniors. The calculus BC course was designed as a one year course approximating a college freshman calculus course.)</p>
<p>I’m not sure. Ask the counselor to note that. As a counselor, the first question I’d ask is why a summer, CC or online class wasn’t used to catch up.</p>
<p>Your first line of competition is the others applying from your school. You hopefully offer some things they don’t.</p>