OK, so, I am currently a sophomore at a fairly competitive high school in the Silicon Valley (Northern CA), and for Junior Year I was only planning on taking 3 AP’s and 1 Honors class (AP Bio, AP Calc BC, AP Lang, Spanish IV H). Additionally, I am taking US History III because I really don’t like history, and everybody who has taken APUSH has told me that it’s not a hard class, but it’s a TON of homework. I’m also considering taking regular (idk abt AP) comp sci, because 5 classes might be a little low for junior year.
Unfortunately, I can handle the rigor of any AP at my school, but I’m really preoccupied with my extra-curriculars, and only have 3-5 hours MAX on weekdays to spend on homework, study for tests, study for the SAT/ACT (I’m NOT a good standardized test taker), and since I’m in another state almost every weekend, I have little to ZERO time on the weekends. I currently play competitive volleyball on a top 30 in the country club team, and am currently being recruited for beach volleyball at Cal Poly, LMU, Cal, Stanford, and (trying to get) Tulane. Now these are all D1 schools, but for me it’s always academics FIRST, so I really want to do well in high school, get all A’s & take AP’s, so if I decide that I’m not loving the offers I’m receiving, I can easily just apply to schools, with volleyball being my primary extracurricular, and in my college essay, discuss the benefits of playing a competitive sport, and what is has taught me about myself, and the world around me.
I also am involved in like 2 clubs, Math & WE club (a charity club), but I honestly don’t understand why colleges care about clubs, but nonetheless, I still show up, participate and help out in any way that I can. I was considering starting a beach volleyball team at my school, 1. because that’s fun, but 2. because it would look really good. I’m also considering possibly starting a “health” club, which is just a way for students to be able to relieve stress during the day. So would being involved in more clubs help?
Anyways, if your still reading this, should I be OK with just taking 3? Should I attempt to take APUSH, maybe even AP Comp Sci. I plan to take 4-5 AP’s senior year. The only reason I’m hesitant about taking more is because of my limited time, I only want to take AP’s in the classes I truly enjoy (Math & Science related subjects), but I feel obligated to take AP Lang & Lit because in all honesty, you just need to be able to write, and be damn good at it. Period. I have no issues with financial aid or anything like that, and I’m Latina, if that helps at all.
OK BOTTOM LINE, will 3 AP’s look bad junior year, despite my other time commitments, for schools such as UCSB, UCSD, Tulane, UCLA (lol we will see), Cal Poly, or NYU? THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
Side Note: Got all A’s freshman and sophomore year in what is considered a pretty difficult class load for a sophomore, if that is of any significance.