<p>Does it look bad to caltech if i take calculas AB instead of BC? Currently, i plan on taking BC but i was just wondering is it better to get a:</p>
<p>A/B in cal BC
or an
A in cal AB</p>
<p>i guess what i am asking is do the coarses or the grades matter more?</p>
<p>Caltech likes to see applicants who have maximized the course offerings at their school, especially in science and math. I would recommend taking BC. Also keep in mind that the Caltech core classes (I am told) are orders of magnitude more difficult than BC, so if you end up doing poorly in BC, Caltech may not be for you.</p>
<p>Yeah… I’d have to second Durran’s comment. I don’t think there are many here who didn’t find BC to be inordinately easy. Unless your class is focused a lot on repetitive calculations and you just can’t focus well, I’d wonder if Caltech were the place for you. Even then, you should be able to figure out ways to make your calculator, assuming you have something like a TI-83 or better, do the work for you.</p>
<p>I third Durran’s comment. If you do poorly in BC, Cal Tech will make your life miserable (that’s assuming one gets in, however unlikely that is).</p>
<p>In my opinion, grades are not important; what is more important is that you are reaching to challenge yourself and learn more. If a college sees that you stayed back with an easier class just to get better grades, that would not give a good impression.</p>
<p>You really should get an A in BC. It may be more work, but Caltech will definitely expect you to be able to do well in calc BC.</p>