<p>Here’s the thing, marite. My daughter is scholarly. She lives for academic and intellectual pursuits. She enjoys nothing more than having her brain cells tickled. However, she was TOLD to take as many AP classes in the subjects she did so she could have college experience that she so wanted. We didn’t have the courage or knowledge to tell her differently. Take what you love, damn the experts and their recommendation form!!!</p>
<p>She does not feel her education was “of no account” but she did feel she was duped. No one more than she would have relished other more interesting (to her) non-AP classes. You’d have to look long and hard to find a kid who values scholarly endeavor more. Since you don’t know my daughter, you will just have to trust me on this.</p>
<p>How do you know it’s harder – have you taken courses at all the high schools?
And how can you call other folks “slacker lazy deadheads”?</p>
<p>BTW, in case you didn’t figure this out - you going to a “better” public high school is not YOUR accomplishment, it’s solely a function of where your parents chose to live (and 9 times out of 10, it’s a function of parents’ finances). Are you suggesting that kids who happen to not have parents as well-to-do as yours should be penalized for that?</p>
<p>jnsq, thanks for you post and that is what I plan to do with D2. I actually feel sick to my stomach when I see how late D2 studies into the night. This is a kid who loves to have fun. But in high school, even the not so competitive one, takes all the fun out of her. She does not complain about her school work, but seeing how much she spends time with homework and such, I feel the same way that you do.</p>
<p>I listed two years of Hons. English, AP English Language or Hons. English III in 11th and AP English Literature in 12th. One can take additional elective in English during 11th and 12th also.</p>
<p>Most prep school I’m aware of offer AP English Language or Hons. English III (equivalent to AP English Language) in 11th grade.</p>
<p>True, you need to be taking Hons. science in middle school to be eligible for Hons. Physics in 9th grade.
You need either a Hons. Chemistry or Summer Course of Hons. Chemistry prior to taking AP Chemistry in 10th grade.</p>
<p>Similarly you need to do Hons. Biology or a summer course of Hons. Biology to take AP Biology in 11th grade.</p>
<p>I thought OP wanted the toughest curriculum which indeed is tough to accomplish so that rightfully can be tagged as toughest.</p>
Most of the top students at DD HS take AP Calculus BC in 10th grade or before. Every year at least 1 student qualify for US Math/Physics/Chemistry/Biology Olympiad camp.
So taking Multivariate Calculus is more of a norm for 30 - 40% of the senior class.</p>
<p>Why some one has to agree with me. I was just trying to provide information to the OP as she was not sure what qualifies as the hardest curriculum. I’m quite positive that a person taking the listed course work will be listed as taken the hardest curriculum at any school.</p>
<p>melin: It is a consistent myth, as far as I am concerned, that students who go to neighborhood high schools and get high GPAs without working hard have an advantage over magnet-school students. In my city, with the exception of the very, very occasional athletic recruit or URM superstar, 100% of the public high school students who are accepted at Ivy or similar institutions come from one of three magnet schools, and 90% come from two of them. Most students from neighborhood high schools – who had the opportunity to choose an academic magnet program – never even get to the starting line with highly selective colleges, no matter how good their grades are.</p>
<p>I believe you. She was duped by people who should know better.</p>
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<p>I totally agree! We resisted our S1’s GC strong recommendation that he MUST take AP-Calc in order to have a shot at top colleges. We told him he should do what he felt most comfortable doing. He took a fourth year of math but not at the AP level. He had no science AP. If I remember correctly, he had 5 APs altogether. He got into most of the schools to which he applied, some of which were in the top 10.</p>
<p>True, it has nothing to do with the college board. You can replace APs with the toughest courses offered at your HS and you still will get the hardest curriculum.
But by taking the APs you only validate your knowledge by a third party and stay away from the grade inflation problem at the HS.</p>
<p>It’s not a battle anyone can win. Your list is not the hardest. I know kids who have taken courses that are more advanced. And it really does not matter.</p>
<p>My son is taking the “hardest curriculum available,” and it’s a nightmare. I wish he had just taken a couple of AP classes. Now he’s pulling his hair out trying to avoid C’s. He thought it would be cute, for example, to take microbiology, which everyone last year said was impossibly hard and time-consuming, and actually made them do worse in their other classes due to the extreme time commitment. I guess he thought he was special. Fat chance. I say, take what interests you and what you can handle with reasonable effort, and let the chips fall where they may.</p>
<p>Why it has to be a battle to be lost or won? OP asked a question what will be considered a Hardest Curriculum as the OP’s HS doesn’t list.
I just provided a list that in view should provide enough challenging courses to be considered as toughest by the college admission staff.</p>
<p>Yes most advanced math students at DD school have been advanced math students since middle school. These students were not skipping Algebra 1 or Algebra 2 but was starting early. They still do the following Hons. sequence
Hons. Pre Algebra, Hons. Algebra I, Hons. Algebra II, Hons. Geometry/Trig, Hons. Pre Calc, AP Calc BC, Multivariate Calc or other math electives.
How early one get to Hons. Pre Algebra decide the sequence in the HS.</p>
<p>I am hoping that my son, should he choose next year to drop down out of the class rank/rigor race and take only 3 or 4 AP classes as a junior, will still have some strong college opportunities open to him. The GC made it sound like it was “run the race” or don’t bother applying to any top academic schools. I guess the question is, given the context of your high schools student body/academics, can you follow your passions and still get into top schools (not talking Ivy but top 50ish)? OR, are you penalized by living in such a “wonderful school district with such a brilliant student population” that you have to keep up with the Jones?</p>
<p>And I responded that adcoms have seen tougher curricula. But that really is not the point for this thread or for adcoms. They realize that students cannot take courses that are not offered locally even if they are offered somewhere else.</p>
<p>Seiclan: He should not be in an arms race and I truly believe he won’t be penalized. That was my S1’s experience (S2 was an outlier).</p>
True, if you are not taking the AP exam then it is of no use. DD school mandate all enrolled AP students have to take the exam at the end and the passing rate is nearly 100%.</p>