How important are rigorous classes for high profile MT schools?

MTDad2025
Fri, 26 Apr 2019 14:10:03 +0000

Getting a lower grade in an AP versus a regular class hurts a student’s unweighted GPA but only reduces his/her weighted GPA if the letter grade is more than one lower than she/he would have expected in the regular class. There are collateral effects to taking a more rigorous curriculum as well. Increased workload in advanced classes can impact the amount of time (and potentially the grades) allocated to other classes which, in turn, can impact time spent on MT training and performances.

In my daughter’s (current HS sophomore) situation, she did not take any honors classes her freshman year. We wanted to make sure she had a solid base GPA to work from before adding workload. She did very well last year (one B in French…why she chose that language is beyond me) so we had her take honors English her first semester this year and extended the honors program to history this semester. Based on the results so far she will take AP English and History in each of her final two years of HS. I think working her up to this point was more effective than hitting hard from the start freshman year and potentially digging a hole that can be hard to get out of.

If her academic performance stays at the level she is now, she should end up with weighted and unweighted GPAs right below and right above 4.0. Without (and maybe even with) stellar test scores, this most likely precludes her from Northwestern. And she and I can certainly live with that considering there is no guarantee you get into the MT program a year down the road at NW which could mean one year of very high tuition down the drain. I feel confident with solid test scores, she should be accepted academically everywhere else.

In other words, I would tend to start at a level that gives wiggle room to fit other commitments and if you excel academically, add more challenging classes going forward.