There is probably a reason the counselor said no. I would politely ask why. You are not challenging just seeking understanding. If you still feel this way in two years when you apply to college, you can address your courses in your essay and provide the counselor’s rationale. Better yet, ask him or her to address in a recommendation. I would not worry about it though. Just do your best in the class and learn as much as you can from the teacher. That teacher could become a great connection down the road.
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OP: Map out your schedule for the next 3 years, making sure you can fit into it everything you want. If you can’t fit in everything without doing AP Bio this year, try to schedule a meeting with your GC to address that. Otherwise, do it in your junior or senior year. Then let it go and make sure you do well in all your classes.
Given your interests, you should be doing everything possible to ensure you get top scores on the AP exams you take. Taking lots of AP classes without mastering the material is useless. Remember that the point of all this is to learn, not to get some high score award.
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Based on what I have seen AOs for the most selective colleges say on this topic, as well as actual admissions results, I agree you can relax about not taking as many APs as possible in every single term.
What is not unreasonable is mapping out a four year curriculum plan that fulfills the recommendations of any colleges of interest. Like when it comes to science, doing at least one a year, and all of Physics, Bio, and Chem at least once, and then at least one advanced science, will satisfy the recommendations almost anywhere (a possible exception being like a Caltech).
If you can fill all their different recommendations and still have spare credits, then you can use them as you like, as long as it makes sense for your interests. And no, you don’t have to only be interested in classes related to your intended major. Like very often people have a strong arts interest, but don’t want to major in arts. That’s perfectly fine, and for those kids, it is fine to use a lot of these open slots to do relevant arts classes.
Of course if you love science, maybe you do a lot of extra science instead. Or so on.
But I am very confident most of these colleges do not expect all their successful applicants to make the same choices. Again, their core recommendations may matter, but then beyond that different kids will make different choices, and that is fine with them.
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A few thoughts that I missed in my comment above:
Taking guitar to me looks like a very good choice. There really are a lot of students who are very good at science, or very good at engineering, or very good at math, who are also very good at music. If there is a club that currently does not exist but that would make sense to start, then go for it and that would also be a good idea (but is not necessary to get into a very good university). The club does not need to have anything to do with your final major choice – universities do not expect high school sophomores to already know what they are going to end up doing with their life.
Also, taking two sciences at once is already a LOT of science. I would NOT recommend taking three at once. I would recommend that at some point in high school you take a chemistry class, and a physics class, and a biology class. However, this is at some point throughout your full four years of high school. Taking three science classes at once to me is just too much.
And eventually taking AP bio at some point in high school makes sense, but you still have two more years to do this after this year. There is no need to take it this year.
Hopefully OP comes back and lays out their progress in the core areas - I’m feeling something is being missed in the core classes.
What can you do? You can get the absolute best grades possible in your current classes, enjoy the heck out of guitar, start your club, and live your life. Breathe! Take AP Bio one of the next two years. Holistic admissions means they look at the overall picture, not sheer number of APs in any given year.
My D22 only had 7 AP classes plus multivariable calc (weighted but not AP). She got into Rice and Emory. Her science sequence was honors bio, honors chem, honors physics, AP Bio. She only had three years of social science, but she took four years of chorus.
D26 only had 6 AP classes, only three years of social science and three years of foreign language and still got into Georgia Tech (not a top 20 but definitely a top BME program). She did take four years of symphonic band.
I understand your level of rigor will be looked at within the context of your school, but still – two AP classes sophomore year is fine, and I really don’t think you need to stress about this.
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I doubt they think in terms of being doomed, but there are students, like the OP, who take Calc BC in 11’th and then either Stats or a post-Calculus course senior year.
This is definitely great advice for the OP, but Columbia is not with MIT or Stanford. Depending on the state OP lives, there could be a strong engineering program at the public flagship.
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I already took Biology honors, which is a prerequisite for AP Bio, and I am currently taking Chemistry Honors planning for AP Chem DE next year. I didn’t plan on taking AP bio last year because a lot of people told me it was stupid to take 3 sciences (biomedical, chem, and biology). Do you think it still was a bad decision and puts me in an not ideal position if I already took biology?
Hi! I already took biology honors and I ended with an A+. I decided not to take AP bio sophmore year last year because I didn’t want to take 3 sciences and a lot of my mentors told me it was a bad option to do that. I’m currently in sophomore year taking Human Body Systems and Chemistry Honors. I understand that honors and AP are not at all the same, but I already did Biology as a core class so I don’t have to take it again as an AP. The only reason I was even thinking about it is because I really want to go to an ivy, GT, or t20 for biomedical engineering and I felt that taking AP bio, AP chemistry, and AP physics would be the only way.
Don’t look back and three sciences in one year is - I don’t want to say bonkers but bonkers.
You need to take one each year - English, math, lab science, social science and foreign language - to set you up for the top colleges.
You are way over thinking - and you’re in very good position without overdoing on the APs.
So relax - and you’ll end up in the right place.
Breadth of the core, not doubling and tripling up, is what’s important.
btw - the top engineering schools aren’t necessarily top 20 and for most engineering schools, the where, short of a few names, doesn’t necessarily matter. I personally wouldn’t put Ga Tech in that group. Per their career outcomes of 24/25 (so 24 Winter/25 Spring), and I can’t say when they took the snapshot (like how many months after) or how many are incorporated - but 61% of kids that wanted a job had one. There was one poster whose student took 10 months or so to find a job and it was a contract one. The median salary was $80K. They have a 35% knowledge rate for the school but don’t provide by major - meaning the % of people they know about.
UMN - had an average (not median) of $78K - in 2023/2024. They don’t show what % who wanted jobs found. Note the 2023/24, not 24/25 so a year older.
At UCONN, only 3.3% of biomedical engineers were looking for a job, with a $77K average in 2025.
Ohio State - $76,430
Ga Tech is great; some Ivies are great and might have higher salaries and placing in other type jobs. But frankly, most engineering jobs will pay similarly. My son found out in Utah at trivia night he made more than a recent Columbia grad at a neighboring company. He went to Alabama. So you can find great outcomes at many places - and not just Ga Tech (which seems to have a higher not finding job rate) and Ivies.
Bottom line - they’ll want:
4 years of English
4 years of Lab Science (that your school offers)
4 years of Language
4 years of Math - if you’re through Pre Calc, you’re ok. Calc BC best, or AB great. I don’t think you need linear math
4 years social science
Here’s the other thing - you’re a kid - and all the crazy pressure is for exactly what reason? Enjoy school, etc.
PS - while you’re overloading, here’s what Columbia engineering wants. Georgia Tech wants far less - for example, two lab sciences (of four overall), two years of language, three of social science.
This is a four year plan…not a one year plan.
So slow down, stop worrying, and good luck. Look forward - not back.
Good luck.
Did her school offer more than 20 APs or did she take a lot in context to her school?
Her school offers about 22 AP classes, I think. BUT they limit students to taking 6 total, with only the strongest students being allowed to appeal that and take a few more.
So yeah, I think colleges looking at that evaluate within context of what’s allowed.
At this point it is a done deal. Because of your high school requiring honors science as a prereq for AP science, it is difficult for a student to take AP Bio, Chem, and Physics C. However, since you are considering Bioengineering, if you have to choose between AP Chem and AP Bio as a senior, I would consider AP Bio, since it may help you to decide on whether Bioengineering is right for you. Also, having had honors Chem, you should be prepared for the chemistry in AP Bio. In my opinion, however, the most important consideration is how good the teachers are for these AP sciences. If the AP Chem teacher is fantastic, and the AP Bio teacher is not, go with AP Chem.
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Yeah, in the midst of all the what will look best to colleges questions, I think not enough such people are asking what will be best for the educational journey.
And realistically, if you are planning to go to a reasonably selective college, its AP-level classes might sometimes be significantly better classes!
So waiting to take a critical class for, say, your intended major until college is not necessarily a mistake, it could be a great idea in terms of getting the best possible version of that class.
Anyway, this is just my way of supporting the notion I would absolutely think about the actual quality of the classes, including teachers in question, as taught at the HS.
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I’m curious what schools you would take out of the current top-20 and who would you replace them with? Companies like certain colleges for engineering and that’s what matters, I agree with that. SJSU is a good example here, they may not be top-20 engineering program, but many of their grads are at Apple.
Sure - OP is concerned about their schedule and thinks it will preclude them from a top 20 program. I’m not sure what top 20 is - as you know there are many rankings.
But I’ll assume it means US News.
I looked at ABET which says there’s 187 schools offering the major in the US but when you take out the duplicates (same school listed multiple times), it leaves 164. There are a few schools that have a biomed concentration in maybe MechE - so there’s a few more.
So of the top 23 (there was a tie at 20), 12 have Biomedical Engineering that’s ABET accredited.
But if you look at the top biomedical engineering (according to US News, which frankly is a popularity contest but kids are using it) - the top school isn’t top 20, as an example (Ga Tech). And they have, as an example, a high jobless rate of grads.
What I’m trying to stress to the OP is - they are panicked that they won’t get into a top school - but there are many fine schools - whether top 20 or not - and they need to be the best they can be - and they’ll get into the right place.
Ga Tech reports in 2025 that 61% of kids who wanted jobs found them - at an $80K median and they are only capturing data on a third of kids so I’d assume actual are actually worse. It makes sense. A poster here daughter took, I think it was 10 months, to find a contract job. UCONN had much higher placement and a median of $74K - so $6K less…but a much higher % found jobs. UMN shows average - not median - and it was $78.5K. You mentioned SJSU - it appears they have very little data on biomedical - but show a $59K - but they’re showing inputs from only 6 individuals.
Yes, some companies like grads of certain schools and SJSU wins based on where it is, but Apple hires from many schools and not just SJSU. Many companies recruit widely but some recruit locally as well, or where an exec went, and some have programs only for certain colleges - so they make a job posting but only for grads of Michigan Tech or Alabama A&M or whatever.
Bottom line - top school by US News is really an academic popularity contest but it doesn’t mean - it’s the best for a career, etc. As I’m showing, there’s likely a lot less variance across the spectrum than many think - and I was just trying to show OP, no they’re not doomed because they didn’t take enough APs. They’re not doomed for a top 20 but if they don’t go to a top 20 and most won’t, they’re still not doomed.
OP should look ahead - and they’ll be fine.
Hope that answers your question.
A lot of people were correct. Three science classes at once in high school is too much. Three science classes when you are a graduate student in university would be normal (assuming you major in something related to science), but that is way, way, way in the future.
I think it was a good decision. You still have plenty of time to take AP Bio at some point in the future, and if you never take it that is okay also.
Yay! Taking science classes at a reasonable pace and doing very well in the class (such as by getting an A or an A+) is exactly the right thing to do.
Let me tell you the secret to get accepted to a highly ranked university: Do what is right for you. Take the classes that are right for you. Whatever you do, do it well. Do well in your classes. Participate in the ECs that are right for you. Whatever ECs you do, do them well. Treat people well. Just be the best person you can be. Don’t worry about it.
And finding a university that is a good fit for you is way more important compared to whatever US News uses to rank universities.
Exactly.
Also, if you look at a very good biomedical graduate program at any “top 20” university, you will find students there from a huge range of undergraduate schools. Some will come from top 20 schools (or even top 5 schools). Some will come from “top 100” schools. Some will come from undergraduate schools that are not “top 100” or in some cases not even “top 200”. Some will come from schools that you never heard of. What do they have in common? They did very well wherever they got their bachelor’s degree.
@cooliofreakish It sounds like you are doing very well. Just keep doing what is right for you, keep doing it very well, look for universities that are a good fit for you and that fit your budget, and you will be fine.
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