I cant believe that is true, because if it was 1) They would ask on the app and 2) lookingforward would quote and post it! 
I am sure you are not suggesting it would be a better world if no kids got extra tutoring so colleges could judge them more easily?
And I am asking where folks who claim the op was âcheatingâ think that line is, and no one has answered.
As far as I know, my school has not such requirement, in fact, I think they donât want to know about it.
I have a special needs kid who took an online course, got an A. I told the school, sent them the transcript, it was never attached to my special needsâ school transcript.
Oh my, I guess Iâm worse than the OP my DS20 will have covered about half the classes heâll be taking in 9th grade. He was homeschooled and I allowed him to work at whatever level he was ready for but the public school does not recognize his homeschool credits because they are not from an accredited school. I guess Iâm off the hook for reporting his homeschool class on his college apps since he did them in middle school. Based on my experience with my other two children that took a similar path, the courses will be different enough that he wonât be bored or have an unfair advantage.
@mathyone please read the sequence of posts⊠I am so sorry that you felt DD has an âunfair advantageâ
@annamom I donât necessarily see it as âcheating.â The fact you paid a high amount doesnât change the fact many kids can take a local summer class, some at much lower cost, to prep for the fall. And sure, some kids get private help over the summer.
And plenty of kids benefit from free mentoring programs or from local kids who do it as community service. Or the sort of online reviews that are free and anonymous. Any âadvantageâ is in the learning, not that one family can afford a higher price tag.
LOL @3scoutsmom. There are always exceptions. And yes, my son did find AP CS easier as a freshman than his classmates because he knew much of the material already. He said in retrospect he should have just taken the exam.
Thereâs limited space on the Common Application in any event, so if the Berlitz class got left off because other more interesting stuff was on, no issues. But I wouldnât leave it off because I think nearly all admissions officers would consider it a big plus. So it would go some where even if only in the âis there anything you want to addâ section. I donâ think any Admissions Office would rescind an application for that reason - even if the language grade went from Câs to Aâs and there was no explanation.
@Postmodern - I believe that they do (elite colleges have ways of determining those things I listed) - such as, asking recommenders to comment and evaluate personal characteristics like reslilience, integrity, perseverence, respect for others and the school community, etc. And one reason to ask about ECs and summer activities is to see what was filling that time/effort.
As teachers we are reminded to mention in letters if a kid never did any grade-grubbing. Kids who donât get that notation are assumed to be more grade-focused than learning-focused. And by the way, donât think that just because you donât ask the teacher in question for the LoR, that it wonât go into the letter: there are faculty meetings and discussions and also a general GC letter where the GC solicits feedback from all of the studentâs teachers. Iâm sure one bad relationship wonât make an impact, but if thereâs a pattern, it gets incorporated (good or bad).
Iâll take a stab at the moral line:
and
I must have missed something⊠I donât think it was part of the discussion.
What exactly should the kid let the teacher knowâŠ
The kid practices 4 days/week (should be 7)âŠspends 6 hours with EMS, 4 hours in a hospital, takes a decent work load, but because she spent 4 hours a day in the summer for 6 week to pre-learn the material, she only needs to spend 30 minutes every night during the school year, and no wonder she passes the course (hopefully an A)⊠LOLâŠ
@fretfulmother BTW, I have told her current teacher that she took the summer course in Chemistry âŠI didnât know it would have affected the teacherâs view on her 
(this wasnât the first time, she took another course earlier) but probably I should have brought up everything she did whenever I mentioned summer courseâŠI may also include my own resume, or how much we save as she definitely benefits from it.
Iâve had the same problem at my school but after my parents and teacher talked to my guidance counselor, she agreed that I could take both classes, although later I decided to take only AP chem. Many people in my school are taking AP Physics next year without taking regular physics first and they seem to be fine. I wish guidance counselors would give advice and encourage students to take interesting and challenging classes, but at least at my school itâs the exact opposite.
My daughterâs public HS stopped this summer gaming by not letting the kids retake a HS class they had already taken over the summer - the summer class went on their transcript (although I donât think the grade was included in their GPA) and then the pre-taking of math and science classes over the summer stopped. It had become a lucrative business for a local prep school. Did kids continue to take these classes and not own up to it - donât know?
I would take the Chem junior year and physics senior year. I would double check unis under considerationâŠnot many require SAT 2s anymore. Not âowningâ up to academics taken outside of the high school is unethical in my opinion. âDoing itâ to boost a grade doesnât bother me although the ROI is probably minuscule in the big picture.
With all due respect @annamom , that was not what you originally stated. Whether or not your D gets credit, your goal seems to be that she uses the summer course in order to accelerate her science sequence. At least that was my interpretation.
I canât believe it⊠the discussion (or accusations ) went from âunfair advantageâ to âlegal cheatingâ and now to ânot owning up to itâ⊠âŠanyway keep them coming LOL
Why not just have her use the summer class for credit in physics? AP physics 1 and 2 are not especially useful for subject credit in college anyway. If the summer class in physics is a good quality class equivalent to a year long high school physics course, it should be good preparation for the SAT subject test in physics and (along with calculus) as preparation for physics in college, should she take it then. Then she will have extra schedule space to take whatever academic electives she wants.
A high school record with regular biology, chemistry, and physics, plus AP chemistry (four years total including all three of the core sciences) should be perfectly fine for college admission and preparation to take any of the sciences in college if she wants to do so.
my question referred to your comment
I do not see how a school can set up policies on not allowing a student to take a course outside of school hours and in the summer, paid for by the parent, not for school credit, âŠI am interested in such policyâŠcan you point me to a policy? I thought we live in United States or some third world communist countryâŠDo I have to ask permission to send my kid to summer camp which may give them an advantage in varsity sport⊠and BTW (not that I am interested in), there is big money for sports scholarship, it certainly gives her an âunfairâ advantage as someone put it.
I am not sure what you meant by âaccelerate her science sequenceââŠthe school offers Physics and AP Physics 1, there is no honor, I do not see any problem with her (or many of her peers) taking AP Physics1 which she is eligibility for.
Hypothetically, instead of enrolling her in summer school, I hire a private tutor to teach her the same during Summer⊠What about hiring a private tutor during the school year? Will it make a difference?
@momofthreeboys can you elaborate your opinion please?
@annamom And my original comment was based upon your comment:
No school cares what a kid does over the summer, and is certainly not going to tell a kid that they canât take a non-credit course, or that they canât go to summer camp.
However, if the school has policies that apply during the academic year, like only taking one science course, there should be no expectation that a school will override the policy based upon summer activities. Some might, some might not. If thatâs not whatâs happening at your Dâs school, then I am just totally confused with what you are really asking.
I am still not sure why people are so fire up about a kid taking a summer courseâŠIn my opinion or at least in my experience, cramming a yearâs material in a 6 week is not a replacement for a yearâs work, however, IMO, it helps the kid to better prepared for the course or it makes it easier for the kid (yes, I knew some of you felt strongly that this kid may not even qualify for STEM major, feel free to apply a job in the admission office and be the gatekeeper for denying kids who have an âunfairâ advantage)âŠ
thatâs exactly my point, the school has no such policy that a kid can only take one science course.