<p>Hello everyone, I’m Matt and I’m fairly new to CC. I have been reading threads on the discussion board for months but I haven’t posted. I am here to seek advice on course selection for my senior year of highschool. Currently I am a junior at a very competitive Private Catholic Highschool. I plan on applying to Yale next year and I need any advantage I can get to attempt to achieve acceptance.</p>
<p>my course selection as of now is as follows:</p>
<p>AP american Gov.
Honors Spanish 3
Honors Comparative Gov.
Advanced Math Analysis/Trigonometry
Honors Religion 4
Environmental Science
Honors World Literature (This is only possibility, I have to take an essay-test to get in and maintain my grade for British Literature at around a 94)</p>
<pre><code> The main course I need advice on is whether I should take Honors Comparative Government. I have taken chorus the last 3 years, the last two years being comprised of Advanced Vocal Music I & II. I received an award for best vocal performance from this class and was honored at our academic convocation for this. Essentially, what I am asking is whether I should continue taking Advanced Vocal Music or take Honors Comparative Government instead. My guidance counselor said to a college the Gov class would look much better than the chorus class, which he dispelled as useless. This seems to be common sense, but somewhere along the line I recall hearing that Yale liked people who integrated music into their curriculum. As Yale acceptees and Yalies, what is your opinion on this decision? Which would admissions office prefer. As of now I am scheduled for the Honors Comparative Gov class, but it could be changed easily.
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<p>I am in a helpful but also a somewhat curmudgeonly mood right now, so be warned, but I have two comments:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>It depends a little bit on the context of your school but at first glance the schedule you are taking does not look rigorous enough for Yale.</p></li>
<li><p>Your counselor seems to be an idiot.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I would advise you to continue to pursue your interests in advanced vocal music, not because it will help you get into Yale, but because it is the sensible thing to do. Since your name is Matt, I’ll assume you are male. A male with a good voice who is interested in pursuing advanced vocal music should be encouraged to continue it. The world needs more advanced male vocalists.</p>
<p>BTW, my daughter faced a similar dilemma in freshman year- to take honors choir or to double up on her science classes. She chose choir (and did it all 4 years of high school). She now sings in a Yale undergrad group. But her overall course schedule was much more rigorous than the one you describe above. So I hope you have some safeties that you love. She did.</p>
<p>
Uhhh…no. Pursue the class which aligns with your interests and talents. Colleges don’t expect, and don’t want, talented singers to give up singing for another class in social science. And a developed artistic talent will be an attractive plus to most schools provided your academics are already strong.</p>
<p>If this is the upper end of what your HS can offer then you are fine. If there are a few AP courses (Env Sci, Spanish, etc.) available to you then that would be better. The absence of a “hard” science, especially at the AP/IB level (Bio, Physics, Chemistry) is what I notice. If you had one of these as an option I would swap Env Sci for it.</p>
<p>I am going to continue to pursue chorus. It is one of my passions and will fit with the mood of my application. Thank you for the advice on chorus! My school’s guidance office is not of the highest quality. My school is extremely challenging academically and our honors courses compare to AP classes at most schools in my area. Unfortunately My school only offers 5 AP courses for seniors. I have the option to take Honors Bio 2 or AP Bio, so i suppose I could pursue one of those courses. The AP Bio is murder of a class though because the teacher is Bio-engineer who writes manuals on tissue-engineering for a top 14 med school lol, we’ll see about that.</p>
<pre><code> Anyway, Overall I am a bit under the level of a typical freshman accepted to Yale, academically that is. I will have great SAT’s and SAT II’s, I am a legacy, I have another hook that is strong and that I will base my essay on, a Yale graduate is a teacher of mine and will write a strong recommendation, great EC’s, strong supplemental information, and I have an incredible writing ability that I will demonstrate in my essay (not to brag, but that is simply my best skill. I’m not demonstrating it here.) I plan to apply SCEA, but I know even for the top applicants acceptance is extremely hard to achieve. I do have a lot of great safeties too. I can’t go through life wondering “what-if” though, so I must apply.
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<p>Perfect. This is the right attitude. Good luck!</p>
<p>If you are really an advanced singer (not just in the context of your school but on an absolute level) and especially if you have an unusual voice type (e.g. high tenor) then don’t hesitate to send a music supplement.</p>
<p>Vicarious Parent: Thank you for all the help! I may send in a supplement of my singing or I may send in a film clip of me performing at a magic competition this spring (I’m a magician, that’s my other hook). As for luck, I can use all the luck I can get, and I plan to rub the toes of Woolsey on campus when I visit this summer!</p>
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Sorry to say, but being a magician is not a hook. Legacy, URM, athlete, etc. is a hook; magician is an extracurricular activity.</p>
<p>nope! being a magician does, in fact, count as a hook. i’m not sure if they would want a video of that, though</p>
<p>A really good magician wouldn’t need a hook to get in anywhere ;)</p>
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<p>???</p>
<p>Good one, vicariousparent :)</p>