Seniors, help me prioritize (I'm a Junior)

Pre-College Topics High School Life
1

<p>Alright, my other posts (unrelated) have been very long, so I’ll try to make this one short.</p>

<p>I’m a Junior in High School, lower than optimal GPA for my choice schools. </p>

<p>86 weighted freshman year (1 honors)
90 weighted freshman + sophomore year (2 honors sophomore year)
If all goes well, I still will probably not achieve a HS GPA higher than a 93-94 weighted GPA. (3.7-3.8 weighted)</p>

<p>3 APs Junior year.</p>

<p>Upward trend.</p>

<p>SAT once in early December: 1910
CR: 630
Math: 630
Writing: 650
I’m about to take a course, I think I can do a good deal better.</p>

<p>Good ECs, delegate for CONA (an extension of the YMCA Model UN program where top 20-30 delegates are chosen to go to a national conference), Model UN + Youth and Government for 4 years, some awards, etc. etc. Hopefully I’ll have a good amount of impressive leadership positions by senior year.</p>

<p>Other smaller accomplishments include Cum Laude on National Latin Exam, Student Council, FBLA intern, etc.</p>

<p>=======================
Here are my questions:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>I’m planning on taking the SAT IIs.
I’m good at US History, and I’m already taking AP Bio, so those would be the two easiest for me to do.
Would taking Math II be overkill/beneficial? I want to prove I can do it (my math grades are sub-par)</p></li>
<li><p>Thinking about self-studying APUSH. I didn’t take APUSH but am doing very well in CPUSH and don’t want colleges to think I took the easy way out because my school does offer APUSH. Would that be a waste of time? Am I overthinking this? I’m already studying for the SAT USH so wouldn’t it be semi-wise?</p></li>
<li><p>Out of my Junior Year course SO FAR, math is my weakest point by far (Think straight As/Bs UW in AP classes with a C/B- in a regular math course). Should I try to prove that my school’s math department is difficult by scoring well on standardized tests? Or am I overthinking this?</p></li>
<li><p>I want to get into colleges like UMich. Are there any other similar colleges I can shoot for? </p></li>
</ol>

<p>Thanks! It means a lot, and I’ll take any feedback :)</p>

2

<ol>
<li><p>Try and get your testing done junior year. It depends on what schools you apply to on whether they require subject tests, and if so some require specific tests (e.g. Math II and one science exam), right now I would stick with those two unless you need a Math II subject test.</p></li>
<li><p>My school offers APUSH. I didn’t take it, but I still got into my #1 choice EA. As long as you have a rigorous schedule overall, you will be fine.</p></li>
<li><p>Of course, the goal is to do as well as you can on standardized tests. Don’t retake them after the 3rd time, you have more important things to do for your application (essays).</p></li>
<li><p>UMich is a great target for you to shoot for. Depends if you want to stay in state and your interest in a certain major. Try for USC, GTech, the UCs.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>I hope I helped. Good luck!</p>

3

<p>Only take Math II if you’re sure you can exceed your current math performance. If you don’t do well, it proves nothing. You can always have your guidance counselor explain if your math teachers are particularly tough graders. A few schools do require 3 Subject Tests, but most don’t.</p>

4

<p>Thanks for the useful replies guys!</p>

<p>I’m still wondering if self-studying APUSH would be worth it. I’d qualify for AP Scholar with Honors as opposed to just AP scholar if I pulled it off. Would the extra effort pay off?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>