Sorry to have chosen the wrong ChoirBoy!
I’d suggest you plunge into a drawing course either at the adult school or art center right away. Proficiency at drawing is the same as learning to play an instrument. Even if you have talent it takes a while.
I’d still in be in favor of taking your high school’s drawing & painting course senior year. It will provide a structure, an official grade that appears on your transcript, an opportunity to build a portfolio under academic supervision and hopefully a supplemental reference from an instructor. At this point, if you can’t get a waiver on the practical art requirement, it looks like Jazz Choir is your only other option to cut. Could you still participate outside of the class?
I don’t think you need 5 years of Spanish to get into college, even at the most selective, but you have to check each individual college’s requirements once you matriculate. Some colleges have no language requirement. For those that do, you either want to place out or test out. The rules vary widely. You may want to continue Spanish or try Italian in college but you don’t want to have to take a language, especially if you’re in an architecture program.
Yes, the diversity in Yale’s MArchI program is interesting --not only the gender, racial, life experience and economic diversity that we see in undergraduate admissions, but also diversity in age, experience and educational background.
It’s quite common for students to take some time off between undergraduate and graduate schools to gain real life architecture experience. There are plenty of non-architect entry level positions at architecture firms that are available just for that purpose. I wouldn’t call them internships (which is an official designation for unlicensed BArch and MArchs) but many people with BAs or BSs work in architecture firms. The key is make connections and to have summer internships during your undergraduate years.
Brown is a good destination for art and art history and they do have an architecture major. Same generally goes for other peer universities like Yale and Princeton. These are extremely selective schools, but it’s okay to have a few reaches as long as you also have safeties.
I’m a great fan of small liberal arts colleges and I think it’s a category you should investigate. Of the schools that I listed Williams, Wesleyan, Hamilton, Vassar, Kenyon have particularly good art and art history programs. I would highlight Williams and Wesleyan as also having good music performance opportunities for non-majors. In other words, your choir participation would be a plus.
Again (and again) before you can consider ANY private school you need to understand your family’s financial situation. Most selective colleges in the Northeast do not offer merit aid, period. Their need-based financial aid can be quite generous, but only if you qualify for it. Find out!