<p>Where did you say that? Um…in post #6. You said…</p>
<p>"Of course they’re going to take the rigor of the school into consideration.</p>
<p>My daughter just came out of a private Catholic Dallas HS, and was assured of the same considerations by several of the counselors and admitted w/merit money."</p>
<p>You did not mention your daughter’s GPA, class rank, SAT/ACT scores, or anything else that admissions counselors look at when determining admissibility. So it makes it seem as if you’re under the illusion that your daughter was “accepted w/ merit money” because of the private Catholic Dallas HS that she attended.</p>
<p>It would have made much more sense had you said something more like this: My daughter just came out of a private Catholic Dallas HS where she ranked in the top 10% and maintained a 4.0 GPA, a 2400 SAT, and held many leadership roles in her community, etc. Because of this, she was assured of the same considerations by several of the counselors and was admitted w/merit money.
When you don’t mention any of her stats however, it seems like you think she got in merely because of the high school she attended.</p>
<p>By the way, the terms AP British Literature and AP English Literature are NOT used interchangeably. That’s like saying Chemistry and Biology are used interchangeably. They are very different. AP British Literature (which doesn’t formally exist) would refer to the study of literature by British authors. In AP English Literature, you study literature from various genres and periods, concentrating on works of recognized literary merit from a variety of authors. In my AP English Literature course, we read books from all over the world. Some were not even originally written by English-speaking authors, such as ‘Crime and Punishment,’ which was first written in Russian and published in a Russian literary magazine. AP English Literature does NOT refer to the study of literature from Great Britain, as AP British Literature (which again, doesn’t exist) would suggest.
In college however, English Literature and British Literature are used interchangeably.</p>
<p>My counselor said something along the lines of: If you go to a notably tough school, such as a large private school, or a very competitive public school (think St. Marks School of Tex in dallas, or Highland Park High School in Dallas), then there is a difference in that student’s 4.0 and a 4.0 somewhere less challenging. Those schools are more competitive. Some of them, like private schools, are much more difficult to get into. According to most universities, a 3.5 at a very competitive school is more impressive than a 3.8 at a small public school out in the middle of nowhere (sorry if that was harsh!) If you graduate 3rd in your class, but from a class of 25, that is very different than graduating 18th in a class of 200. </p>
<p>It may not be necessarily fair, but it is true. Sorry! =/</p>
<p>Also, I do not see a AP british lit course; however, it is very possible the original author meant English and wrote British (they are interchangeable in certain circumstances). This should NOT be made into some petty fight/big deal. Honestly.</p>
<p>I really don’t understand why all the need to take so many AP classes. What about burn out. ANd what if your school does offer a ton but the regular classes are also tough and you don’t want to burn out before you are even in college.</p>
<p>I messaged Tpaul2 this, but I thought I’d tell the group -</p>
<p>Your GPA is recalculated when you apply and we only look at math, english, science, foreign language, and social sciences. That said, they do include any AP classes you may take in there. AP Psych and AP Econ will both be counted. </p>
<p>The debate on getting burned out is valid, however if your school offers a lot of AP classes and you aren’t taking advantage of that the admissions staff will notice. It’s not going to make or break you, but it’s something that’s noted.</p>
<p>It is very difficult for some students to take a lot of AP classes. For instance our high school is on the block system so students only can take 4 classes each semester. If you play a sport (which are scheduled as a class at our high school) or are in band or choir, you must take those classes at the time offered. Often AP classes conflict with these classes or other classes such as a foreign language or are only offered either in the fall or spring semester. In addition, some of the AP classes take up a block and a half which make it quite a challenge to fit in very many AP Classes if you are in another activity or if the schedule will not allow you find a way to fit it into the schedule along with other required classes or to find a decent class that is only a 1/2 a block to fill up the extra 1/2 block period. Both my kids were outstanding students and involved in other activities but could only fit in 2 - 3 AP classes due to lack of availability of these classes at other times or finding an appropriate class that worked with their schedules.</p>
<p>I think it is sad that so many schools- ( not just Ivy League) expect students to take a full load of college classes when they are in high school. It is crazy. There is plenty of time for that. If I don’t get in to some of my schools even though I have done extremely well in every aspect, then so be it. It is not a race for me. High School should also be fun as well because it is the last chance before being an adult. I don’t see how you can participate in any sport, or music , or whatever you like , and still take so many AP classes at one time. You might not be learning that much as they are quickly cramming material down you to take the big AP in May. It is just a big business in my opinion. I have taken them and that should be enough. No, not 12 , not even 6, but I did and did well. Enough said. My regular classes are challenging for me. I know that I will succeed as I can communicate better than many of the people I know taking 12 AP classes.</p>
<p>I agree Tpaul2. My child has been very involved at a high level in a sport that is pretty much year around for practices, camps, lessons, etc. That along with a few other hobbies and social/club activities, AND keeping up a 4.0 grade point in all classes, and a part-time job are more than enough stress and time commitment for any teenager. Unfortunately we are finding that college merit scholarships are going to students who do nothing much socially or athletically but take alot of AP classes and have a lot of offices in many school clubs but these clubs and offices are not time-consuming at all. Or they go to much smaller schools where it is very easy to be head of everything and play several sports since the school is so small. In larger schools or for kids who play sports it is much more difficult to be elected officer of anything since so many kids apply or to be a contributing member in a myriad of activities/sports since their schedules just do not allow it or conflict with club meetings and events.</p>
<p>I agree with BeachMamma. I go to a large school here in OC and I have been a student council officer and gained valuable life experiences for 2 years and gave so much time to my school. I am well balanced and took AP Psychology from a high school teacher who had no idea what he was doing. It was awful and I learned nothing from him. I strugged at first but came out with an A . But, I didn’t learn much. If I was planning to be psych major, I would want to take it again from a real professor in college. Obviously there are some very bright students capable of scoring high on those AP exams but I don’t think the majority of high school kids should have to do this. My school offers many AP’s but even the teachers don’t think that sophomores for example should be allowed to take them. I am home sick today and still no mail from SMU. I feel like I am being rejected but hoping it isn’t so.</p>
<p>Beachmamma,
So you are waiting to here about your son/daughter’s admission? Was it early app /deferred or regular admission? are you in california?</p>
<p>Sorry, did not read the thread thoroughly but I do believe all colleges do take into account the high school especially if they are familiar from many past admits. Ask your hs counselor about this historical data.</p>
<p>B+ gpa at nationally ranked school. very well known
34 act
national merit comended
Nhs
350+ comm serv hours
many clubs, honors etc
internship at MADD executive</p>
<p>mom, both her brothers, grandfather went to SMU
grandfather vice-pres of board and family big donors…</p>
<p>do i have a good chance? im scared my gpa will kill me</p>
<p>hahahaha. yes im joking, my sarcasm apparently wasn’t obvious enough haha. i haven’t heard back from SMU yet but seeing so many people post with really good grades and transcripts asking if they had a chance made me want to mess around a little. all in good fun :]</p>