<p>Course selections are due soon, and I’ve been trying to decide which science I should take for my junior year…
My school handle science APs in a strange way; they’re really only geared towards people who have a prior background in it (i.e. you took the honors counterpart of it before). It’s still possible to take an AP in a subject you haven’t been taught in, but it’s extremely difficult.
I’ve already taken Bio and am in Chemistry. I have to take Physics to graduate. If I took Honors Physics junior year and AP Bio next year would it look bad that I didn’t take what seems like the “most challenging courseload available”? What if I reversed it (so I could take the Bio SAT II because I took it last June and got a pretty decent score as a freshmen, so I figure that after AP, I could get high 700s)? Would moving down from AP to Honors look bad, even if I did well in AP?</p>
<p>I don’t know how much course scheduling advice I can offer you besides this: if you’re going to take an AP class, take it in a subject that you are interested in because APs tend to be very time consuming. If you take AP Biology in order to “take the strongest courseload” but you really are only interested in Chemistry, there’s a chance that your performance in AP Biology won’t be that great anyway which would negate the purpose of trying to get the best grades possible in the toughest courses available. Take an AP to further your learning about a subject you’re interested in and I think you will find much success. </p>
<p>As for the SATII part, not many schools absolutely require SATIIs so I would not recommend taking a class in order to do well on that test. </p>
<p>Here’s my high school science background, the results from my college search, and what I’m currently doing in college…if any of this will give you some scope or generate further questions.</p>
<p>9th: Advanced Biology
10th: Advanced Chemistry
11th: AP Biology (5)
12th: AP Chemistry (4), Advanced Physics
I had As in all my science classes, a 3.9 GPA, and a 32 ACT.</p>
<p>I was accepted to University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, University of Virginia, University of Missouri, St. Louis University, and Elon University.</p>
<p>I “used” AP Biology credit to satisfy all my introductory biology credits (a year’s worth) and decided not to “use” my AP Chemistry credits for reasons I still don’t understand (but my academic advisor and pre-med advisor do). My roommate took introductory biology last semester (which I used credit for) and I completely understood everything she did. I’m in the second part of general chemistry right now and have yet to encounter something completely new thanks to AP Chemistry.</p>
<p>In summary: I say take which ever AP you’re most interested in and leave the rest for honors. You’re better off taking courses you’ll enjoy than trying to take a course to prepare for a test that might not be necessary. Regardless of your choice, both AP Biology and AP Chemistry transfer well to colleges and are useful for satisfying freshman credits. I definitely recommend taking one or the other.</p>
<p>If Biology is the AP science you prefer, the idea of taking it in 11th grade rather than 12th in an effort to improve your SAT Subject Test score in biology is a good one, provided that your school does not expect students in AP Biology to have a background in physics (something you can find out by asking the science teachers).</p>
<p>At the high school that my son went to, it was very common for kids to take AP Biology or AP Chemistry in 11th grade and Honors Physics in 12th grade specifically for the purpose of getting a good SAT Subject Test score in Biology or Chemistry. I don’t see why anyone would consider taking the courses in this order to be less rigorous than taking Honors Physics in 11th grade and AP Biology or AP Chemistry in 12th grade. But in this school, Physics was not a prerequisite for either AP Biology or AP Chemistry. In some schools, it might be.</p>
<p>Just remember, if you do take an AP science in 11th grade, that these are rigorous and fast-paced courses. Make sure that you allow enough time in your schedule for the large amount of work you’re going to be doing.</p>
<p>I don’t mean to hijack the thread, but have a related question. If a student has the opportunity to take only one advanced (IB) science course, should it be Biology or Chemistry? They are only offered as two year courses so the student needs to pick one. (Technically, she could take two at the same time, but she won’t be doing that.)</p>
<p>The other option is Ecosystems and Societies, but it seems like that isn’t as practical as Bio or Chem. (She doesn’t like Physics as much, so that isn’t part of the question.)</p>
<p>In general I think colleges like to see courses in biology, chemistry and physics and it’s nice to see an AP in addition. I don’t think they would care at all if the AP is done junior year instead of senior year. I think the idea of having AP Bio under your belt for the SAT2 makes sense.</p>
<p>And to Karen, I don’t think it matters at all which course your daughter takes. It seems a shame that the school stretches what is normally a one year course over two years though. Chemistry has more math, though it’s not particularly difficult math.</p>
<p>Both of your options sound fine, Superfly. There’s no reason to stress about not taking two science APs. </p>
<p>Karen, I agree with Mathmom. It doesn’t matter much whether she takes bio or chem. She should consider the teacher since that can make a huge difference in a course, as well as which science she finds the most interesting.</p>
<p>If I’m counting right, you are only in 10th grade. Your proposed sequence looks about right. One thing to consider is your math level for both chemistry and physics. At my kid’s school you can petition to skip honors and go right to AP with concurrent enrollment in pre-cal. This doesn’t always work. AP Physics class started with Newtonian motion and the pre-cal class doesn’t do vectors until second semester.<br>
Talk to the teacher before you register.</p>