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How many AP classes should I take sophomore, and what should they be?
Right now I am thinking of taking AP English, and AP world history, I decided on these for now, but they are definitely up for change. I got to this point because I was originally going to do AP chemistry ( but its the most common course that people like me take, so maybe its not as bad as I think), but realized it is one of the hardest and I am extremely unprepared for it, the other option was physics, which I decided not to do because I will get the information needed for it sophomore year. I am still questioning whether I should have 2 AP classes however, because I have no experience with honors or AP yet. I think I am prepared for at least one because I can usually handle whats given to me, but im not sure. #highschool #AP
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Jennifer’s Answer
Hi, Myles!
Bravo on setting your goals high and working toward achieving them! As a former high school counselor and current independent college counselor, I would encourage you to refer to (or set up) your four-year high school curriculum. Sequencing will be important for many of the AP courses and can help you navigate the rigors of the courses that you'd like to take throughout your high school career.
Without any background information about your coursework, I'd recommend no more than two AP courses for your sophomore year. As you've stated, you haven't had experience with honors or AP, and I wouldn't recommend overloading yourself. Ease into it.
Regarding what those courses should be, I believe it would be dependent upon your background and sequencing of courses to date. You want to give yourself every opportunity to be successful in the courses.
I understand that it's sometimes difficult to get in to see your high school counselor or have the time to meet with the counselor, but if the counselor is unavailable, consider talking to the AP Coordinator or administrator at your school. The Coordinator/administrator will have useful insight into what courses are typically taken by sophomores at your school and their success rates. Reach out to your school resources; but if that doesn't help, I'm happy to answer more questions!
Wishing you all the best!
Bravo on setting your goals high and working toward achieving them! As a former high school counselor and current independent college counselor, I would encourage you to refer to (or set up) your four-year high school curriculum. Sequencing will be important for many of the AP courses and can help you navigate the rigors of the courses that you'd like to take throughout your high school career.
Without any background information about your coursework, I'd recommend no more than two AP courses for your sophomore year. As you've stated, you haven't had experience with honors or AP, and I wouldn't recommend overloading yourself. Ease into it.
Regarding what those courses should be, I believe it would be dependent upon your background and sequencing of courses to date. You want to give yourself every opportunity to be successful in the courses.
I understand that it's sometimes difficult to get in to see your high school counselor or have the time to meet with the counselor, but if the counselor is unavailable, consider talking to the AP Coordinator or administrator at your school. The Coordinator/administrator will have useful insight into what courses are typically taken by sophomores at your school and their success rates. Reach out to your school resources; but if that doesn't help, I'm happy to answer more questions!
Wishing you all the best!
Thank you!
Myles
Updated
Simeon’s Answer
Start with the colleges you want to apply to and work backwards from there. You don't want to accidentally do all the work of studying for and doing well on an AP exam only to end up not actually needing it for college credit. Every credit you can substitute is worth the time invested, though. I was able to graduate a semester early with the AP credit I had saved up.
Okay, thanks!
Myles
Updated
Sophia’s Answer
I agree with Simeon! I know I overlooked the college credit benefit of AP's when I took them in high school. Some of the APs I took covered an entire introductory college course which would allow you to potentially graduate early or take a higher-level/more interesting course in college (also makes studying abroad, minoring, and double majoring easier). Different colleges will have different requirements as to which APs they accept and what score you need to get. For example, my college accepted AP Lang or AP Lit as a substitute for the writing gen-ed (but not both), so it would be advisable to spend the time in high school taking only one of those. My college usually required 4s on the AP exam for credit, but allowed a 3 if it was not related to your major. So for me, my 3 on AP chem satisfied my gen-ed science class because I was not a STEM major. Those 2 examples are only relevant to my college at the time I went to school, so like Simeon recommended it might be a good idea to look at what colleges you may be interested in to help guide your decision.
okay, thanks!
Myles