We are coming up on a new school year, and this is often the time students begin rethinking their scheduling choices. Seniors, especially, begin to think about wanting easier classes to enjoy their senior year. So this seems like a good time to talk about academic rigor—and that does not mean the condition of students being bored stiff in class!
Colleges are placing more emphasis on the types of courses you take in your 4 years of high school, and, with ever increasing numbers of applicants, they may use your course choices to determine if you are the candidate they want. If you are being compared with another candidate with the same GPA and test scores, the college might go with the one who took the harder courses. “Admissions officers want students who demonstrate a real love of intellectual pursuit, who are very well-prepared for the rigor of college coursework, and who seek challenge rather than avoid it” (collegebasics.com).
You might wonder how they would know if you took the hardest course available in a particular subject. Well, sorry, but I tell them. Most colleges ask me to send along a school profile (available in the Guidance office) along with the secondary school report for your application, and on that school profile is a list of the AP and honors courses we offer. This allows colleges to compare different students from schools that may offer different types of courses. We may offer fewer honors and AP classes than some larger schools, but if you take what you can, that will count in your favor. On the other hand, if you take mostly non-academic electives that are not academically challenging (and you all know which ones I’m talking about!) the admissions officer will see that you aren’t really serious about your education, which will not count in your favor. And the more competitive the school you are applying to is, the more these choices will count in the long run.
This, of course, does not mean you should sign up for a class you are pretty sure you will not do well in, but it does mean that you should go beyond the basic graduation requirements. Take a 4th year of science, a math in your senior year (now required by Maryland public colleges), a 3rd year of language, another history. Work hard to get the best grades you can in the courses, and don’t slack off midway through senior year.
This is a very interesting topic, and my question is would a college prefer a person with a lower gpa and more rigorous courses, or would they take a person with a higher gpa, but they're courses weren't as challenging?
ReplyDeleteTheir first choice, of course, would be someone who takes rigorous courses and does well! But I think, in general, they would lean towards the more rigorous course load; colleges are looking for students who challenge themselves educationally.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't recommend taking a course you are pretty sure to get a D in: for example, if you didn't do well in pre-calculus, taking AP Calculus would probably be a mistake. But if you are likely to do reasonably well, though perhaps not an A, then I think it would be a good choice to take the more rigorous course, especially if you are interested in a more selective school.
College admissions isn't necessarily something you can be sure of, though--a lot depends on the applicant pool, the current needs of the college (if the orchestra needs a bassoon player, a bassoon player might get in with lower scores or grades), and other more intangibles, such as essays that are impressive or relatives who have attended. With that in mind, it's good to take those classes that would be challenging, but still enjoyable for you. Challenge yourself, but don't get in over your head.