Strategies for Choosing Classes in High School

Deciding which classes to take in high school involves a balancing of high school graduation requirements, the student’s interests, and colleges’ expectations. Generally, colleges, especially selective ones, expect students to take 5 academic courses every year which typically include English, history, math, science, and a foreign language. Beyond these basics, there are many variations on class choice. Students should develop a relationship with their high school counselor or advisor as early as they can. They can be a valuable resource to help in choosing classes. Here is some general advice on how to optimize a student’s course selection through high school.

Freshman Year

Freshman Year:

Review the high school graduation requirements before choosing first year classes.

Does the school have an arts or physical education requirement? If a student is not particularly interested in arts or a similar graduation requirement, it is usually better to fulfill the requirement early in their high school career. The rigor of the course load will increase throughout high school, and it can be helpful to have some of the requirements completed before junior and senior year. 

When choosing classes freshman year, have a chart or spreadsheet and fill in the required courses for all four years. 

With the space that is left, have the student consider electives. Do they like computer science or statistics? Students should determine if there are any prerequisites that they need to take for the electives that interest them. 

Freshman year is an important time to think about foreign languages. 

Many schools require a certain number of years in the same foreign language. Taking the same foreign language for multiple years also looks better to colleges than taking different languages each year.

Take a challenging course load but be mindful of other factors. 

If the student is starting a new high school or if there are other factors, keep those in mind when choosing classes. The goal is for the student to get the best grades they can in courses that challenge them.

Sophomore Year:

Sophomore Year

When choosing classes for sophomore year, refer back to the spreadsheet the student-created and update it. 

Sophomore year is the time to decide if any changes are needed to the plan made at the beginning of freshman year.

For schools that offer Advanced Placement (AP) courses, sophomore year is often the first chance for a student to take them. 

Colleges look favorably on AP and honors classes. Sophomores should take the AP or honors courses in which they can be academically successful.

Take rigorous courses but also take into account the student’s other commitments. 

Are they 3 season athletes or do they have another demanding extracurricular activity? Aim for rigor but not overload for the student. It is not an ideal outcome if the classes are too demanding and the student ends up doing poorly in most or all of them. The goal is for the student to show a challenging academic schedule and achieve a strong GPA.

Make sure to take any prerequisites that they need for their junior year classes.

Even with electives, students who are thinking about selective colleges should try to pursue them to the highest level of their ability.

Junior Year

Junior Year:

Try to take some honors or AP classes. 

Junior year grades are of particular importance to colleges. If the school offers AP classes, they may give weight to the AP grades in calculating a student’s GPA. If the high school does not offer APs, try to take honors or advanced courses, if the student is planning to apply to selective colleges.

Try to take science courses that include labs.

When it comes to science, students should remember that courses with labs are considered more rigorous than courses that do not have labs.

Choose electives that allow the student to pursue specific interests. 

If the student is particularly interested in writing or science, they should try to take electives that allow them to develop additional knowledge in those subjects. 

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Senior Year:

Senior Year

Continue to take challenging courses. 

Colleges will be reviewing students’ current courses as part of the admissions process.

College applications take time.

Students should keep in mind that they will be completing college applications during the first semester which can increase the workload by the same amount as an additional course. If they are applying to selective colleges, students should take into account the time commitment of applications in choosing their senior year classes.

First quarter and semester grades may be important in the admissions process.

Whichever classes they choose, seniors need to apply themselves in the early part of the year. Colleges will see a first quarter or first semester grades.

Final grades can also be important.

Colleges may review the final grades if a student is waitlisted. Even if a student has been admitted to college, some institutions will want to see final grades. Students should not let their grades take a nosedive during the Spring.

When choosing high school courses, planning is key. Revisiting the plan when choosing classes for the following year is a good way to make sure the student stays on track and gets the most out of their high school curriculum.

If you have specific questions about high school courses, please reach out to karen@excelsiorcollegeconsulting.com karen@excelsioradmissionsconsulting.com or click here to schedule a free 30-minute consultation.www.excelsiorcollegeconsulting.com