High school students are busy. With clubs, extracurriculars, sports, jobs, and more, they have a lot on their plate. Their biggest time commitment though are the several classes that they take throughout their four years in high school. Selecting and succeeding in those classes is an important aspect of the college admissions process, since a student’s transcript and their GPA are among the many different factors college admissions officers consider.
It can be tricky to plan out high school courses. School districts, states, and certain programs all have different requirements for building a class schedule. Staying within those parameters while also taking advantage of different opportunities to build a transcript that reflects academic tenacity and resilience may not be straightforward at first. But taking the time to evaluate the courses available, required, and interesting is an important step.
Starting earlier, rather than later, is always helpful in planning for college applications; and the same rings true for planning your transcript. Having a good idea of what classes you would like to take and which ones you should take before starting high school is a very helpful roadmap.
However, no matter if you are a rising freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior, this exercise is still extremely valuable. Additionally, there can be complications that are hard to account for such as elective classes conflicting with required courses, preferences given to more senior students, and course requirements for certain classes. Planning ahead gives you the ability to adapt to these unexpected changes.
Navigating all these factors and more with your Dewey Smart Admissions Counselor is a great way to build a solid class schedule. Below are a few more perspectives to consider when building your high school schedule.
Prioritize Fulfilling Required Courses
The first and most important step is taking the courses you need to graduate. Most schools and school districts require students to take a certain number of math, English, social studies, and other core classes in order to graduate and obtain a high school diploma.
Since scheduling can sometimes result in conflicts between classes, it is better to prioritize completing as many of your required classes as possible, earlier on in high school. This helps avoid unlucky situations in which you may face an unexpected conflict your senior year preventing you from graduating on time.
Knowing the requirements can also help you plan ahead to create a balanced schedule. For example, many students may notice that their school offers Health or Language credits over the summer. If these are required courses, completing them over the summer may create space during the school year to take a more balanced course load or to take more classes that interest you. Additionally, you can prioritize taking hard courses with a few easier ones in order to ensure that you aren’t overwhelmed.
Figure Out Which Elective Match Your Goals
After prioritizing the classes you need to graduate, you can turn your attention to other optional classes. Most classes that are offered can be classified as either core classes or electives. Core classes are more standard, broad courses like math, english, and certain science classes like biology, chemistry, and physics.
However, electives are more specific courses that students can pursue if they are interested. Different schools offer different electives. Your school may have art electives like ceramics or a biology elective like anatomy and physiology. The possibilities are endless.
Looking at your school’s course catalog (a document where all the classes they offer are listed), it is helpful in identifying possible courses that may interest you. Completing these classes gives you more opportunities to learn more about the areas of study that you find fascinating, and it also allows you to reflect your interest and passions through your transcripts. Taking courses related to your future goals reinforces your dedication to pursuing those interests.
Take Advanced Courses, When Possible
While identifying classes to take, it is important to try to take advanced courses when possible. These communicate to colleges that you are ready for the rigor of university and that you have developed several skills to succeed in a challenging environment.
There are multiple types of advanced courses you can take. These include honors courses, advanced placement (AP) courses, and dual-enrollment courses at a local college. These courses are more accelerated, delve deeper into content, and have different grading scales.
Honors and AP courses are considered “weighted” courses and they factor into a student’s “weighted GPA” differently than a regular class. Grading scales can differ between schools but a common standard is a 4.0 scale for unweighted classes and a 5.0 scale for weighted classes. A higher weighted GPA tells universities that a student took on a more challenging course load and performed well.
Dual enrollment classes are college-level courses that can count towards both college credit and high school credit. Along with AP courses, they can be helpful in college.
One note to keep in mind is that you don’t have to take every single advanced class offered to you. It is not expected and may actually be harmful to your GPA if you overwhelm yourself. Finding a balance and taking advanced courses in the fields you are interested in pursuing is a more sustainable approach.
