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AP chemistry
15/f
ok so im a freshman and we just started picking classes for next year in school. for science this year i took honors biology and im trying to decide if i want to take ap chem or just honors chem next year. im a really good student and i know taking ap would look great for college but on the other hand i dont want to take a class that i cant pass and make my sophomore year way too stressful. i do plan on going to a top college, possibly ivy league. im also one of those people whos not happy unless they have an A in a class haha. so any advice from sophomores currently taking ap chem would be great, or anyone taking it/taken it in the past for that matter!
thank you in advance =)
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Want to answer more questions in the Work & School category?
Maybe give some free advice about: School?
I don't know what school you go to (course offerings matter) or what you want to do (major + career) in college + life, but here is what I think:
Are you good at science and math? Or are you hardworking and dedicated? If so, go for it. BTW, you can take Chem HNS and AP Chem at the same time. Some sophomores I know do Chem HNS and AP Bio at the same time even. Sophomore year is not as heavily weighted as junior year so be careful of what you want to do. Save the "easier" AP class for junior year just in case. What I mean is, ask upperclassman how the class is and how the teacher is before making any decisions because it makes a huge difference. If you plan on majoring in something related to science you should take AP Chem sometime. You should take the 3 core sciences: biology, chemistry, and physics over your 4 years in high school. If you are not, then you should just take Chem HNS. Then junior year take Physics HNS. And senior year take any advanced science once you get used to it. You don't really want to just jump into AP Chem if you haven't taken Chem HNS yet. Take it and seee if you like it first. You can take AP Bio soph year because you'll remember bio from freshman year fresh in your head. It all comes down to what is easier for you. Biology is more about memorization and chemistry is more math-based. Forgive me as I am rambling and my paragraph is a little unorganized. I think it is a good idea to get started early so you have a little taste junior year because for me it was a shock all at once because I was taking more than one and didn't know how hard it was or different from just honors. Also, I didn't know that we were allowed to take AP classes earlier than junior/senior year! :( If I had known, I would have. On the other hand, if you pick up all the hard classes early on you may have no other classes left to do for senior year, depending because you need some hard classes left for that last year so colleges know you're not slacking off. If you don't know what you want to do in life, think about it some more and choose classes accordingly or you may regret it. AP classes cover a lot of material in a very short time and just move on quickly. There may be more types of science courses your school offers, but here is an example of what you can do:
Freshman:
Bio HNS
Sophomore:
Chem HNS
Junior:
AP Chem
and/or
Physics HNS
Senior:
AP Bio
and/or AP Physics (if your school offers that)
Or double up on classes if possible.
Put one in my inbox if you have any more questions! Good luck! :)
Don't forget you can take credit courses over the summer! (to skip levels or w/e)
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I took advanced chemistry as a sophomore. Which I know is different from AP chemistry, but they don't have AP chemistry at my school for whatever reason. Maybe they do, I just was never into it. Mmmmmm, chemistry was hard as shit for me. I hate math though, and chemistry is A LOT of math. Really though, do you like math? 3 out of 4 of my years in high school I will be taking Biology so I can receive my International Baccalaureate Diploma. I like biology a lot better though. (It was either that or physics, also know as MORE MATH.) So really, it just boils down to how good you are in math, you can do formulas, and you know your way around a periodic table. Another option is to start out with a standard level or advanced level of chemistry, and then perhaps your junior year take AP chemistry if you decide you like it enough. (If your school allows that.)
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the person below me is right, chemistry isn't for everyone- i completely sucked at biology (i'm a good student too) yet i rock at chemistry. so it depends, you may love it. anyway, if you plan on going into ivy league possibly, definitely try to take ap chem. you can always drop it and go into honors instead if it's too hard, but if you can keep a good grade in the ap class then colleges will love that- they also look at the difficulty of class you're trying, and how much you try in it. it is much more impressive when someone makes a B in a hard class than when they make an A in a regular class (when they could have taken the hard class). if you think that you can handle it, then by all means try it! but it would be easier for you to get out of it than to get into it if you ever change your mind :)
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Ok, here's the deal. I was pretty good in school, when I actually put in the effort. I took chemistry my junior year, and ended up getting a D, and I studied like there was no tomorrow. I even had my boyfriend at the time help me (he was a college student) and I still ended with a bad grade. Chemistry isn't for everyone. If you think that you are going to do good on it, then take it. Yes, ap looks good on transcripts, however if you can't pass the class, it wouldn't do any good either way. I will say if you decide to go ahead with either of the classes, and you get so far down on the grade and can't recover, switch classes. Good Luck!!
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Well, theres a lot of things to consider..
If you took it sophmore year, it would be okay to not get an A, colleges look at the fact that you stuggled in the class and thats what they want to see..
Also junior year is really stressful, with SAT, ACT etc.
I would say that if all your classes are not super high, then take it. Because you have the time to study and won't have to worry about other thing, when you would be a junior.
Also ask your teacher and as her what she thinks, she will be able to help you out.
If you are going to take it , then i would suggest, studing over the summer! that way you would be ahead.
also, can you take AP Bio? i heard its not as hard as AP chem and since you have taken Bio, you know alot of the things, they will just go in depth.
well, good luck with what ever you choose..
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