Taking a free period senior year …how will colleges view this.

[Anonymous]

DC is fairly high stat kid- took two Aps as sophomore(plus 3 honors classes);5 aps as a junior (plus two honor classes); and is now picking schedule for Senior year. Currently is planning to take AP Chem, AP Physics C, AP Gov, DE multi variable calculus and linear algebra, H English, and will be a TA in Calculus. DC would like to take the last class as a free period as there aren’t many other classes that DC is interested in and DC would like a little down time senior year. DC also is involved in a year round sport that takes up 20 hours a week and works a part time job 12-16 hours a week. DC would like to major in engineering and is applying to some top 20 schools, but also top 50 schools.

I am concerned that it will hurt DC to take a free period with college applications. Can anyone tell me their experience with a child taking a free period senior year and if it hurt their acceptances in college. Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Two of my kids got in to top 10 schools with similar profile as yours, and took a free period their senior year. I don't think it will hurt DC to do this.

[Anonymous]

None of us can predict the outcome for your kid, but I would let your kid drive this. That schedule seems very rigorous and 1st semester of senior has a lot of additional demands on a kid’s time.

[Anonymous]

My senior has a free period and is in ED to a great school. Very high stats kid. They are under so much pressure - I'm a fan of the free period.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My senior has a free period and is in ED to a great school. Very high stats kid. They are under so much pressure - I'm a fan of the free period.

You also may need that free period in order to do the DE classes. Sometimes the college only offers classes during the school day, so can get physically impossible if you don't have a free period to work with. That is an easy way to explain the free period if it came to that.

[Anonymous]

They wont even notice.

[Anonymous]

My current senior sounds a lot like your junior and has a free period. I was a little hesitant, because he had some ambitious-to-unrealistic college goals, but I mentioned that the free period might hurt his admissions chances at some schools and then let him decide.

He got deferred at his ED choice, but I am glad that he took the free period if he felt it was right for him. Schools in this area are high pressure, and spending his second and third years of high school dealing with remote classes was hard on him. I'm here to encourage him to think about all the aspects of a decision, then make that decision.

[Anonymous]

My son has at least one free period every day. He’s gotten into all of the schools he applied to.

[Anonymous]

My kid’s school requires a free period. They recommend 2.

[Anonymous]

It is very common at my kids' HS for seniors, even the top tier of the class, to take a free period. DD's best friend actually took a free period in both 11th and 12th and was accepted to W&M ED.

DD is not but only because she wanted to fit in an art class she hadn't had time to take.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for this interesting information!

[Anonymous]

As long as they are taking a rigorous schedule (like your DC) then I think it's fine.

[Anonymous]

My kid only had five classes his senior year and did fine

[Anonymous]

Strange! when I posted same question a while back, most responses are negative. For us it is just one free period in one semester due to Health taken in the summer, so DC has not even taken less classes..

[Anonymous]

Doesn't he already have a free period? TA for Calculus? That just sounds like a freebie office assistant period. I would not take another free period on top of that one. Just recommend an easy elective.