Do top colleges "punish" kids for taking fun electives?

[Anonymous]

Can an unhooked kid kid still get into a top college if they limit their APs to the core classes (including foreign language)? Do top schools expect to see applicants taking their electives in things like AP Stat, AP European History, etc, or can they actually take fun electives like drama, culinary, music tech?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can an unhooked kid kid still get into a top college if they limit their APs to the core classes (including foreign language)? Do top schools expect to see applicants taking their electives in things like AP Stat, AP European History, etc, or can they actually take fun electives like drama, culinary, music tech?

In an ideal world, answer is Yes. But in reality, the answer is most likely No.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can an unhooked kid kid still get into a top college if they limit their APs to the core classes (including foreign language)? Do top schools expect to see applicants taking their electives in things like AP Stat, AP European History, etc, or can they actually take fun electives like drama, culinary, music tech?

In an ideal world, answer is Yes. But in reality, the answer is most likely No.

What a terrible system where a kid gets punished for actually taking fun and interesting electives.

[Anonymous]

The obsession with 'top' colleges here is wearying.

But anyway, 1 or 2 'fun' courses are probably fine. Know that your kid's GPA will be lower than their peers if they fill their classes with too many non-AP or honors classes. Colleges care about how your kid compares to their peers first and foremost.

If 3-4 APs or post-APs total is the norm for strong students in your high school, then what you described is probably fine. If the norm in your high school is 7-8, then that's what you need to shoot for.

I think your kid's interests are cool. Maybe the thing to do is let them take what they want and then consider a wider range of colleges.

[Anonymous]

Top colleges do not punish kids for taking fun electives.

Once a kid has 5 classes that are the most rigorous their school offers, their electives don't matter.

Now if the student decides they "hate writing" and refuse to take AP Lang and any AP history, then top schools will not be impressed.

It would be fine to skip AP Lang and AP history and make up for it with AP Studio art and AP Music theory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can an unhooked kid kid still get into a top college if they limit their APs to the core classes (including foreign language)? Do top schools expect to see applicants taking their electives in things like AP Stat, AP European History, etc, or can they actually take fun electives like drama, culinary, music tech?

Why are those things school classes? They seem more like extracurriculars.

[Anonymous]

They're called electives and of course it's fine to take them. But as with everything, your kid will be compared with kids that didn't take any electives (or took an elective track - photography 1, 2 and 3, for example).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can an unhooked kid kid still get into a top college if they limit their APs to the core classes (including foreign language)? Do top schools expect to see applicants taking their electives in things like AP Stat, AP European History, etc, or can they actually take fun electives like drama, culinary, music tech?

In an ideal world, answer is Yes. But in reality, the answer is most likely No.

What a terrible system where a kid gets punished for actually taking fun and interesting electives.

Not being admitted to a Harvard or Williams or Swarthmore isn’t a punishment. And plenty of students find AP Stars, Euro, Art History to be fun.

[Anonymous]

No, my kid had all core APs but took art and shop (which he loved) and was ivy admitted. If it is inline with a passion I think it’s actually a benefit as opposed to the students who jam in every AP class in a GPA race. I think it helped him a lot as a differentiator.

Passions matter, and what makes a kid interesting and memorable matter. What they bring to campus.

Study what you love, in HS and in college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, my kid had all core APs but took art and shop (which he loved) and was ivy admitted. If it is inline with a passion I think it’s actually a benefit as opposed to the students who jam in every AP class in a GPA race. I think it helped him a lot as a differentiator.

Passions matter, and what makes a kid interesting and memorable matter. What they bring to campus.

Study what you love, in HS and in college.

This. My STEM kid that had the high stars and checked the boxes did the core. Plus AP theory (not an easy AP BTW, even if you have a decent music grounding), 4 years of band. Great results. But, he also marched. Played in an additional EC orchestra. Took private lessons. Played pit orchestra for drama. Etc.

Plus, he was a switcher among wind instruments and wrote about it for many of his supplemental essays. Played his primary instrument in curricular band and took lessons on it. But, also played a second closely related instrument for curricular band when they needed it, because it was a specialized only need one/ only need it sometimes instrument. Marched a different related instrument. And played a fourth in the school’s orchestra “because it’s cool”. He picked them up really quickly and loved the challenge and actually plays a 5th in college. The band director loved it because he could play the specialized instrument they needed once or the one they needed to round out the orchestra. He was jack of all trades. All district, not all state. Now plays in the college non-major orchestra. Fortunately, the school provides instruments for switches, so we are only responsible for the primary one.

I have seen music kids, drama kids, arts, and writing/ journalism kids who following this path and go all in on their do area really well, even if it doesn’t relate to their intended major.. The kid who takes a year of art, a year of culinary management, a year of social justice and a year of tech? Much less so. I love the fine arts path for kids who love fine arts because it is a big pause in their day. Stress relief, more relaxed, different part of the brain and often a cohort of similar kids to themselves . But, this isn’t going to work for a kid who doesn’t love their track, because you are adding a huge outside of class commitment.

BTW— I’m a Huge believer in AP Stats for Math kids, in addition to calc.. It may be an “easier” AP, but it’s Math they need a grounding in. In fact, most humanities kids probably need stats more than Calc. Not sure colleges see it that way, unfortunately. But, inmany fields, it’s important to be able to interpret data. Than— whatever you do with Calc as a politics major.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can an unhooked kid kid still get into a top college if they limit their APs to the core classes (including foreign language)? Do top schools expect to see applicants taking their electives in things like AP Stat, AP European History, etc, or can they actually take fun electives like drama, culinary, music tech?

In an ideal world, answer is Yes. But in reality, the answer is most likely No.

What a terrible system where a kid gets punished for actually taking fun and interesting electives.

Not being admitted to a Harvard or Williams or Swarthmore isn’t a punishment. And plenty of students find AP Stars, Euro, Art History to be fun.

+1. If a kid doesn’t like the grind of ‘most rigor’ then Swarthmore is probably a poor fit anyway. This is an issue for the tiny sliver of the most selective colleges. There are many, many more colleges that won’t be splitting those hairs.

[Anonymous]

May I suggest that you find a school that is a good (natural) fit for the child you have. Instead of twisting your kid like a pretzel to fit them into the school you want.

[Anonymous]

My DD has 4 years of band. She has progressed to the highest band. She will graduate with 9 AP's: AP World, AP Lang, AP Physics A, APES, CALC AB, CALC BC, AP Gov, AP Music Theory, AP Latin and AP Bio.

She is not being punished for the 4 years of band. That shows commitment to something. But, the B's in Math are going to keep her out of the top colleges. She is ok with that.

[Anonymous]

I honestly never had a chance to take any fun electives. I took band, but it was the advanced one.

[Anonymous]

Of course there is a diff between taking an extracurricular track - band, orchestra, multiple dramas where offered or augmented by extracurriculars.

But the scenario OP describes wasn’t that. It was posed as a semester/year of culinary, drama, music tech — a smorgasbord of single classes. Maybe that’s not what she meant. But scattershot electives and a lower umber if advanced classes won’t help you and could put you at a disadvantage barring full-pay, recruitable athlete or legacy status.