Reply to Need Help on Course Selections for Rising Junior Interested in Applying to Engineering/Computer Science Programs!

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I have a child who is interested in applying to engineering and computer science programs.  He is struggling with his course selections for his junior and senior year.  His is currently planning to take a balanced schedule with all five core classes all four years (i.e., history, English, FL, math, science, and social studies) with any remaining elective classes in the computer science/stem area.  All classes, including electives, are AP/IB level classes.

He has a number of very bright friends who are interested in computer science/engineering/pre-med who are NOT taking this approach and are instead replacing certain core humanities classes with additional stem classes.  For example, stopping foreign language after sophomore year, taking a regular US history class over the summer (instead of taking APUSH, etc.) and replacing those slots with additional rigorous math/science courses.  He is now questioning whether he will be competitive for engineering/computer science programs because others will have taken more STEM classes.  Thoughts?  He does not like foreign language at all and would happily drop those his junior and senior year to make room for additional STEM classes if it would not hurt him in college admissions, and in fact, could make him more desirable for computer science programs.[/quote]

All depends on the tier of colleges your so will be applying to. Top schools, it's a crapshoot regardless of what you do. Once you get below T30ish, it gets more reasonable. Here's what I'd recommend:
- Language - Keep it through Junior year (or level 4). Don't bother with AP.
- Math - Ending with Calc BC is fine.
- Focus on rigor without compromising breadth
- Focus on scoring as high as possible on the SAT
- Same goes for PSAT; Try to qualify as NMSF. While this won't matter for T30, it's a big deal for the second tier schools.
- Ask DC to start a programming project on their own. Build a product; a website or an App that can be used by the public. For example, if he plays a sport, maybe a site that aggregates information about that sport, scores over the years, etc. Make it fun and interesting. Maybe use ChatGPT to build apps. Or write articles on a regular basis on creative ways to use ChatGPT. This EC would be far more valuable than taking computer classes in HS.[/quote]

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