How to Choose Your School Classes Smartly? A Guide to Choosing Classes
September 24 2024 | Tushig Buyanbileg
Choosing classes in high school is arguably one of the hardest decisions you will have to make. There are so many to choose from, all so diverse and varying depending on your school district. My school, Niles North, offers 27 AP classes, which are college-level classes that give high school students college credit if they pass an exam for the class in May. I always struggled with choosing classes, but here are some tips.
1. Choose challenging and rigorous courses. Choosing hard classes may seem intimidating, but in my experience, I was always able to keep up with the curriculum, and I passed every class. Ultimately, it comes down to you and how hard you’re willing to work. If you’re a hard-working student, you should take harder classes, like honors, and APs. If you think you don’t fit that archetype, you should avoid the most difficult classes, because even though they give you college credit and a 1 point GPA boost, they might end up doing more harm than good if you fall behind and your grade drops.
2. Choose classes you like. Most of us want to go to college after high school, but how we do in high school matters. Arguably the most important thing for colleges is passion; are you a passionate person? Do you really like your major and do you really want to attend college, or are you just going because of your friends, family, and the social expectation that we have on kids nowadays? If you show passion, colleges will really like that, and would be much more likely to accept you. A big way to show passion is to take classes that relate to your major. If you talk about majoring in chemistry but taking classes like cooking and auto mechanics, colleges are going to be confused. You should try to take as many classes that relate to your major as you can. If your school doesn’t offer many of those classes, try taking courses or summer camps outside what your school offers you.
3. Talk to your counselors, teachers, and your parents. The people that know you the best are the people that are present the most in your life. Your counselor should be your number one advisor for your classes. Your teachers are a close second. Ask them about your performance in class, your academic abilities, etc. If they don’t think you would be a good fit for more difficult classes, then you should probably listen to them. Of course, you should ask the teachers of the classes you actually want to get into. If you ask a teacher whose class you slack off in a lot, they’re probably going to say no. This is another reason why you should try in school.
4. Try new things. While this might seem contradictory to the second tip, there’s a fine line between choosing classes to try something new and choosing classes for an easy A. While it’s important to choose classes that relate to your major/subject of passion, it’s also important to branch out. Try some new things, some topics you’ve never heard about, or subjects you have little experience or knowledge about. Who knows, you might find your new major.
5. Don’t burn yourself out. If you choose too many difficult classes, you might burn yourself out, which is essentially working yourself to the max, with no energy left. You might feel tired, unfulfilled, and even depressed at times. That is why you should never overload yourself. We’re all human, and we all have our limits. It’s important to never go past that limit or else you might do damage to your mental wellbeing.
1. Choose challenging and rigorous courses. Choosing hard classes may seem intimidating, but in my experience, I was always able to keep up with the curriculum, and I passed every class. Ultimately, it comes down to you and how hard you’re willing to work. If you’re a hard-working student, you should take harder classes, like honors, and APs. If you think you don’t fit that archetype, you should avoid the most difficult classes, because even though they give you college credit and a 1 point GPA boost, they might end up doing more harm than good if you fall behind and your grade drops.
2. Choose classes you like. Most of us want to go to college after high school, but how we do in high school matters. Arguably the most important thing for colleges is passion; are you a passionate person? Do you really like your major and do you really want to attend college, or are you just going because of your friends, family, and the social expectation that we have on kids nowadays? If you show passion, colleges will really like that, and would be much more likely to accept you. A big way to show passion is to take classes that relate to your major. If you talk about majoring in chemistry but taking classes like cooking and auto mechanics, colleges are going to be confused. You should try to take as many classes that relate to your major as you can. If your school doesn’t offer many of those classes, try taking courses or summer camps outside what your school offers you.
3. Talk to your counselors, teachers, and your parents. The people that know you the best are the people that are present the most in your life. Your counselor should be your number one advisor for your classes. Your teachers are a close second. Ask them about your performance in class, your academic abilities, etc. If they don’t think you would be a good fit for more difficult classes, then you should probably listen to them. Of course, you should ask the teachers of the classes you actually want to get into. If you ask a teacher whose class you slack off in a lot, they’re probably going to say no. This is another reason why you should try in school.
4. Try new things. While this might seem contradictory to the second tip, there’s a fine line between choosing classes to try something new and choosing classes for an easy A. While it’s important to choose classes that relate to your major/subject of passion, it’s also important to branch out. Try some new things, some topics you’ve never heard about, or subjects you have little experience or knowledge about. Who knows, you might find your new major.
5. Don’t burn yourself out. If you choose too many difficult classes, you might burn yourself out, which is essentially working yourself to the max, with no energy left. You might feel tired, unfulfilled, and even depressed at times. That is why you should never overload yourself. We’re all human, and we all have our limits. It’s important to never go past that limit or else you might do damage to your mental wellbeing.