Current Events > What kind of classes does a "senior in high school" have in U.S.A?

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People finish high school at 16/17 where I live so what kind of clases do people have in their "senior year" of high school? I wonder if I had some of those classes in college instead

I had a shitload of AP classes and then a couple of easy electives.

Compsognathus posted...

I had a shitload of AP classes and then a couple of easy electives.

What's an AP class(google gives contradictory results)? (My first language is French)

i took uhm

calculus, physics, economics, government, english, and then two electives and since i had classes from middle school that counted towards high school classes (math) I was able to have 2 off periods

I went to a competitive HS and took on tough classes but it was roughly:
Chemistry AP
US history
Economics
Literature
Calculus BC
Computer science AP
Spanish 3
All for 11th grade

I don't remember what I did in 12th grade....Spanish 4, government, forgot which math/science classes I took. I think biology AP, physics, and stats since there was no higher math class I could take after calc BC

My options were

Pre-Calculus / Calculus 1 (depending on how you were able to finish your math track)
Language class (Spanish / French / Mandarin)
History
Phys Ed / Health (depending on the marking period)
An advanced science class (Physics/Chemistry/Biology, your choice but the normal classes were during the first 3 years)
English Literature
Lunch

I also took electives like band (Symphonic Band and marching band), AP Statistics (got a 2/5 on the exam) and since other electives didn't fit in my schedule I was given a free study period in the library where we got to chill on the computers. Our classes were 42 minutes long, 4 minutes between each class and 9 classes per day. I heard that a few years after I graduted, they turned the gymnasium into a lunch room where you eat (ewww all that dust) and they turned the classes into a rotation schedule per day.

epik_fail1 posted...

What's an AP class(google gives contradictory results)? (My first language is French)

AP = Advanced Placement, basically an honors level class where you can earn college credit if you pass the large test at the end of the year.

Depends on the area the school is in.
My old school? I have zero doubts that a senior at my school in Michigan could pass grade 10 in the province I moved to. Which is horribly sad.

Senior year is a slacker year because you applied to college already iirc.

I remember having Calculus 2/3, and then like an internship type of class. Rest was throw away.

I believe I took

AP Government
AP Psychology
AP English
AP Calculus AB
Physics
Band

The optimal strategy would be to take classes according to your post-graduate plans. AP classes towards college credit, classes in line with your career goals, and electives in line with your career or personal interests.

I only had AP US History, since my high school was shit and only offered a total of 2 AP classes.

This was more than 15 years ago, but I remember taking US History, World History, Geometry (I wanted to take digital photo, but my parents wanted me to take a 4th year of math when it was unnecessary), American Government, Study Hall (which meant no homework), and a Mexican literature class (was able to equal out for English).

Calculus 1, which was stupid because the credit didn't transfer to college so I had to take it again in college.
US History
English/Literature
P.E.
Chemistry
Electronics, one of my favorite and most memorable classes. The teacher was a cool old guy who taught us how to create circuits and solder shit.
Hospitality, another one of my favorite and most memorable classes because it was mostly cooking.

I am a bit confused. Aside from Calculus(which is college only) and US world history(since I don't like in the US) I was able to take most of those as options when I was 15/16. I wonder if I had to pressure put on me too young

epik_fail1 posted...

I am a bit confused. Aside from Calculus(which is college only) and US world history(since I don't like in the US) I was able to take most of those as options when I was 15/16. I wonder if I had to pressure put on me too young

If it isn't clear - the system is very, very location-dependent. Different states have very different standards. There's also often a lot of choice in how you arrange your classes in American high school. Many classes that some students take senior year might also have been available to take junior or sophomore year. And AP classes are quirky because they're effectively college-level material so a student could even be in an AP class for a subject that they had already taken earlier but at highscool-level expectations. AP classes could be available even earlier than senior year but more likely senior year is where more students would be ready to take them.

Generally I'd say you can guess a senior-year student would have a schedule including:

• A foreign language, likely at an intermediate level by this point because it's likely the student had studied the language for at least one or more years earlier (maybe even all 4 years of highschool)
• A math course - but the specific math course is heavily dependent on the students' math ability to this point. Generally Calculus or Statistics at best.
• Very high chance of still taking an English course, which usually encompass both literature and essay-writing

And then the rest I think can kind of be all over the place and probably depends on the student.

In our area, most of our seniors are fully dual enrolled with the local college. So they are basically taking full time college classes their senior year of high school and finish high school with their diploma and Associate's degree at the same time. All for free, too.

I wasnt an advanced kid but I was going to university anyways

I took college algebra/trigonometry
English
Anatomy and Physiology
Government/ Economics
4th year Spanish
and advanced web page design (was individualized instruction with the teacher + working on the school website)

World History AP
English IV AP
Calculus 1 and 2 AP (2 hours of Calc 1 the first half of the year, 2 hours of Calc 2 the second half)
Chemistry 2 AP
Physics AP

And then the last hour was just being an office aid

I had enough credits to pass so I only need to talk physics, history, and English ap classes

I took like 3 electives and calculus ap for fun