If I choose to drop Calculus my senior year and take Physiology, could this cause me to not get into the?

Question

College I want? Such as UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, or UC Irvine. Would taking a year of trig stats to get my 5 years of math be better than physio? Please help I made my senior year suck with a bunch of AP's, and i need a change!

Answer 1

High school level physiology, especially if it is not an AP, is not going to do anything for you. It will not be much use in your college bio courses and it will be zero help if you are thinking of going to med school or grad school in science. It is just not rigorous enough and it won't impress anyone.

Calculus is not an absolute requirement for all colleges. But for the more elite schools, it is required or expected. Most of the elite schools require you to take calculus or the equivalent as part of your BA or BS, so you would be at a disadvantage if you havent worked some calculus before you arrive. So, as far as making a good impression, I think physiology will look bad compared to someone else who took calculus.

But having said that, I think the bottom line is, it won't make too much difference. The schools you list are good schools but they are not elite enough for this kind of a change to make a difference, as long as you have a good, solid GPA and all the usual extras.

One thing to remember about APs is this - they are intended to mimic a ONE-SEMESTER college course. In high school you have 180 days to do the course and in college you do it in 42 days. So if AP courses scare you, maybe you should be going to Cal State instead of UC.  

Answer 2

get back into the calculus please.... youre gonna need it in the long run if youre doing medicine as your major

Answer 3

stay in calculus. most colleges require calculus to get in.