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@YashModi
0 answers, 4 votes
 • 10 months ago •
Admissions Advice

I can't understand what is course work.
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Colleges require some amount of course work, but I am having difficulty figuring out what things can be included in coursework and what things can not be included. Can someone please clarify?

coursework
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@faerie06
1 answer, 1 vote
 • 10 months ago

generally, coursework is like curriculum, a.k.a. the classes you're taking. core classes (gen ed) and electives are included. look specifically at the websites of the colleges you're looking at for their requirements. the biggest are usually four years of English, 4 of Social Studies, 3-4 of Math and Science, and 2 years of a concurrent foreign language for liberal arts colleges. more competitive or STEM based colleges may require things like 4 years of Science with Biology, Chemistry, and Physics, and 4 years of Math with Calculus. some require 3-4 years of a concurrent foreign language. it really depends on the school.

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[🎤 AUTHOR]@YashModi10 months ago

And all this should be done in high school? I'm asking because I did study Social for like 2 years...in 9th and 10th grade as a part of normal curriculum. And other than that I studied social for 3 years, in 6th, 7th, 8th grade.

@CameronBameron10 months ago

none of your coursework like social you did in 6th, 7th, 8th count. Some schools like Stanford, actually throw out your 9th grade coursework and only focus on 10th-12th. And state schools like UCLA have their own rubric to determine what courses count. In general your middle school work is not going to replace your high school coursework.

[🎤 AUTHOR]@YashModi10 months ago

Thanks!

@faerie069 months ago [edited]

(sorry for the late response) all of these have to be high school credits and show up on your official transcript. if you really are unsure, ask for a transcript copy and go from there. i took algebra 1 in eighth grade and that counts as a year of math for me since algebra 1 is a high school credit where i live. besides things like that, though, your classes should only be from high school.

1
@CameronBameron
2,266 answers, 8,567 votes
 • 10 months ago[edited]

Most top colleges expect you to have completed the following during 9th through 12th grade. Even if you have taken math, history, language, and sciences during middle school which is 6th to 8th, you are expected to have these core curriculum classes completed during your high school experience.

-4 years of English language, 4 years of math including calculus, 3-4 years of sciences including 1-2 labs, 3 years of history including American History and European history, and 3+ years of foreign language courses in the same language.

Elective courses like Art, Music, Health, PE, and study hall don't mean as much as core curriculum courses.

High-achieving high school students often have up to 5-6 years of math, 4-6 years of a language, and up to 1-3 more English, Science, and History classes than the normal rigor.

Don't follow my example but I had 5 years math, 5 years science, 5 years foreign language, 11 English classes, and 9 history/SS classes but I did an extra year of high school called a post-graduate degree.

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[🎤 AUTHOR]@YashModi10 months ago

So if that is all included in my normal curriculum, is it considered? Or do I need to take extra classes only?

@CameronBameron10 months ago

What I wrote are minimum standards for top schools, not the average standards. Accepted applicants typically have significant course rigor that extends beyond what is available in your high school's standard curricula.

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