No clue how to even approach college these days

Answered

Hello! I will put it very simply, if you are not looking to t25 or Ivy league school, what your son is doing is very good, 91 average means that your son should have around 3.7-4.0 GPA which is good for most school.

But if you are aiming for t25 or ivies, your son should also take some AP classes, even if you are not planning to go to t25 or ivies, it will be good if your son takes about 1-5 AP classes. I am a freshman right now in HS and I am taking AP Human Geography which is on the easier side of AP. AP classes are considered harder than normal classes so trying to start out with easier APs could get you the idea if you are ready for AP or not. AP CSP, AP CSA, AP Human, AP Psy, and APES are considered pretty easy for AP class and it will also help boost your son's gpa since APs generally gives GPA boost of 1.0 (ask your counselor for facts and recommendation).

Other factors are important too, ECs, GPA, Class rank, etc.

I wish you the best of luck! You can ask more questions too if you need them!

Sincerely

from, @_KC_

Hi there!

His athletic participation is great, and colleges definitely love to see it! If he is at/approaching a higher level within his sports, he may be eligible for scholarships and recruiting, which is great! Even if he's not competing at a level elite enough to qualify him for those opportunities, it still displays that he's a well-rounded and balanced person, which colleges specifically look for. Exercise also extremely beneficial to your physical and mental health, not just your college application, so I'd definitely try to keep it up!

As far as PLTW and Honors classes go, the difference in rigor between academic and honors/PLTW courses is pretty small. The curriculum and workloads are nearly indistinguishable, but honors/PLTW classes have the benefit of boosting your GPA and can better prepare you for AP/DE classes & college! If your son is fine in his current honors classes, continue to take them. PLTW is also considered the same as honors classes - so, same thing! I'd recommend taking as many of these as possible!

If your son is ever feeling overwhelmed and cannot handle his workload - it isn't worth it! I'd say the school's recommended schedule sounds manageable, but if you and your son disagree, don't take that route! It doesn't matter much, especially if you're not aiming for Top-25 schools. It's never ever worth sacrificing your mental health to impress colleges! As someone who's done that, it's detrimental in so many aspects of your life! As you said, enjoy high school! Where you do/don't go to college doesn't determine your success in life, so always prioritize you and your wellbeing! Best of luck! I hope this helps!