Regardless of grade level, all students can take a maximum of seven classes at the school. Inevitably, they often try to cram as many Advanced Placement classes as possible within these seven periods.
This year, with the addition of AP European History and changes in school policy, juniors now have the option of taking two AP history or science classes simultaneously. A handful of seniors have also been allowed to “double-English,” taking AP Language and AP Literature at the same time. As a result, more upperclassmen have been taking on these difficult subject loads.
Whereas last year’s junior class was not allowed to double on sciences, this year, a few juniors have been permitted to do so. Students had to submit an appeal to the guidance department outlining which sciences they wished to double up on and why. Because of limited availability, not all students received the classes they desired.
To sign up for a second AP science course, students sent in an appeal form, and it was determined whether the students were adequately prepared to take two science courses, provided there was space.
Aside from just lack of space, scheduling complications also made it challenging for counselors to accommodate the requests of students.
“Any time a student wants to add more higher level courses, it makes scheduling a lot more difficult,” guidance counselor Alinna Satake said. “With AP classes, we’re talking about classes with fewer periods.”
One student whose appeal was successful is junior Ivan France, who is currently taking both AP Environmental Science and AP Physics.
“I enjoy science, so two sciences is enjoyable and fun,” France said. “If you’re really interested in science and that’s what you want to do, then I think it can be beneficial.”
France warns against simply taking more AP classes in order to increase one’s GPA.
“People who just want as many AP [classes] as possible could trip up on it,” France said.
Unlike juniors who wanted to take two AP sciences, those who desired two AP history classes had no restrictions. However, counselors offered some words of advice.
“We certainly cautioned students about doing twice the reading load,” Satake said.
Junior Prachi Dholakia, who is taking both AP US History and AP European History, also stressed the importance of passion for a subject when doubling up APs.
“If you really like history, this is for you, [but] I would say don’t do [double] unless you are completely sure,” Dholakia said. “If you are a student who is not interested in the subject, you can’t do this. Make sure you are interested and have fun with it.”
However, according to Dholakia, sometimes one course supplements the other, making learning easier.
“It is a lot of work, but some of the information overlaps, so it is nice to see the information in-depth more,” Dholakia said. “We talked a bit about [Hernando] Cortez in APUSH, and we definitely talked a lot about Cortez and other explorers in Euro.”
Dholakia also enjoys the ability to see major global events from different country’s points of view.
“It is interesting to see how these different countries saw things so differently,” Dholakia said. “What was just for America was completely going against the government in Europe.”
The course load and homework can be daunting at times, but Dholakia has tips for anyone planning to double history next year.
“The biggest thing is to keep up with both classes, because if I work too much on APUSH, then I forget about AP Euro, and then my [grade in AP] Euro falters,” said Dholakia. “You have to keep up with everything.”