Course programming is coming up, and chances are, you’ve already listened to your counselors’ speech regarding it. With so many options and classes to choose from, there are bound to be some questions when deciding your schedule for next year. Here are some important things to consider during programming that could help you decided the classes that are best for you.

Don’t Overload Yourself: As AHS students, many of us tend to load our schedule with AP courses, without considering our extracurriculars and the amount of time we truly have. This can result in unnecessary stress along with undesirable grades. The golden ratio is to be challenged by the classes you are taking while also maintaining good grades. It can be detrimental to both your academic growth and college admission chances if you take courses that are too rigorous or ones that are too easy. Finding the right balance can be difficult sometimes, and that’s where counselors come in. If you have any questions regarding your schedule for next year, it is ideal to meet with them to select both challenging, yet, suitable courses for you. Mr. Andrew Poon, a school counselor, states, “When it comes to honors and AP courses if a student is overloading themselves we ask them to think twice about taking too many. It’s not beneficial to take multiple AP Courses if the overall GPA is going to be lowered because a student is stretched too thin.” He also says that “it’s better to keep the overall GPA up while using AP/honors courses to highlight strengths and interests.”

Meet Graduation Requirements: At AHS, there are graduation requirements that every student must meet in order to receive their diploma. Cal State and UC colleges also have additional requirements for students who wish to apply to these colleges, such as one year of Visual and Performing Arts. It is important to take these into account when planning your classes for next year to ensure that you will be able to graduate on time and be able to apply to the colleges you want.

Pursue your interests: Something that many students don’t realize is that it’s OK to take courses of personal interest that aren’t necessarily academics-related. However, it should be noted that the overall rigor of the schedule should still be maintained. Mr. Poon elaborates, “There is no “magic transcript” out there that will automatically get you into every college. You want to build a schedule that is true to yourself.” If you’re someone who doesn’t know what your interests are yet, that’s also totally fine. Instead of taking more classes in a specific field, you can always branch out and take classes of all different subjects to find one that you’re truly interested in.

Above are just a few things you should consider during programming, but these are important tips to create a schedule that you feel challenged by but also enjoy. Before turning in your final course selection sheet, it’s important to ask yourself a few questions. Do I have all my requirements? Will I be able to handle this? With programming for next year’s courses just around the corner, it’s important to consider the best thing for you in the future.