College Admissions

High School Courses for College Readiness

Discover how high school courses affect GPA, college admission, and higher education readiness.

Can you guess the single most important part of your college application? It’s not your standardized test scores, your essay, your part-time job, or your extracurriculars. It’s your GPA.

Those three letters stand for grade point average, and they feature more importantly than any other part of your application. You’ve probably heard of weighted and unweighted GPAs. Weighted GPAs allot a greater point value for more difficult classes, whereas unweighted GPAs are based entirely on grades, regardless of course rigor.

Whether or not your school weights GPAs, higher education institutions will consider the rigor of the coursework you undertake each academic year. Admission teams will ask: Given the available options (emphasis on available), have you challenged yourself when presented with the opportunity?

If you’re looking either to earn college credit or to demonstrate readiness for college-level work, which classes should you be taking? Let’s review some of the options you may face.

Prerequisite courses

From day one of high school, the courses you select set the stage for what you can pursue next. If you aspire to take advanced courses, you’ll likely have to complete prerequisite classes first. For instance, if you aspire to take AP® Calculus, pre-calculus is typically a prerequisite. Should you miss a prerequisite, discuss alternative options with your counselor. You might be able to make up for a missed prerequisite by testing into a higher-level class, taking a summer course, or exploring community college offerings.

Honors courses

Many high school offer Honors courses that you can opt to take (or in some cases, be recommended to take). Honors courses offer increased academic challenges in a subject, but the curriculum isn’t necessarily standardized from one school to another. Honors classes can demonstrate your willingness to challenge yourself, and they may also serve as prerequisites for AP or IB courses.

Advanced Placement® (AP) courses

AP courses allow students to undertake college-level courses during high school. At the conclusion of an AP course, students often take AP exams, designed by the College Board, for which many higher education institutions offer credit. (Scoring high on AP exams can be a great way to save money on college by earning course credit in advance!) While the College Board doesn’t supply syllabi, the organization does specify detailed expectations about course content—and AP classes tend to be rigorous.

International Baccalaureate® (IB®) courses

The IB Diploma Programme is another challenging option available in many high schools. With a rigorous curriculum, IB coursework includes assessments to measure student mastery of advanced academic skills. Many higher education institutions will also offer college credit for students who successfully complete an IB diploma and earn a minimum designated score.

Dual-enrollment courses

Dual-enrollment classes are often offered in partnership with higher education institutions, such as community colleges. Like AP and IB courses, dual-enrollment courses afford students the opportunity to complete college-level work—and often earn college credit—during their high school careers. Dual-enrollment courses are unique in that they’re not offered at high schools; for this reason, they may not take place during regular school hours. Some high schools may give credit for dual-enrollment courses but not include those grades in the GPA; others may include them and weight them as equivalent to other advanced courses. Keep in mind that credit transfer policies to other colleges may vary, so while you’ll very likely get appreciative credit for challenging yourself, you may not (necessarily) get cost-saving college credits for the work you complete as part of dual-enrollment courses.

While advanced courses require more effort, they can help you gain admission to—and succeed in—college. Do you need to take every available challenging course? Of course not! Selecting the right courses for your strengths, availability, and aspirations will ensure you are set up for success during high school and beyond.

To learn more about college readiness and preparation, check out our webinar!

AP® and Advanced Placement® are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse, this company. International Baccalaureate, Baccalauréat International, Bachillerato Internacional and IB are registered trademarks owned by the International Baccalaureate Organization. The Princeton Review is not affiliated with Princeton University.