By Jessica Park
Schedules. The slip of paper or digital chart that dictates whether you’ll spend time with your friends or not. Now that we’re in high school, we are finally allowed to have a semblance of control over what we learn. High school courses are, evidently, very different from elementary and middle school ones. Here, you could choose only the minimum number of classes with 6.5 credits, or, on the other side of the spectrum, take APs and double science with absolutely no free periods except measly A-day clinics. The planning, the rigor, and the coursework are almost completely up to you as the student. If you have all these choices, are there classes you shouldn’t take? Maybe you’re missing some important ones? Or maybe, just maybe, you have way too many courses? Well, this article exists to simplify the ‘logic’ of your schedule so that you can change it while you still can.
To start, you have to know the minimum course requirements for school. According to the 2024-2025 East Course Catalog (you should probably check that out), the minimum requirements for a Regents diploma are a minimum of 4 classes for English and social studies, 3 classes for math and science, 1 class for world languages, 1 health class, 4 PE classes, and, at least, 4 electives (including one art course). Now, for those who want to get a Regents w/ Advanced Designation diploma, there isn’t much change. You have to take 3 world language classes and at least 2 electives. For both diplomas, you need to pass your English Comprehensive Exam, a Regents math exam, a Regents global exam, a Regents science exam, and the 8th-grade world language exam. The Advanced Designation diploma requires you to take 2 more math exams, 1 more science exam (it has to be biology) in Regents, and a Comprehensive language exam. What I just said right now is the very simplified version, so if you want to speedrun school as fast as you can or win other possible credentials, go check out the handbook.
Now that the boring part’s over, we can go to the slightly more interesting part everyone probably came here for: courses. I’ll be frank with you–you should take classes that either challenge you or allow you to dive deep into something that you enjoy, at least, classes that are under your control to take. Some students enroll in classes because the difficulty stands out on their college applications, while others do it because they like the teacher. Some people fall into both categories. Of course, there’s a certain level to this. Colleges love seeing hard classes, so if you’re going into a competitive major, even if it doesn’t require science or math, take AP classes about these subjects. They’ll be more likely to accept your friend who has a 3.6 GPA taking AP Physics C or AP Chemistry than if you have a 4.0 GPA but are taking only business and personal law. That’s not to say take the course if you don’t think you can accel at it. If your AP exam grade falls below a 4 or you have a low score in classes, most colleges won’t care about it, and it’ll likely be more detrimental to your score than supporting it. These courses are also often prerequisites to competitions and clubs that you can take in high school, so keep this in mind. For example, if you want to run for the student council of New York, you have to take at least one business class, or if you want to participate in the chemistry olympiad, you have to have taken or are taking AP Chemistry.
Some may disagree with me here, but I believe free periods should be part of your schedule unless you are certain you can still handle the school day and workload without them. Without free periods, you won’t have a break from studying, and you may not have enough energy. Hypothetically, you could ask for permission to eat during class, but it’ll make it difficult to concentrate, especially if you’re taking a test or exam. If the reason you don’t have a free period is because you’re taking redundant classes, drop them. For example, some kids who attend the Gifted Math Program unnecessarily take math classes during the school day. If you are certaion you need the class to succeed but understand that you won’t have a free period, consider taking it during the summer instead. There’s so much you could do during a free period, like homework or practice. No one is going to chase you down with a machete if you don’t take a free period, otherwise, I’d be a hypocrite, but you have to keep this in mind at least and see if there are any other available options before making a schedule that has no frees in it.
In the end, what you want to do with your schedule is completely up to you. These are just recommendations that I believe make sense from what classes I took during my freshman year. I don’t know who you are or what circumstances you’re in, and I can’t decide your schedule for you. The deadline for adding a class to your schedule is on September 13th, and you can drop a class until January 1st. Until then, good luck!
