January 2019 WHS School Counseling Team Follow us on Twitter: @WHSCollegeReady
Timeline for Scheduling January 17: Choose your classes and register in Power School by midnight January 22-31: Counselors will meet with you individually to go over course requests Late April: Schedules are distributed May: Schedule changes may be made with a Schedule Change Form signed by a parent May 20 Schedule Change Deadline. After this date, changes made per the WHS Schedule Change Policy
Key Things to Remember as You Build Your Schedule Select 15 credits plus 2 alternate credits All students must take English, Math, and Science in 10 th grade Enroll in either World History, Geography and History of the World or AP World History if you have not already taken it PE II and an Advanced Health or Elective PE class are required in 10 th grade While not required for all diploma tracks, many colleges require at least two years of the same World Language for admission
Earning Credits at WHS Each class is one credit 5 credits a trimester 15 credits per year 60 credits possible in the 4 years of high school
Diploma Tracks at Westfield High School All student will graduate with one or more of these State of Indiana Diplomas Core 40 WHS students may graduate with the AP Capstone diploma, in addition to an Indiana Diploma AP Capstone Diploma Core 40 with Technical Honors Core 40 with Academic Honors
Core 40 Diploma Requirements 42 Credits Required English 8 Credits Sign up for English 10: On-level, Honors or 3-Tri Math 6 Credits in grades 9-12 Sign up for the next level of math: On-level, Honors or 3-Tri Algebra I Geometry Algebra II AP Stats if Alg II taken in 9 th Grade Science Biology 2 credits 6 Credits Physical Science 2 credits ICP, Chemistry or Physics Any 2 additional science credits
Core 40 Diploma Requirements Social Studies 6 Credits 2 Credits of a World History enroll in the following if you are not taking it in 9 th grade World History and Civilization I, II or III Geography & History of the World I and II Honors Geo & History of the World/AP Human Geography AP World History Physical Education PE I and Health in 9 th Grade 4 Credits PE II in 10 th Grade Advanced Health OR Elective PE
Academic Honors Diploma 47 Total Credits Required Complete all Core 40 Requirements, plus: 6-8 World Language Credits (3 years of one language or 2 years of two different languages) 2 Additional Credits in Math beyond Algebra II 2 Credits in Fine Arts (Art, Music, Theater, Interior Design or Yearbook) A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 at graduation No Grade Below a C- in any class required for either Core 40 or AHD Two college-level courses through AP or Dual Credit/ACP classes, or specific SAT/ACT scores prior to graduation
AP Capstone Diploma AP Seminar taken in 11 th grade with AP Language and Composition Team Project and Presentation Research-based Essay and Presentation Written Exam Counts as 2 AP courses/ap Exams AP Research taken in 12 th grade Counts as required English 12 credits Academic Thesis Public Presentation and Defense 3 Additional AP Courses taken anytime throughout High School and passing scores on all exams AP Exam 1 AP Exam 2 AP Exam 3
AP Classes College Board curriculum is widely recognized by colleges and universities Possible college credit, depending on the AP exam score. Public colleges in Indiana are required to award college credit for scores of 3, 4, or 5 Fees - $94 for the exam, $142 for Seminar & Research; will be included in book fees ACP and Other Dual Credit Classes Both high school and college credit may be awarded College curriculum a variety of colleges and universities offer dual credit Credit is based on the grade earned in the class and may be transferrable to other universities Fees vary depending on the program, but are greatly reduced AP, ACP and Dual Credit Webinar online at www.whscounselingcenter.com/course-book/
Technical Honors Diploma 47 Total Credits Required Complete all Core 40 Requirements, plus: Earn 6 HS credits in a CTE college and career prep pathway Earn 6 college credits from dual credit courses in CTE pathway OR Earn a stateapproved, industry based certification or credential A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 at graduation No Grade Below a C- in any class required for either Core 40 or THD Two college-level courses through AP or Dual Credit/ACP classes, or specific SAT/ACT or Accuplacer scores
Ways to Earn the Technical Honors Diploma at WHS Project Lead the Way 4-Year Engineering Pathway 4-Year BioMedical Sciences Pathway
Ways to Earn the Technical Honors Diploma at WHS Business, Marketing and Computer Science Tourism and Hospitality Construction, Manufacturing & Technology Adv Tech Education Through Ivy Tech 6 or more high school credits in related course-work AND 6 dual college credits OR industry-based certification J. Everett Light Career Center
Summer School through Indiana Online Students may take up to 2 credits online over the summer $50 Technology Fee per Credit Students must register online for courses in April and May at www.indianaonline.org. Detailed information will be emailed home this spring. Counselors then approve course requests upon registration Possible courses include PE, Health & Wellness, Social Studies and elective credits Counselors typically don t approve English, Math, Science or World Language credits unless students are retaking for a higher grade
2019-2020 Course Book Course Book and Course Offerings List available online at www.whscounselingcenter.com
What to Look for in the Course Book Title BYOT, Pre-Reqs, Credits, etc. Description CHEMISTRY, ADVANCED PLACEMENT (L) (1-2-3) This is a BYOT class Prerequisite: Successful completion of Chemistry I (1-2) and successful completion of Algebra II (3-4) Recommendation: A in Honors Chemistry I (1-2) and B or better in Algebra II (3-4) A course for grades 11 and 12 Course is at least 25% laboratory A three credit course A Core 40 and AHD course The AP Chemistry course is designed to be the equivalent of the general chemistry course usually taken during the first college year. This course will follow the AP College Board curriculum for Chemistry, which reviews topics from Chemistry I in much greater depth and covers additional content not introduced in first year chemistry. Students who take an AP Chemistry course will develop advanced inquiry and reasoning skills, such as designing a plan for collecting data, analyzing data, applying mathematical routines, and connecting concepts in and across domains. Students in this class should plan on spending a minimum of 1 hour per night on class work. A comprehensive description of this course can be found on the College Board AP Central Course Description web page at: http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/courses/
New Classes for 2019-2020 Advanced Technical Theatre AP Spanish Literature & Culture CCR Bridge, Literacy Ready CCR Bridge, Math Ready Computer Science III Cybersecurity Computer Science III-Software Development CVS Pharmacy Tech Externship Developmental Reading EMS Film Literature Genres in Literature: Science Fiction & Adventure Industrial Technical Maintenance Information Technology Support Innovation by Design Intro to 3D Art Intro to Housing & Interior Design Jurassic Paleontology Medical Spanish I and II Peer Tutoring: English Learners Poetry
Calculating Your Grade Point Average (GPA) Course Level A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D F Regular 4.0 3.7 3.3 3.0 2.7 2.3 2.0 1.7 1.0 0.0 Honors 4.5 4.2 3.8 3.5 3.2 2.8 2.5 2.2 1.0 0.0 AP/ACP 5.0 4.7 4.3 4.0 3.7 3.3 3.0 2.7 1.0 0.0
Your Cumulative GPA: Why It s Important to Start Off Strong Student #1 Student #2 9 th Grade Tri 1 GPA: 2.86 Tri 2 GPA: 2.67 Tri 3 GPA: 2.52 10 th Grade Tri 1 GPA: 3.32 Tri 2 GPA: 3.54 Tri 3 GPA: 3.36 Same grades in 10 th Grade 9th Grade Tri 1 GPA: 3.52 Tri 2 GPA: 3.67 Tri 3 GPA: 3.45 10 th Grade Tri 1 GPA: 3.32 Tri 2 GPA: 3.54 Tri 3 GPA: 3.36 Cumulative GPA: 3.045 Cumulative GPA: 3.477
Can taking all Honors and AP classes increase my GPA? That depends Student #1 Student #2 Geometry Honors B+ 3.8 Honors English 9-1 C+ 2.8 Health B 3.0 Honors Biology I-1 B- 3.2 AP Human Geog. C- 2.7 Geometry 1 A- 3.7 English 9-1 A 4.0 Health B 3.0 Biology I-1 A- 3.7 World History A 4.0 Trimester GPA = 3.1 Trimester GPA = 3.68 Whether you are adding more challenging courses, or need to back off a little find a balance that works best for you.
So what s a good GPA? And what GPA do I need to get into college? Well, it depends Average GPA of College Admitted Students Ball State University 3.35 Butler University 3.88 Indiana State University 3.02 Indiana University 3.77 Purdue University 3.77 St. Joseph's College 3.09 University of Notre Dame 4.3 University of Alabama 3.67 Stanford University 4.4 Princeton University 4.2
As You Are Building Your Schedule: Discuss course options with teachers. Which levels are the best fit for you and your abilities? Read the Course Descriptions! Do you meet the course prerequisites? Is the course what you want to take? Know which Diploma are you working toward. Make sure you are meeting all requirements for your Diploma Track.
Important Reminders Have your course requests in PowerSchool by January 17th Choose 15 credits and 2 alternates Counselors start meeting with students on January 22nd Schedules distributed in April. Schedule Change Deadline: May 20 th
Putting Your Course Requests in PowerSchool The red exclamation point means you need to complete the section. New this year: All students must enter a possible Career Pathway when choosing their courses.
Check the Pre-Requisite Notes to be Sure That You Have Met the Requirements
Trouble Shooting when You Get an Error Message If you see an error, check the course number to determine why it is not allowing you to sign up. You may not have met a course pre-requisite, or maybe you didn t sign up for all required trimesters of the course.
Selecting Your Two Alternate Credits Scroll all the way to the bottom to select your two alternate credits
Hit Submit and Review Your Course Requests for Accuracy Click here to see a list of all your course requests Check to see that you have all your selected courses and 2 Alternate Hours Requested Print your course requests for your records.