Social Science and Global Studies Required and Elective Courses Scheduling information for rising seniors

Required courses There are two required senior social studies courses: Economics (unless already completed) and US Government, each with an AP option None of these courses has an SOL AP US/Comparative Government is a combined course with two AP Exams The main difference between and Academic Government is the amount of required homework and writing for AP classes With the semester economics course you will also need to take a semester of Financial Literacy- the AP course counts for both of these

Rising Seniors- Government Requirement Either US/Virginia Government or AP US Government/Comparative Government AP is not only more in depth, it also includes the study of governments in several other nations AP Government is a rigorous course, requiring 1-2 hours of homework per class

US Government You should take AP US/Comparative Government if: You are taking AP US History and have a grade of “B” or better You are taking Academic US History and your teacher recommends that you take AP US Gov You are self-disciplined enough to do large quantities of homework on a daily basis You are able to read and digest large quantities of material You are willing to work during your senior year Offers the potential to earn six college credits depending on your AP Score and college attended

US History You should take US/Virginia History if: You are in US History, and are finding the workload appropriate You are in APUSH and are finding it difficult and/or overwhelming You are more interested in non-social science fields (e.g. STEM) and are taking a very rigorous load in those subjects You already are suffering from senior-itis

Economics In order to graduate you must have both financial literacy and economics You may take one semester of each, or a full year AP Economics Since you must take economics anyway, enrolling in AP will make your course load seem way more rigorous You can earn 6 college credits and avoid taking Econ in college

Junior year electives You are also eligible to take any social studies elective. If you are interested in any non-STEM major, taking Social Studies APs or DE looks good on applications, plus can earn you college credit

AP Electives While these are all rigorous classes, they tend to have a lesser work load than the AP History courses (videos available) AP Economics (Micro and Macro) AP Human Geography AP Psychology Dual Enrollment Survey of African History

Semester Electives Psychology The World of Ideas Global Social Issues Modern International Relations Economics Comparative Religions