As a driven student at an academically competitive school, I’ve been compelled by college admissions since fifth grade. From the people around me and the media I consumed, it appeared the only way to get into a good college was to take the hardest classes available regardless of subject. However, I’ve always enjoyed humanities more than STEM. As hard as I tried to get into advanced math classes throughout middle school, I fell short. When the opportunity came to take Honors Chemistry, I jumped at the chance. I couldn’t wait to have that advanced class on my transcript – and it couldn’t be that hard…could it?

As I got deeper into the class and the material, it became clear I had forgotten about the actual chemistry part. I was so excited to finally be in an advanced class that I had forgotten that science, especially chemistry, had never clicked for me. As my test scores continued to sink and the material confused me, I began to regret my choice. However, I knew there was no question why I had chosen to take the class – I wanted it on my transcript.

I see a few things wrong with the system of honors classes at Blake. First, only having advanced classes in the math and science fields until APs in junior year leads students who are weaker in these areas to feel inferior to their STEM-inclined peers. This also unintentionally increases the emphasis placed on STEM classes, which can lead all students to feel like English and social studies classes are easy and unimportant. English and math are both core subjects, but only having honors classes in one track automatically adds more weight to STEM.

Students, especially at an academically challenging school, are led to believe that having as many honors classes on their transcript as possible is the best thing they can do for colleges. This leads weaker STEM students to enroll in honors classes, which adds unenjoyable challenging work. This is a huge burden and takes a toll on a student’s mental health. Doing this work can increase stress or burnout because it is designed to be harder than other classes and less enjoyable.

Of course, this is a two-way street. Many students love STEM classes and despise analyzing sources and writing essays. If you love science, absolutely pursue the advanced science track. If doing calculations and finding solutions makes you happy, pursue advanced math classes. There is absolutely nothing inherently wrong with these classes. The issue comes when they are the only option available. While I don’t think you ever could have convinced freshman year me not to take this class, it has helped me learn about myself and helped me learn the importance of prioritizing what I enjoy.