Scheduling with a Top Student
By: Isabela Fernandez(Before we start, we want to clarify that Isabela Fernandez is interviewing Zitlaly Caballos.)
(Interviewer): I’m here with Zitlaly Ceballos, a top-student at Hollister High, and one of the most hardworking people I know. Now Zitlaly, I wanted to question you about scheduling since it is coming up; and, as a senior, I’d like to get your take on what creating your schedule is like.
(Interviewer): What would you recommend when scheduling classes?
(Zitlaly): I think that, to be totally sincere, it essentially comes down to whatever you want your high school experience to be. That is what you need to take into account when choosing your courses. If you're someone like me, I came out of online learning and into my junior year with the mindset of working hard and with counsel and advice from a mentor I picked out five AP classes. At the time, it didn't seem like a hard workload, but it came to be over the course of the year. However, I developed this mentality of working hard everyday, you know, and learning to battle procrastination. To sum it up, I think that whatever you want your day to day look like dictates how you should schedule your classes. You definitely want one day to be a bit more challenging than the other, and if you have the chance to do that, I would definitely recommend a balance throughout those six courses.
(Interviewer): What was the hardest part of scheduling classes?
(Zitlaly): I’d say the uncertainty of not knowing if you're going to get the course you want because you know we have a high population at the high school, so it's totally understandable that you won't get your first option. However, you know it’s helpful to have second options that are along the line of what you want. If you really want that ceramics class, I would say to pick a backup elective where you will at least feel comfortable with because the worst thing that you want is to be stuck in the class where you're forced to be there and as a result be disinterested in the class because you don't want to be in there to begin with. At least have an open mind when choosing your classes and be aware that you may not get your first choice when it comes to picking classes.
(Interviewer): As someone who took 5 Advanced Placement courses last year, and 4 this year, would you recommend adding advanced and/or honors courses to your schedule?
(Zitlaly): I definitely think so. Mr. Schleeter, my English 9A teacher, definitely taught me so much helpful material. His English class was crucial to being able to enter into even the AP courses. That class taught me how to work hard, how to study, and how to prioritize completing homework within deadlines. It expanded beyond my English courses and helped even in courses such as AP Statistics. Being online, we missed out on some key honors courses, and we definitely saw that burden upon junior and senior year. However, I do believe that specifically honors courses, and obviously advanced courses, are the stepping stones to reaching that AP level later on.
