Skipping math in 12th grade?

[Mom2boys]

My ds, who intends to pursue a BFA in Lighting Design, does not want to take any math in 12th grade. He has four math credits already, through precalc, which seems to meet the admissions requirements for the universities he is considering. But I have read multiple places that colleges really like to see math taken in 12th grade on transcripts - I believe because it shows rigor and that the student didn't slack off senior year?

So my question is, how important is it in terms of college admissions and merit scholarships to take math in 12th grade? Will it hurt his chances for admission considering he is going the BFA route? 

[Closeacademy]

I think it's also helpful to keep the math skills up so that he does well in his required math class for university.

[Mom2boys]

4 minutes ago, Closeacademy said:

I think it's also helpful to keep the math skills up so that he does well in his required math class for university.

 

I'm not sure he will have to take a math class in college. Some of the BFA programs we have looked at don't require that.

[Mom2boys]

2 hours ago, kand said:

Some colleges require some kind of quantitative class senior year—doesn’t have to be math, but something that uses math, like math-based science for example.  My daughter applied to a couple schools that had that requirement. 

 

Good to know. He doesn't want to take science either (he has 3.5 credits) in favor of more fine arts classes. But maybe he could take consumer math or an accounting class.

[pinkelement]

It really depends on the school. I have known someone who was denied an admission to the local state school with 3 math credits, while the same student got accepted to the excellent private university with the exactly same portfolio. So it would make sense to ask ahead of time. It might be that he doesn't need it. Or if he does, he will see it as another hoop to jump through if he wants to go to that specific school. 

But I imagine for lighting design, he will need at least physics, and physics is math. So..

[Lori D.]

Just looking at a few colleges that offer a BFA in lighting design -- both the admission credit requirements, and then the course of study to get the degree... As I said on your x-post, using 12th grade to focus on dual enrollment and coursework in his chosen field in Fine Arts when he has 4 credits of math through Pre-Calc and 3.5 credits of science -- it looks like he will be fine, even if attending a state university.

If DS will be attending a Fine Arts college, it doesn't look like any of the schools *require* math beyond Alg. 2 or more than 3 Science credits. And, as 2 of the colleges below want to see a portfolio from the visual arts applicants for admission, I would say 12th grade would be better spent on more Fine Arts pursuits to beef up his experiences and opportunities for projects for competitive admission. Just my opinion!

Boston University: admission (3-4 credits each of Science & Math (thru Pre-Calc recommended, not required) /  BFA degree in lighting design (no science or math)
Webster University: admission (credits not listed)  /  BFA in Lighting Design (1 gen. ed. course in Science or Math)
DePaul University: admission (min. 3 credits each of Science & Math thru Alg. 2)  /  BFA in Lightning Design (none specifically listed)
University of North Carolina: School of the Arts: admission (3 credits each of Science & Math (thru Alg. 2  /  BFA in Undergraduate Lighting (1 gen. ed. course in Science or Math)
Emerson College: admission (credits not listed)  /  BFA in Theater Design/Technology (Lighting Design is one possible emphasis) (1 gen. ed. course in Science)

 

ETA: PS -- If using dual enrollment to knock out a future gen. ed. course, you'll want to make sure that DS's future college actually will transfer it and count it towards the degree requirements, rather than as an "elective".

[Sebastian (a lady)]

You might check on university graduation requirements in addition to degree requirements.  I've seen these called distribution credits, university credits, diversity credits and liberal arts credits.  Often they will require every student to take a course requiring computational skills.