Most impactful subject in high school?

Hi everyone! I'm just entering my junior year and am trying to focus my studies. In your opinion, what is the most important subject to really excel in during high school? Looking forward to your insights!

Hello! It depends on what you're planning to do after high school and what fields you're generally interested in. If you aim to enter a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) field in college and beyond, it's vital to excel in your math and science courses as those provide the foundational skills. If you're more interested in humanities or social science fields, doing well in English, History, or Foreign Language can be key. A strong performance in a variety of subjects may reflect well on your academic adaptability.

It's also essential to remember that excelling in high school is not just about subject mastery, but also about developing underlying skills like critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication. These skills are transferrable across many different fields and can help you in everything from writing an essay and solving a complex math problem to carrying out a science experiment. So rather than focusing on one 'most important' subject, it might be beneficial to focus on developing these skills.

Though it certainly depends on your interests and plans, if you're planning on applying to colleges, they will be looking at your grades in all core classes. Your GPA is one component of the Academic Index that many selective colleges use in their admissions process. Keeping your grades up in all subjects will help increase your chances of acceptance. For instance, if you're interested in Engineering but don't do well in English, it could still impact your overall GPA and thus your college acceptances. So I would say, all subjects matter in terms of maintaining a high overall GPA.