Wyatt Virag
At Gabrielino High School, it feels like everyone is racing to take as many AP classes as possible. The pressure to load one’s schedule with APs is intense, and for many students, it has less to do with passion or genuine interest and more to do with boosting GPA and having stronger college applications. But this mindset comes at a cost, not just for the students taking the classes, but for their peers and even their teachers.
When students take AP classes they aren’t truly interested in, it creates a high-stress environment. Those students often end up overwhelmed and burned out. Meanwhile, their peers who may be taking fewer APs feel like they’re falling behind or not doing enough, even if they’re already working hard. The result is a culture of competition and unhealthy comparison.
I’ve seen it firsthand. I have friends who want to go into the medical field taking AP Computer Science Principles, not because they’re interested in computer science, but because it’s seen as “easy” and gives them a GPA boost. It shifts the focus away from actually learning towards just trying to get an A.
Teachers are also feeling the effects. Geoffrey Barraclough, who teaches AP Computer Science Principles and AP Statistics, feels there used to be more students genuinely interested in the classes they take.
“While there isn’t a hard line dividing the students who are taking the classes for a GPA boost versus the ones taking it for genuine interest, there is a difference. There used to be a quality in the class when everyone’s interested—it was more fun for the teacher.”
This shift in classroom dynamic has had a noticeable impact. Not just on student experiences, but on teachers. When students enroll out of obligation rather than passion, the energy in the room changes. That sense of shared curiosity and engagement that once defined advanced courses starts to fade.
“I do miss the days where my classes were a club of people who were truly gifted in math. I’ve noticed that the people who are really smart and took the class because they like math tend to be quieter so when it was a room filled with just them, the people who took the class out of enjoyment had a better time.”
Student voices echo this trend. Another class commonly taken because it’s seen as “easy” is AP Enviornmental science. When Junior Natalia San Lucas was asked about her motivations for taking the course, she said “I took it to challenge my course load but for the gpa boost mostly.”
Similarly Junior Maria Ulloa took AP United States History because she “heard it was gonna be a light and easy class and hoped it would help with college apps and boost my gpa.”
Survey results from 30+ Gabreilino students reflect the same priorities. The top reasons students said they take AP classes were to improve their college applications, boost their GPA, and earn college credit. Enjoyment of the subject came in last.
100% of students surveyed said they agreed or strongly agreed that college admissions were one of their main motivations for taking AP classes, and nearly 70% said their peers influenced their decisions and felt anxious about not taking enough AP classes.
It is clear that the pressure of having the highest GPA and looking good to colleges has completely overtaken the original purpose of AP classes: to learn more about the subjects you’re interested in.
It’s not that AP classes are inherently bad, they provide valuable opportunities for academic growth and preparing for college. But when students feel forced into it, motivated primarily by a sense of urgency to compete with their peers, students lose something important.
Students lose the chance to learn for the sake of learning. Students create classrooms full of stress instead of curiosity. And create a school culture that makes students feel like they’re never doing enough, no matter how hard they’re working.
The Gabrielino student body must stop choosing classes based on whether or not they will boost their GPA, but rather choose them based on what we want to learn. Having more intentional class choice would create a healthier and more meaningful high school experience not just for students, but for the entire school community.