[quote=AN]BTW, you mentioned Chem and Physics but you didn’t mention Calculus/Pre-Calc or Bio. How did he do in those?[/quote]
AN makes an *excellent* point, scaredy. Your kid’s got to have the complete package to get into a good university program in any science or engineering-related major.
If your son does manage to zero in on a field that interests him, check out the HS courses that are required for admission. Don’t know what grade he’s in, but make sure he takes the entire math-science-language curriculum laid out for HS students headed for science/engineering undergrad, following the recommended schedule.
Also, if your kid does get excited about a particular career, have him look at the 4-year undergrad course schedule so that he clearly understands the demands. Many times, students are floored by the type, number, and difficulty of required courses for a particular major (e.g., kids that are “C.S.I.” fans/forensic criminology hopefuls are often shocked to learn of the 4 or 5 required chem courses, along with several others in biology, genetics, physics, and anthropology), and they end up dropping the major, having given no thought to a back-up career choice. All they have to show for their time (and parents’ money) is a permanent transcript sporting an abundance of Ds, Fs, or Ws.
If your child has a genuine interest in science, but doesn’t always appear be the most motivated student, or isn’t earning the excellent grades that some of his “science superhero” classmates are, DON’T assume that he can’t have a career in the sciences or in engineering. As I mentioned earlier, he can attend a good-quality community college for many of his introductory English, mathematics, and science courses and, for 2 years, work on building up his academic record. A good CC will have a reciprocity agreement with your state university system (be sure to check this out ahead prior to enrollment), which pretty much means that the CC’s course is very closely aligned with that of the state university. If he meets the admission requirements for a particular state university degree program, they have to apply his CC credits toward the degree. This scenario will give your kid a chance to develop the discipline required for an academic and professional career in the science/engineering fields, at a fraction of the cost, and definitely increase his chances for success.
