Curriculum Planning and Course Selection Guide

Created by: Ashleigh Taylor, Founder of Empowered 4 College

Curriculum selection is one of the few areas of college planning that cannot be fixed later. This guide explains exactly how selective colleges evaluate academic rigor, what a competitive course load looks like at each grade level, and how to build a transcript that is viewed favorably. Written by a former University of Michigan Senior Admissions Officer, it covers AP, IB, and dual enrollment, grade-by-grade strategy from 9th through 12th grade, and how to balance rigor with performance.