The Bullis School College Admission Profile-September 2007

Head of School - Thomas B. Farquhar
Director of College Counseling - Mary Frances Bryja
Assistant College Counselor - Lynn C. Kittel
Administrative Assistant - BJ Bralower

The School

Bullis is a challenging, caring community. Founded in 1930 as a post-graduate preparatory school for the Naval Academy, the Bullis School today is a coeducational college preparatory day school. Independent and non-denominational, Bullis admits academically qualified students without regard to race, creed, color or national origin. Bullis is accredited by the State of Maryland and Middle States and serves 360 students in grades 9-12 in the Upper School; 100 students graduated in 2005. Virtually 100% of Bullis graduates attend 4-year colleges.

Graduation Requirements

All students must complete 21 units as follows: English - 4, foreign language - 2 (through level II), mathematics - 3 (through Algebra II), science - 3 (biology, chemistry, physics), social studies - 3 (including U.S. History), visual and performing arts - 2, health - 1/3, and physical education - 2.

Class Standing

Bullis does not attempt to determine a single rank in class for its students. Since our students do not all take the same program and because grade ranges and distributions vary from one teacher to another, we think that a cumulative ranking system based on raw or weighted grades is arbitrary and may not be fairly representative of a student’s relative achievement.

To avoid inequity, yet still provide college admission staffs with a means for evaluating the relative strength of our students, our transcript format shows a grade distribution for each course a student has taken. The distributions represent all sections of a particular course taught by the same instructor in the given marking period; therefore, it is possible to assess a student’s relative achievement in each of the courses he or she has taken.

To complement this specific information on the transcript, the curriculum chart above allows for an assessment of the difficulty of each student’s program relative to his or her curricular options.

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Curriculum

The curriculum is exclusively college preparatory. Bullis’s academic year is divided into three equal terms, and, though most courses offered are yearlong, trimester electives are available in nearly every discipline. Students are placed in courses of varying difficulty depending on their ability, preparation and interest in each subject. Courses offered in the English, foreign language, mathematics, science, social studies, technology, and visual and performing arts departments are listed below. (H=Honors, AP=Advanced Placement)

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Course Offerings

English

FRESHMAN:
English I-Preludes

SOPHOMORE:
English II-American Literature (H & Regular)

JUNIOR:
English III-British Literature (H & Regular)

SENIOR:
English IV-Senior Seminars and Electives (H & Regular)

 

Foreign Language

FRESHMAN:
French I or II
Spanish I or II
Latin I or II

SOPHOMORE:
French II, III or III H
Spanish II, III or III H
Latin II, III or III H

JUNIOR:
French III, III H or IV
Spanish III, III H or IV
Latin III, III H, Latin IV/V
AP Vergil, AP Lit.

SENIOR:
French IV or AP
Intro to Lit in French
Advanced Lit in French H
Spanish IV or AP
Intro to Lit in Spanish
Advanced Lit in Spanish H
Latin IV/V
Latin AP Vergil, AP Lit.

Mathematics

FRESHMAN:
Algebra I
Geometry
Advanced Geometry

SOPHOMORE:
Geometry
Algebra II (H & Regular)
Functions H

JUNIOR:
Algebra II (H & Regular)
Pre-Calc with Data Analysis
Functions H
Calculus
AP Calculus, AB or BC
AP Statistics

SENIOR:
Pre-Calc with Data Analysis
Functions H
Finite Mathematics
Calculus
AP Calculus, AB or BC
AP Statistics
Advanced Topics H

Science

FRESHMAN:
Biology

SOPHOMORE:
Chemistry
Chemistry H
Biology

JUNIOR:
Physics
Physics H
Anatomy and Physiology
Environmental Science
AP Biology
AP Chemistry

SENIOR:
Physics
Physics H
AP Physics
Anatomy and Physiology
AP Biology
AP Chemistry
Environmental Science

Social Studies

FRESHMAN:
World History

SOPHOMORE:
Modern European History

JUNIOR:
U.S. History
AP U.S. History
Economics
American Government
Sociology
Psychology

SENIOR:
AP Psychology
AP World History
Economics
Psychology
American Government
Sociology
Advanced Topics

Technology

Introduction to Programming
AP Computer Science AB
Web Design

Visual and Performing Arts

Visual Arts:
Intro to Visual Art
Art History
Ceramics
Drawing
Painting
Photography I, II
Printmaking
Sculpture
AP Art History
AP Studio Art
Digital Art

 

Visual and Performing Arts
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Music:
Computer Music
Lied Guise
Caprice
Counterpoints
Concert Choir
Concert Band
Guitar I, II
Music History
Jazz Ensemble
String Ensemble
AP Music Theory
Jazz Workshop
String Workshop
Digital Music I, II

Visual and Performing Arts
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Theater:
Introduction to Acting
Basic Stagecraft
Theater History
Advanced Acting
Playwriting
Advanced Topics in Theater
Advanced Stagecraft
Theatrical Design and Production

Dance:
Introduction to Dance
Dance and Movement for Musical Theater
Dance History
Jazz, Hip Hop and Funk
Advanced Topics in Dance

Bullis is a member of the Bethesda Independent Schools Consortium. Seniors are eligible to take consortium courses. For 2007-08, Consortium courses offered are AP Economics, Asian Studies, AP French Literature, Multivariable Calculus and AP Art History. See individual subject areas in the Academics section of the Web site for more information.    

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