Do colleges look at senior year classes?

RReaders in Stanford's admissions office judge the rigor of a senior's program in the fall, months before a single senior grade exists, and what goes into that judgment surprises most families. The Common App asks for your current-year courses, and it is easy to treat that section as clerical, a list typed in late summer between essay drafts. For a student who came to advanced coursework late, that can be an expensive mistake. Junior year may look modest on the transcript, and the section that could change the picture before the reader turns the page is the one most students fill in without a second thought. It holds a real opportunity, along with a promise that colleges expect you to keep.