<p>Hi, I'm very new here and this is my first thread. Sorry for sounding like a complete idiot but I have a few questions regarding AP.</p>
<p>I'm a grade 11 student living in Toronto, Canada and my high school only has two AP courses, the AP Calculus BC (taking right now) and the AP Physics C (taught in grade 12). I've read that in order to get into Ivy League or any prestigious university, I will need at least four AP credits. However I've discovered very recently that AP exams are only held once a year, in May. Does that mean I will have to take the AP exams that I'm interested this year for them to be included in my university application?</p>
<p>I've looked at some of the schedules here and it looks very rigorous and daunting. How do you guys manage such a huge task? I only have one AP course right now, preparing for SAT and the subject tests, with not many extracurriculars, and it's already quite overwhelming for me. I don't know if I'll be able to survive with that many more, and all crammed in a few months. To be honest if I have to take them this year then I seriously doubt whether I can accomplish that.</p>
<p>In terms of AP exams, it is better to do well on fewer exams (code word for SCORE A 5, or at least a 4) rather than overload yourself with too many AP exams and not score as well.</p>
<p>I also go to a school that only offers two AP classes. If you take AP Physics C next year, you’ll be in good shape because you took 100% of the AP classes your school offered. Colleges will see this in your school’s profile when you apply and won’t “downgrade you” for that.</p>
<p>If there is a particular AP subject that interests you and you feel like you can succeed on the AP exam, feel free to self study the course. Throughout CC and the rest of the internet, you can find recommendations on the best Prep Books for AP courses. When I self study a class, I just use a prep book and some practice AP questions. I usually have the prep book for a long time but don’t start studying hardcore until about April.</p>
<p>A few AP exams that are considered for the most part easy to self study are AP Human Geography (took freshman year, barely studied, scored a 5, just use Barron’s book), AP Psychology, and AP Environmental Science. Check out the College Board website for more info.</p>
<p>I don’t think there’s an “AP threshold” that top schools require. So what you heard about having a minimum of four AP credits is not true.</p>
<p>As long as you are making the most of what is available to you (which you seem to be doing well), adcoms will not consider your weakness as not taking enough AP’s. After all, it would not be fair to compare the academic achievements of a rich prep school student (who has unlimited access to SAT courses, tutoring, prep books, excellent teachers) to the achievements of an inner-city kid (who has neither the money nor the opportunity to pursue certainly fields as thoroughly).</p>
<p>The above poster also mentioned several self-study options, for which I agree is a reasonable course of action. In addition to the AP he suggested, I also recommend taking a look at Micro and Macro. The APEC courses tend to have the highest AP exam pass rate, which on its own may not be the most accurate indicator, but is relatively easy to self-study nonethless.</p>
<p>If you are a native language speaker, you could also consider the AP exam of your language (Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, etc). Although Harvard has specifically discouraged native language test-takers, many other schools have yet to publish their opinions on native language testing. However, taking an exam in your native tongue will NOT be nearly as impressive as another AP. The same is still true for second-generation kids who were not necessarily born in their ethnically native country (e.g. Canadian-born-Chinese). </p>
<p>In any case, whichever option you wish to persue, don’t be afraid to challenge yourself! …Reasonably, of course.</p>
<p>Okay thanks for the responses. What I meant is that I’ve looked at what a lot of people that got into prestigious universities have done, and they all seem to have quite a few AP courses.</p>
<p>Just wondering, is it difficult to study for, say, AP chem and compsci by myself for the exam this year? I’m still debating on what I should do.</p>