Accepting AP Credit

<p>I got a 5 in Calc AB and want to know if I should take credit for it. You might be asking, Why not? But I kind of figured the college version of Calculus I would be better, wouldn't it? Wouldn't it be more meaningful to take the college version of the course than some watered-down AP course? I felt I was good in the AP class, but then when I move on to college level math, I don't want to feel like I was unprepared since I only got the AP version.</p>

<p>Also, I have a problem for taking credit for stats. I got a 4, but I completely forgot everything since that was junior year. In fact, I think I got lucky on the AP exam. Should I still get credit, or should I take it again to remember everything again? Is it normal for people just to get credit anyway? </p>

<p>Thanks. I just wanted to know what was best for me in college.</p>

<p>When I was coming out of middle school, I had taken Algebra 1 in middle school, got a B in it, which allowed me to skip the freshman year Algebra and start in Geometry. Anyways, I didn't grasp the knowledge well, and was unprepared for Geometry, forgetting about Algebra. I failed my first two tests, and switched out of the class.</p>

<p>I went to Algebra, where I excelled, and then to Geometry again. I got an A both semesters. When it came time for the ACT/SAT, my Algebra and Geometry were so good that I beat kids who were taking Calculus during their senior year. And I was only in Algebra 3/4!</p>

<p>Honestly, i'd take the classes over that I don't grasp the information completely, ESPECIALLY in Math. Because you will be using those methods later on in your career.</p>

<p>Or, you can get some easy credit points, and let your hard work in high school pay off ;-)</p>

<p>Someone was in a situation where they made a 5 on the Calc AB exam but took Math 115 (Calculus I) anyway, thinking it'd be an easy A. Wrong!! Dude got a B, and that's the highest grade I've seen anyone get yet. Math 115 and 116 are incredibly harsh, and I suggest you avoid them (at Michigan) if at all possible. As many people on this board have mentioned (see College Life section), if you retake it you'll just be bored 90% of the class and still won't understand the 10% you didn't know the first time. Not to mention it really hurts the GPA. Hopefully you'll learn from my mistakes in that regard (planned whole time to retake calc 1 in college because I'd be an engineer, but then decided literally day before the exam to take the AP when someone else backed out, and thus didn't get to study and made a 3--good enough for LSA but not engineering). It's worth mentioning Calculus II is harder than Calculus I, and has an exam that is the second most failed at UofM.</p>

<p>Thanks for your responses. So I should avoid math completely? I'm trying to get into Ross, which means I need to do some quantitative work. I also thought I could get an easy A, but I guess it's never that easy. If I take credit, I guess that means I'm moving into Calc II then. I kind of regret not being in the BC class. Then I could skip both. Anyone else have any ideas about what I should do? Thanks in advance.</p>

<p>Actually, LSA doesn't give you AP credit unless you take a higher math course, and most of the time it's better to take the class to get a more solid background anyway.</p>

<p>Absolutely take credit for both. I'm not sure why this is a tough decision. I see your point for wanting a true, college-level understanding of the topics, but you have to know that there are many in your situation and 90% of them are going to take the credit and you will be left at a disadvantage if you don't do the same. As previously noted, math 115 is often failed, but usually by those who lack math prowess. Why risk the B in a class you know most of (except for that 10% stuff) when you could just move on to a class that has new material? When it comes down to it, you will basically re-learn calc AB in your calc 2 class because there is significant overlap. With statistics, you should be even more certain to accept the credit, and here's why. AP stats credit just gets you out of a bogus STATS 100 class that anyone with half a brain can pass. Your next class in stats would be STATS 350 anyways, which is essentially the same material, just not as dumbed-down. To demonstrate you really don't need a strong background for 350, the class doesn't even have any pre-requisites and many entering freshmen with no previous background take the class, so I would recommend taking your four free credits, and if you want to still take stats, just take 350 where you will be with a bunch of kids at your level because few of them have probably ever taken stats. The only difference is you got credit, they did not.</p>

<p>Thanks for that great response. I decided I would take credit. I figured that getting rusty in an academic subject is just an unavoidable, natural cycle in education. I'm also taking credit with a 4 in chem.</p>