AP and IB Credit

I just learned that Emory is reducing the number of AP/IB credits to 12 (it was 24) for incoming students. D applied, in part, because of the school’s advanced credit policy. Their tuition is already sky high, and now many prospective students can look forward to paying for another semester. Is this some sort of trend with private colleges? What’s the point of taking these classes and doing well on the exams if you can’t get college credit?

AP means “Advanced Placement”, so that students can start in a more advanced entry level course (e.g. calculus 2 instead of calculus 1 after AP calculus AB). Here are Emory’s course equivalencies: http://college.emory.edu/orientation/first-year-students/apib-equivalencies.html . A student who does not graduate early but uses AP credit to fulfill requirements and prerequisites effectively gains free electives that can be used to take more upper level courses or anything else that s/he likes instead of lower level courses needed to fulfill requirements or prerequisites.

Regarding credit toward the number of credits needed for graduation (beyond that earned in courses need to complete all subject requirements), private schools may be less generous than state schools, probably for finance reasons. Private schools may want students to stay a full 8 tuition-paying semesters, while state schools want their mostly-in-state subsidized students to graduate as quickly as possible. Private schools are also more likely to emphasize the four year experience so that students graduating early are not seen as that desirable.

Whether any given school’s policy is desirable to you depends on what you want to use AP credit for – subject credit and advanced placement, or credits to help graduate in fewer semesters than otherwise.

@ucbalumnus I know what AP means, but thanks for your explanation. Typically, most colleges that allow students to use AP scores to take more advanced classes also give them credit for those entry level classes.

As a full pay family, an extra semester makes a big difference. So no, Emory’s new policy isn’t at all desirable to us.

I think it is dangerous to plan on a less than 8 semesters when determining if a college is affordable.

Most private colleges with Emory’s acceptance rate, or lower, cap AP credits. Yes, 12 credits is not as good as 24, but it’s better than zero, which is what my own college will soon offer. Also, Emory gives credit for more subjects than many of its peers, and gives credits for a 4, and allows, in some instances, for AP credit to be used to fulfill GERs. All of which weren’t options at many of my targeted schools. So, I’m viewing it more as glass half-full. YMMV.

I will also say that graduating in 3 years is one of those things that sound great in theory, but depending on major/scheduling/etc does not always work out. I’d be interested if Emory has quantified the percentage who graduate early with AP credits.

The change in AP credit should have come as no surprise to any of this cycle’s applicants, as it was announced almost 2 years ago.

As @ucbalumnus says, publics are more generous with AP credits. But the AP situation is what it is. If need be, then you as a family will need to factor that into your selection criteria. Good luck.

Agree, especially if the student’s major is highly sequenced and/or has course requirements that are not offered every semester.

Some families would not have the money to pay for a 9th semester. However, the risk of needing a 9th semester (even without counting any AP credit) is likely to be low for students who have the academic credentials to get into Emory and similarly selective schools.

Here is an example of a state university which is generous with credits toward the number needed to graduate, but not with subject credit or advanced placement for AP scores:
http://www.admission.ucla.edu/Prospect/APCreditLS.htm
Only those AP scores where a course number is listed count for subject credit. As you can see, only calculus, some foreign languages, psychology, and English can count for subject credit with high enough scores, even though many more can earn credits toward graduation with scores of 3.

My daughter is now technically a junior in terms of course credits from AP and DE at the end of her first semester of freshman year. It will not help her graduate early because of all the courses she will need for her major for graduation. What it does help with is priority scheduling and housing.

I agree with the above posters who said that everyone should plan on 8 semesters.

With some good planning, one can graduate in 3 years or less, even with programs that are heavily sequenced. My kid now has senior status even though he is a freshman at Berkeley, but it would take him 2.5 years minimum and most likely 3 years to graduate though. He had 40 AP semester credits and 41 dual enrollment/community college semester credits brought in already, but because of upper division requirements and major requirements, he’ll probably end up with about 30 to 50 “useless” credits. And yes, it makes a huge difference in priority for class registration.

@Eeyore123. One draw of our excellent, top 50 ranked large public university is that many students are able to enter as sophomores. Not all graduate in less than four years, but for most (other than the engineering students), it is an option. For what my D wants to study, we have been told that it would be quite doable to finish at least a semester early. We’re prepared to pay for four years, but have specifically sought out schools that offered generous AP/IB credit. There’s nothing dangerous about what we’re doing.

@skieurope. Well, I must have missed that announcement. The website still had the old information listed until very recently. Kudos to Emory, as I’m sure that the “private school or bust” crowd won’t care about the change. I see it as just another money grab because that’s exactly what it is.