<p>I only plan to take AP Calculus AB next year. Do I have to take it with BC? Honestly, I don't really care for BC. One kid I know is taking both next year. In my course book, it sounds like you have to take both.</p>
<p>Usually BC covers an extra semester’s worth of material compared to AB (the first semester of calc BC is equal to a whole year of calc AB) so I’m not sure why one would take both at the same time. Are you allowed to just skip AB and take BC? Several students at my school have done so; otherwise it’s probably best to just take AB without BC at the same time.</p>
<p>BC is the exact same thing as AB, but covers more. It is pointless to do AB if you do BC.</p>
<p>At my school, you take AB your junior year and then BC your senior year. I know some schools that offer a course the incorporates both AB and BC, but I think it’s fine if you solely take AB.</p>
<p>@caughtintraffic thanks. I’ll ask my guidance councilor If I can just take AB.</p>
<p>You can not take both tests in one year.</p>
<p>When youtake the BC test, you get an AB subscore (or at least that’s what I’ve been told?).</p>
<p>At my school, you either take just AB or just BC. Not both. I think there might have been one or two kids that take AB junior year then BC senior year but none that I can actually remember? I don’t see the point in taking both the same year.</p>
<p>At my school, if you take AB first, then BC, first semester in BC becomes “pass/fail”. This is because first semester BC covers all of AB; thus, it’s like repeating a class almost. I would highly recommend taking BC. I am in it right now; while many of my friends are in AB and are easily getting As, I had to struggle and work harder for my A in BC. But many top universities (including the University of Pennsylvania, a member of the Ivy League, and the university I am attending next year) ONLY accept AP Credit for the BC Exam, I strongly recommend taking BC.</p>
<p>@drac313</p>
<p>I would only do that if you are very talented in math. Otherwise, going through AB before BC is much safer.</p>
<p>Doing AB before BC is a waste. You would be sitting in BC bored for a long time. The extra topics (like vectors and infinite series) are all covered in second semester. If you aren’t good enough to take BC from the beginning, just take AB and don’t take BC. You would be wasting your time if you did AB the first year and BC after.</p>