So how difficult is it? What review books should we get for next year?
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Early thread.
I’m taking Calc2 at a college next year cuz I’ve taken all math classes in my highschool (except for trig, that class is too easy for me). I think I’m taking BC Exam, but not sure. College calc class might be harder than BC? But it’s all about credits and GPA, I’ll do it 
If Calculus A/differential Calculus was easy for you (you got a comfortable A), then Calculus BC will be a walk in the park. If you got a B or lower in Calc A, expect a great challenge.
Also, no matter what, infinite series will initially kick your ass. You just have to do more and more practice problems to conquer them.
I suggest The Princeton Review for Calculus BC. They teach every topic on the test very well, with practice problems for each topic with fully explained answers. Also, unlike the Barron’s book, there are no topics taught that aren’t actually on the AP test.
Thanks! I’m am definitely getting the Princeton Review! I ended with over a 100% in Calc A. Hopefully, this class will be easy for me, except infinite series 
Is there any online courses so we can get ahead during the summer?
Actually I would disagree with you…I used the Princeton Review Book for Calculus AB (I self studied it in India) and ended up not really liking it. Some of the topics were not explained properly, in my opinion
I’ll be taking this the upcoming year as well. Any tips would be great
Would anyone recommend books from the Art of Problem Solving or Dr.Chung to help prepare for the course this summer? Especially if you’re not that superb at math.
yay for calc!!! Haha I’m super nervous for this class cause I originally wanted to take AB but it didn’t fit in my schedule
Also my teacher recommended us to watch some patrickJMT videos to prepare- I’ve only watched a couple but they seem pretty helpful and well-organized!
Lol I’m going to die in this next year
Hi! Just took the BC exam this year. Depending on your school and teacher, the course can be a lot more difficult than the exam. Personally, I didn’t find the exam too difficult, but you definitely need to know all of the material. I actually don’t think prep books would be particularly helpful for the exam; practice problems are far more helpful. Below is a really helpful link I found; it has all of the released MC questions from the exams 1969-1998. http://crunchymath.■■■■■■■■■■/uploads/8/2/4/0/8240213/ap_multiple_choice.pdf
Also, going through all of the released free response questions will really help. As for learning the material, you can’t really go wrong with the school textbook. I found these final notes helpful for last minute cramming. http://staff.orecity.k12.or.us/steve.becker/Final%20Notes%20for%20AB%20and%20BC.pdf
Honestly, in math, once you have learned a concept, revisiting it will only be marginally helpful, whereas running through practice problems will help much more with familiarity. Good luck and happy studying!
I agree that the course can often be harder than the exam, especially since the exam can be much more lenient with the grading than your teacher is!
I didn’t bother with a review book, rereading the explanation for a concept over and over again can only bring you so far, especially in math. Practice makes perfect for this class! I 100% recommend going through the released FRQs, the questions themselves and the concepts they test do not vary so much from year to year.
My school did not allow us to take BC before AB, so we had all taken AB last year. We ended up blowing through the BC new material in about a semester and spending second semester by taking practice AP tests in class, and after the test everyone felt they’d gotten a 4 or 5 (then again we only have less than 20 people in the class, since BC only recently started phasing into our school district).
Good luck everyone, and don’t let the series get you down…
Yeah I took AB last year as a junior and I’m taking this as a Senior. For those who haven’t taken AP Calc (AB or BC) yet I honestly don’t think any prep books are needed, just do released FRQ’s and MC to study for the exam.
I have to decide between AB or BC for this school year (senior year). Anyone have any suggestions? I feel like I could tough it out and do BC.
@southernbelle16 How did you do on PreCalc? Did you get an A? According to my teacher, she told my class that anyone who has an A in PreCalc should move onto Calc BC, but B’s, C’s should to move onto Calc AB.
@athenanv13 A, but I hated the class. It wasn’t too bad, I just didn’t like my teacher and math isn’t my favorite subject. I’m not bad at it though. I want to do something in the science field in college (probably biochem) with a pre-med track, so I think it would benefit me to take the class even if I don’t do well on the exam.
I say take BC. AB is an absolute waste of a year. Get your BC 5 and AB subscore 5 and move on with your free year, lol
Do you guys have a lot of summer homework? I don’t have much I’m just curious what you guys have.
@athenanv13 Yeah I don’t have much- only a really short packet of practice problems- kinda wish I had more because now I have to do more review on my own.
Same, mine is a packet from precalc, but I kind of wish that it included some algebra II and stuff because I forgot it all and have to study on my own.