I’m trying to mentally prepare for college and all I ever hear is about how difficult college is. I’m pretty confident that I can handle the rigors and work load but it still jars me that so many people seem to get C’s with so much work. I’m probably going to Loyola Chicago and doing biochem/premed, so that should give an idea of my course load and difficulty. Hopefully I don’t come off as arrogant I’m just really struggling with the idea of such difficult classes even though AP tests were meant to mimic first year college courses.
Junior year I took AP bio, calc ab, german, and lit and got 5’s on all the tests except english. Calc was a bit rough at first so I got a B, but everything else I had an A, with an A+ in bio. My school doesn’t have that much grade inflation and I was the only person ever to get a A+ in the class. I got a 96% on both mock exams, which were both real AP tests.
I took ap chem, stats, euro, and language the next year with 5’s again in all except english. AP chem I got an 82% on our final exam with the average at around 35%. Everybody was always complaining about way too much work and low test scores especially in bio and chem, but I never found it very overwhelming. Probably because I love those subjects and I have great work ether. Euro was very difficult with a tough teacher who assigned heaps of homework, but I managed to get a B and a 5 on the test.
So in your opinion, do my grades and ap scores, particularly in chem and bio, show that I can handle first year college work? Thanks for any help.
Likely, with the right focus and effort, you will be fine. The main difference is, unlike hs, you don’t always have regular homework to turn in, you need to be able to pace yourself. And if you’re premed, be aware some of those classes at some colleges are weeders, meant to challenge and sort out those who can take it from those who need to rethink their goals. If you need it, get academic support, find a strong study group, meet the profs during office hours, read ahead (and sometimes supplement via the web,) whatever it takes. Best wishes.
The fact that you did well in AP classes is a good sign but not a guarantee you will do well in college. It shows you can handle the material. It may also show that you have had excellent teachers.
Probably the biggest challenge in college is non-academic. Unlimited amounts of free time with very little checking in by the professor on your understanding and no parental supervision. Many people assume reading the chapters are optional, class attendance is optional, working problems not taken for a grade is optional, etc.
Very similar to high school, you see people making Cs freshman year who figure it out the next year or two.
A 5 on an AP exam can mean you got as little as 65 - 70% of the possible points. A 65% on a final, which is often worth way more of your grade than homework and sometimes the other exams, is not going to net that all-important A. You sound like you’re doing better than that, which is good. Then again, AP exams are not actual college exams.
Keep your confidence but don’t be so confident that you slack off.
I wouldn’t worry excessively about it. Everyone around you is going to be facing the same material, and lots of kids manage to graduate with biochem degrees every year. If they can do it, so can you.
As you realize, the pace is going to be faster and the material will get more difficult year by year. It does take more time studying than a lot of HS kids expect. For a math or science class a lot of kids end up spending 5-10 hours per week on each class studying, doing homework, etc. Many find it useful to do extra problems; get a book like the “Calculus Problem Solver” or whatever is appropriate for your class and work extra problems until you can do them correctly, then you’ll do them correctly on the test.
As for the faster pace, your AP Chem class (to use one example) probably had 35 weeks of instruction, 5 hours a week, before the test. Total of 175 hours of instruction. UCLA will give 2 quarters of Chem credit for that test. If instead you took the classes while a UCLA student you’d cover the same material in 20 weeks and with 60 hours of instruction.
If after the class covers a chapter the next time you review it is before the test, if your review is to reread the chapter and your notes, then these are 2 of the less effective techniques for studying. Over the summer read the book “Make it Stick” which covers the approaches research has shown are most effective for learning and remembering.
@chicago107 More often I have experienced the entire class being set on a curve, meaning you earn what you earn and then you’re compared to a scale where an A is not 93% but 85%, for instance. The largest single curve I have ever experienced was a 30% curve on a 42% average physics test, and turned my D into an A, but it wasn’t a final (weighted less in our final grade than the final exam, IIRC) and they recognized that it was crazily, unfairly hard. That only happened once. Other difficult classes I have had have ranged from no curve that I was aware of (DiffEq) to 85% for an A, 70% for a B (thermo).
Keep in mind that depending upon the AP, you can get a 5 with a pretty crappy % correct. If you nail the essay, in some APs your score of a 70% on the multiple choice may still earn you a 5 and you’ll never know that is what happened. So while you may assume you did great with 5’s, you may not have even done well.
The same is true of many college tests, where an instructor may give a difficult exam, but then “curve down” (or use a pre-set scale with much lower grade thresholds than the ones usually used in high school) to avoid failing most of the class.
@chicago107, as the others have said: don’t worry too much ahead of getting there. You are handling the level of work well; the speed, volume and level of self-discipline needed are what will change. For many students who have done a lot of AP level work it is time-management that is the hardest change; for others it is that the teachers ‘teach’ less: you are meant to do a lot of the learning outside the classroom. Some great posts above- heed the advice, but don’t get too worried. It sounds as if you are on the right path.
Wow, the way some of you talk about ap exams gives the impression that it would take a mentally handicapped person to score as low as a 4. Keep in mind that kids who take ap exams are a pretty high-achieving group, and only 10-15% get a 5. OP, you seem very smart and driven and I’m sure you’ll manage college fine.
I’m just really struggling with the idea of such difficult classes even though AP tests were meant to mimic first year college courses.