AP classes questions? Especially Bio and Environ. science?

Test Preparation AP Sciences
1

<p>I've never taken an AP class before. I had all honors classes two years ago but kept getting B's. I mean, in the first semester, I probably wasn't trying as hard as I could. I think it took me 2 years to REALLY learn how to study. Anyway, the second semester was harder and maybe I didn't study as hard as I could, so I got B's again. I remember trying in algebra and english, and bio. Especially in bio. We had 26 people in the class and after the finals I came in 9th place with a 84%. The highest was a 93%. He was the only one who got a overall A. I think that even if I studied as hard as I could, I wouldn't have been able to get an A. But I got the AP Bio packet from the teacher and looking through it, it seemed doable. Some easy, others hard. A lot of memorization. We had a nationwide Bio test and I think I did well on it, Advanced. I studied for two weeks for that test and i'm going to ask my counselor if I got advanced. But I want to know if it's likely for me to be able to get a 4 on the AP test if I self-studied. You know, by looking at these grades. It's too late to take the class, so I want to buy a textbook and teach myself. I always ended up studying myself in that class anyway, since the teacher made fun of you if you asked a question. Last year, I got moved down to accelerated and I studied for every test for every subject and I always study for more than an hour, even if I hate it; and I got all A's. So they moved me back up to honors. So some questions because I don't like making decisions without KNOWING that I can do it. I'm a middle student, not average intelligence, not advanced intelligence. I'm only going to advanced classes by working harder than most. I know I study harder then at least 50% of the honors students just to keep up with them.</p>

<p>Next year I have these classes
Honors Pre calc, hon calc AB
Hon english
Hon US history
Hon Chemistry
I also have the SAT's but I plan to get that over with in October, since i'm studying for it now. </p>

<p>1) Would I be able to manage Biology with these classes? How likely is it for me to get a 4 while self-studying?
2) Do they make you take Biology or Environmental in university?
3) What if I take the test but my major doesn't have anything to do with those subjects and I busted my *** for nothing?
4) What's more easier, Biology or Environmental?
5) Labs. I can't take labs since i'm self studying but will that effect my grade in May?
6) I want my university to see my AP grade since Bio would be the only AP class i've taken before my transcript is sent out. Do they really care about AP?</p>

2

<ol>
<li><p>You should be able to manage your course load fine as long as you have a schedule of studying and keep on top of it. Getting a 4 is very doable as long as you keep studying throughout the year and review, take practice tests, etc. </p></li>
<li><p>Generally colleges have you take some classes in different “disciplines” to make you a more well-rounded student. </p></li>
<li><p>Even if your major isn’t applicable to the course, doing the course on your own will show initiative to the college, along with providing you better skills to study better in the future.</p></li>
<li><p>I would say that Bio is easier if you can grasp the material and study well. That is my personal opinion however. Many people do end up thinking the Env. Sci is an easy AP and self study for it and do terribly. Be very careful with what you choose. You may want to look over different materials released by the college board about each class and see which one would be better for you. </p></li>
<li><p>Labs should be included in any decent study guide (Barron’s, Kaplans, AMSCO [research these as well]) that I would strongly recommend that you purchase since you are self studying. If you use those to review over the labs you should be able to grasp the material needed for the test. </p></li>
<li><p>Colleges do care about the difficulty of the courses that you take and self studying an AP class will show them initiative. It is a good idea to do it especially if you feel like a college is a reach for you.</p></li>
</ol>

3

<p>Thank you! I was talking to my counselor and he said that I should read over a few courses and pick a class. I think I might either do Environmental Science or Psychology.</p>

4

<p>If you decide to ever take APES class, keep in mind that some colleges don’t consider it a “lab science.”</p>

5

<p>What do you mean?</p>

6

<p>Most colleges will require you to take a lab science class. This would be a lab-based class such as AP Bio, AP Chem, AP Physics. However, if you did take APES and got college credit you would most likely have to take a lab-based class.</p>

7

<p>okay, thanks.</p>