<p>Hello,
I guess I go to a slightly competitive school where you need to apply for AP classes and there's a chance that you won't get the course. I'm not sure if this the case for every high school in the nation, but that's the process in my school.
I applied for four AP classes: AP English, AP US History, AP Calculus AB and AP Biology. AP Biology is a mandatory course for my junior year. I got all four of my choices and was wondering if it's going to hard or very stressful and if so, which class I should drop.
In regular classes, I guess I do okay. I've been getting straight 90s in most of my classes and have a 92 transcript average. I'm no genius, but I have good work habits.
How were your experiences with AP classes and how many did you take? Is it worth taking more than 3 in one year?</p>
<p>In terms of classes, I am only taking 1 (Art History) this year and I am taking 6 next year. My schools works the same way as yours; Ie have to try out first (testing, letter of intent, and other perquisites) if I want to take an AP class. For example, our school will only have 1 class or AP Microeconomics next year (32 students) and like 150 people tried out. Luckily I made it in but 4/5 of the people got rejected. I say that if you make it into any AP classes, it’s worth taking it. You’ll score bonus points if colleges know that you’re school is competitive about taking APs. If you’re really unsure, I’d suggest that you do research on the teaching style of your AP teachers.</p>
<p>I’m a sophomore and that too, an incoming sophomore so I wasn’t given any APs. I basically took regular classes this whole year. For AP classes, we needed teacher recommendations so I’m guessing if my teachers think I can do it, I should be able to. Either that, or they’re waiting for my funeral…</p>
<p>Ok, after taking an AP course as a sophomore, and being severely underwhelmed, I have to say this: Do what you feel is right. Take what load you think you can handle. All AP courses are are a way to better time management.</p>
<p>I’m happy to say that I survived 3 AP classes this year: AP Language, APUSH and Calc AB. My APUSH class, like most across the country, was brutal in terms of workload, but not terribly difficult to grasp. Calc was by far the best class I’ve taken during my educational career. Language was alright but for all the work I put in learning vocabulary and carefully annotating passages, this year’s test was reminiscent of a state mandated test.</p>
<p>While Top Colleges like to see that you’ve taken the most rigorous courses offered at your school, there’s the understanding that having pushed yourself too much for QPA’s sake isn’t impressive. Of your 4 APs, the least crucial is English. If you can take a day or two to familiarize yourself with the 3 essays, you can easily get a 4 or 5 on the exam without having sat through the class.</p>
<p>Workload for Bio/USH is usually tough but manageable. If you’re pretty adept at math, Calc should be a breeze. English is almost entirely dependent on your teacher (my school’s AP Eng Lang is pretty easy) but the actual AP test is usually always easy. You say you have good study habits/work ethic, so it’s definitely doable.</p>
<p>It depends on you. My school is not like yours, but is still a competitive school. You can probably manage 4 APs, at least most people who come on CC can manage that and typically even more. If you feel like you can do it, then by all means try. I took 6 AP classes this year and typically did not feel overwhelmed.</p>
<p>i think you’ll be fine. I took 1 (Art History) my sophomore year then 4 (Chemistry, Statistics, English Language, US History) my junior year and then 9 senior year : took 8 classes and self studied (Biology, Physics C: Mechanics, English Lit, Spanish Language, Micro, Macro, Calculus BC, U.S. Government and self studied Psychology). I had a really busy senior year with sports and other extra-curriculars but I still did well in my classes and survived the year so I think 4 should be no big deal. and it seems like you have the right attitude and good work ethic so I you should have no worries, it won’t be as difficult as you believe.</p>