Serendipitously, we had a college info night last night and I was able to ask my D’s counselor to define “Most Rigorous” as viewed by the selective state flagship in light of the heavy use of APs at my D’s school. the GC is a graduate of the flagship and claims to have good knowledge of how they evaluate applicants. I specifically asked “Is it just about collecting APs and padding GPA?” Her answer was no, the AO is not looking for the number of APs, they are looking at the sequencing of courses and the implied motivation of the student to succeed. The best applicants do take a lot of APs, but the right APs with the right motivation.
In a previous post I said 7 APs were seen as “very rigorous” but not “most rigorous” here is the rationale:
While 7 APs is “very rigorous”, since the APs to be taken are not specified, they could be just a mis-mosh of subjects like AP Human Geo, AP STAT, AP PSYCH, APES, AP Art History, AP GOV, AP ECON. This course selection, while boosting GPA, would not demonstrate the motivation of the student to consistently challenge them self to succeed. So the number of APs alone do not make a schedule “most rigorous.”
Most rigorous would include the following:
- A sequence of math that ends in AP Calc, preferably BC Calc, but AB would be OK. The CG recommended AP Stat for college credit if it could be worked in, but it does not distinguish an applicant. If you are qualified to take Calc, then take Calc, not STATS!
- At least one AP Science with lab A student does not need to take all AP Sciences, but once they move to AP, they should continue to take AP sciences. My D took Honors Bio, Honors Chemistry and is in AP Physics 1 now. The CG suggests retaking Bio as an AP in senior year, that sequence would be evaluated as challenging herself to take the next step, plus she could get meaningful college credit. Taking APES when there is option to take a core AP lab science, even if it is a retake of an honors course, would not be viewed as the most rigorous option. Either of the AP Physic Cs are well respected but not expected of all applicants.
- Social Sciences starting with Human Geo and sequencing through AP World, AP USH, AP GOV. Key here is while Human Geo may not be viewed as most rigorous by itself, when part of a sequence that gives the student an AP Social Science every year, demostrates the student continuing to challenge themselves. AP Gov is not seen as most rigorous, but dropping back to Honors Gov in senior year would appear to be slacking off.
- Four years of a world language culminating in AP in level four is most rigorous, but it sounded like if a student only had three years due to starting late or scheduling conflicts it would not be detrimental.
So, taking the following 8 APs would not be viewed as most rigorous (think cherry picking):
AP Human Geo
AP STAT
AP PSYCH
APES
AP Art History
AP GOV
AP ECON
AP Eng Lang
While the following 8 may be seen as most rigorous (think building a sequence and taking on challenges):
AP Calc AB
AP Physics 1
AP Eng Lang
AP Lit
AP World
AP USH
AP Gov
AP Econ
If a student takes on more APs due to interest or desire for college credit, that’s good, but not necessarily a boost. Also the expectation is mostly all As in APs, along with strong EC and test scores.
Please note, this applies to a specific instance of my D’s AP heavy school and our selective state flagship. But, the bottom line is the AOs know what to look for in their applicants, they are not impressed with cherry picking or piling on APs.