Hello just wanted to know the purpose of taking certain AP classes. If I take environmental science would they only count my credit hours to environmental science? Also, what are credit hours in college and how do I tell if a school will let me skip a level because of my AP score (is there a certain number of hours) ?
You may some, all, or none of the following from a sufficiently high AP score:
- Credits toward the number needed for graduation. In the common credit hour system, 120-128 credits are needed to graduate, and some schools give credits for AP scores (depending on which AP and the score, could be from 2 to 8).
- Subject credit against specific requirements. For example, a college may accept a sufficiently high score in AP calculus AB in place of a calculus 1 course that may be required for some majors.
- Advanced placement. For example, a college may allow students with a sufficiently high score in AP calculus AB to start in calculus 2 instead of calculus 1.
Each college may have a different policy. Even within a college, (2) and (3) above may differ for different majors.
AP classes generally get you nothing, but scores on AP exams often do. Search for “AP credit” + “college name” to see what the policy is for the schools you are interested in attending.
A credit hour in college usually means how many hours per week the class meets. Labs are sometimes not included in this. EG: an english class might be worth 3 credit hours – it meets for 3 hours per week, like 8:30-9:30 MWF or 9-10:30 T THR. Full-time is usually 12 credit hours or more per semester.
AP classes, with the right scores on the tests, often let students get credits in that subject area. EG: AP Language – with a passing AP score, the student would get 3 credits or more of English and might be able to skip to the next level, or not have to take any in college, depending on what the major required for English classes.
every college is different with AP scores and what credits they will give.
Sometimes, if the AP class is specifically geared at your major, the college may not accept the AP credit, and have you take the class according to its own syllabus. (Like AP art history for some art majors.) Sometimes the AP credit might have nothing to do with your major, and it might fulfill general electives that would be required. (Like AP environmental science for an art major - fulfilling a science requirement). Sometimes the AP test score might give you credits for a needed class in your major (like AP Calc = beginning calc for Actuary Majors.)
The colleges you’re interested in should have AP evaluation charts listed. You can google the name of a college + AP credit evaluations and charts should pop up, showing what scores are needed, and how the AP class in HS would cancel out a beginning college class. Hope this make sense; it might involve a little bit of inputting on your end.
12 credits is the usual minimum for full-time status for financial aid purposes, but 12 credits per semester will result in needing 10 semesters (5 academic years) to graduate (assuming a typical 120 credit minimum to graduate). To graduate in 8 semesters (4 academic years), 15 credits per semester are needed to make 120 credits in 8 semesters.
^ totally varies by school.
D’s requires 31 credits to graduate.
However, 31 credits to graduate means that each credit is not the common “credit hour”. More likely, it is a school where one course is usually one credit, and each course is considered equivalent to 4 credits at a “credit hour” school.
^^ that’s the beauty of AP tests and good scores. If you plan it right and get good scores, these AP credits might mean you would have to take a few less entry level classes in college, which could mean that you could possibly graduate early, pay less tuition, have room in your schedule to add on another major or minor or all sorts of things.
my kids had spreadsheets on their favorite colleges, and which AP classes would be accepted & which scores would be needed, and which APs would give credit in the majors they were looking at. AP credits were not the deciding factor for college choice, but they were helpful.
Yup. My own college also counted credits that way. So at either of those, an AP grade might get you a credit, per. Or sometimes 2. My S’ college had the individual credit system you seem most familiar with, where a class can be worth anything from .5 credits (first year orientation class, etc) to 4-5 credits (usually a class with lab).
Just to reinforce, the keyword here is might. Every college decides what credit (if any) to give what score. Some colleges allow AP credit to be applied to the major, some don’t. Some allow AP credit to count toward distribution requirements, some don’t. In general, private universities are stingier with credit and require higher scores than public universities. As noted earlier, most colleges AP credit charts are easy to find via google.
In order to make a “master plan” and take the optimal AP classes (exactly the right ones - no more no less) that will allow you to use them for class credit, you would need:
- a very specific list of colleges that give credit for AP tests that you will apply to
- a clear idea of the major you will be pursuing
- to know exactly which classes can be fulfilled with which AP tests/scores at each of those colleges
- to be confident enough to apply them to classes that they may recommend you retake anyway once you are there (yes, that happens).
Barring that kind of foresight most HS students don’t have, beyond the basics (like, going as high as you can go with math, if you are leaning towards STEM), take what interests you. My D took APES over bio because she did not hear positive things about the bio instructor preparing students adequately for the test and the interdisciplinary nature of ES looked interesting to her. She got an A in the class, a 5 on the test, and it fulfilled one of her lower division classes in her major which is, you guessed it, Environmental Science.