@skieurope - what would be a typical 5 APs Cambridge would expect for a stem kid? My limited research made it seem like they want depth more than breadth because the British system is more specialized by age 18 than the American system.
Typically a math (preferably calc and even more preferably BC) and 2 sciences. Ideally the 4th would be another math or science. The 5th can be a non STEM core course. E.g… Lang or Lit or history, but not Human Geography or Psych.
What would this look like for a history major coming from B.S.? I’m assuming two AP histories, English AP, and two miscellaneous ones. Seems like quite a juggle for B.S. students, especially if additional AP exams don’t help for U.S. admissions…
Would be difficult or impossible for a kid to find the time to take AP’s unless the school was offering a corresponding course or they wanted to do a couple in areas of interest over the Summer/break. For BS which offer AP’s, it’s a no brainer.
@skieurope I often see that people on CC argue that self studying AP provides can have a negative affect on the odds of American admissions. Given that a student self-studies AP for UK schools, should they withhold the scores when applying to U.S. schools?
It’s not that the scores are negative. It’s that they will not help in admissions. If self studying detracts from ECs, that can hurt. But the past is the past, so no reason to withhold strong scores.
Also people often use the term self studying incorrectly. Learning an entire course on one’s own is self studying. Filling in the blanks between an AP exam and a boarding school class is called prep. No negative connotations on the latter example at all.