<p>I am signed up to take the AP Calc BC and Physics exams. I have researched Penn's AP policy and have noticed that although they give credit for these two classes they do not allow you to use this credit to fulfill the math/science requirements. What I don't understand then is what use would these credits then have and is it even worth the time to study for these exams?</p>
<p>Oh and by the way the same question for the AP Lang exam?</p>
<p>Yikes! Those are two hard AP classes! For higher, better schools, like PENN, they don’t like to give credit to Ap classes, due to them wanting you to take the classes at the college.</p>
<p>What thebennorton said is absolutely false. Penn gives credit for 5’s on the AP Calc BC, Physics (B and C), and English Lang & Comp exam. See here for more details: [AP</a>, IB and Pre-College Credit - Penn Admissions](<a href=“http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/apply/freshman-admission/ap-ib-and-pre-college-credit]AP”>http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/apply/freshman-admission/ap-ib-and-pre-college-credit) </p>
<p>A 5 on BC Calc gets you MATH 104 credit, which is useful for Wharton, Engineering, CAS…pretty much every school/most majors. </p>
<p>A 5 on Physics B/C will place you out of the physics requirement for most life science majors (Bio, chem, etc.), though if you are pre-med, you still need to take a year of physics for a letter grade I believe.</p>
<p>A 5 on English Lang will just get you a credit of free elective, which isn’t that useful, but still good to have around (you can take 1 less class and graduate, essentially—free space to pursue a minor, double major, dual degree, etc.).</p>
<p>Hardworking21 - that’s what I was trying to say. They don’t like to give credit, only a select few tests get it with a 5.</p>
<p>AP credit basically does two things at Penn. It can count as pre reqs for higher classes, such as a 5 on Calc BC exempting you from Math 104, and it also counts as an elective credit. A certain number of elective credits are needed to graduate, and these are basically classss that are not needed for majors or sector requirements. </p>
<p>AP credit almost never counts towards a major or minor, and it cannot be used to fulfill sector requirements (gen ed). However, it’s definitely worth taking AP tests that have the potential to give credit at Penn, as, at the very least, having elective credits is always a positive.</p>
<p>thebennorton: Not to get in a fight, but a vast majority of Penn students get 5’s on AP exams. Not only that, but Penn’s policy is reasonably generous considering how many AP exams they acknowledge for credit or wavier. Plus, if you take a foreign language exam (Spanish, French, etc.), a 4 alone will place you out of the foreign language requirement. So saying “a select few tests” is incredibly inaccurate; just look at the list!</p>
<p>Although they give you some form of credit for getting a 5 on many AP tests, most of the time it is not very useful. For example in the college, most of the credit you will get turns into elective credit because you can’t use APs to fulfill sectors or foundational approaches (except for language). As for Physics C credit, I think you should use it unless you want to major in physics. If you major in physics, it would probably be better to start with honors (phys 170) than to skip to phys 230. The calculus credit is useful, but you can technically get it retroactively if you continue with math at Penn.</p>