Hi everyone!
So i don’t mean to brag but I’m a very all-around good student. I have a 3.9 unweighted gpa, 2290 SAT and nonpareil extracurriculars. However, Ive gotten two 3s and two 5s on the four AP exams I’ve taken (I suck at history). Will those 3s be seen negatively in my app for Ivys? This year I’m taking 5 APs and I may do poorly this year (not fail, but may get 1 or 2 3s). after this year I think I can have at best: 5 5s, 2 4s, and 2 3s, and at worst 3 5s, 2 4s and 4 3s. Will a lot of 3s look bad? I’m positive I won’t be failing any, which is good.
They aren’t really weighted as heavily, if not at all, as the rest of your application. At worst, it may seem as if your school incorporates grade inflation if you get As in the classes and 3s on the exams, but I wouldn’t worry about it too much.
@baller55 If you’re applying to top-tier schools, they’ll be looking for every reason to not accept somebody as there are thousands of top-tier applicants.
I think the main thing is that it kind of downplays your GPA. If you get an A, for example in AP Chem and get a 3 on the exam, it shows that the class was relatively easy and an A in that class will not mean as much. However, if you get a B in AP Chem, and you get a 5, it just shows that your school is a little harder.
I don’t think it will matter too much as I hear that they don’t care that much about AP scores, more so they care about the fact that you took the AP classes and were successful in them as classes are long-term commitments and the AP score is a product of a 3 hour test, but for Ivies, every small thing matters. Nothing you can do about it now, just pray and hope for the best.
@AnEpicIndian @rdeng2614 the two 3s I’ve gotten were the only two classes I’ve gotten Bs in! This year I’m getting straight As in 5 APs.
I’ve taken AP World: B3. AP Euro: B3. AP Stats: A5. AP Spanish: A5. And this year I’m in AP psych, ush, Calc ab, chem, and English, in addition to honors physics. I’m sure I can get a 5 in Calc, chem, and psych with studying. English is between a 4 and a 5 depending on essay difficulty, and I’m scared of ush because my teacher hasn’t taught me absolutely anything so it all depends on how lazy I am, or in this case how lazy I’m not! Thanks for the advice, more is always welcomed!
yeah World History is a very hard AP, and probably the same can be said about Euro too.
AP scores are probably the most insignificant part of your app. They can help but they cant hurt you much, if at all. I have a friend accepted to upenn who got a 1 on ap chem junior year, and mostly 3s on the rest of his ap exams along with a couple fours. However, he took like 13 or 14 ap classes. Schools don’t care about the score so long as youre not getting all 1s. They care that youre taking the most rigorous classes available and doing well in them. An A and a 3 doesn’t necessarily mean grade inflation either, just that someone’s teacher didn’t teach to the test. As long as youre passing them you should be fine. Failing a couple won’t be the end of the world. Schools can’t hold it against you if your teacher was bad and you failed the exam. All you need to worry about is getting an A and doing your best.
@baller55 Yeah again, I really wouldn’t stress about it. If you’re applying to colleges that use the Common App, you won’t even have to list bad scores. You can list up to eight scores including a combination of SAT II’s and AP exams, so I’d take list six of your best AP scores and two of your best SAT II scores.
@AnEpicIndian really?! I didn’t know that! I’m going to take three SAT IIs so hopefully I can get three fives this year so that the eight look fire!
AP Scores are to get credit for college. Not all schools have AP classes or have a limited amount of them. Sometimes you might only take them senior year, after you apply. So the key thing is that you are taking the most rigorous classes that your school has to offer. That’s why AP scores are not a big factor at all in college apps.
Any time you are applying to schools with a sub 10% admit rate, odds are you won’t get in. That’s the reality
However, in your case, when you don’t get in It won’t be because you got 3’s instead of 5’s on some AP exams. Or to put it another way, even with all 5’s you would be denied.
If you really must have an Ivy, you need to figure out how to make your app stand out–and scores are not the way to do that. If you cannot do that, throw a couple of apps into the lottery, but also find some schools that would be happy to have a strong candidate like you.
@qialah I completely understand and concur that scores are not everything! I’m just making sure that the scores won’t inhibit me from the best! My scores aren’t everything I have!
In fact, I’m involved in 6 honor societies, three interest clubs, two varsity sports.
Various extensive leadership programs that really beef up essays and what not.
Officer positions, including founder and president of the college preparatory club.
Great letters of recommendation will be given!
Anything else you guys think can help me out would be greatly appreciated
Like @rdeng2614 said, top tier schools will look for whatever reason to not accept applicants, however, like @giraffeinatree said, AP scores are somewhat insignificant in comparison to other parts of your profile. Overall, for top tier schools, I think the general admissions process will harm you more than those test scores.
Thanks to all! More advice is welcomed
They really don’t matter. I didn’t even report my AP scores to the school that I will be attending next year lol.
@rdeng2614 Ivy’s do not look for reasons to deny people it’s the opposite. They look for reasons to accept you.
@princetonboii You’re also right that colleges want to accept you in that they look for your unique qualities in your application. I’m just trying to say that since the competition is so fierce, colleges know that they have tens of thousands of extremely qualified applicants so they need a reason to “get rid of some” in order to narrow down their choices.