<p>Which one is more preferable or gets more weight to the Top Colleges of the nation? In reality, which helps a student to get a feel of the college (I'm talking about the academic feel)?</p>
<p>I attended a Harvard, Georgetown, Penn, and some others seminar over the summer. Someone asked this and they basically said that if APs are available, you should take the AP class as opposed to college, but if no APs are available (or you've taken all available), taking community college classes would not be looked down upon; but overall, they prefer AP Classes.</p>
<p>I second mmkay.</p>
<p>Top colleges, AP. Colleges in your state, community colleges. In many states (such as Texas) the four-year state colleges are required to accept courses took at community college for credit.</p>
<p>for top schools, both ^^</p>
<p>At some schools they have really good courses in the community college. However if the course is NOT there at your school or you want to get ahead then take it there. It's not really bad. If you are going to a state school then it's good. For ivy's I'm not so sure.</p>
<p>A couple small LACs I've talked to said they rate CC courses high than APs.</p>
<p>It will depend on where you want to finish up at. AP, IB credits are "generally" more accepted around the country. CC credits could possibly be denined or discounted at a university. </p>
<p>I had to be convienced at AP was a better choice than real college credits right now at CC. We call it running start in WA. I wasn't an easy sell as it was a bird in the hand vs. two in the bush thing. However, since both kids ended up out of state and did well AP wise, the payback in scholarship and opportunities to double up in college worked out OK. </p>
<p>Which is better? It's going to depend on what you're seeking.</p>
<p>From what I've heard AP is more favorably looked upon because it is standardized and highly predictable.</p>
<p>Take the class wherever you can get it taught best, and then take the AP test to show that the class was for real.</p>
<p>^^Seconded.</p>
<p>I am convinced now that taking AP is a lot safer thing to do. And in fact, no matter how much the admission officers try to say that AP and CC get the same value (now, I'm just guessing that they might) they will have a hunch to prioritze a student with 5s on APs than a student who gets A's in CCs. But again it all melts down (as OpiefromMayberry said) to where you are really applying for. In fact, I should conclude that the CCs are comparatively easier than APs since the teachers definitely try to make the syllabus somewhat suitable for the majority.</p>
<p>I think you got the right idea, although I am sure that not all admission officers are of the same opinion.</p>
<p>I think it really differs depending on your high school, your community college and the college that you want to go to. Like if you have a bad high school w/ bad AP's then it's okay to take it at community college. Also it depends on the subject. Like if it's like Calc or like higher math then it's okay. If it's like Biology it's probably better to take in school.</p>
<p>Community college (for GE). AP only covers the basics. Even if you score a 5, you may get by without knowing everything you need for a college introductory course.</p>
<p>A CC course will be more accurate, though less competitive. Your grade will be more genuine than the memorization and repetition of answer production in the AP tests.</p>
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Your grade will be more genuine than the memorization and repetition of answer production in the AP tests.
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<p>The AP courses my son is taking by distance learning have none of those characteristics, but are rather very thoughtful and require a lot of essay writing in some subjects. Maybe that's because the</a> courses are taught by university faculty.</p>
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<p>A CC course will be more accurate, though less competitive. Your grade will be more genuine than the memorization and repetition of answer production in the AP tests.
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<p>Upon what do you base these observations? What do you mean by "genuine"? The 250 or so AP teachers that I know produce a class as good as, if not better than, many first year college courses.</p>
<p>I agree that a lot of AP teachers at my school teach much better than (first year) college professors.</p>
<p>I don't exactly know why I'm bumping this thread after SUCH A LONG TIME! It was probably one of my first threads at College Confidential! But, anyway, I just thought it might be helpful to someone.</p>
<p>One way you can tell for sure is to look at the formula colleges use to recalculate your GPA for admissions purposes. If they weight CC credits differently than AP/IB credits then you know which they clearly prefer. In Florida, for instance, this is mandated by the legislature for state universities as shown in this chart. (Dual enrollment +.5, AP/IB +1.0)
<a href="http://facts23.facts.org/Advising%20Manuals/pdf/Acceleration%20Mechanisms%20Comparison%20Chart%20-%20Feb%202007.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://facts23.facts.org/Advising%20Manuals/pdf/Acceleration%20Mechanisms%20Comparison%20Chart%20-%20Feb%202007.pdf</a></p>