<p>I was wondering if and how anyone else self studied for both AP Physics C exams. How hard is self studying for these tests? I have access to Serway and Beichner 6th edition and know calculus very well. I especially need suggestions for online lectures and problem sets. Thank you for any replies!</p>
<p>I self studied for both. I took the exams two days ago so I don’t yet know if I was successful. But on average I missed 2-3 on MC and got maybe 40/45 on free response.</p>
<p>Generally it is not that difficult if you have a good understanding of the material, esp. if you are math-science oriented to begin with. I learned the material by reading a textbook and watching MIT’s OCW lectures (8.01 and 8.02). I did not really do “homework” or do many problem sets so I can’t comment on that.</p>
<p>Also I took multivariable calculus which is really helpful for Physics C because the concepts are very similar and there was a lot of crossover.</p>
<p>@hiker13910 Thanks! By lectures do you mean the excerpts available on iTunes U?</p>
<p>Yes the ones by Prof. Walter Lewin</p>
<p>I self studied both this year and TBH the AP review book is all you need. Along with released test material for practice after you’re done learning.</p>
<p>bump</p>
<p>Recommended textbook? Also this would be my first self-studied AP class, do you guys follow somewhat of a curriculum to know what to study for/what will be on the ap test? Is it too late in the summer to start?</p>
<p>Just coming back to this thread since I have my scores now. I used Fundamentals of Physics 8th edition to study, for both Mechanics and EM. I got a 5 on both.</p>
<p>For a curriculum to follow you can just refer to the Physics C course description. It lists all the details of things you should know how to do.</p>
<p>I don’t recommend you self-study Physics C: E&M. I tried, and studied for 2-3 weeks before the test. I ended up with a 4. If you honestly want to be successful, I recommend you start at least 4 months before the exam (so by January). </p>
<p>Self-studying for Physics C is not easy, but completely doable. I did it as an average Physics student, just really had to buckle down. I self-studied both for about 3 months and got two 5’s. </p>
<p>I did this in 2012.</p>
<p>It’s possible, but very hard and I wouldn’t recommend it. I had a teacher who didn’t teach anything past coulomb’s law in E&M and expected us to figure out everything else by ourselves (and I’m not exaggerating). I had to self study most of Mech and all of E&M…got two 5s though. Use flippingphysics.com and watch the calculus based lectures. They’re moderately interesting and the content is explained very well. </p>
<p>I self-studied the mechanics portion of the exam this year (I spent ~1-2 months), and I got a 5.
All I did was read the mechanics part of the Princeton Review book, and do a few sets of released free response questions in boring classes.
If you know how to do the old free response questions, you are essentially guaranteed to get a 5. </p>