I’m in the process of picking my senior schedule for next year. I have not taken a physics class yet so I think I should take some type of physics next year. My question is: can I take AP Physics C mechanics next year with no prior physics experience. I’m in calc AB now and doing pretty well so I’m not worried about the math. I have read mixed things on the internet and I’m starting to worry that AP Physics C mechanics shouldn’t be an introductory course (even though my teacher said it was). Thanks!
If the Physics teacher at your school says it’ll be fine, it’ll be fine. That teacher is more familiar with how physics is taught and what background is expected than any of us will be.
If the teacher says it’s an intro class, they’re obviously teaching it that way and kids are getting through just fine, right? If you needed a prereq to take it, they wouldn’t let you sign up for it!
It doesn’t really matter what other people say either, because each teacher and school will do things a little differently. What do people at your school say? Do they usually do well on the AP?
At my school, we take one semester of physics before AP Physics C and I think it helps a lot. But most people take intro physics freshman year and AP senior year, so really, it probably makes no difference.
Anyway, our teacher just shortens the first chapter or two, which for us is a review, and we have a ton of time leftover second semester to go over everything again for the AP (we literally finish mechanics in February and then review p!us cover the highlights of e&m).
So long story short, AP Physics C Mechanics doesn’t take a whole year to learn, meaning your class will likely spend more time on the first few chapters and finish the course around March/April. You’ll be fine, especially if you’re good at math. Plenty of schools do it that way – as long as it’s just mechanics and not e&m too, which would be unlikely.
If you’re still worried I can tell you a little more about what we covered before Physics C.
Good luck!! AP Physics C has probably been the hardest class I’ve ever taken besides AP Calc BC, but most of the time it’s just because there’s a wicked curve. You can do it!! And if you’re planning on taking/needing physics for college, I would strongly recommend it because it won’t get any easier in a huge lecture hall.
is this a whole year Mechanics class? Or is it half Mechanics half E&M (the normal case)?
my kid took AP Physics C without a Physics class beforehand. It was a tough adjustment his first month and a half but a lot of that was his fault. He was supposed to prepare over the summer, unofficially, as he was warned that this was easily the toughest AP class out of all and that there was no easing into the class, but he really didn’t. He crawled back out of the hole and got a B in the Mechanics portion, (E&M is actually way harder but by 2nd semester he got used to the pace and did a lot better) but he learned his lesson (hopefully). There was no previous Physics pre-requisite needed in his case, as everyone in his class took AP Chem the year before without taking a an intro Physics class.
I think you’ll be ok if there is no official Physics pre-req. Especially if it is a whole year Mechanics course. You probably should go through the first month of chapters for your Physics C textbook (my kid used the Wiley Fundamentals of Physics book) pretty thoroughly and not skim through the chapters like my kid did.