Are AP Exam Scores important for College ADMISSIONS?

Applying to College
1

I know there have already been posts about this, but I still cannot find a sure, certain answer to this question. I remember people used to take AP courses purely for college credit, but now most people compete for the GPA boost. I, for one, don’t care about college class placement or credits. If I have to retake all the classes, so be it. I just want to know if AP scores affect college ADMISSIONS.

I have a near-perfect SAT score, 800s on Subject SATs, I am ranked 1st in my class (so yeah I benefited from AP GPA boosts), president of 5 clubs, launched a teen publication, admitted to 6 very selective summer camps, national art awards, etc. It seems I have everything set, but I feel very uncertain about my AP exams. I didn’t do well on my first and only exam (I scored a 3 on AP bio), and I’m about to take 4 AP exams in May and I feel a lot less than confident. Of course I have always been weak in Science but I feel very ill-prepared for the 4 exams (APUSH, Lang, Calc AB, Macroeconomics) I am about to take. It’s not that I haven’t been self-studying, but I’ve never been able to do well on such tests. The multiple choice sections seem okay, but DBQs and timed essays are killer. I consider myself a good writer, but I don’t write well under timed pressure. In fact, AP bio was a horrible experience considering I studied every word of 3 AP review books, and didn’t know the answer to half the free response questions.

So I guess the question boils down to this: If everything else (academic, extracurricular, and otherwise) is solid, but I end up not reporting any of my AP exam scores, how will that affect my chances in admissions?

Note: Although a 3 on AP bio is a passing score, it’s not accepted at any of the colleges I’m interested in.

2

In most cases, it will have no effect. AP scores are self-reported. Many schools, including elite high schools are moving away from AP classes. Some lower SES schools do not have the money to fund AP classes. For these and other reasons, AP scores will have little to no effect on college admissions.

Having said that, by having an AP class listed on your transcript and no corresponding AP score, you run the risk of an admissions officer thinking one of 3 things:
• Financial hardship prevented you from taking the exam
• You were not motivated enough to take the exam
• You took the exam and performed poorly
The first one will not affect your application; the last 2 may raise an eyebrow. AO’s can, and have, contacted GC’s to explain why there are no AP scores reported.

3

A 3 is still a respectable score. I wouldn’t worry about it.

Also, the bio exam went through a major redesign recently, making it much harder to get a 4 or 5. Is it possible that your review was geared towards the older exams? The 3 might not be indicative of your performance on other AP exams.

4

@skieurope Thanks a ton. That makes a lot of sense haha. I guess I’ll just try my best and see how I do. Hopefully, if I don’t do so well, I can compensate with my Subject Test scores.

5

@Matt846 Haha Thanks, hopefully I’ll do better on my other AP exams.