<p>I’m pretty sure other people have said what I’m about to say, but I’ve noticed that top level schools tend to give very little in terms of AP credit. However, self-studying AP tests is very beneficial if you do enough; the Siemen’s foundation awards students who are successful (scoring all 5’s) in many tests, and you can be recognized for it (I’m Michigan’s recipient of the Siemen’s award for Advanced Placement). Even if you don’t win for the state, you can still receive the National AP scholar award, though it has less distinction. I’m pretty sure that, even though the scores may not determine anything, awards and recognition can. Of course, with these schools, its really a shot in the dark when if comes down to it, unless you are an outlier.</p>
<p>Any given applicant has 15-18% chance of ending up at an Ivy at best (if we take the highest acceptance rate of all the Ivy schools). Forfeit the possibility of starting as a sophomore at some other school for your 15% Ivy chances?</p>
<p>^hell no. Ivy is not really worth it for med school admissions.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Absolutely! PM me with it if you’d like.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Oh, for sure. I mean “fairly decent” within the cutthroat sub-realm of CC Ivy League applicants.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Right. OP really needs to be prepared for the possibility that he, like many other superb applicants on CC, will not get into any of his selected Ivies – at least as an undergrad.</p>
<p>It was worth it for me because even though I (and everyone else) thought I was a shoo-in for Princeton & Stanford, I got rejected and am now going to U of Arizona, where I’m getting a whole semester’s worth of credit for only three tests. It’s all about how sure you are that you’ll be accepted to an Ivy. And just because you take the class doesn’t mean you have to take the test. Just taking the class shows that you’re challenging yourself and preparing for college.</p>
<p>Are you all daft?</p>
<p>
That was the original post guys. If you wanted to argue that the AP matters for the admissions process, fine. But nearly all of you are ignoring the crux of the question: AP credit for college courses. Senior year APs don’t count for admissions, and I think that people tend to take the highest number of APs their senior year, so the question remains legitimate in this vein and solely in this vein, without any admissions relevance. Granted, maybe then the question shouldn’t have been placed in this forum, but that doesn’t change the premise of the question. </p>
<p>Frankly, there is definite cause for belief that, outside of admissions advantages, APs are worth squat at Ivies. 1) Exactly how big is the demographic that actually wants advanced standing for the sake of graduating early? 2) What is the point of taking an AP test that offers only blanket credit and not advanced course placement if advanced standing isn’t desired? 3) Even if advanced course placement is awarded, aren’t there multiple reasons to revisit a topic covered in a completely different setting than which it was originally learned? I challenge that APs, at least those taken in senior year, serve much purpose for the majority of future Ivy students.</p>
<p>Ok, I scrolled through some of the posts and a lot of them are incorrect. Ap Exams are a way to show either grade deflation or inflation. Some ap classes do nothing, others have 3 hours of h.w a night. Even though ap exams carry a huge curve how many people do you see with 10 5’s? Colleges need some standard for high school classes. An honors class does not mean anything because the criteria can change for every high school. </p>
<p>But yes, ap exams aren’t a large part of admissions, admissions officers still glance at them. You can also win awards such as National Ap Scholar which does count in admissions.</p>
<p>Ok, addressing the original post:
- People continue to take AP tests simply to show the colleges everything they are capable of. Besides the cost of taking the tests, there really isn’t a down side.<br>
- The scores may only matter in terms of gaining credit, but Columbia and Princeton are both giving me credit on some of my AP scores. Also, I don’t know if this was previously stated, but Ivy’s often put students on a sort of “advanced” track if they have taken enough AP courses. I know, for example, that Harvard does so, and Princeton offers the same. So directly, it may not seem worth it. But honestly, with such a small downside, why wouldn’t you?</p>
<p>Besides, if you’re expecting to get into the top schools, you should probably put in the extra work, that’s the mindset needed to succeed.</p>
<p>^Agreed. And from what I’ve experienced, most elite colleges, ivies included, do in fact give some sort of compensation for AP exams. Dartmouth for example gives credit/some kind of placement out or exception for most AP tests. (Of course, you have to score a 5 in most cases.) Plus good AP test scores can’t do anything but help you in the admissions process while no test scores can make admissions officers wonder why you didn’t take the test when you took the class. It can amount to a lot of money but in my opinion it’s worth it.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Sometimes, a student with useful AP credit uses it not to graduate early, but to effectively free up an elective space. For example, if a student needs to take 4 math courses for his/her major, but uses AP credit to take just 2 or 3, then s/he will have 1 or 2 more free electives to take in his/her 8 semesters.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Some common reasons:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>If the university course covers significantly different material, or in greater depth or rigor than the AP syllabus. But in this case, the university probably does not give subject credit for the particular AP test (or may only give it for the non-majors’ version of the course or only for non-majors). Or an optional honors version of the course is offered, so the student with AP credit takes the honors version.</p></li>
<li><p>If the student passed the AP test with a 3 or otherwise felt that s/he did not have full command of the course material. Sometimes, a 3 is not accepted by the university for subject credit anyway.</p></li>
<li><p>If the student thinks that retaking the course (instead of taking more advanced courses) will give an “easy A” for medical or law school purposes. The non-acceptance of AP credit by medical schools further incentivizes this type of action.</p></li>
</ol>