<p>Last year (my junior year) I took two Community College classes (Bio and Chem) but no APs. I didn't even realize APs were available to homeschoolers til I came on to this CC board. I will be taking two APs this year through keystone (Government and Micro/Macro Economics) and my Pre-Cal and Physics at the CC.</p>
<p>Will the Bio and Chem be considered equivalent to if I had taken them AP? Will my transcript seem less rigorous because I took CC classes instead of AP?</p>
<p>Taking CC classes is great because they demonstrate that you are willing to expand your knowledge; however, we don’t know how rigorous those bio and chem classes are. You can enroll to take the AP exam for credit, though!
I think overall, colleges will be pleased to see that you are enriching your academics with more from another resource though.</p>
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I don’t think it will really matter but you need two college classes in both chemistry and biology (Normally listed as General Biology I&II and General Chemistry I&II to equal the AP class. If you do this you can take the AP test just to prove the rigor of the classes.</p>
<p>Oh man, I’ve only take the I in each course, so I should take the II of each or it won’t equal a HS credit? or just an “AP” credit? </p>
<p>Each class was worth 4 college credit hours, I thought 4 College credits = 1 HS credit?!</p>
<p>Will it screw me up if I don’t get those other classes in?</p>
<p>It depends on the AP class and teacher, and it depends on the AP class and teacher.</p>
<p>Don’t worry about it. You’re comparing apples and oranges. Lots of homeschoolers take CC classes or lower div. classes at 4 year colleges instead of APs. More homeschoolers go that routes rather than taking AP courses/tests.</p>
<p>And yes, 1 semester of college is considered roughly equivalent to a year of high school, however that’s just a catch-all way of looking at it, and not necessarily official policy in any given place.</p>
<p>I’ve known homeschoolers who’ve gotten into highly selective colleges without a single AP course/test. Doing both, as you’re doing, is fine. But certainly you have no reason to think that somehow you’ve made some big mis-step. Feel proud of what you’ve done!</p>
<p>Eh, I think having the lab experience is important, and I know the CC course is more rigorous/fast paced than a regular high school course. I wouldn’t worry too much- I did the same thing for chem. </p>
<p>CC courses are also good because you get the discussion aspect and you can meet some really great teachers, which will help you out come application time/for recommendations.</p>
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<p>Haha… I didn’t realize it was you again. 
(I don’t know how I end up replying to all of your posts). </p>
<p>It is comparing apples to oranges, the only thing I’m trying to point out is what you should do if you’re trying to take AP tests for credit. Adcoms don’t have charts they compare courses with. </p>
<p>And just call UNC and talk to them, it will help! :)</p>
<p>I am attending Princeton this fall, and I was homeschooled all 4 years of high school.</p>
<p>APs count FAR more than County College courses. Only take a CC course if there is no AP test offered for it (i.e., I took Organic Chemistry at the CC.)</p>
<p>There’s no formula. My son took only one AP test, but took lots of college classes and he’s at Amherst (only place he applied). Danas’ daughter did neither APs nor college classes and she’s at Princeton.</p>
<p>Just choose for yourself where and how it suits you to challenge yourself intellectually, academically, creatively, etc.</p>
<p>I believe that generally speaking AP > CC.</p>
<p>But it also depends on the type of school. I know in Florida there’s an agreement that community colleges have with the universities that their courses will be transferable for CC grads (additionally CC grads in Florida are guaranteed admission into A public 4 year university in FL, but not necessarily the one of choice). So if other states have similar agreements I’d say go for that since I know at some schools, like the one I went to, sometimes a 5 on an AP test means nothing. In my case, a 5 on the AP Physics B exam gave me no college credit at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology since the most basic physics course taught at Rose is calc-based and Physics B is not calc-based. CC would have at least given me general elective credit which my AP score did not.</p>
<p>Almost every case I’ve heard personally and from friends is that AP classes have become more and more watered down, are too set of a curriculum, etc- for them to be the true equivalent of a college course. For the core courses AP offers, they are closer to 100-level college courses. The electives mean next to nothing, although I find them to be very enjoyable as enrichment courses.</p>
<p>It would depend obviously on the rigor of the courses offered at the CC, but from my experience, CC classes are almost always more challenging and up to speed in comparison to APs. I live in California, where the state schools are in extremely high regard internationally, so most transfers come from the local CCs. SO…our CC classes are very rigorous. I personally have a lot of fun going outside of the box and end up learning more in the process, so I would DEFINITELY say- go CC’s!</p>
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<p>I disagree completely. I took 84 credits worth of CC classes throughout my years of high school and 0 AP classes or tests and it didn’t hurt me at all.</p>
<p>Of course I also recommend taking standardized tests to show them that you have learned the material. In my case I took four SATIIs and my triple perfect scores showed that my CC classes weren’t pushovers.</p>
<p>Having had two kids go through the process without either CC classes or AP courses or tests, I think testing is the key. In their case the SAT Subject Tests.
I can’t say whether CC courses or AP courses are better. I will say that AP TESTS give admissions people something to compare with the rest of the pool. I imagine that a grade in a CC course is tougher for them to compare with other applicants’ records. Just as an “A” in a course means different things from one high school to another high school, or even from teacher to teacher.
I would say that if someone prefers a CC course for whatever reason, go for it. Any possible testing disadvantage can be covered by taking a SAT Subject Test. Cheaper and shorter than an AP test, and more finely calibrated as well. The best deal around for home schoolers, IMO.</p>
<p>True true about the subject tests. It’s even cheaper to re take if necessary, not to mention you can really take them more at your own convenience. </p>
<p>CC classes, in my experience, are somewhat hit or miss. For the ones that I found less challenging, I tried to supplement with my own reading or research so that when I put it on my transcript, i’ll have completed a more informative course. You can always supplement if you feel like you’re not getting that much out of it.</p>
<p>@lolcats4: 84 credits?! Is this all you did for HS? Or are these credits 5 for a semester…?
@danas: But aren’t the SAT 2’s easier in general? Obviously not compared to Human Geography, but still…if you took the AP test as well as the CC, would it be a double whammy? (I used that term! I used that term!)</p>
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<p>During my junior and senior years in HS my workload primarily consisted of CC classes (about 15 credits/semester, 3-5 classes). Before then it was more evenly divided between CC and pure homeschool classes</p>
<p>Wow, that’s awesome. Was homeschool self-study or was it through a program? What did you do for EC’s? This is really intriguing because it’s not exactly the norm for CC or elsewhere…</p>
<p>My homeschooling classes were entirely self-study. </p>
<p>For ECs I basically did whatever I wanted…I didn’t even realize that colleges cared about them until my Junior year. Boy Scouts, Violin/Orchestra, Swim Team, and Strategy Game Design were my primary ones. I wrote my main essay for all my schools on the last one.</p>
<p>Strategy Game Design? Intriguing. You clearly worked hard, enjoyed it, and deserve whatever rewards come your way. Kudos!</p>