@myoldest: This isn’t unique to UChicago. At any uni, AP science credits will only allow a student to move up a level in difficulty or bypass a level. Students will take many chem and bio classes that increasingly specialize as they go up. One could pass out of calc, but then there are other computational classes (biostatistics, for ex) that they take. With five math, science and Latin APs, my D could only “pass out of” foreign language (and then she took that sequence anyway b/c she was dying to learn ASL).
@myoldest - I sent you another PM.
APs really aren’t college-equivalent classes at top-notch universities. They’re like basic courses offered at average colleges by instructors who typically wouldn’t be qualified to teach at that level. And the AP curricula can’t be targeted to an exceptionally-qualified group of students who have already finished high school. College Board is a business looking for as large a market as is viable for its product. Which also means structuring courses in a way that minimizes prerequisites and doesn’t impose a particular sequence among courses.
I totally get why schools like UChicago want their students to retake these courses. What I wish is that college admissions wouldn’t be handled in a way that pressures ambitious HS kids to take them in the first place. High schools are partially to blame – they could opt out or pushback, but then USNWR rears its ugly head once again with the challenge index and HS rankings based on number of APs.
@exacademic, @momzhood, and others, I really like where this conversation is going, but we are moving away from the OP’s original question. I am going to start a new thread regarding use of AP credit to place out of various subjects, and I would invite others to join. Good luck to the OP on deciding where to send his kid…it sounds like it may be coming down to UChicago v. Tulane, both good schools!
Every faculty member I know tells me that you should never AP out of a course in your major, particularly in STEM or math’y social sciences - unless it’s a very basic course (and you can substitute honors or a harder version).
I’ve spoken to parents of high schoolers doing PSEO* here in MN and they all consider AP to be baby stuff compared to the real course in college (even the basic course).
*Post Secondary Education Option (college courses).
@Sam-I-Am at #23 - good idea!
@JBStillFlying Right. They told him he could skip the earliest of the bio courses because he has so many bio courses already (even though that’s his major). But they said they really want him (and all kids) to take the rest of the science and math courses there, even though they completed the “equivalent” AP versions and got 5s on the tests. They are suggesting starting at the beginning of the sequence for each science/math subject, rather than skipping to more advanced levels. I totally get this, and don’t see it as a negative overall. In a sense, I’m hoping that the function all of those AP courses will serve is that he’ll be better prepared to ease into the rigor of the university. As exacademic mentioned, it is a bit of a racket in that college admissions is so tied to high school course rigor and taking the hardest courses available at your high school (and a lot of them). My kid has all AP and post AP courses his senior year. It’s put a real dent in his sense of being a senior and having a little bit of fun this last year of high school. It would work out great if he was going to a state school (for example, he’d go into our state school with almost 60 credits). But it doesn’t get him a lot of credit or advancement in the course sequences at a top school.
To the OP: I majored in Biology at UChicago and pursued a PhD followed by an MD. Feel free to PM me should you have any questions.
Thank you, @JBStillFlying and @myoldest, but lest we be pirates, please add these comments to the thread I just started. JBS, what classes CAN a kid apply AP credit towards…and @myoldest, are there 3 levels of bio classes and which will your kid take?
:ar!
@momzhood Got it and replied. Wholehearted thanks!