Calculus at Community College or AP Calc at High School?

Archive Ask The Dean Archive
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<p>I agree with your assessment of JHU CTY mathematics. I felt the were abnormally hard (i took it when I was in 8/9th grade via online courses. They are LONG and fairly difficult… I used my Algebra I skills up till Geometry, Algebra II/Trig, and even a little bit of precalc.</p>

<p>I can only imagine what your son had to go through for Linear Algebra and now Calc III. </p>

<p>On another note adding on to what I had posted earlier - AP credits do not count as transfer credits - but college classes do. So you may want to consider planning out a “possible” schedule and how transfer credits may fit in (if you want to take the classes at a cheaper college)…</p>

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<p>So to summarize some solid advice across a bunch of posts so far… </p>

<p>1) Understand that there are 3 main reasons the “AP Calc vs. Community College” question may come up, and the right answer will be different based on different reasons for asking the question:</p>

<p>–Application purposes: “I want my college application to reflect the best possible level of competence so they’ll accept me”</p>

<p>–Placement purposes: “I don’t want to have to take something in university that I could get out of the way in high school; I want to be able to just jump in at a higher level” </p>

<p>–Credit purposes: “I want to be placed at a higher level AND be awarded credit toward my major or general education requirements at the university I go to.”
(This is the trickiest goal to shoot for because it involves the most variables: prestige of the college you’re shooting for; quality of your high school; quality of your community college; how well the cc class versus the AP exam mirror course content of equivalent classes at the university you’re shooting for. The best approach involves calling up 1) colleges you’re interested in, 2) the community college math department, and 3) the AP math teacher at your high school–and asking each of these your “AP vs. community college” question. DO NOT take just one or two of these three sources as the gospel truth; compare their answers and use that to make a decision.)</p>

<p>2) Go where your learning experience will be the best. If you KNOW your high school’s AP Calc class is a joke, then of course choose community college. If you know, deep down, that the reason you’re interested in a community college class is that it might be easier than your high school’s AP, that’s a good indication that you need to stick with AP. (And I’d say you’re in competent hands if your high school’s AP Calc class generally has a few students who earn 5s every year.)</p>

<p>3) AP Calc AB and AP Calc BC are two VERY different propositions as you’re deciding whether to do AP or community college. If your high school only offers AB (even if it’s taught well), don’t spend a year in AP Calc AB (equivalent to Calc I placement/credit) if you can take Calc I and II at the community college. </p>

<p>4) AP exams serve colleges as a sort of universal measure of achievement, and whether you take an “AP” class or not, you should take the AP EXAM anyway–if for no other reason than to validate, in a sense, what you did elsewhere. This holds whether you’re interested in college applications, placement, or being awarded credit. Even if you have a good reason for taking a cc class (e.g. the high school AP teacher is incompetent and nobody in the class does better than a 2), and you get an A in the cc class, still take the AP test. It’s undeniable that a cc “A” resulting in a 5 carries a lot more weight than a cc “A” resulting in a 3.</p>

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<p>Well put maligirl. You also need to consider what sort of college and degree you are aiming for. If you are a liberal arts person, unlikely to actually make much use of Calc once you are in college, then , in all probability, passing the AP AB test, through whatever route is best , is more than sufficent. If you are interested in science/engineering/math, then look at the policies for the schools you are interested in.
Consider the logistics as well. CCs and colleges run on different schedules than high schools and it can be difficult to coordinate them. If you can, talk to kids at your school who have tread the path before you and see what they say.</p>

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<p>Agreeing with maligirl here on taking the test as well as the class. My son (VERY math-focused) took calc at the CC primarily because we’re homeschooling and he’s taking LOTS of classes there. He also took physics at the CC. He took Calc BC and Phys C (both parts) AP tests and got a 5 on each. We feel like it does more than validate those classes, but validates the entire CC experience. AP tests are universal gold standard. NOT TO SAY that they are necessarily the best way to teach a class, etc., but that they are respected as a benchmark. </p>

<p>ALSO, we’re finding that lots of colleges don’t allow transfer credit for college classes taken while in high school, but will grant AP credit.</p>

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<p>I’m surprised to hear some people having trouble having their kids community college Calculus class cleared at their 4 year University. Majority of community college classes (especially the essential ones like math, foreign language etc) are quite easily transferable.
AP classes are typically harder than just taking it at a local community college.
I know a young lady that basically dropped out of high school, got her g.e.d just so she can start community college early, by the time she was 18 she was at Caltech with more than a year already finished of college level courses.
Majority of University professors send their own kids to local colleges to start college credit early rather than gruel through AP.</p>

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<p>i think that ap classes are easier than college but since I am in high school i wouldnt know about the college classes. Also, it depends on the college you go to.</p>