So, I was CAP’d, sadly. I am now planning on agreeing to the program and attending UT Arlington. By the time I graduate high school, I will have taken about 10 AP classes. Most of these classes are in the CAP curriculum, do I have to retake them or can I use my AP credit hours to opt out and complete the curriculum earlier?
AP credits do not count for CAP. You have to take 30 hours at your CAP school to qualify to admit to Austin. I say this based on how it was for my son in 2011 - so please verify, but I doubt it has changed. Look at the courses available for CAP though. You may find enough to take to satisfy the 30.
CAP is tough for AP/IB/Dual credits. You can use your credits but you still have to take 30 CAP hours. You may end up with hours you can’t apply to a degree plan later. One strategy is to take the classes you have AP credit for again during CAP in order to make it easier to get your required GPA. That means more money spent in the long run. It becomes a question of how much getting to Austin as a sophomore means to you. I know people who have and are happy with the outcome. I personally would not do it.
Why do you want to attend a program that does not count 10 AP classes for the privilege of attending UT Austin at some point? 30 college credits for 10 APs is like an entire year of college and it is simply not worth giving up for the privilege of attending some other college in future.
UT Arlington is a fine school and so are many others in Texas. My advice would be to attend one of them as a regular student where they give you college credits for your APs.
@texaspg “for the OPPORTUNITY of attending UT in the future”-there is no guarantee you will get to UT and no guarantee you’ll get your major when you there.
^ That is worse right? I know many very successful graduates of UT Arlington and there is no reason to give up their entire high school academic achievement just to see if they CAN get into a different school sometime in future.
@rach98n Did you son end up retaking the AP courses he already earned credit for? Did he like the CAP program? What was the end result for him, like did he end up attending UT Austin? @gettingschooled It’s my dream school and where I place myself. I was accepted into A&M, Texas Tech, and UTD but Austin has always been my first choice and I’m going to try my best to get in as a sophomore. What do you mean by 'there is no guarantee that you will get into UT"? The way I understand the program, if you get at least a 3.2 gpa you are automatically admitted into the liberal arts school, which is where I want to attend to get a BA in Psychology(yes I know this is a popular major but it is my passion not just something that sounds cool). I am also debating on whether I should minor or dual major in Neurology. Getting Cap’d is not the end of the world for me, I just need to prove to UT I am capable of meeting the requirements.
People with 10 AP credits should NEVER take CAP.
It is not worth it.
@logically14 - Why would you spend an extra year in college by giving up 10 APs?
What is there in UT that you are willing to pay for an extra year of college for, especially if you are admitted to fine schools like A&M, UTD and UTA?
You can easily get a master’s in that extra year.
@Logically14 I mean there isn’t guarantee you will get a 3.2. Look at the CAP statistics I posted in another thread - about 40 percent make it to Austin.
@Logically14 The son that did CAP only had dual credits, no AP, but I remember reading a lot about it. He went to UTSA for his CAP year and got one B in the 30 hours. He applied and was accepted to Mechanical Engineering. He just graduated this past Dec! I’m not sure with all your AP credits it would be worth it though. You would have to see if there are enough classes you need still to satisfy the 30 hours in order to make your decision. Tour UT Dallas too - they offer a lot of scholarship money and it might be a good option!
Has anyone heard of a way to still get credit for AP classes and complete the CAP curriculum? I could take 30 hours that aren’t the AP credits I’ve recieved and still claim them without them being part of the CAP then transfer all the credits over to Austin right? They wouldn’t count towards CAP but I feel like it would be ridiculous for them not to accept them as credit hours and allow me to transfer them.
Yes, if you search this forum you may be able to find posts telling you ways to do it. Whether it is a good idea or not is a whole other question.
If you claim AP you will have a lot of electives, and any major outside COLA will be a problem, since 4 year graduation rate is very important now.
http://www.utexas.edu/student/admissions/cap/2015-2016/uta.pdf
Or you can forget about AP credits at all, you don’t have to claim them. It’s ONLY 
$ 24,000 - 27,000 (depending on your life style, cost of housing etc) to pay for 33 credits. (AP US History is 6 credit hours)