<p>Is it possible for me to take and score 5's on four A.P. exams this May?
I'm a junior who attends an American-curriculum international school that does not offer any A.P. classes. Students at our school only take A.P. exams in grades eleven and twelve; the very few students who decide to take A.P. exams almost always take just one.
I want to self-study and take U.S. history, European history, English literature and composition, and biology, but I haven't begun focused studying yet.
I have some background knowledge in these subjects because I'm currently taking American history, I did world history (with a focus on Europe) last year, and I've done biology and/or marine biology and English since grade nine. I maintain an A average in all my courses (which are moderately difficult), and my critical reading and writing skills are great for high school standards. I'm also a very motivated and hardworking student, so sticking to a solid study plan should not be hard. I don't have an extremely heavy academic workload, although I am involved in a number of extra-curricular activities (varsity badminton, musical theater, band, creative writing, community service, and student government).
I'm in the process of planning my self-study, but now I'm not so sure about preparing for four A.P. exams at once. Am I underestimating their rigor? How hard is it to score fives on these four exams, anyways? Do you think I have a shot? If not, how many do you think I should take? Which ones?
I'm just so confused because I really don't know what to expect. Please do give me advice based on your experience with A.P. exams! Thank you so much!</p>
<p>Personally, I think this is a little on the absurd side, but why not? </p>
<p>Some insight: We discussed the requirements for a five in Literature today. You need to score a six on each essay and answer 46 questions correctly (you are allowed to be wrong for 9): this will give you a base score of a 109. 108 or higher is a five. </p>
<p>The essays are based on a scale of one to nine; nine being beyond amazing, one being terrible. Less than 1% score a 9 on any of the essays (look at individually), 4-5 are the most common scores. </p>
<p>On another basis - we did an easy poetry passage followed by 12 or so questions. Only six students out of 100 students (all of the classes; you figure 25 in 4 classes) answered all twelve correctly. Most students generally were wrong for 3-4 of them. Considering this was an easy assignment and that people still managed to miss some – missing only nine out of 55 questions is a bit unrealistic. </p>
<p>It looks to be a little on the rough side… Manageable and definitely doable, but you’re going to have to put forth that extra effort. </p>
<p>As for US History - I took honors last year, but I took the SATII and scored a 670. You can consider that to be a 4 (albeit a low one)… but I think with extra studying – you could score a five. REA Crash Course is great for US History.</p>
<p>Absurd, but possible? I don’t mind putting in the extra effort at all. Thanks a lot for your insight =)
I sort of forgot to mention studying for the May SAT in my last post. Do you think this new detail changes things?</p>
<p>Hell no it does not change things. Here’s what im doing. Im preparing for AP CALC, AP BIO, AP PHYSICS, AP STATISTICS AND SELF-STUDYING AP PSYCHOLOGY. the most AP’s other people are taking are two. It’s not about where you’re from. it’s about what you got.
And did i mention im taking the SAT’s in may?</p>
<p>fresh101, I think you’re right! =D
I just wasn’t sure because I haven’t taken any A.P. courses or exams before.
Now, I think I’m going to go for it 
Thanks for the reassurance and good luck!</p>
<p>You’re seriously underestimating their rigor. Only about 10% of test-takers score 5’s on APUSH and APEH, and that’s after taking a year-long AP course. Some AP study guides (like 5 Steps to a 5) can be used to do a six week review for the test, but they assume you’ve been in the course all along.</p>
<p>Look at some past AP exam problems on the College Board web site and see where you stand right now. Also check Wikipedia’s entries for each of these tests – they give score breakdowns for past years. My guess is that by starting your studying for four tests this late in the year, you’re most likely going to top out at a 3.</p>
<p>Also, it’s past the deadline in the U.S. to sign up for AP exams. I don’t know about the deadlines where you are, but you probably better ask in a hurry.</p>
<p>The absolute deadline for counselors to turn in forms to AP is something like March 31.</p>
<p>I think it’s certainly possible (perhaps not even all that difficult, for some people) to self-study for all four of those tests in one year and score fives on them, except for the minor problem that WE’RE ONLY TEN DAYS AWAY FROM APRIL.</p>
<p>From personal experience, I can tell you that AP U.S. History and AP European History are extremely content-driven exams - and I’ve heard that AP Bio is as well, though I haven’t taken it. The vast majority of people who take these exams have spent well over 150 hours in class (classes geared specifically towards the AP test) for each subject and many many more doing homework and projects outside of class. There is simply too much information to try and cram in within a month and a half.</p>
<p>… then again, you do say you’ve taken these courses in high school, so I’m going to echo what somebody above me said and tell you to take a practice exam. You’ll know exactly where you stand on the multiple choice, which is a pretty good - though not foolproof - indicator of how you’ll do on the essays.</p>
<p>English Literature is different; if you say you’re good at writing and critical reading, then there’s probably only so much you could have improved at in a high school course anyway, and the test will likely not be very hard for you. In fact, if you really just want to rack up some AP scores, I’d recommend taking English Language and Composition instead of one of your history exams; just make sure you’ve read over the requirements at AP Central and know how to differentiate between essay-writing for the two English AP tests.</p>
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Good call. I should start studying :O</p>
<p>Hey everyone, I really appreciate your opinions! Thanks!
I went through all the multiple choice questions on the A.P. course descriptions for English literature and composition, U.S. history, European history, and biology. I correctly answered 33/46 of the literature questions, 26/40 of the U.S. history questions, 22/38 European history questions, and 25/45 biology questions.
I’ve come to the conclusion that I don’t have enough time to prepare for four exams, so I’m thinking of doing European history next year. Should I not do any others?</p>