<p>So I have taken a buttload of AP courses and did fairly well on all except for one. I have some more coming up this May that I feel fairly confident about as well. Basically I looked on the UNC Chapel Hill AP Credit list and found out I have the opportunity to have earned 21 credit hours at the university. Is this enough credit to start college as a sophmore technically? (By the way I also took a summer course at Harvard this past summer for an 8-credit Physics course and passed with a C+. Should I even try to get this counted?)</p>
<p>Since you need at least 120 credit hours to graduate, a sophomore would have around 30 hours. Moreover, there are A LOT of students who come in with a lot of AP credits, so no one cares how many credit hours you have. Your classification for housing choice and registration time is also based on how many semesters you’ve been here, rather than hours - I’ve dealt with that firsthand.</p>
<p>Ajene - my daughter started UNC with 30 credit hours. Her academic advisor suggested she could graduate early, take lighter class loads, or take some time off. She decided to take off the next fall semester and travel/volunteer in South America for four months. Her goal is to become fluent in Spanish and gain valuable experience to support her Latin American studies 2nd major. She will still be able to graduate in 4 years. It’s also been nice for her to be able to take advanced level classes as a freshman and sophomore. </p>
<p>Congratulations on your achievements and good luck figuring out your plan. I would definitely try to get credit for as many classes as possible!</p>
<p>You only get eight semesters at UNC … there may be some exceptions, but that is the rule. You could use your hours to take lighter loads as suggested. You could study abroad. You can also get more than one degree. UNC allows three total. One major and two minors - or two majors and a minor. My son also brought in 20+ hours, and he is going to do just that. One major and two minors. He decided not to study abroad, as he enjoys his time at UNC.</p>
<p>Obnoxiously, the only thing credit actually gets you as far as any type of earlier registration is housing. That’s the one thing done by credits. But even then, I came in with 28 and had 55 by the time housing selection rolled around, and the Kenan community was already all full…</p>
<p>But I would definitely use this to take fewer credits during your first year. I was able to drop a class this semester, so I have 4 classes plus lfit and it was really nice to have that option. And take a bunch of random classes to figure out what you like if you’re unsure about your major or interests. It’s also nice because you probably have a lot of gen eds taken care of, so you have even more freedom to take whatever you want.</p>
<p>I came in with a lot of credits too so I was able to double major and only take 12 credits per semester. It’s really nice and less stressful than the regular 15 & I didn’t have to rush to fulfill gen eds. I’ve been able to take a ton of interesting classes too that are irrelevant to majors. There are a lot of cool classes at Carolina that you won’t be able to take once you’re in the real world. Unless you are financially stressed, I’d recommend staying the full 8 semesters and pick up another major or minor and take some interesting classes.</p>
<p>Just don’t go around telling everybody that you’re a sophomore by credit hours.</p>
<p>Also, if you’re thinking of trying to graduate early, you won’t want to. Trust me. I came in with nearly 40 hours and my friend came in with 90 hours and we both stayed all four years…most of it spent messing around and getting really involved in research on campus…and messing around.</p>
<p>Are there people coming in with credit who take only 3-4 classes their first semesters? That would be nice.</p>
<p>Yes, that is one of the potential benefits. However, 12 credits is the minimum to be a full-time student here.</p>