Hey CC. It’s been a while since I posted. I used to come to this site religiously when I was a 9th grader but I decided to go off and return at the start of my Senior year, like many of you recommended. I’m still the same as I was before, still with a good GPA, a #1 rank, and now that I’ve finished my SAT, an excellent SAT score. I’ve even found an area of interest, a spike you might call it-- I’ve become enamored with neuroscience and have competed in many competitions and received awards of relevance. I think all of this is alright for top schools, I stopped caring about whether I’ll get into top schools or not, I just want to put my best leg forward and I’ve had this thought, until today when I saw my AP scores. The drive and ambition are still in me, but I stumbled a bit mentally.
Here’s the thing. My AP scores have never been this bad before, and I know it’s because I took too many for my own good this last junior year. My school bases rank off of weighting, and given AP classes are important for weighting, I decided to take 8 of them. I only got a 5 on one of them, a 4 on another, and the rest were 2-3s. I was pretty much one away from getting the National AP Scholar award, so this tells you how my other AP scores from previous years were. There were pretty challenging classes in my schedule, and I acknowledge I took more than I could handle. My grades took somewhat of a hit second semester, with 3 Bs, but my UW GPA remains above a 3.92. Other than that, that’s my situation. I don’t know what to do. Of course, I’m naturally upset, but I’m hoping I can dig out of this hole. Please give me advice.
Some schools don’t require you to send AP scores and you can self report the ones you want. What is done is done, just focused on having a great senior year and putting together a balanced list of schools to apply.
Thanks, @momofsenior1. Do you know how many spots there are to fill out self-reporting AP scores on the common app and etc? I’ll just fill out until I max out the room, if I report anymore additional it’ll just hurt me, I imagine. But really, thank you for the reassurance.
Fret not…colleges are much more concerned about your grades in those classes as opposed to the AP tests.
Why is that?
- Doing well in a class shows you can learn over the year and work hard over a period of time. That is what they want in college.
- Not all HS have many APs.
- Many people take AP tests senior year which is too late for admissions
For example, Stanford says:
Students currently enrolled in AP courses are not required to submit AP scores as part of our admission process. AP scores that are reported are acknowledged but rarely play a significant role in the evaluation of an application. Grades earned over the course of a term, or a year, and evaluations from instructors who can comment on classroom engagement provide us with the most detailed insight into a student’s readiness for the academic rigors of Stanford.
http://admission.stanford.edu/basics/selection/prepare.html
Where does this leave you?
- It tells you that you cannot place out of those classes in college…you will need to take them in college like many many other people do.
- Do not self-report your 2-3 scores
Listen, my school didn’t offer that many APs, but even some of the APs they did had, the teachers were total whack on teaching and in the end most of us failed. The main point of AP is really earning college credits to lessen your stress when you’re actually in college (plus showing colleges you can handle it). In honesty, I only passed marginally on two AP tests, but in the end I still got into UCLA and UC Berkeley because of my life story. However, I knew the cost and competitiveness was going to be overwhelming, so I chose another “prestige” college that fits my need.
Don’t let the amount of APs get to you. If your school can only offer you 10 APs, then take around 7-8 in total of your H.S years. If a school offers more, go for more. If you’re planning to go for Harvard or Yale, then they will be reasonable on how many APs your school offered and how much you’ve taken.
I wouldn’t stress too much! I went through the application process last year, and was still accepted/waitlisted at fantastic schools despite reporting 3s on some of my AP tests. As long as you maintain your GPA and ECs, you should be golden! Especially if you got a good SAT score. Good luck in your endeavors, and remember that your AP scores won’t dictate your ability to get into any school.
Fortunately colleges care more about your grade but if you submit scores they’ll be held against you.
So, do not report any 2-3 scores.
Submit (list) all 4 and 5 scores. (At worst, report one 3 score in the subject you got a B in. It’ll make sense to the adcom and will be one more test taken from junior year, as submitting 3 results junior year looks fine. Do not submit a 3 from which you got an A in the Cass as it’d cast doubts on llntour As or., Suspicion of grade inflation at your school.)
Hopefully you learned from this.
Seriously, DO NOT take more than 4 APs senior year.
To top it off, kids who use the “everything but the kitchen sink” approach run the risk of seeming unfocused and AP robots… You’re better off targeting core APs and/or APs that relate to the majors you’re interested in.
What APs did you take this year?
Looking at all your APs which did you get 4-5s in?
Which are you taking next year?