<p>I'm a rising soph in high school from NJ, and i was just wondering what the difference in the two Calculus levels are, besides their difficulty. </p>
<p>So far I know that both are given in the same day, and Calc BC's topics of study basically overlap Calc AB's. </p>
<p>Is it possible/realistic/beneficial to take BOTH tests? Like say, Calc AB this year, then self study and take Calc BC the following year? Would it count as two SEPARATE AP's? </p>
<p>Just wondering, thanks in advance.</p>
<p>I took AP Calculus AB in school and AP Calculus BC online (in reality, I just did the tests/final and never studied nor did the recommended homework). I took both exams. The extra content in BC is not noticeable until you hit that C element, which accounts for maybe 25% of all the topics you'll cover in both classes. In AB, you will not learn parametric equations, polar equations, arc length, surface area, sequences and series, Taylor and Mclaurin series, Euler's Method, and some others.</p>
<p>The two exams count separately, and if you want a strong math background, taking both classes is great (though gets a little repetitive when you start BC). My college gives 6 credit for either AB or BC, so it didn't help me, but since I'm starting in Calculus III I'm definitely a lot happier that I know all the extra content that AB didn't teach me.</p>
<p>You cannot take both the AB and the BC in the same year. Some schools offer AB one year, followed by BC the next, in which case the BC class usually extends beyond the BC curriculum into more advanced calculus topics. Some schools offer the choice of AB or BC, and you usually either take one or the other. The two exams are different, and so taking the AB exam and the BC exam counts as two separate exams.</p>
<p>One thing you might consider as you think about the situation is that the AP Calc BC test offers an AB subscore. While not all schools consider the AB subscore as equal to the AB test, it's certainly intended as such.</p>
<p>Another thing is that the BC test is not harder than the AB test on the overlapping sections. What they expect you to know on BC when it comes to u-substitution is exactly the same as what they expect you to know on AB. Sometimes the same question on the BC test may appear to be harder than on the AB test if you're not sure what you're doing: for instance, an integration question has a very limited number of ways to do it in AB and more methods in BC to choose from.</p>
<p>If memory serves, BC also has integration by parts and integration by partial fractions, in addition to the topics that arnoc named.</p>
<p>thanks a bunch, arnoc and TheMathProf! i'm hoping to take it next May, even though my school doesn't offer it until junior year</p>
<p>some of the stuff that you need to (like a cheat sheet/ basic sheet) for Calc AB
can be found at this site</p>
<p>I would just suggest taking Calc AB in the class, then doing BC on your own the next year - it's quite doable.</p>
<p>I actually did the opposite - took AB on my own and BC as a class - but my circumstances were different.</p>
<p>at my school, bc only does 2 extra chapters than ab, but these chapters r somewhat challenging, like taylor series, etc, but thats really the only difference at my school.</p>
<p>BC is really not that difficult, and the curve on the AP test is ridiculously nice. It also helps to get the PR book.</p>