My son hasn’t taken AP classes because they’re not offered at his school, but is confident he would do well on one or 2 of them. Would a high test score without the class, help his application? He is coming from a highly selective private high school.
No. Colleges are much more interested in how well students do in a class as compared to how well they can cram for an exam.
2 Likes
No US college expects AP exams if the course us not offered
Which likely made the decision to offer its own courses at, or beyond AP level, believing that they can design a curriculum better than the CB. Many high schools have done just that.
In some instances, kids still take the AP exams. How much self studying they do is often dependant on the exam. But they should only do this for potential credit or placement; it does not impact admissions generally
2 Likes
This is interesting, and I did not realize that.
Our local high school will only give a student the “AP“ designation on their transcript if they actually take the test. Otherwise, they just get transcript credit for a regular class, even if they do all the AP class work and get an A.
1 Like
At our school the exam is required, payment is made the second week of school. I don’t know anyone who skipped it, so unaware of the consequences.
In addition to the above comments, it can be difficult in some areas to find a HS that will allow outsiders to take the AP tests.
2 Likes
Particularly if this results in a change in weighting, then they should take the exam. Some, but a relative minority of, high schools will strip AP designation and weighting if the student dies not take the exam. And that won’t be a positive for colleges
But I suspect that’s not the situation being described by OP.
1 Like
If homeschooling, yes, an AP exam score helps support the educational foundation of the student. It can be tougher to find schools to let the student take the test, so be sure to look for those early. We had luck with our local Catholic high school.
But in your situation coming from a highly selective private school I doubt it as long as the school has a good track record sending students to the schools you are considering.
The difference is the admissions office will know from the school/grade that the student has a good foundation.
1 Like
Gah - that is blackmail, pure and simple. The administration wants those numbers of “Ap tests taken by students” to be high, so it is, essentially, forcing students to pay $110 for each AP designation on the kid’s transcript.
In general, many private and magnet schools do not have many or any AP classes, and colleges know this. This is also generally stated in the “High School Profile” that the AOs will get along with your kid’s transcript. That means that they will know that your kid is taking the most rigorous classes that the high school offers.
BTW, high schools which decide that they can give classes which are just as rigorous as AP classes instead of AP classes tend to succeed in this. In many cases, their classes are better preparation for college than AP classes, since the teachers can look at college curricula to determine the topics and focus of the cass, rather than focus on preparing the students for the AP exam.
Lets get back to the OPs question (which relates to self studying).
College admissions officers care much more about a professional educator’s evaluation of a student after ~175+ days of classroom work, homework, labs, quizzes, tests, etc. than they do about a 2-3 hour test.
A test score will be of minor, if any, benefit, based on discussions I’ve had. I recall a conversation with a USN top 30 school recruiter who told a group that he doesn’t even get AP scores for admissions evaluation. “We use them for placement. It’s literally in the name”.
1 Like
For admissions, not helpful to self-study for a bunch of AP exams. Very few will be impressed by a professional test taker. Time is better spent on doing something meaningful or that brings joy.
The only possible value is if they are planning on attending a college that will award credit or give higher placement for a high score for the course not taken, but that is after admissions decisions.
Only if applying to universities outside the US who use subject-based exams for admissions (for example, the UK)
If the class is good prep for the AP exam but doesn’t have AP in its name, taking the exam can allow you to place out of it in college if desired. That, to me, says take it. This is often a useful option to have, whether it’s fulfilling a requirement outside your major (i.e., FL or minimum math level) or not repeating material you have seen and mastered in your major (although in this case, repeating is more common. )
If the score is a 4 or 5, it won’t hurt your app to self-report it, but it’s unlikely to move the decision needle much. So if the only reason to do it is for applications, it’s probably not worth the effort.