<p>Aloha,
I have a general question about how AP Tests (and other on-line college courses) that my D has taken affect the total cost of tuition. She is taking 3 AP tests this spring and is scheduled to take 3 more next year (Psych, Stats, Bio, Comp, Lit, and Art History). She has also taken 2 college level courses (Sociology, and Writing) from a local private university and plans to take two more next year. I am confident she will score 4 and 5s on the AP tests and has received As on the college classes.</p>
<p>I am hoping for some feedback on what actually occurs and how it works with getting college credit for AP Tests? In your experience at Mac, did you end up paying less in tuition? Did you graduate earlier? Or are these AP tests only used by Mac (and other schools) to gauge your aptitude and readiness for college; and is thus a basis for admission?</p>
<p>Thanks for commenting
Mahalo</p>
<p>YMMV depending on the college that she plans to attend. </p>
<p>In my recent experience, the truth about AP and dual enrollment classes is
- most colleges accept some AP credits, but they are usually score dependent, and they have a cap on the amount of credits they will accept
- A few colleges accept NO AP credits
- Some colleges will accept almost ALL AP credits (with proper scores), including for core gen ed classes, but the number of credits is capped
- Most colleges do not accept a few of the AP classes. Common ones that are not accepted are : HUGO, CS, ES, Psych, Stats. Might be a few others too, but those are the main ones.
- Most colleges will accept transfer credits from a local community college or university. However, we did run into a few schools that will not take them if they are dual enrollment (count as part of the HS requirements), only if they are outside of the classes required for HS graduation.
- Transfer credits are also limited, especially if they are from a CC. Only 100 and 200 level classes can transfer from a CC, no 300+ level classes. 300+ level classes must be taken at a 4 year accredited uni for them to transfer. You can run into this problem with upper level math classes at a CC.
- A few colleges will admit your D as a transfer student if she has too many college credits. Some will still admit her as a freshman, then after first semester advance her status as a higher grade level. This is important for scholarships. Freshman scholarships are much, much better than transfer scholarships. </p>
<p>So, the answer is that you CAN make the AP and dual enrollment courses count for a great deal of credits IF you plan accordingly, and really look at the policies of the individual schools that your daughter will apply to. In my son’s case, one of the big reasons that he chose the college that he did was because they are accepting almost all of his credits for AP and CC, and he will be a Junior after his first semester. That allows him to get his Masters under their 4 year scholarship. The amount of money we are saving because of AP and dual enrollment credit is astronomical (to me at least). </p>
<p>A friend of my S is going to Brown. None of his AP credits are counted, he is going into the medical program there. So he feels like he has been ripped off!! AND his education is costing a tremendous amount more than my son’s. </p>
<p>There is somequestion as to whether or not medical schools will accept AP credits too. I have heard some will and some won’t, so that is another thing to consider if she is thinking about medical school. </p>
<p>You need to determine your priorities, and what works best for your daughter and your financial situation. Good luck!</p>
<p>In my experience, the less prestigious colleges/universities give full credit for AP scores. The more prestigious colleges expect prospective students to take AP classes when available, but they are less generous with credit. My daughter came into Mac with 8 AP’s - if my memory serves me at least 6 of her scores were 5’s. She was given advanced standing, which was capped at 5 tests. But it doesn’t mean much since the AP credits don’t count towards her major or distribution requirements. If you search the Mac website you can find the policy on AP’s.To get a good financial deal with AP credits, students need to go to a state university or perhaps a less highly rated LAC.</p>
<p>Presumably you have seen this table documenting Mac’s AP credit policy: <a href=“http://www.macalester.edu/registrar/infoAP.pdf[/url]”>http://www.macalester.edu/registrar/infoAP.pdf</a></p>
<p>vlines and thatsall gave a good summary of what to expect. I will only add that it is my experience that AP (and IB) tests are more likely to get credit from competitive colleges than are dual-enrollment courses. Competitive colleges often have a policy against “double-dipping” according to which they will not offer credit for college-level coursework done in fulfillment of high school graduation requirements.</p>
<p>Thank you Descartez so much for the link. I had not seen that table before and it was very helpful. </p>
<p>I am pretty sure the college courses she is taking are not part of a dual-enrollment program. They are outside of the HS course requirements and curriculum. I will double check though. Thanks for the input.</p>
<p>Aloha,</p>
<p>One more additional piece I just received from a Mac Admissions Councilor I thought I should share…</p>
<p>The total number of credits one can obtain through A.P. exams and/or college courses taken during high school is 20 semester hours (roughly five courses).</p>